2020 JBL Radio - review CarPlay

I had a 2019 TRD with a JBL and now a 2020 TRD with JBL. Here are opinions on the radio.

The new CarPlay is faster than in my Alpine ILX-F309. Noticably faster. All apps pop up fast and no lag.

Both Factory Radios were weak on output but the 2020 lacks base even when cranked.

The speakers are physically the same.

I am going to take pics and pull the radio tomorrow.

I love the new radio features wise, but extremely disappointing in sound.

 

Is the “typical” kicker upgrade something you’re looking at for speaker replacement?

 

I have to check if the OEM JBL amp for 2020 is 2 ohm or 4 ohm. The door speakers are MEH for being JBL's. I will be upgrading.

 

There are a lot more wires and the 2019 Maestro wiring harness doesn't have all of those connections.

 

Weird you say it doesn't sound like the previous one since it's likely all the same stuff per se. The JBL system is adequate imho but not spectacular. Still better than what my accord exl came with.

 

its 2ohm...not many speakers out there wired for that impedance

 

JBL stadium and infinity kappa are 2 ohms speakers systems, I have them in my tacoma and they sound great.

 

well that's good to hear...are they a direct fit into stock speaker cavities or do you need to do some customizing?

 

on the 19, when I upgraded the radio to the alpine, it sounded great. Bass was perfect.

The stock units are lethargic.

 

They are a direct fit, I went with 3 way components, so I did have to drill holes in my sail panels for the tweeters.

You can get the 2 way system and it fits all the stock locations just fine. Be advised though that the OEM JBL system has a different crossover point for the tweeters, so just slapping the aftermarket JBL/Infinity ones in there will result in a blown tweeter pretty fast.

Here are mine (Note: I didnt have the OEM JBL system to start with, so I didnt have any limitations when installing mine)
2 inch mids in the dash

tweeters in the sails panels

6x9 woofers in the doors

 

A few different people have added new speakers but kept the JBL amp, the sub is 2 but the speakers they used were 4 ohm. I think 99% of buyers are happy with the JBL it's a pickup truck not a symphony hall.

 

Is CarPlay really that much better? Seems like some people can't live without it once they've had it in other vehicles.

 

I'm a Luddite so would like someone to tell me about Carplay too.

 

Carplay and android auto just turn your radio into a stripped down version of your cell phone. Only certain apps work with it (no youtube). Its a better solution than streaming music from your phone to the radio with bluetooth as you get more control.

 

Did we ever determine if the newer Carplay-compatible head units will drop into 2016-2019 Tacomas?

 

If you use your phone as a GPS and for listening to music it's great. It'll also read your texts, you can text back by speaking. But the display of the directions as a GPS is great

 

The JBL system I have in my 2016 reads texts and does navigation etc. I thought all the Entune ones did this?