2011 Audio changeout

[axxman]

Thanks,

I would suggest this thread

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/5th-gen-t4rs/92013-antmans-thread-24.html#post989173

 

[Roadstar01]

PM sent on Alpine Stereo.

 

[JamesWhite]

axxxm,

I noticed you had Infinity Kappa 32.9cf but switched to component (pared with 6.5” in front door). Can you tell me if the component improved the sound quality significantly? I am planning my system and will install dash speakers first, other speakers and amp will be later. I would like doing it just one time. If coaxial is okay I would stay with it but I would go with component if it does have advantages. Even it may not be as good as coaxial with no amp but I with judge it with the ultimate result. Thanks!

 

[axxman]

Yes, I did switch to components, I located the tweeters in the dash and the 6.5 in the door, along with a bit of dynamat, this was done in preparation for the amp. these particular components don't really do much until you amp them, the dxi series would be better for that, but I knew I would add an amp. the infinity kappas was a temporary fix I did as soon as I got the car as the stock stereo was not that great. for 50 bucks it made things acceptable.

I am not sure what your plan is, add the kappas to the dash then add door speakers later keeping the kappas in the dash? then adding an amp. probably would be ok, there is another forum member named chip who was building out his system, he did something along those lines. but much more advanced than my system, I tried to keep things as simple as possible, not much more I plan to do but change out the head unit once I find one I want.

 

[JamesWhite]

Yes, I did switch to components, I located the tweeters in the dash and the 6.5 in the door, along with a bit of dynamat, this was done in preparation for the amp. these particular components don't really do much until you amp them, the dxi series would be better for that, but I knew I would add an amp. the infinity kappas was a temporary fix I did as soon as I got the car as the stock stereo was not that great. for 50 bucks it made things acceptable.

I am not sure what your plan is, add the kappas to the dash then add door speakers later keeping the kappas in the dash? then adding an amp. probably would be ok, there is another forum member named chip who was building out his system, he did something along those lines. but much more advanced than my system, I tried to keep things as simple as possible, not much more I plan to do but change out the head unit once I find one I want.

Thanks for your reply. Infinity Kappa 32.9cf is now $139 on Amazon and I don’t believe it worth that much. I already ordered JBL P660C Amazon.com: JBL P660C 6-1/2" 2-way Power Series Component Speakers System: Car Electronics.

My audio project will be in phases:

1. Front speakers
2. Other speakers
3. Amp and subwoofer

I read your posts and want to ask you more questions before I start to install them. Thanks again for your help!


1. I actually wanted to confirm that after you have run your Kappa coaxial (without and with amp) and 6.5“ component (with amp), the component+amp is the best or at least equal to Kappa+amp. My concern is the tweeters lack mid range compared to Kappa

2. How did you wire the front component and where you mounted the crossover? I guess the only way to utilize the factory wires is to put the crossover under tweeters in dash.

3. I did not see you install any mono amp for subwoofer and presume you used the subwoofer output from the JL XD700. What you think for the result?

 

[axxman]

1. I actually wanted to confirm that after you have run your Kappa coaxial (without and with amp) and 6.5“ component (with amp), the component+amp is the best or at least equal to Kappa+amp. My concern is the tweeters lack mid range compared to Kappa

first, the infinity's are long gone, they were in my dash for about 8 months until I was able to afford the Polk audio components that are in the dash and doors now. I never had any 6.5" kappa speakers. it was just the 3.5" kappa speakers in the dash. Briefly, after installing the polks, they were unamplified, I added the JL audio XD 700/5, a 5 channel amp, which powers, the polk components up front and the 6.5" polk dxi coaxials in the rear doors.
so I cannot really speak to kappa speakers in amplified form. Mine were installed as a strait replacement for the dash speakers in the stock system, no other changes. I think I paid 50 dollars for them, they transformed the stock stereo to something quite respectable.


2. How did you wire the front component and where you mounted the crossover? I guess the only way to utilize the factory wires is to put the crossover under tweeters in dash.

crossovers were mounted in the dash under the tweeters.

