97BlackAckCL
Elite Member
Yep, I mounted a 3.5" Infinity coaxial speaker there, which improved the sound tremendously. Since I don't have the center channel on my 08 I sold it to zopperman
Has anyone replaced factory JBL AMP with aftermarket?
- Thread starter CAD_GA1390
- Start date
Yep, I mounted a 3.5" Infinity coaxial speaker there, which improved the sound tremendously. Since I don't have the center channel on my 08 I sold it to zopperman
NeutronJon
New member
Is that compatible with the stock JBL amp? I know the JBL system uses low impedance speakers which is why you're almost forced to gut the entire system to replace anything.
tollboothwilley
New member
Yep, I mounted a 3.5" Infinity coaxial speaker there, which improved the sound tremendously. Since I don't have the center channel on my 08 I sold it to zopperman
What channel did you use to push this speaker? I'm assuming you eliminated the stock amp?
I'm installing a stereo in my 4runner right now actually. Using all PAC stuff for wiring. My stock amp isn't turning on right now though.
I need to determine if there is power going back to it or whether the stock amp is the problem. Where is that stock jbl amp located?
97BlackAckCL
Elite Member
I used the center channel stock wiring, and the stock amp to push all my speakers in my 03. I replaced all speakers but the JBL sub and ran them fine off the JBL stock amp
zopperman
Moderator
It's located right next to the sub, in the trunk. There's a write up on how to remove that panel. Do not try to pry out the speaker grill panel. It will break
tollboothwilley
New member
Thanks for the help. I watched a quick youtube video for any tips - but its pretty straightforward as I've done a lot of dissembling of vehicles.
I am just gonna replace the stock everything. I am currently not running the center channel speaker. I'm not sure that I want to. Especially with the stock amp removed.
Different head unit sounds SO much better than the stock one, even if you have diff speakers.
Still debating on what I'm gonna do for the sub - but I think a small amp with a shallow 10" woofer is gonna happen. Swapped out the fronts w/ Alpine 6x9 components, rear w/ 6.5" components. Sounds great now.
I am just gonna replace the stock everything. I am currently not running the center channel speaker. I'm not sure that I want to. Especially with the stock amp removed.
Different head unit sounds SO much better than the stock one, even if you have diff speakers.
Still debating on what I'm gonna do for the sub - but I think a small amp with a shallow 10" woofer is gonna happen. Swapped out the fronts w/ Alpine 6x9 components, rear w/ 6.5" components. Sounds great now.
zopperman
Moderator
Thats what I have too. I would do the JL amp/sub combo with the 8". Barely any real modification to the stock enclosure necessary and the amp hides very well.
tollboothwilley
New member
I'm going to use a 10" - make a custom box for the opening. Depending on which amplifier I get will determine where I decide to mount it.
Ultraphage
New member
Ok,
I’ve got a 2004 sport, JBL (non-rds) 10 speaker system. The sub blew, so I replaced the head unit (but the Bluetooth connection is so quiet I have to use USB to listen thru my phone—-ugh). Then the sub (Rockford fosgate) and the “mid-range” speakers in the doors (6x9’s & 6.5’s).
So everything is connected right and the sound quality is still pretty much shit because the little 2” (high-range) speakers in the front doors, center dash and rear pillars distort. So I purchased new 3.5” speakers to replace those smaller “high-range” ones, but have not installed them because I’m going to have to pound some metal in and fabricate some brackets to hold them to get them to fit. I’m HOPING that this 8mproves the sound quality and level.
Right now my receiver can be turned up to a max level of 35. At 34 pretty much everything will sound distorted (again due to the shitty small speakers), but even at 35—you could still have a conversation with someone else in the car without really having to raise your voice. This system just does not get loud AT ALL.
So now I assume I should replace the factory amp??? I read how everyone said it’s better to just start all over and I probably shouldn’t have bothered trying to get all 2ohm replacement speakers, but at this point, I just want to do what’s cheapest to get some decently loud music in my car.
So, 1) does anyone have any input? 2) any recommendations for a factory amp replacement? I have no idea what to look for since it was a 10 speaker 2ohm system all being run from a single amp, when most amps only have like 4 channels? If a replacement amp costs too much, I’ll just buy a 3-way speaker box, little 50watts amp and scrap everything and run that from the receiver to the rear hatch. 3) how’s that amp run all those speakers anyway? Is it because they are 2ohm speakers that they all run from one amp?
Thanks
I’ve got a 2004 sport, JBL (non-rds) 10 speaker system. The sub blew, so I replaced the head unit (but the Bluetooth connection is so quiet I have to use USB to listen thru my phone—-ugh). Then the sub (Rockford fosgate) and the “mid-range” speakers in the doors (6x9’s & 6.5’s).
So everything is connected right and the sound quality is still pretty much shit because the little 2” (high-range) speakers in the front doors, center dash and rear pillars distort. So I purchased new 3.5” speakers to replace those smaller “high-range” ones, but have not installed them because I’m going to have to pound some metal in and fabricate some brackets to hold them to get them to fit. I’m HOPING that this 8mproves the sound quality and level.
