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sub woofer

7K views 40 replies 11 participants last post by  Southern4x4 
#1 ·
I have the JBL package in my car, and I was wondering if it is possible to replace the sub with a better one? and if i have to also replace the amp under the passenger seat. what will that take, and is it possible to just due those two without redoing the whole system?
 
#3 ·
Thats pretty much what i have done. I found the JBL sub to be ok but i'm a bass head so i always wanted more bass.

I got a rockford fosgate prime amp and an Alpine type R slim 12" sub, then ofcourse that wasnt enough so i added another sub, Alpine type R slim 10"

you dont need to replace the factory amp, that would be a nightmare...

you just need a good HiLo to take the high level input and make it into an amplify-able signal.

For my intents and purposes it sounds great.. i'm sure a purist audiophile would cringe at the thought of using a HiLo, using the stock HU, or even having a 12 & a 10
but it sounds clean and loud with hard bass, thats all i wanted.

Good luck with it!
 
#4 · (Edited)
thanks!

i am willing to spend around 300 or more on a sub. i want more bass. i think the JBL speakers that are all around are very good, and clean. although the sub in the back sucks. i want to have more bass from the sub, and less from the speakers. i like to feel the bass, but i dont want to have top much over power that its all you can hear. what would i have to do to get the old sub out, and put in the new one, and what kind of sub am i looking for? any suggests? i want it to place back into the slot dont want to do to much extra. can i just take the audio cables from the old one, and put it to the new one? I am a newbie to this so as much detail as possible please.
 
#6 ·
Subbed to this. I want what you want landon94. I have found the 2014 jbl system to be extremely weak and incapable to match up to my 2008 honda ridgeline. Mind you I'll be buying a 2015 model, but I don't think they will make significant enough changes to the audio system in a 2nd release of this generation truck.
 
#5 ·
Sounds like you should take it to a stereo shop if you're unsure.. dont want to fry your system, it'll cost you more to repair it...

you're going to have to spend more than $300.... unless you want junk, which in that case you might as well leave what you have in now

you will want a slim subwoofer, and those cost $$ for good ones, i'd recommend the Alpine Type R slim in either a 12 or a 10 either would be an improvement
they will set you back close to $400, maybe less...

Alpine® SWR T12 12" Shallow Mount Type R Slim Car Subwoofer Sub Woofer 600W RMS 613815576563 | eBay

then a proper amplifier

this is a GREAT price for this amp

Rockford Fosgate Prime R500X1D 500 Watt Monoblock Class D Subwoofer Amplifier 780687340605 | eBay


then you will want a line output converter
you can go cheap to top of the line

line output converter | eBay
 
#7 ·
i agree with you! there is not going to much change with it all. i am very new to all of this, so what would i have to do? i understand getting the sub, and the amp. what is the line converter for? would it be at simple of changing out the amp i have in my car and just swapping them? so do i have to do the whole thing?
 
#8 ·
Once again, based on your questions i believe it would be best if you took it to a professional shop to have it installed.

You will need to have a power wire run from your batter to the inside of the truck to the back seat to power the amplifer, also you will have to run a remote wire to turn on your amp, i'm running mine from the cigarette lighter on the left side as it turns on and off with the ignition.

the line converter would get its signal from the speaker wires that are powering the JBL subwoofer and it would take the High Level signal and make it an amplify-able low level signal that you would run to your amplifier..

you wont be changing out the amp in your truck... you leave it alone...
you are just adding another amp to power the new subwoofer.

anyhow, unless you really know what you are doing and are comfortable with doing all the wiring, i would seriously suggest you hold off on the install, save up some more $$ and get it done right the first time...

save some $$ and buy quality components... it will cost you more in the long run to buy cheap stuff, not be happy with it and have to go buy better components later on... trust me i've burned through 3 RockfordFosgate slim 12's until i finally said fk it and spent $400 on the alpine subwoofer
 
#9 ·
so i am looking at the subwoofer on ebay the alpine. that is a great price!!! so i am looking at amps right now, and the sub is 4 ohms, and all of the amps that i am seeing are 2 ohms, and they cover the 600 rms watts. is it still okay if i do that?
 
#11 ·
I actually almost went that route..

what i was proposing was to pull out his stock JBL sub and replace it with an Alpine type R slim 12" and power it with a RockFord Fosgate Prime amp.. pretty much what i'm running.

he will also need to have a box custom made to fit under the seat... might get lucky and find one off the shelf...
 
