Stereo
 

I love my new car, but the stereo is awful. What have others done. I kinda like the head unit (base unit), so I am thinking of changing only the speakers.

Have you tried this?

http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7578

you're going to want to adjust all the stereo options first.
TC into FR-S
SubW to On
Check balance treble, etc.

Putting the sub woofer to on isnt really advisable unless you actually have a sub connected to the pre outs on the deck....

I added an 8 inch amplified bazooka tube. The stereo is godly now. All for $300 installed.

I feel like there is a little more kick from the speakers - but it could be my brain making stuff up haha

If a guy isn't too concerned about mad tight bass drops or shaboogie woogie jigga beats ... how is the stereo just for sound quality in general?

The stock stereo is probably fine for anything less than an audiophile. It's not the most fantastic setup out there but it'll suffice and it sounds pretty good. It is a Pioneer head-unit, after all. I actually prefer it to the one in my tC.

The nice thing is that if you want something better it's easy to swap out.

I may be behind on times with stereo stuff but exactly how many channels or power is a guy going to need to power a complete set of aftermarket speakers?

Would you advise scrapping the dash speakers altogether? In the past they have never been great on any car and are usually the first to go when upgrading the system.

Dude theres so many variables. Check out Crutchfield for a laundry list of info. You need to match speaker power with amp power (4 100w RMS speakers = 400watt RMS amp) and it will need to be at least 4 channel. If you are going to to aftermarket tweeters or mid bass drivers you will probably need a new crossover. A sub will need its own amp.... and the list goes on.

Im not an audiophile or pro by any stretch but just dont go connecting nice aftermarket speakers to a stock headunit, it wont do any justice. Thats not to say you cant use it, just put some nice high end stuff in between!

I know the elementary items - but I'm just used to no more than 4 channels. My typical aftermarket stereo is a set of high-end 3 way components in the front doors running off of a 2.1 channel amp and a small high quality ~10" sub in the back filling the sound out.

I have always thought it was pretty decent. I've also owned an S2000 and a couple of Lotus, which have arguably the worst stereos ever devised, so I may have exceedingly low expectations.

For me, the stock headunit seems acceptable.

However.. I probably will eventually replace the door and rear speakers. The door ones rattle, and if i'm going to be in there adding dynamat, I might as well replace them.

The rear speakers just suck.

Good thing they are just filler :)

Maybe fade everything forward if they are bad

Ahh ok. Well they sell 6 channel amps, or if you up for a serious upgrade get a 2 channel for the door speakers (which i assume will be ones to focus on) and a 4 channel to power dash and rears. This also allows you to reuse your 2.1 channel amp and power a small sub as well!

Im personally not a fan of multi class amps ie 2.1 channel. Do one job well. Not 2 jobs half assed.

I believe the SubW option is made for the optional sub kit from Scion. Not to say that aftermarket ones couldn't use it too, but bone stock it has no effect.

I'd probably drop the front speakers altogether. I have had great success building stereos in coupe's running only door mounted component systems and a high end smaller sub in the rear.

This system would be simply for a sound-quality focused simple solution for the drivers listening alone.

My last setup was a pair of Macrom M1S 6.5" components paired with a Macrom M1 10" sub - both receiving the power they asked for. It was a joy :)

I agree, the stock stereo is awful. I also like the stock head unit. Changing only the speakers would help, but only so much. The stock stereo for the FR-S (is this yours?) lists as having PEAK power of only 40W x 4. A peak power of 40W in car stereo speak is probably equivalent to 5-10W RMS. This means that the stereo is very underpowered. I would insert a 4-channel amp to drive your new speakers. If you like lots of bass (hip hop and the like), add another channel or two to the amp for subwoofers. Some of the amps will accept speaker level inputs (connect the speaker out of your head unit directly to the amp). Something like this should work:

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_136XD40....html?tp=35782

By the way, could somebody that live in or near Virginia please drive down to Crutchfield and volunteer their car for car audio fit research. This would really help out the rest of us, and you may be able to work some sort of advantageous deal on a better stereo.

I want to get rid of the OEM HU ASAP, but I'm waiting to see if anyone comes out with a HU that fits perfectly in place.

I think most double DIN HUs are a perfect fit? That was the way they designed it?

actually there are gaps on the sides when you change out the radio to a different double din like a kenwood, alpine..etc you will need a radio kit

:eyebulge: Thanks for the heads up! Im gonna go surf some HU swap threads to better understand this. I was ready to run out and buy a new HU next week with just a wire adapter!

And it looks like crap to boot. I put a full sized screen Kenwood in my dash and now I am trying to figure out how to make it blend. Cool looking pattern on the dash interrupted by crappy textured dash kit "ears" and a HU poking out. Makes me want to :barf: but I have killer sound now and the HU itself is awesome. I think the texture on the dash is done by Laser Etching. It would be awesome to build out the dash and have it re-etched to keep the stock look.

Anyone know if this is true? I'm hoping to hold off on buying a double din player for a little bit and want to run an amp to the stock preout.

Yeah that's why I'm going to wait and see if Kenwood or others come out with one that is flush with the dash.

I believe it redirects low frequencies to the sub, rather than the rest of the speakers... which would make the stock speakers sound better (they can't handle much when music get's heavy with bass) - with no sub, you'd just be losing a lot of bottom end. (just my guess though).

Thanks
 

Wow, I never thought I would get so many responses so quickly. Thank you to everybody. As for the bass, I have a 1000 watt amp powering 2-12" subs. I have yet to install them as I have only had the car for five days now, and am now deaf, Rolf.

My first sub was a bazooka tube.. trust me there is nothing "godly" about them. It sounded weak from day 1, and I ended up blowing it because I was trying to get too much bass out of it. haha

Pretty sure that texture can just be peeled off. Not real sure what's under there, but when I had mine off, I noticed it was lifting off the back.

What color was the plastic on the back side of the pieces?

If we're talking about the trim piece that surrounds the stereo, flat black. I'd take a picture, but half of my interior, including that piece, is being worked on by an upholsterer right now.

That's what I was referring to, and no need to take a pic - I believe you. I assumed as much, but I was hoping it would be silver. Looks like I will be buying the silver BRZ pieces after all.