Well, I really love my pearl '99 TL, (just bought it last month) but being used to driving cars with systems in them, I find the factory low end a little (well, a lot) lacking... Since I really want to retain the clean look of the factory CD player/radio, I am going to leave it there, but my question is, since the interior speakers already sound pretty good, should I go through the extra effort to amplify them externally or just amplify my sub and leave the interiors powered by the factory head unit? In all of my other cars I have amplified all speakers, and the increase in sound quality is very noticeable, but this is my first "luxury" car, it's a lot quieter than my Prelude... I wonder if come summer time, the factory unit will be able to push the interior volumes required for windows down/sunroof open @ 80 mph driving... Any suggestions/experiences?
Thanks, Frank

 

This is a topic that has been talked about quite a bit on this board. Do some searches and you'll come up with more info than you can digest in an entire weekend!

I'm not familiar with the layout of the '99 system. The first question I ask someone who wants to upgrade their factory system is how much they are willing to spend and how much time are they willing to put into it. After all, money is the driving factor in the long run and time is the most valuable asset we have.

If you're just looking to beef up the bottom end (bass) you might consider a pre-fab powered sub. Most come with speaker level inputs that make the sub kick in once current is available. The outcome? average bass output while maintaining the least amount of installation troubles/skills.

In my opinion, I'd toss all the factory speakers and what Acura calls a sub, and start from scratch. It will obviously cost more down the road but will make for a MUCH better sounding system.

You have to decide how dedicated you are before you can really move on it. It's like a whirlpool, once you start, you get sucked in....

Good luck!

 

While on the subject.. what are the stock 1999 TL speaker sizes? And which size is in the back and which is in the front?

It looks like there are no speakers on the back panel, only in the rear doors.. and 2 more in the front doors..

I think there's only the sub in the back panel?

I need to know this too...

 

Speakers are 4 in the doors and sub in back panel. The doors will accept about any 5 1/4 and some 6 1/2. Some 6 1/2 or 6 3/4 will require mods to the door.

 

AcuraX2,

so you're saying they are 6 1/2's in the rear doors and 5 1/2's in the front?

that would be pretty crappy.. a sales guy at the store pulled up acura 1999 3.2 to and said they have 6 x 9's and 5 1/2

 

I would assume that your 1999 is like my 2000. My 2000 has the same size speakers in the front and back doors. The factory speaker is somewhere between a 5 1/4 and 6 1/2. You can search the forum and see that alot of different speakers can be used. However, there are only a couple of 6 1/2's that will just drop in without any modification. Alot of 5 1/4's will fit with no mods. Both doors should be the same size. Someone please correct me if I am wrong. I know the fronts are right but, I am only going on what I have read on here for the rears.

 

the factorys are a shallow mount 6 to 6 1/2 (its another odd bose size) in all four doors. If u just want to improve low end go with a nice 10 inch subwoofer in a sealed box.