Sound System quality is bad?

[86 & Co.]

Originally Posted by OkieSnuffBox

I'm hoping OEM Audio will make a 2nd Gen setup like they did for the 1st gen. From what I remember it received pretty good reviews.

I'm not going to go all crazy with components in the kick panels and stuff like that, but definitely want the best sound I can get. Although at this point I'm considering waiting for a '23 model. Figure by that point, the aftermarket will really be moving.

@CSG Mike dropped a car off to them so hopefully it wont be long

[CSG Mike]

My BRZ has been in and out with O+; they'll have a system soon.

[shoreline86]

Originally Posted by tenderization

You might want to see if you can find out what is being done with JDM stereos, as it looks like the norm there is to install aftermarket head units out of the gate there. If they're using Maestros or something similar that could be an option.

So I did reach out to a Japanese owner and he just said that the steering wheel controls work with it. Thinking about it though I wonder if the dealers are installing them rather than the owners themselves so I doubt I could get specifics unless they've done it themselves regarding if a maestro or something is being used.

[OkieSnuffBox]

Originally Posted by CSG Mike

My BRZ has been in and out with O+; they'll have a system soon.

Now get the rear fitment nailed down.

[CSG Mike]

Originally Posted by OkieSnuffBox

Now get the rear fitment nailed down.

Send me some wheels!

[Desertnate]

Reviving this thread rather than trying to start a new one. I looked back through several pages of the audio section of this forum and didn't find a '22 specific thread anywhere.

After weeks in my '22, I've found what most of you have already. The audio is sub-par compared to the vehicles I've owned over the last 10+years. I fully understand it won't equal the Hardon system in my last vehicle, but ugh, it doesn't match the base system in my Mk6 GTI or my even older Mazda3.

I'm no audiophile, and I have a slight hearing loss (don't tell my wife I admit this...), so throwing large sums money at the system would be a waste. However, the mids seem muddy and the high's seem to sound really "brittle" and "thin" regardless of the EQ setting and audio source, and that is the only thing I'd look to fix. I'm perfectly happy with the base levels as-is.

Is this simply a speaker upgrade issue? I have the Limited with an amp, so I wouldn't think it's a power problem in such a small car. A sub might clean up the mids, but won't help with the tinny sounding highs, correct?

I haven't looked closely at all of the speaker locations, but have noticed the dash speakers location seems to indicate an entire dash tear-down to get to them, correct? Not sure how I'd feel about doing something like that and the risk of endless squeaks and rattles for the rest of the car's life.

[soundman98]

the dash speaker grille should separate from the dash with plastic clips. no teardown needed.

could try some other speakers, though most budget car-audio speakers are going to have a similar tweeter design as already installed, what kind of costs were you thinking?

[Desertnate]

Good to know the covers are clipped in. I figured those in the doors are attached that way like most cars, but I was worried about those in the dash.

To be honest, I've not really looked at car audio equipment in a very long time to see what the market looks like. I could throw out a number, but it wouldn't be based in any reality.

Right now, I'm trying to diagnose the problem and then will start doing the digging to see what various fixes will cost. If a speaker upgrade is really all that's needed to make the system passable, it helps me know where to start looking.

[PhatFreshPrince]

Originally Posted by Desertnate

Good to know the covers are clipped in. I figured those in the doors are attached that way like most cars, but I was worried about those in the dash.

To be honest, I've not really looked at car audio equipment in a very long time to see what the market looks like. I could throw out a number, but it wouldn't be based in any reality.

Right now, I'm trying to diagnose the problem and then will start doing the digging to see what various fixes will cost. If a speaker upgrade is really all that's needed to make the system passable, it helps me know where to start looking.

I read on this forum or another where someone tried to switch out the two rear speakers. When I say rear speaker, I really mean the two small speakers next to the rear seats. Well, it did not help any because the head unit only sent the high pitch sounds designed to work with the smaller stock speakers. I have been following this issue as well looking for a great solution.
From what I gathered so far there are three choices.

