I was wondering if it was possible to improve the sound quality in the car without replacing the stock HU. I love my six-in dash changer and really dont want to loose that feature. Plus I prefer to have that stock look to it.

I am a noob when it comes to car audio equipment and was wondering if there was any way to improve the overall sound quality. The bose system does a pretty good job but Im almost certain that there are other options out there. I dont want to put a sub in the trunk due to the extra weight it will add to the car. If there are any suggestions of speaker replacements and even for a replacement sub that would be great.

 

It is possible to add an aftermarket amp and speakers to your OEM HU.

You can just replace the speakers, but the amplifer is pretty low power and the way it's set up - how many highs it sends to the tweeters vs how much it sends the midrange, etc., is optimized to get the most possible out of the crappy OEM speakers - putting better speakers in there would usually be a ripoff in that they would not sound worth the money. I would read Derrick's sticky on upgrading second gen sound system bvecause it addresses that topic, and I would also read the SQ for noobs post.

ALso, you might want to read Post #2 on this thread: https://acurazine.com/forums/audio-video-electronics-navigation-22/want-upgrade-stock-audio-294826/

And answer the first two questions, at least to yourself... : )

 

Thank you for the info. I guess I should have done some research prior to making a new thread.

Correct me if I am wrong but I figure that to improve the sound quality I am going to nee an amp and of course speakers.

Any suggests on what would be a good amp and set of speakers to look at? I want something mid to high end.

 

OK, I prefer soft dome cloth tweeters to metal dome or hard surface tweeters, especially when they are bouncing off of the inside of the glass like in the TSX.

I have had better results on a tight budget using MB Quart coaxials with the tweeters down low, rather than putting them in the dash (we've used the lower-end MBQ coaxials). Jigga likes his MBQ tweeters up high and thinks I'm wack about this : ) I do say that if you want a lot of highs and put them up high, to get the MBQ with the better xover ("Premium"?)

I like:
a/d/s/, dynaudio (costly, Morel (also costly and hard to find in a car kit), DLS (I think made by Morel, Alpine X-type (made by Vifa or ScanSpeak in Europe, depending on the series), and I hear really good things about Rainbow.

I am not a fan of the following, but they have their supporters: MBQ with separate tweet, Diamond, Infinty Kappa, Polk, Alpine S or R types, Focal (best of this list, but I think they sound dry and thin on the highs...). Of all this second list Focal is the best... but I still prefer the first ones. You can also get cheaper FOcals but they don't sound as good.

 

what is wrong with the Alpines? if you want to spend SEVERAL hundred dollars (ie 400 for 6.5" component set) then yes, the X is the way to go. but on a tighter budget.....you won't get Alpine-X'ish quality for $100. things at the lower price level, for the most part, seem to be very similar with any decent quality brand. but there are many exceptions, i just don't know them all.

 

I like the lower-end Alpines as much as any other value-priced kit, but yeah, to get the sound I want, I guess I do want to spend several hundred dollars. Wasn't trying to pick on them specifically... It was one of those opinion questions...

 

oh np.....i was really just wanting to know if you knew something i didn't. hehe