what an unbelievable difference! - kappa 3.5 dash speakers

[sandcrawler]

But I repeat, before doing anything else, just change the other speaker. Takes 10 minutes max. and makes a world of difference. If you still don't like it, so be it.

no sweat. we're good. and the fact is that i already cut off the harness on the driver's side so i may as well just bite the bullet and do the other because what's done is done.

that said, if anyone has a eureka! moment i'm all ears. thanks, guys.

 

[Ukie]

But I repeat, before doing anything else, just change the other speaker. Takes 10 minutes max. and makes a world of difference. If you still don't like it, so be it.

You don't have to change the other speaker to feel a difference. I've changed driver side only (supposed to be temporary thing) and still did not finished a passenger side.

 

[sandcrawler]

You don't have to change the other speaker to feel a difference. I've changed driver side only (supposed to be temporary thing) and still did not finished a passenger side.

wow. really? and you still think it sounds better with only one in? what sound system do you have?

 

[Ukie]

wow. really? and you still think it sounds better with only one in?

Much better! You can feel a difference just by turning left-right balance

what sound system do you have?

Stock SR5 head unit, no JBL.

 

[Hawaiian4runner]

Please just change the other side...

I know. I did what you did. Changed drivers side. Tested it. Sounded terrible. Soft and muffled. Changed passenger side. Yes. Eureka! Note. On passenger side, space a little tight. Put electrical tape one the metal bar below the windshield. Speaker produces static and not much music if it touches the metal. I used heat gun and melted and remolded the passenger side window defroster duct that is in the speaker hole to make more space. Improved the sound quite a bit as the speaker used to touch it and there was virtually no air space. Other than that, used mending plates from hardware store to mount the speakers. Looks a little ghetto but works just fine.

 

[sandcrawler]

I know. I did what you did. Changed drivers side. Tested it. Sounded terrible. Soft and muffled. Changed passenger side. Yes. Eureka! Note. On passenger side, space a little tight. Put electrical tape one the metal bar below the windshield. Speaker produces static and not much music if it touches the metal. I used heat gun and melted and remolded the passenger side window defroster duct that is in the speaker hole to make more space. Improved the sound quite a bit as the speaker used to touch it and there was virtually no air space. Other than that, used mending plates from hardware store to mount the speakers. Looks a little ghetto but works just fine.

well, that helps immensely to hear that you initially did the same thing and got the same soft, muffled results with your JBL system, Hawaiian4runner. i don't get why Ukie would hear good results with only one speaker in.

it's 11pm here, though. so i won't be mucking with it until tomorrow now.

 

[Hawaiian4runner]

Base SR5 system is very different.

Everything is full range. No low pass / high pass. Dash speaker is also full range and then passes thru a full range signal to the doors that's why you need bass blockers on the dash. Funky setup but sounds decent for stock. I've heard the system and it's OK to me. Stock JBL Premium is a bi-amped front. High pass dash and low pass doors. Much, much better than the standard system so likewise, harder to make improvements. I really like the Kappa upgrade but I'm a little fanatical about my sounds. This weekend I'm installing a Helix P-DSP, a Helix B Five, Helix B Four amps. I'm scared! The way my system sounds now in my opinion is very, very good. I don't know how much I can improve it with DSP and amps. For sure I can improve the high pass/low pass transition points but as far as the front soundstage, I don't know how much better I can get it with the same speakers. My wife ears are really good so hopefully she hears the difference cause she ain't happy about the $$$. When I went crazy on my home theater system, she loved the sound and was actually happy and thought I got good value ($9000?). Pretty cool chick huh?

 

[Ukie]

Everything is full range. No low pass / high pass. Dash speaker is also full range and then passes thru a full range signal to the doors that's why you need bass blockers on the dash. Funky setup but sounds decent for stock. I've heard the system and it's OK to me. Stock JBL Premium is a bi-amped front. High pass dash and low pass doors. Much, much better than the standard system so likewise, harder to make improvements.

It explains it all, thanks!

When I went crazy on my home theater system, she loved the sound and was actually happy and thought I got good value ($9000?). Pretty cool chick huh?

What's your setup? any pics?

 

[Hawaiian4runner]

Home theater system

No pics right now. Went with Dynaudio Focus towers and center channel. Magnapans for surrounds (cool wall hanging panels). Rotel receiver using pre-amp outs to a Sunfire 7 x 200 watt amp, Sunfire sub and a Cambridge Audio bluray player. And yes, the DVD player makes a huge difference (sound and picture). Originally had the top of the line Samsung bluray. Thought it was really good except it had trouble playing regular DVDs. Locked up, skipped, etc. Returned to store for same model. Same results. Went to the high end store that I got my sounds from and picked up the Cambridge. When I hooked it up, my wife was floored. She has really good ears. Says the sound was night and day better than the Samsung and totally worth the bucks. Me, I wasn't as sure cause I listen to too much rock and play with power tools. System kicks ass. Control everything with a Logitech programable remote. The remote makes everything totally simple to turn on and control. Originally set up with a JVC 50" LCD but now have a 60" Samsung 3D. Really nice display although 3D is a gimmick for home system. Turned in the glasses for refund. You gotta be totally engaged to the movie (like in a theater) to enjoy 3D. Lying on the couch at home, not! Too inconvenient to be fun.