3. I did not see you install any mono amp for subwoofer and presume you used the subwoofer output from the JL XD700. What you think for the result?

sub is powered by the XD 700/5 a 5 channel amp. it has more power than I need, I keep the gain turned down and I also have the base boost knob installed, I keep that turned down most of the time as well.

 

[JamesWhite]

1. I actually wanted to confirm that after you have run your Kappa coaxial (without and with amp) and 6.5“ component (with amp), the component+amp is the best or at least equal to Kappa+amp. My concern is the tweeters lack mid range compared to Kappa

first, the infinity's are long gone, they were in my dash for about 8 months until I was able to afford the Polk audio components that are in the dash and doors now. I never had any 6.5" kappa speakers. it was just the 3.5" kappa speakers in the dash. Briefly, after installing the polks, they were unamplified, I added the JL audio XD 700/5, a 5 channel amp, which powers, the polk components up front and the 6.5" polk dxi coaxials in the rear doors.
so I cannot really speak to kappa speakers in amplified form. Mine were installed as a strait replacement for the dash speakers in the stock system, no other changes. I think I paid 50 dollars for them, they transformed the stock stereo to something quite respectable.


2. How did you wire the front component and where you mounted the crossover? I guess the only way to utilize the factory wires is to put the crossover under tweeters in dash.

crossovers were mounted in the dash under the tweeters.

3. I did not see you install any mono amp for subwoofer and presume you used the subwoofer output from the JL XD700. What you think for the result?

sub is powered by the XD 700/5 a 5 channel amp. it has more power than I need, I keep the gain turned down and I also have the base boost knob installed, I keep that turned down most of the time as well.

Thanks buddy, really appreciated!

 

[TexasGirl]

Hi axxman! I have a 2012 4R and am about to have a new stereo system installed. I have ordered the Polk Audio DXi 650s for the back seat and rear liftgate, as well as the DXi 6500 components for up front. I see you used the 650s in the back seat and rear. I would love to know how these have turned out for you, and/or if it was necessary to go with the slim mount or if you could have installed the regular 650 speakers?

I ordered through Crutchfield, which really only shows component speakers to be compatible with the back doors and rear liftgate, however components in these places is not an option for me. After speaking with someone on the phone and bringing up option of the slim mounts, I was told they would be able to work....so that is what I ordered. However, I noticed on the slim mount vs. regular 650 that you give up a little bit of frequency range and a tiny bit of RMS wattage. I have been unable to confirm with anyone what speakers will in fact work in these locations, but since you have done the install....could you please advise me? Do you think the regular Dxi 650 would work?

I have strongly considered the MM's, but cannot find them at an affordable place anywhere reputable except Amazon and it's thru a 3rd party seller so warranty will not stand. Crutchfield is showing the MM's discontinued. FYI, I got the Alpine PDX-V9 which is very similar to the JL HD900/5, puts out 500 watts to sub channel and 100 watts to 4 other channels at either 2 or 4 ohm. I plan on pairing the JL Audio dual 8" subs in ported enclosure with all of this. Very excited about the install, but still not completely confident in my speaker selection. I am still considering JL speakers as well, but the price tag is too high for me and on paper the Polk's appear to actually be better. I have some experience with Polk and know they are good, but not sure if it would be worth the extra money to upgrade to the MM's or go with JL.

Please give me your opinion on this when you get a chance.

Thank you!!

 

[axxman]

Hi Texasgirl,

I will try to answer all questions, if I miss any don't hesitate to follow up with me. First the fronts.

the door openings are not 6X9, there is no adapter available. I ended up using the stock speaker as my adaptor by modifying it. Also the way toyota has the front door/dash wired in series made using the existing wire difficult. I ended up running a new pair of wires to feed the cross overs. The tweeters are in the dash location, the woofers are in the doors. I believe I have the shallow mounts, also by using the original speaker frame as an adaptor, it gives an inch or so spacing. so to answer your question, I think the DXi separates would be a fine choice, I almost chose them, but you are still going to need to fabricate some sort of brackets to mount the door speakers.

I have the DXi 650 shallow mounts in the rear doors. I think they are a great choice, I havent bought a set for the tailgate yet, they drop right in, again, I think I got the shallow mount version. cant remember if it was necessary but I wanted to be sure.