Right now my receiver can be turned up to a max level of 35. At 34 pretty much everything will sound distorted (again due to the shitty small speakers), but even at 35—you could still have a conversation with someone else in the car without really having to raise your voice. This system just does not get loud AT ALL.
So now I assume I should replace the factory amp??? I read how everyone said it’s better to just start all over and I probably shouldn’t have bothered trying to get all 2ohm replacement speakers, but at this point, I just want to do what’s cheapest to get some decently loud music in my car.
So, 1) does anyone have any input? 2) any recommendations for a factory amp replacement? I have no idea what to look for since it was a 10 speaker 2ohm system all being run from a single amp, when most amps only have like 4 channels? If a replacement amp costs too much, I’ll just buy a 3-way speaker box, little 50watts amp and scrap everything and run that from the receiver to the rear hatch. 3) how’s that amp run all those speakers anyway? Is it because they are 2ohm speakers that they all run from one amp?
Thanks
Ultraphage
New member
Oh yeah,
How do I remove the center dash speaker from the mix. I just want it dead, and only use the door, pillar, and sub speakers. Can I just unhook it’s harness and not affect anything else? I know if you unhook the door or pillar tweeters, then the mid range won’t operate.
How do I remove the center dash speaker from the mix. I just want it dead, and only use the door, pillar, and sub speakers. Can I just unhook it’s harness and not affect anything else? I know if you unhook the door or pillar tweeters, then the mid range won’t operate.
Maz0019082
New member
It sounds to me like you're pushing the amplifier into clipping and its still not enough power to properly drive the aftermarket speakers. Clipping occurs when an amplifier is pushed to its limits, so the signal gets 'truncated'. Think of audio as a sine wave, and now imagine that you remove the nice rounded transitions on the top and bottom to create a square wave. This wave is literally translated into the movement of the speaker cone. It's easy to visualize how very sharp transitions would translate to distortion. With your OE speakers, the amp was probably able to properly power the speakers before reaching this clipping point, but you likely require additional power to move the aftermarket speakers.
This is just a guess as I don't have the details on the factory speakers, replacement speakers, or head unit setup, but this has generally held true for other stereos I have installed. If I am correct, then the only thing I can really think to fix this would be to upgrade the amplifier. There are a number of 5 channel amplifiers out there that would be enough to drive this setup, but you will likely have to move from individual speaker inputs to RCA coaxials, or get an adapter.
Generally, an amplifier will drive a 2 Ohm speaker with twice the power of a 4 Ohm speaker, albeit normally with more THD. But I would guess the factory amp is used to taking higher level inputs, therefore has less amplification to do to reach its output. Hope this helps.
Ultraphage
New member
Ok,
So my first post should’ve said, the receiver will only go to 35, but at 24-25 range everything gets distorted. I’m relatively sure it’s the “tweeters” or whatever you want to call them in the front doors, center dash and rear pillars. Also, the 2-ways and sub I replaced are 2 ohm speakers.
Since I replaced the other door speakers with 2-ways, could I just disconnect those stock “tweeters” somehow (any suggestions)?
OR
Should I get a new amp? And would a 5 channel amp do the trick? What kind of wattage should I get?
And btw I can’t apparently get that sweet kenwood 3-way speaker box I had 20 years ago (man I wish I still had that now).
So my first post should’ve said, the receiver will only go to 35, but at 24-25 range everything gets distorted. I’m relatively sure it’s the “tweeters” or whatever you want to call them in the front doors, center dash and rear pillars. Also, the 2-ways and sub I replaced are 2 ohm speakers.
Since I replaced the other door speakers with 2-ways, could I just disconnect those stock “tweeters” somehow (any suggestions)?
OR
Should I get a new amp? And would a 5 channel amp do the trick? What kind of wattage should I get?
And btw I can’t apparently get that sweet kenwood 3-way speaker box I had 20 years ago (man I wish I still had that now).
techoguy
New member
How did you connect the head unit to the stock amp? With my JBL system I had to get a unique device that goes between the HU and amp:
Metra TYTO-01 JBL Amplifier Interface Harness
This device tells the amp to turn on and sends the audio signal to the amp. It also has a gain control so I'm wondering if you're possibly clipping the input to the stock amp, not necessarily the output. When I installed mine, I had to adjust the gain on this device to fix some distortion. My sub has now blown though so I'm planning on replacing the sub and stock amp soon. With the metra device and the stock amp, the system seems to have lost the division between low and high frequencies between the sub and other speakers.
Ultraphage
New member
Yeah,
I had to use that metra harness also. I never thought about it having some sort of gain on it though? I’ll pull the head unit out and check that!
Thanks for the suggestion!
So, what do you mean by ...”it seems like you lost the division between frequencies”?
