Need some advice on speakers and an amp.

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I am a noob when it comes to car stereo equipment. Anyway, I absolutely hate the sound of the factory non-JBL system in my 2011 SR5. Party mode helps some, but I find it completely inadequate for music. I mostly listen to rock, bluegrass, and some hip-hop.

There is a shop up the road that will install anything I purchase on my own for 75 bucks. They only sell Arc products (which I have never heard of). Is this brand any good? What brands of speakers are good and I am assuming I will need some sort of amp. I am not going to replace the headunit as of now. Also, I'd like not to have to add a sub but I am not opposed to it either.

I don't need mind blowing loud or deep bass. I also don't want to break the bank on this project. I just want to upgrade the sound from these terrible factory speakers.
 
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I've honestly never heard of Arc.

You're not going to like this, but changing out the headunit provides a noticeable change in sound quality and level. You might want to reconsider and look into upgrading.

Aftermarket head units put out a little more power too so when combined with aftermarket speakers they make a pretty big difference. Of course the biggest difference you can make is having an aftermarket head unit, speakers, and amp.

I'm not extremely familiar with the 5th Gens speaker arrangement, but I think I can help a little.

The first thing you need to do is set a budget. You can price out systems that range from $100-10,000+.

I think the fronts are 6" by 9" speakers. If I was you I would probably do one of two things up front 1.) Get a 6.5" component speaker set so that you would have a tweeter in the front. You would need to get a plate to fit the new speaker size, but it should be easy to find those. 2.) If you don't want to get a component set I would just get an upgraded 6" by 9" speaker.

For the rear I would pick up a two way 6.5" speaker. The brand and particular depends on your budget.

As far as amps go you will need to see what the RMS of the speakers are and then go from there. A four channel would probably be your best best.

To go along with the amp you will also need an amp wiring kit which will run about $80 for a nice one.
 
I want to keep the stock look of the 4runner. Besides, I think some quality speakers and an amp would make the biggest difference in sound. Have you seen the speakers in the 5th gens? Yikes.
 
You could always just amp the factory speakers. Then upgrade later on the speakers. I rode around for about 3 months with an Kenwood 4 channel amping the factory speakers. I did have an aftermarket HU on it too, but still I would suggest an amp for any type of install. This way you can see how you like it, or just do that for now and put in the speakers later.
 
Well true they won't last forever on an aftermarket amp but like I said I had mine amped for a while and they were loud. They were on the Kenwood XR-4s 4 channel. Plus if they blow you just upgrade your speakers then.
 
Crutchfield sells a unit that holds your new HU and often has space under it for napkins or other items. The one I got looks like a factory unit. If I had one thing to do over, I would have skipped the Alpine brand HU because the blue light can not be dimmed and is far too bright at night.

As far as speakers, I love the Polk speakers I have. Front doors have a super tweeter with 3-way 6x9's and cross-overs. Rear doors have low profile 6.5" round speakers.
 
I am a big fan of Infinity speaker. I used them throughout my last car project. However unless you install subs in the car you won't be happy with the infinities as much. Infinities produce very clear highs and good mids but are not know for creating fantastic bass. That is where the sub(s) come in:)
 
I would replace Head unit first, then speakers, then amplify them.

If you must get speakers first, I would just get a very expensive set of Components for the front, adjust your fader to the front more.

Many car audiophiles only run an expensive set of front components.
 
An expensive set of speakers for front would definitely require an amp to power them.

I think replacing all the speakers is a better idea.

A budget would really help us help you.
 
subst4nce said:
I would replace Head unit first, then speakers, then amplify them.

If you must get speakers first, I would just get a very expensive set of Components for the front, adjust your fader to the front more.

Many car audiophiles only run an expensive set of front components.
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Can someone help me understand why replacing the head unit would make a bigger difference than replacing the speakers and adding an amp?

I'd like to keep everything under a couple grand.
 
letters said:
Can someone help me understand why replacing the head unit would make a bigger difference than replacing the speakers and adding an amp?

I'd like to keep everything under a couple grand.
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Well first off, an aftermarket headunit generally does a better job of processing the sound signals through its amplifier than the stock deck so you get a cleaner sound.

Second, the aftermarket Headunit has a slightly more powerful built in amplifier than the stock radio does therefore that equates to louder, but more importantly a cleaner clearer sound like I said above.

The speakers are creating sound based off of the sound signal sent to them from the headunit, and if the headunit doesn't send a clean signal then the outcome won't improve as much. Similarly, if you were into photography and had a 5000 dollar camera but only a 150 dollar lens the resulting image would not be as good as if you had a 150 dollar camera and a 5000 dollar lens. The lens is responsible for processes the light entering the lens and the camera only captures what the lens reproduces. The lens "processes" the image like an amplifier "processes" the sound signal.

Also If you plan on adding an amplifier to your audio system later on it is much easier to hook up to an aftermarket deck than a stock unit. You will appreciate the ease and also the extra control you have over the sound with an aftermarket head unit.

Furthmore, If you were to get a really nice set of speakers you would then Need to get a seperate amplifier for those speakers in order to power them correctly. Overpowering a speaker is sometimes a more obvious concern of people, because it can result in "blowing" the speaker or melting the voice coils, but UNDERpowering a speaker is lesser known, but bad for it as well and will degrade the speakers over time.

Hope this helps...keep asking questions:)
 
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Sherwood4Runner said:
Similarly, if you were into photography and had a 5000 dollar camera but only a 150 dollar lens the resulting image would not be as good as if you had a 150 dollar camera and a 5000 dollar lens. The lens is responsible for processes the light entering the lens and the camera only captures what the lens reproduces. The lens "processes" the image like an amplifier "processes" the sound signal.

Nice analogy^^
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