DIY 3.5" JL Audio dash speaker upgrade - Wow!! (detailed how-to)

PopsSmith said:
Has anybody done this mod on a stock JBL system? I have a blow speaker that needs to be replaced but definitely don't want to go with factory. Thoughts?
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Yeah I have the JBL system in my limited and I swapped them out with the same JL 3.5 inch speakers. The sound is significantly better than stock. Also just installed the JL audio C2 6x9’s in the door and dampened my doors with some Noico 80 mil from amazon. The difference is unreal. There’s actually bass in the cabin with the 6x9’s to where I might not get a sub. They make my rear door speakers sound awful compared to the front. I think I want to get rid of all of the speakers before deciding on whether I want to add a sub.
 
Mikey_Cheng said:
Yeah I have the JBL system in my limited and I swapped them out with the same JL 3.5 inch speakers. The sound is significantly better than stock. Also just installed the JL audio C2 6x9’s in the door and dampened my doors with some Noico 80 mil from amazon. The difference is unreal. There’s actually bass in the cabin with the 6x9’s to where I might not get a sub. They make my rear door speakers sound awful compared to the front. I think I want to get rid of all of the speakers before deciding on whether I want to add a sub.
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did you have to do any mods to fit the JL audio C2 6x9’s or were they plug and play? Did you test the sound upgrade w/ just the speakers before you installed the Noico? I installed Noknoise and it helped sound w/o changing speakers.
 
Neauxla said:
did you have to do any mods to fit the JL audio C2 6x9’s or were they plug and play? Did you test the sound upgrade w/ just the speakers before you installed the Noico? I installed Noknoise and it helped sound w/o changing speakers.
Click to expand...

I bought the metra 6x9 mounting kit on amazon and it was pretty much plug and play. I spliced into the stock wires using some connectors. I did not test the speakers without the sound dampening but I would imagine there would be a lot of rattle.
 
Mikey_Cheng said:
Yeah I have the JBL system in my limited and I swapped them out with the same JL 3.5 inch speakers. The sound is significantly better than stock. Also just installed the JL audio C2 6x9’s in the door and dampened my doors with some Noico 80 mil from amazon. The difference is unreal. There’s actually bass in the cabin with the 6x9’s to where I might not get a sub. They make my rear door speakers sound awful compared to the front. I think I want to get rid of all of the speakers before deciding on whether I want to add a sub.
Click to expand...

How many square feet did you need to do the doors? Not that I couldn't use more somewhere else, but I see Amazon has 36 or 18 square feet available. And, sorry I'm a noob, but when you installed it I'm assuming you go edge to edge on the door skin... or do you do the inside of the door behind the door panel?
 
HanginInUtah said:
How many square feet did you need to do the doors? Not that I couldn't use more somewhere else, but I see Amazon has 36 or 18 square feet available. And, sorry I'm a noob, but when you installed it I'm assuming you go edge to edge on the door skin... or do you do the inside of the door behind the door panel?
Click to expand...

I went a little overboard and almost used all of the first package of 18 square feet I bought in the front doors. I went edge to edge on the door panel and in the lower area where the 6x9 sits. You just need to make sure nothing gets in the way of the window closing. I ordered another 18 square foot box when I ordered the sub but I wish I would have ordered a little bit just to solidify the rear of the cabin.
 
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Mikey_Cheng said:
... dampened my doors with some Noico 80 mil from amazon. The difference is unreal. There’s actually bass in the cabin with the 6x9’s to where I might not get a sub. They make my rear door speakers sound awful compared to the front. I think I want to get rid of all of the speakers before deciding on whether I want to add a sub.
Click to expand...

I'm planning to add some RAAMmat to my front doors, see how it sounds, and then decide whether to change the door speakers. I may do the same with the rear doors and hatch.

http://www.raamaudio.com/raammat-bx...riod-please-click-to-see-product-description/
 
Mikey_Cheng said:
Yeah I have the JBL system in my limited and I swapped them out with the same JL 3.5 inch speakers. The sound is significantly better than stock. Also just installed the JL audio C2 6x9’s in the door and dampened my doors with some Noico 80 mil from amazon. The difference is unreal. There’s actually bass in the cabin with the 6x9’s to where I might not get a sub. They make my rear door speakers sound awful compared to the front. I think I want to get rid of all of the speakers before deciding on whether I want to add a sub.
Click to expand...