#12 ·
Fox box makes one for the dc and cm for 2 10" subs for around $200. But he needs to get the subs that fox reccommends. Also needs an amp with a level control that he can put up front to control the bass. When I had the jbl system I dropped all the bass on the stock speakers and the sub do the work

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#13 ·
Found a steal on two Helix Esprit E12W a few weeks ago and they are impressive. Had two 10" Kicker CVT's and was fairly happy with those until switching for the 12's. IMO, I would be happy with a single 12". They hit lower frequencies than the 10's but two 12's in a double cab for me is overkill. At the volume I use, one 12" would be sufficient.
Dragos' advice is solid. The Alpine has awesome reviews. The Helix is a little cheaper but you will be quite pleased with the output and sound quality. The stock amp for the sub will most likely erase any gains an aftermarket sub may yield so adding an aftermarket amp is essential. The RF prime class D is good. I have the 750.1 and it is plenty.
 
#14 ·
so I have one more question, and that is can i just take out the old sub since i already have the box for it in my truck? then replace it with the new sub? i am looking at a 12" sub, but i am not sure what the old sub is. i cant find the specs on it at all.
 
#17 ·
so i just had an adventure with my car, and took apart the back wall of my car where the subwoofer is. I also had an idea that i wanted to share, and wanted to see if it would work. since i already have the power from the battery to the 8 channel amps that is with the jbl system. can i just split that power before the amp use that split to both amps. then take the high out put right how the other side of the amp to use the converter to a low useable frequency. use both of those to the new amp, then put the amp to a new enclose and box. then i can just run the rest of everything. i can cut out the back panel to fit the new enclosure. also remove the old sub. what is everyones thought on that? is it possible or just stupid?
 

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#19 ·
could you explain to me a little more what you did. i dont want to get in the back of my HU. i want to stay out of that as much as possible. i am pretty good with wiring stuff. if there is a video on how to run power wires from the battery to inside of the car. i think i could do that. would my way work? if i leach off the power from the stock amp? then also using the converter would that work also? or if i use the wires from the stock amp as the signal. is that possible? the enclosure, and sub wiring is simple for me. i just want to get the amp stuff right.
 
#20 ·
Your way would work, I just find it a little harder to find which wire are which. Also I would not want to burn up the stock amp power wires because there so small. If u run power wires from the battery then connect the remote wire from the amp to the power on the stock amp that should work. What I explained earlier is basically a detailed version of what I did because there isn't much more to tell. If there are specifics you want to know I will try to help.

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#21 ·
well thanks for your advice. i am not trying to put a system that is going to try and shake my car. i just want some more bass so i can not use as much bass on my speakers. what do you think about this sub, and amp? Prime R500X1D, JL Audio Stealthbox, and 13TW5-3. how good would this set up be? is that sub not a bad one? it would fit perfect in my car. i could maybe cut a little, but other than that nothing really. if i hook that up to the power wires. do you think it would fry them? if you do think so i may try and run wire myself through my car. or fish the line through with 2 sets of wires that are much larger to run more efficient.
 
#23 ·
I am a noob at all of this so thanks for everyones advice in all of this. i am trying to save money, but dont want a bad system.

just curious if anyone know, but what gauge is the stock wiring? what can it handle. the amp that is in there is roughly 400 rms with 8-ch.

how hard is it really to run wire through my car from the battery. that is the main thing i am worried about.
 
#24 ·
It's pretty easy to run the wires to the battery, under the dash on the driver side is a rubber grommet that the steering wheels shift goes thru. You can drill a small hole in it using like a 1/8" bit then tape the wire to a metal coat hanger and push it thru. The stock amp wire is like a 16 or 18g wire compared to a 4 or 8g wire needed for an aftermarket amp. The amp and sub your looking at will work perfectly for what u want. If u want to save a little money I have a Memphis audio amp I'm selling that is small but more powerful than the amp your looking at. Either way we're here to help!

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#25 ·
thanks for the offer, but i want stuff that has a warranty. that way i can return it if there is a problem. so the stock amp is on the passenger side. does that make a different since i want to keep the power cables next to each other?

after pulling it through can someone tell me some details on how to run the wire along the carpet and stuff? i saw where the stock subs wires come out. i can put it right through the same hole. i think fishing back through the same holes is going to be the best bets for most of it. i definitly do need to run the power wire tho.

will i need to get into the back of the HU to get the inputs? or do i take the outputs from the stock amp? and put them into the new one?
 