1) To change out the current speakers, one needs to tell the head unit to send a low range of pitches to the new speakers, which no one knows how to do currently. Also, are the high pitches then lost or can they be redirected to the front tweeters? There are a lot of questions and unknowns with this option.
2) Plug in a Sub in the back of the head unit. (NOTE: I don't even know if this is possible) If possible, I assume the head unit would know to send low pitches to the plug designed for a Sub. If anyone knows what extra plugs are in the back of the head unit please let us know with pics.
3) This is the most expensive option. Replace the head unit with an aftermarket radio and any needed speakers.

[LRNAD90]

Originally Posted by PhatFreshPrince

2) Plug in a Sub in the back of the head unit. (NOTE: I don't even know if this is possible) If possible, I assume the head unit would know to send low pitches to the plug designed for a Sub. If anyone knows what extra plugs are in the back of the head unit please let us know with pics.

Pretty sure the dealer optional sub would plug into the head unit, taking speaker level outputs and run them through a built in crossover, returning the higher frequencies back to the stock speaker harness that was unplugged from the head unit..

If that makes sense..

[Desertnate]

Thanks for the info. It sounds like there really aren't any good options right now.

Interesting in the example you gave the rear speakers were the ones swapped out. I think I might have started with those at the windshield and worked my way back.

I guess I'll sit back and see how things develop with this car over time.

[soundman98]

two-fer reply.

let's start at the beginning-- because the 2nd gen hasn't been seriously taken apart and documented, all of my info is a combination of assumptions and verifications from posted tech documents, as well as mine and others documented experience with the 1st gen sound system.

verified: the physical speaker/amp/radio locations and sizes did not change from the 1st gen with the exception of the premium losing the 2 dash speakers and amp-- this was documented/verified in a thread from last year from someone that posted parts department product order page showing the parts numbers and install locations for the audio system.

assumption: because none of the 'hard' parts were altered(1" tweeters, 3.5" mids/rear speakers, and 6.5" door speakers), all past knowledge of the 1st gen audio system applies. but until someone dives into it and cares enough to post about it, it's just an assumption.

Originally Posted by Desertnate

Good to know the covers are clipped in. I figured those in the doors are attached that way like most cars, but I was worried about those in the dash.

To be honest, I've not really looked at car audio equipment in a very long time to see what the market looks like. I could throw out a number, but it wouldn't be based in any reality.

Right now, I'm trying to diagnose the problem and then will start doing the digging to see what various fixes will cost. If a speaker upgrade is really all that's needed to make the system passable, it helps me know where to start looking.

in the 1st gen's, the door speakers operated as subwoofers, with the factory amp filtering the audio signal to drop frequencies above 350hz. the wiring runs from the head unit to the tweeters, through a special 4-pin connection that jumpers from the head unit to the rest of the speakers. remove the tweeters and the entire front of the sound system dies. the tweeters and dash midranges both have on-board filtering, where they receive the full audio signal, and then independently filter that signal. going purely off memory, the 3.5" dash speakers pick up around 6khz, and the tweeters pick up around 12khz.

this leaves the range from 350hz to 6khz out of the spectrum. google tells me that vocal frequency range is roughly 85-255 Hz, which seems awefully low to me... there's still a large gap of the audio spectrum that's not being reproduced, which i've argued in the past is where the feeling of 'loosing something' comes from.

this is where a lot of people diverge--many people, myself included(though i never intended to keep the sound system as-is even before hearing it) just outright replace most of the system. and others that don't want to put a ton of money into it just live with it. no one's really dove into trying to figure out a middle ground of making everything work..

in this thread, fr-s2gt86 deals with altering some wiring for the 2020 hakone, which bypassed the oem amp.
https://www.ft86club.com/forums/show...ight=fr-s2gt86
http://toyotaparts.sparkstoyota.com/...190-20inst.pdf

the factory bypass included a plug(very easy to make and 100% reversible from aftermarket parts) that connected at the amp to pass the full range signal from the head unit to the front speakers, un-amped, and unfiltered. in the 2020 hakone's, this made the audio system even worse. but no one has tried to build their own harness like that, and install it on a 'normal' 86. i speculate that it would make up the difference in the audio signal because then the door speakers would get a full range signal.

but no one's tried it.