I've been wondering what the sound difference was from the JBL system and whether or not it was worth it, so thanks for posting! Just curious...doesn't seem like replacing the rear door speakers will significantly affect the audio quality up front, so why go through the hassle/money? My kids are the only ones riding back there anyway. ;^)
 
57HotrodVW said:
To limit lower frequency sounds from being played by these speakers, and prevent "clipping" at higher volumes, I also bought a pair of 133 microfarad capacitors (aka "bass blockers"), to cut sounds below 300 Hz - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B017AJ5ECW

31664017048_efc49007d5_c.jpg
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Fantastic write up! How do you feel about the 300 Hz cutoff? Do you think any higher or lower would have been better?
 
Texachris said:
Fantastic write up! How do you feel about the 300 Hz cutoff? Do you think any higher or lower would have been better?
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Thanks. I'm not an audio expert, but based on my research, 300 Hz is the ticket for these speakers.

It has been a little while since I installed them, and I'm still very happy with the sound. A very worthwhile upgrade, that is pretty easy/inexpensive.

I ordered some RAAMmat sound deadening material, and am going to put that inside the front doors next. I've heard that this makes a big difference in sound from the door speakers.
 
57HotrodVW said:
Thanks. I'm not an audio expert, but based on my research, 300 Hz is the ticket for these speakers.

It has been a little while since I installed them, and I'm still very happy with the sound. A very worthwhile upgrade, that is pretty easy/inexpensive.

I ordered some RAAMmat sound deadening material, and am going to put that inside the front doors next. I've heard that this makes a big difference in sound from the door speakers.
Click to expand...

That is something I might do as well since I'll be in there (RAAMmat). I found a pair of Infinity Kappas and since the cone size is the same 300 Hz should work well for them too. Looking forward to hearing a difference even though I'm going from the JBL speaker system. For the cost of the speakers it's definitely worth a shot.
 
Nice write up. I'm thinking i am going to try and do this with a 4" speaker. Thinking of going with Audio Frog, bur I might cheap out with the JBL or JL.
 
bigguy02 said:
Nice write up. I'm thinking i am going to try and do this with a 4" speaker. Thinking of going with Audio Frog, bur I might cheap out with the JBL or JL.
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I'd love to see you squeeze a 4" in there, it may be wide enough to bolt right into the stock holes. Not sure about the magnet height though, especially on the passenger side
 
Swipter said:
I am watching all the speaker changes using the factory head unit. Is it powerful enough to make a difference in a 2018 sr5 regular or are better quality speakers making the difference?
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I did some JBL 3.5's in the dash and Kicker 6x9's in the doors. Also added sound deadening material to the doors. It sounds really good running off the factory amp. I am postponing my plans for a 4 channel amp and an under seat sub.
 
bigguy02 said:
Nice write up. I'm thinking i am going to try and do this with a 4" speaker. Thinking of going with Audio Frog, bur I might cheap out with the JBL or JL.
Click to expand...

You might be able to swing that on the driver's side, but I think it would take major work to fit a 4" speaker on the passenger side.

A good 3.5" coaxial speaker makes a lot of difference, without a lot of effort/expense.
 
57HotrodVW said:
Those are the factory speaker brackets. You'll see pics of them attached to the factory speakers, early in this post.
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You mean the ones circled in red? Are they just cutouts from the OEM mount? 20190124_002105.jpeg

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk
 

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57HotrodVW said:
After seeing a few posts about speaker upgrades, I decided to do one to the dash speakers in my '18 TRD Pro, and thought I'd share. In short, this lower cost, relatively easy upgrade is well worth it, and makes a huge difference in sound quality!
Click to expand...

Really "high quality" tutorial thread 57HotrodVW,

...very well planned, thought through, and exquisitely presented! 'Best to you',

rig!
 
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