#26 ·
Since the new amp power cables are separate from the stock amp it doesn't matter what side either is on. To run the wires to the back once u get thru the fire wall, remove the kick panel on the driver side then remove the door sils which pop off really easy, u will see a channel to run the wire thru. Then once you reach the back you can either remove the seat or fish the wire thru, whichever is easier.

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#27 ·
you really should pay a shop to do this for you. you talk about saving money then mention buying a $900 woofer/enclosure. what's another $50 in labor at that point?

the only way you are getting a JL warranty is through an authorized JL dealer. save yourself the hassle, and let them do the work.
 
#28 ·
Landon, I worry for you... mostly for your poor truck....

anyhow... keep a fire extinguisher on hand if you plan on doing what you propose, since you pretty much keep ignoring what others have been telling you and you keep wanting to mess with the stock amp..

how about this

LEAVE THE STOCK AMPLIFIER ALONE

it's really that simple

you dont have to do anything behind the stock HU.. but you will have to source a wire that will work as a remote signal... like i told you before, you can source that from the LEFT cigarette lighter

stop trying to pull power from the stock amplifier, since you are gung-ho on installing it yourself, buy an amp kit with a power wire and fuse block and run it through the left grommet, you'll figure it you, pull off all the kick panels and run the wire.

you'll have to get a hand grinder to expose a spot of metal on your truck somewhere in the back so you can get a GOOD ground source otherwise it'll sound like crap

you will remove the stock sub and use the the source wires to your LOC, like i stated before..


I'm not going to lie, it is a bit frustrating when someone tells you everything you're asking about and you completely disregard everything and still want to pursue a WRONG, VERY WRONG method that will ultimately cause your truck damage


Before you decide to go any further, take a few minutes and read what others have done

http://www.tundratalk.net/forums/tundra-audio-visual-discussion/102398-tips-adding-amp-stock-head-unit.html
 
#29 ·
FYI… When I first got my truck… I went to a stereo shop to have my JBL sub replaced. They had an MTX sub that fit the hole (somewhat). The JBL POS sub is an odd size. They used some kind of inline adapter on the wires that plugged into the JBL sub and ran new wires front the adapter back to a new amp for the MTX. BUT…. after putting the plastic panel back on… the MTXs rubber-rim would hit the panel and vibrate on harder bass hits.

After a week of that. I ordered a Q-Logic rear-firing dual sub box. I cut the bump out of the rear panel and yanked the stock sub box. The larger subs sounded soooo much better and I only gave up a few clicks on one of the back seats. Good luck
 
#30 ·
I get what everyone is saying. I am trying to explore my option. I am not disregarding anyone suggestions. I get that I should have someone that knows what they are doing it for me. This is kind of a learning experience that I want to take on. I am studying to become an electrical engineer, so I need to learn this stuff. Yeah I talked to some co workers, and I will run the wire through the left side of my car. I have all the necessary tools to do the job correctly.

I get I can put the remote to the left cigarette lighter, but what if I just attached it on the same remote on the old sub. It's less of a distance, and both subs would turn on at the same time.


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#33 ·
I've posted that question a while back on here and also on an audio forum..
really couldnt get a great answer but essentially no one really ever uses the high pass filter on the amp

they always suggest an external LOC as providing "purer" signal... especially if you get one of the fancy ones.

for bass/subwoofer i dont think it really makes a difference
 
#34 ·
When I added subs I installed an AudioControl LC2i that gets it's signal from the stock sub wires. It is auto-sensing and doesn't require a remote trigger and it provides a remote output for an amp remote trigger. It does require a 12 volt power source and ground just like any amp you install will.

You could run power from the battery to the cab of the truck and split that to provide power to the LC2i and sub amp.

In my opinion this is the "easiest" way to add bass.
 
#35 ·
Hey all, what do you think about this install quote? It's pretty elaborate I guess for a speaker package , 2 10's, custom box and all the becessary labour. But looks pretty friggin steep for price. But perhaps I'll have a super wicked stero after this and i won't be bothered by the price! They also RTA the setup.

Please keep in mind that this is Canadian Dollars.

 
#41 ·
Holy cow.... I replaced every speaker with image dynamics, sub with a custom made fiberglass box, 2 amps, new head unit, maestro steering wheel controls, rewired the ENTIRE truck and sound deadened my truck for about 1600 bucks... I literally couldn't think of more to replace. It was a lot of work and I gutted my interior, but worth it! Sounds amazing... Don't spend that many Canadian dollars!
 
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