My advice is take the opportunity to get some dynamat in the doors, this car has quite a bit of sheet metal in the doors, it made a noticeable difference when I shut the door, it sounds much more solid. it didn't cover everything, just the big open areas and around where the speaker is located.

I run everything from the stock stereo through my JL audio XD700/5, I have the gains almost all the way down, it sounds loud and clear at 3/4 volume, way below what the amp is capable of, I may eventually go with an alpine head unit, but I really love the way the bluetooth/voice command works in this car and I don't want to give that up. I haven't come across an aftermarket HU that works as well as the stock toyota.

I am really happy with the sound, the way it is now, it is not the loudest stereo, but the quality is great, it sounds good and detailed at low volume as well as high and doesn't give me a headache, I had a similar setup in a previous car, and this matches that one.

as far as the Dxi component set in the front, I wouldn't hesitate, I only went with the MM650s because at the time, crutchfield had a sale that made them about the same price as the DXi equivalent.

I agree the JL speakers looked good, but they are out of my price range. There are a couple of guys on the 5th gen forum that installed JL speakers, including I think H2Odoc, I guess if you can afford them, great, but I think I got the best speakers for the money.

 

[JamesWhite]

Hi Texasgirl,

I am also in the middle of audio system upgrading. I have already installed front components and hatch door coaxials. The amp and sub are on shipment.

Regarding the door speaker compatibility, I don’t think you should have any concern. No matter how Crutchfield says, there is no speaker directly fit without customized adaptor (you can crash the factory speaker and reuse the mount or make your own adaptor). There is plenty of space between the mounting metal sheet and outside door sheet. You also want to bring the speaker rim closer the grill on the door panel by adding spacer.

The bottom line: you should only consider the slim mount if you believe it will sound better.

I attached a couple of picture for your reference. The MDF adaptor was so easy and should not be a problem for a professional installer.

 

[axxman]

Now its time for the Head unit

Since last summer I have been going back and forth on what to do about the Head Unit. it sounds great as is, but I think there is room for improvement, I think I have gotten all I can out of the stock head unit, maybe with a good LOC I could get a better sound, but I would still be stuck with the limitations of the stock HU. I looked at entune units from 2012 and later but finding a head unit is difficult and usually they want quite a bit of money for them.

So that brings me to Aftermarket. I wanted to keep steering wheel controls, keep the aux in and usb in the stock toyota locations, and be able to view my BU camera on the screen instead of just the tiny mirror display. I didn't mind giving up cd player, I have 2 ipods and a iphone, apple lossless sounds fine to me.

Parts List:

1. 
   Alpine ICS-X7HD arrived 5/7
   Alpine iPod/iPhone cable
   Metra Electronics 70-8114 TURBOWire Wire Harness, plugs into steering wheel control harness, eliminates having to tap/splice those wires as well as provides two RCA inputs for the Aux-in I plan to retain.
   Axxess ASWC-01 steering wheel control adapter
   Scosche dash kit
   MetraToyota USB cable, allows keeping the factory usb. Ordered wrong cable, wrong connector
   Correct one ordered 5-16 still not the correct part.
   RCA cable to carry the backup cams signal down from the mirror.
   PAC TR-7 to allow me to use my head unit.
   

 

[axxman]

I was going to wait until I received everthing, but I couldn't help myself
steering wheel control module is on the way, USB to Toyota wire harness adaptor on the way, Backup camera cable on the way.
I only listened to it briefly but my god it sounds better.

No toyota wires were cut during this installation, Nor will they be. everything is plug and play so far, I will have to tap the 2 wires for the back up cam, this is the only thing I wont be able to easily reverse from this installation.

Had to splice into the video and power feeds to get the reverse cam to work, hated doing it and considered some other options that may have let me plug and play but I broke down and used red tap connectors.

the wire combo that worked for me was red for power, the red over next to the blue, and white/black wires.

White wire for video feed v+ to the center conductor on the RCA.
Black wire to the outer ground on the RCA.
I now have both the mirror monitor as well as the alpine working.