 

[Ukie]

Really nice display although 3D is a gimmick for home system. Turned in the glasses for refund. You gotta be totally engaged to the movie (like in a theater) to enjoy 3D. Lying on the couch at home, not! Too inconvenient to be fun.

Completely agree with you about 3D. Have a Sony 3D TV, Playstaion with Blue ray/3D support along with couple 3D channels in my DirecTV package but it's still no go. It's cool to show some 3D effects to friends or watch a good 3D animation once in a while, but that's about it. Not for every day use yet.

 

[sandcrawler]

I know. I did what you did. Changed drivers side. Tested it. Sounded terrible. Soft and muffled. Changed passenger side. Yes. Eureka! Note. On passenger side, space a little tight. Put electrical tape one the metal bar below the windshield. Speaker produces static and not much music if it touches the metal. I used heat gun and melted and remolded the passenger side window defroster duct that is in the speaker hole to make more space. Improved the sound quite a bit as the speaker used to touch it and there was virtually no air space. Other than that, used mending plates from hardware store to mount the speakers. Looks a little ghetto but works just fine.

well, they're in—both of 'em. diggin' it—and so is the wife. thanks again for your input, Hawaiian4runner.

(with the JBL audio) the Kappas do sound more controlled and full than the stockers, though they require you to crank up the volume a fair bit more than you may be accustomed to. i also had to adjust the treble & mid and dial back the bass a notch. all that said, at any any volume, the Kappas are way more clear and defined.

don't recall if it was mentioned earlier in this thread, but on the JBL system pink is pos and yellow is neg on the pass side.

some more Kappas, and some Dynamat, in the liftgate are in my near future. thanks again to all who tried to help!

:cheers:

 

[sandcrawler]

Everything is full range. No low pass / high pass. Dash speaker is also full range and then passes thru a full range signal to the doors that's why you need bass blockers on the dash. Funky setup but sounds decent for stock. I've heard the system and it's OK to me. Stock JBL Premium is a bi-amped front. High pass dash and low pass doors. Much, much better than the standard system so likewise, harder to make improvements. I really like the Kappa upgrade but I'm a little fanatical about my sounds. This weekend I'm installing a Helix P-DSP, a Helix B Five, Helix B Four amps. I'm scared! The way my system sounds now in my opinion is very, very good. I don't know how much I can improve it with DSP and amps. For sure I can improve the high pass/low pass transition points but as far as the front soundstage, I don't know how much better I can get it with the same speakers. My wife ears are really good so hopefully she hears the difference cause she ain't happy about the $$$. When I went crazy on my home theater system, she loved the sound and was actually happy and thought I got good value ($9000?). Pretty cool chick huh?

ha! cool chick, for sure. we've got a 51" Samsung plasma and blu-ray, HK AVR, Polk center and surrounds, and an Élan sub... we like it. agreed, though: 3DTV is a total joke.

 

[Hawaiian4runner]

Congrats

Glad you like it. That was the easiest part of the upgrade. Suggest you quit now before you start chasing....upgrading more get's progressively harder. But if you enjoy it, go for it and keep us posted on your progress.

 

[harper7]

Glad you like it. That was the easiest part of the upgrade. Suggest you quit now before you start chasing....upgrading more get's progressively harder. But if you enjoy it, go for it and keep us posted on your progress.

A little off topic but you might know the answer as he didn't reply to the question.

Originally Posted by platinumb.......
The factory sub is a dual voice coil sub both at e4 ohm voice coils wired in parallel to give the amp a 2 ohm load if you replace is it is best to use a dual 4 ohm voice coil speaker or single voice coil 2ohm they will both work.

My question...Would one of these 2 Alpine Type R 8 inch subs make a good replacement for the factory sub ,and which one. Do you think it would be worth the upgrade as all my other speakers are upgraded. I have a Pioneer HU with factory JBL amp.
Alpine Electronics of America, Inc.

The SWR-843D with dual 4 ohms and then wire it in parallel ,same as factory.Or would the SWR-823D be more efficient.Alpine Type R 8 inch DVC Subs.

I know other subs with a separate amp would be better but I'm trying to keep it in the same factory enclosure with the factory JBL amp.