Originally Posted by PhatFreshPrince

I read on this forum or another where someone tried to switch out the two rear speakers. When I say rear speaker, I really mean the two small speakers next to the rear seats. Well, it did not help any because the head unit only sent the high pitch sounds designed to work with the smaller stock speakers. I have been following this issue as well looking for a great solution.
From what I gathered so far there are three choices.

1) To change out the current speakers, one needs to tell the head unit to send a low range of pitches to the new speakers, which no one knows how to do currently. Also, are the high pitches then lost or can they be redirected to the front tweeters? There are a lot of questions and unknowns with this option.
2) Plug in a Sub in the back of the head unit. (NOTE: I don't even know if this is possible) If possible, I assume the head unit would know to send low pitches to the plug designed for a Sub. If anyone knows what extra plugs are in the back of the head unit please let us know with pics.
3) This is the most expensive option. Replace the head unit with an aftermarket radio and any needed speakers.

1)changing the dash speakers is a possibility because the filtering is built into the speaker. changing the door speakers requires more work because the filtering is part of the amp.

2)at this point, subaru's been playing games with the thought of a '22 subwoofer. many 1st-gen's said it made a difference when it was available. but it's been posted, talked about, and vanished off subaru/toyota's accessory lists at least 2-4 times now. until someone gets their hands on one, i don't believe that it exists or will ever exist. Schrödinger's subwoofer...

3)'expensive' is entirely relative. even a $150 head unit usually does everything that's needed by most people. replacing the speakers could likely be done on the cheap for under $500, with maybe another $100 in adapters and wiring assuming one's not paying a shop to do it.

considering that my previous car had a $2k car computer, on top of another $2k in audio gear for what most consider a 'basic' setup, $750 is really cheap

the benefit to replacing the headunit anymore is that many OEM's add filtering and eq to the radio software to make the radio sound better to them, but not always better to everyone else-- my tacoma's oe radio had about 2x's the bass i've ever wanted at the lowest 'bass' setting. just changing the radio alone to something that actually had a flat output signal altered my plans from "i need to re-do everything NOW" to "i'll get to it next year"

[DeathEvil]

my premium sounded weak over bluetooth, but through android auto it sounds great to my ears. Certainly better than my previous scion tc lol

[Robert97]

Originally Posted by Desertnate

Reviving this thread rather than trying to start a new one. I looked back through several pages of the audio section of this forum and didn't find a '22 specific thread anywhere.

After weeks in my '22, I've found what most of you have already. The audio is sub-par compared to the vehicles I've owned over the last 10+years. I fully understand it won't equal the Hardon system in my last vehicle, but ugh, it doesn't match the base system in my Mk6 GTI or my even older Mazda3.

I'm no audiophile, and I have a slight hearing loss (don't tell my wife I admit this...), so throwing large sums money at the system would be a waste. However, the mids seem muddy and the high's seem to sound really "brittle" and "thin" regardless of the EQ setting and audio source, and that is the only thing I'd look to fix. I'm perfectly happy with the base levels as-is.

Is this simply a speaker upgrade issue? I have the Limited with an amp, so I wouldn't think it's a power problem in such a small car. A sub might clean up the mids, but won't help with the tinny sounding highs, correct?

I haven't looked closely at all of the speaker locations, but have noticed the dash speakers location seems to indicate an entire dash tear-down to get to them, correct? Not sure how I'd feel about doing something like that and the risk of endless squeaks and rattles for the rest of the car's life.

I agree. I'm new to the platform ('22 GR86) and the only disappointment so far is the sound system. The highs are tinny and lacking detail, the mids harsh, and low frequencies non-existent.

I'm curious if a simple speaker upgrade will help. I see that OEM Audio sells an upgraded set of front speakers for $400. Has anyone tried these?