Tip: I went to the trouble of running a separate wire for the power and a yellow connector video RCA cable. I read on other forums that using a pair of rca stereo leads, a red and a white, use one of the leads for the two vide connections and cut the ends off the other RCA to use for you power connection, this just makes things a little cleaner. I had already run the wires when I read this and if I had to do it over again, this is how I would have done it.
Photos coming soon.

 

[JamesWhite]

Thanks for the updates. I actually followed your posts a lot on my audio installation. I am using JL XD 700 amp based on yours and ChipG's feedbacks.

I just finished my project which included front component speakers, hatch coaxial speakers, left rear doors speakers unchanged. Sound deadning on front and hatch doors. JL 700 amp, and 10" subwoofer.

My only complaint currently is that the sound is too loud even though I adjusted the input sensitivities to minimum. I have to use the remote level control knob for all speakers instead of for subwoofer only. Otherwise the volume knob on dash can only be on just above minimum.

It seems like I am going to keep this car for few more years. My ultimate plan is to replace the head unit especially heard from you guys regarding the additional improvement.

Right now I am considering the HID headlights

 

[axxman]

Found out i have the wrong usb plug today, ordered the other one, hope it works so i dont need to make my own.
Installed the steering wheel controle adaptor today audio controls worked right away but not blue tooth.

was able to get the steering wheel controls working, though not the bluetooth phone controls.

update, got the bluetooth controls working, partially, I can hang up, and I can answer but I still cannot initiate a call. I will remap the voice control button to mute. I think this is as good as it gets.

remaining items:
alpine ipod cable ordered 6-2-2013
USB cable to factory USB 6-2-2013
rear camera feed complete 6-2-2013
calibrate backup cam
calibrate sound setup


probably in the next week or two. then I can do a full writeup.

 

[axxman]

Here are some photos from installation:

This first one, is a little blurry, but basically I floor tested everything before I put it into the car, made the actual install only 10min or so. I used my bose portable speaker and connected a headphone jack to it and one of the rca outputs, built the wiring harness, with tr7 bypass so I could get into the settings. Used my ipod as an audio and video source to test ever thing out.

Here is the harness I made. while testing I shook it around to make sure nothing was loose. I used white tape to make it easier to spot trouble. every wire was kept to original length used or unused, so that I can peel away the tape and everything is pretty much original condition. I used posi-taps and butt splices for all connections. I tapped everything into the adaptor harnesses wiring so none of my toyota wiring has been disturbed. this seems excessive I know, but if I have to troubleshoot a ground loop or something, I want the problem isolated.

Here is a photo of the original radio next to the alpine. The vents and hazard light switch needed to be transferred, 6 or 8 small screws, and some clips. the Scosche is really nicely designed, tabs match up with the toyota holes, though only 2 of them, and the plastic brackets holes lined up with the holes on the alpine, side to side there is almost no gap and it sits flush, on the bottom there is a little gap 2-3mm but not noticable since the bottom edge of the alpine sticks out. the trim is a little scratched up as it has been sitting around for 18 months or so while I tried to decide if I was going to change out the head unit. I have another one in pristine condition I will change over to once I have everything 100%.

And here is the final result, installation was so fast I didn't have time to take photos, everything was just plug and play. I am still waiting on a couple of parts so I can connect the backup cam and iPhone, and I will remap 1 of the steering wheel button, so those photos will have to wait.

I discovered yesterday that holding down the offhook button on the steering wheel activates siri eyes free, problem is, you say a command and you need to touch the on screen button to execute the command. I will experiment further.

 

[axxman]

Managed to get the backup camera working today using advise from members on this forum as well as forums from other sites:

Both displays at the same time.

Here is a closeup of the display

Additionally, I was able to connect the factory USB plug to the Alpine.

 

[axxman]

installed the ipod cable from alpine, it has an extra plug for the video, so I put a grommet in the glovebox wall and secured the cable there, I can use it to connect other video sources if need be, such as a video camera.

 

[BrianSD_42]

I want to put that head unit in my Lexus CT sooo bad. I have been following it since its announcement in April. The only problem is if I install it I will want to do the whole car which will set me back another $750 at least.

 

[axxman]

I made a couple videos of the installation, dont expect too much.

Alpine ICS-X7HD Installation Pt1 - YouTube

 

[BrianSD_42]

Is your camera the 720p one?