 

[Hawaiian4runner]

Subwoofer replacement

Very good questions but sorry I won't be much help. Just some tips...Check the mounting depth of the sub you are considering. Stock box is pretty shallow and you may have to make mounting rings or even cut out the grill for more depth. Stock sub is probably much more efficient than any aftermarket. I don't know for sure but seems like all factory speakers are very efficient so that they can play loud with stock head units. Might consider adding a sub amp with speaker level inputs so you can control the volume of the sub. I'm installing an Alumapro 8 inch sub. Does not play real deep or loud but has the nicest upper bass I've heard from a sub and integrates well with the mid/bass up front. When the wife cools down I'll make an enclosure for over the drivers side rear wheel well and put in a 10 or 12 inch for the kind of bass the kids like to bump although I don't

 

[Hawaiian4runner]

More stereo upgrades

Installed helix p-dsp, 4 and 5 channel amps and alumapro 8 inch sub today. Could not figure out input side of jbl 10 channel premium sound system amp. Never seen so many input wires with no hint of what they're for. Anyone have a schematic of the amp inputs? Connected everything high level (speaker) for now until can figure out the inputs or I get permission to replace the head unit. Dsp is amazing. Almost unlimited tuning options. Stock 8 inch sub is a toy! Was appalled at how lightweight it is. Good next step upgrade from infinity kappas in the dash is sub amp and better sub. I needed a mdf spacer ring cause alum pro sub was a little too deep. A friend with experience and RTA gonna help me fine tune system. Factory crossover and eq is really weird and takes mad skills to overcome. I thought alumapro sub could not play really low but I was wrong. Compared to stock, totally kicks ass. Retails for $150.

 

[Hawaiian4runner]

Nah. Same cheapies...

Looks like the same cheapies to me. Very lightweight. They are very efficient and play much louder than aftermarkets. I bet that with proper tuning they could actually sound OK but then again, for less than a $100, you could get a pair of Kappa 32.9s. Might as well start with something better and then tune that to a much more refined level. Just remember, the Kappas will play much softer and you may have some inbalance with the low pass door speakers. It's sad (on Toyotas part) that JBL and Infinity are part of the same company yet Toyota uses some cheap ass JBL, uses some weird but pretty effective tuning and ends up with a pretty good system yet if they spend just a little more on speakers, could have ended up with a fantastic sounding factory stereo. No pride whatsoever. And then Toyota is famous for locking down everything so no one can make improvements without tearing out practically the whole system. Besides that, 4runners Rock!

 

[sandcrawler]

Stock 2012 Limited JBL 15 speaker - front right speaker

I went to replace the JBL front speakers with the Infinity Kappa 32.9cf and found there are only 2 wires, not 4. The speakers don't look like cheap cones which got me wondering if Toyota has upgraded and this is why some are not hearing an improvement with the 3.29cf over stock.

Does anyone know if Toyota has upgraded the front speakers for the 2012 Limited with the JBL 15-speaker system? Also which wire is positive and which is negative?

same ones (were) in my 2010.

 

[characterzero]

settings

For those of you who have changed these out, I'd be interested in hearing what your current SOUND settings are. I'm having a bit of a problem getting them all balanced out, and while they do sound great, it doesn't quite sound like an integrated system.

Fade:
+4 or 5 towards the FRONT

Balance: Center

Audio:
Treble: +3
Mid:+2
Bass: +1


Of course, I realize this all comes down to user preferences, seat position, age of ears, etc etc. Just throwin' it out there.

 

[Hawaiian4runner]

My tuning

Redid most of my system but first upgrade was the Kappa dash speakers. I think my tuning was treble - +1, mid - +2, bass - +1 or +2, fader - front +3, balance - right +1 (to better center the front sound stage). I know what you mean when you say doesn't sound quite integrated. I think it's the balance between the dash and the front doors. Agree it sounds good but not quite there so I went nuts and got Helix DSP and 5 channel and a 4 channel amp. Worth it in my opinion but I'm thinking you could make a big improvement by just getting a fairly inexpensive 2 channel amp with speaker level inputs and use the gain adjustment to better blend the levels of the dash and door. While you're at it, upgrade the sub and get a sub amp. A 3 channel amp with speaker level inputs would do the trick and you would save $$$ over having to buy Line Output Converters. 8 inch sub in stock box is not going to shake up the neighborhood but if you're more in to sound quality, a under $200 8 inch sub in the stock box will do the trick. Box is shallow so check the sub spec before buying or you may need to add mounting rings for clearance.
If you like tinkering and tuning, go the DSP route. Amazing sound quality improvement and unlimited tuning options. Can drive you crazy with all the setting options and then you need a RTA and then better speakers and then better this and that. The chase is on! Hope you aren't married. Wives tend to not quite appreciate the effort. Wonder why?