Are you feeling like the lows aren’t exclusively thru your sub and the rest of your speakers are pushing everything? Because I’ve always sort of felt like that. In fact there are very few songs I’ve heard where there seemed to be decent separation of the frequencies. When I was a teenager, the systems we had with subs, you could always tell where the low end was coming from (the back or trunk). I always felt like these 4runners were either too balanced or just set at the correct frequency level.
I dont know, I know very little about car audio, but it just seems like if they go to the trouble to sell an upgraded system, it should sound like any other modern sound system. Jeeps, Acura’s, Subaru’s, and even the new Camry’s all sound decent.
I had to use that metra harness also. I never thought about it having some sort of gain on it though? I’ll pull the head unit out and check that!
Thanks for the suggestion!
So, what do you mean by ...”it seems like you lost the division between frequencies”?
Are you feeling like the lows aren’t exclusively thru your sub and the rest of your speakers are pushing everything? Because I’ve always sort of felt like that. In fact there are very few songs I’ve heard where there seemed to be decent separation of the frequencies. When I was a teenager, the systems we had with subs, you could always tell where the low end was coming from (the back or trunk). I always felt like these 4runners were either too balanced or just set at the correct frequency level.
I dont know, I know very little about car audio, but it just seems like if they go to the trouble to sell an upgraded system, it should sound like any other modern sound system. Jeeps, Acura’s, Subaru’s, and even the new Camry’s all sound decent.
i'm bringing this old thread back from the grave. The JBL amp that we all are talking about, is this unit located on the subwoofer speaker enclosure in the cargo area? Is this the ONLY amplifier in this system? It seems odd to me that the pre-amp out from the stereo goes all the way to the back to the amp, then the amplified signal then goes back toward the front and to all door speaker.
I think my amp is acting up and would like to replace it if anyone has their old one in the garage some place. Please send me a PM if your JBL is functional and you took it out for a better aftermarket amp.
Thanks.
I think my amp is acting up and would like to replace it if anyone has their old one in the garage some place. Please send me a PM if your JBL is functional and you took it out for a better aftermarket amp.
Thanks.
ads2539
New member
Yes, I believe the amp by the subwoofer is the only amp in the system.
In the last year or two, I have replaced my entire JBL system with aftermarket equipment. I’m not using any of the 5 factory tweeter locations. I have 6x9 coaxial speakers in the lower front doors (nothing in the factory tweeter locations), no center dash speaker, 6.5 coaxial speakers in the rear doors, no tweeters in the rear pillars and an 8 inch sub in the stock location in the back. I lost the use of my steering wheel controls because my head unit is old. There’s no way to attach an adapter that I know of.
In summary, I have an aftermarket dead head unit that requires external amps, 3 external amps mounted on the “floor” in my cargo area, the speakers mentioned above and an aftermarket 18 disc (!) CD changer. The difference in sound quality is remarkable. The stock JBL system was ok, but nothing special.
I did the entire installation myself, including the wiring for the amps and replacing all of the speaker wiring. It was time consuming, but not that hard for me to do. (This was the third or fourth car stereo installation that I have done.) I’m not a professional installer by any means, but I understand how everything needs to be installed/hooked up.
The next/last step of my project will be installing sound deadener in the doors, floor/firewall, headliner, cargo area and tailgate.
In the last year or two, I have replaced my entire JBL system with aftermarket equipment. I’m not using any of the 5 factory tweeter locations. I have 6x9 coaxial speakers in the lower front doors (nothing in the factory tweeter locations), no center dash speaker, 6.5 coaxial speakers in the rear doors, no tweeters in the rear pillars and an 8 inch sub in the stock location in the back. I lost the use of my steering wheel controls because my head unit is old. There’s no way to attach an adapter that I know of.
In summary, I have an aftermarket dead head unit that requires external amps, 3 external amps mounted on the “floor” in my cargo area, the speakers mentioned above and an aftermarket 18 disc (!) CD changer. The difference in sound quality is remarkable. The stock JBL system was ok, but nothing special.
I did the entire installation myself, including the wiring for the amps and replacing all of the speaker wiring. It was time consuming, but not that hard for me to do. (This was the third or fourth car stereo installation that I have done.) I’m not a professional installer by any means, but I understand how everything needs to be installed/hooked up.
The next/last step of my project will be installing sound deadener in the doors, floor/firewall, headliner, cargo area and tailgate.
HiluxSurf SSR-G
Senior Member
Can the factory JBL amp/subwoofer be used with an aftermarket HU and speakers?
Is there a harness that can be bought to connect the aftermarket HU with the JBL amp and also from the amp to the speakers?
Thanks!
Is there a harness that can be bought to connect the aftermarket HU with the JBL amp and also from the amp to the speakers?
Thanks!
bearisasquare
New member
Yes. I am running the Kenwood DMS906S with the iDatalink ADSMRR & T01 harness. Crutchfield is your friend. I swapped out my fronts with Infinity components. I still need to swap out the stock amp and sub though. My sub blew out and its why i've started this whole process.
Anyone know of an AMP that will fit the factory location or how much room is in there? I'd like to fit a 5channel in there, but need to know how much room i have.
