Finally - A REAL Sound System

[wayoflife]

Although I never had any real complaints about the factory Infinity stereo and 4-Speaker setup that came with my 2000 TJ... well, other than the fact the head unit looked ugly, had a stupid joystick for a balance control, lacked an auxillary input of any kind and had pathetic undersized paper cone speakers that sounded horrible... okay, truth be told, I didn't like it all :embarrased: but I will say that once I got a set of new speakers, the sound quality was okay and I was more than happy to live with it. Or, at least until I realized that there was no way for me to plug in my MP3 player up to it :rolleyes:

Anyway, the point of my post is to say how happy I am to hear that the new JK will be available with a sound system featuring 6-Speaker setup and a 368-watt Alpine® stereo with MP3 capability, front auxillary input and is SIRIUS Satellite Radio ready.

http://www.jk-forum.com/uploaded/jk-stereo-01.jpg

http://www.jk-forum.com/uploaded/jk-speakers-01.jpg

Now, I will be the first to admit that I will most likely end up swapping out the factory speaker (most likely cheap paper cones again) but with all the features the new Alpine stereo has, I have a good feeling it will be sticking around. Way to go Jeep! :thumbs:

[jocrazy0]

Thats probably 380 watts MUSIC power. 380 watts MUSIC power into 2 ohms, most likely. That's 190 watts MUSIC power into 4 ohms. 95 watts MUSIC power into 8 ohms. So, assuming MUSIC power = PEAK power (its not really by the way, but valid for this exercise) 95 watts x .707 = 67 watts RMS power.

Now thats 67 watts RMS divided between two subsystems (subwoofer and the MID/HIGH speakers). So lets assume that the subwoofer gets the most power. (lets say 40 watts), that leaves 27 watts stereo/2 for each channel which means each channel gets 13.5 watts.

My '70s vintage Audiovox eight track tape player does that well. (I still have it by the way. It still worked the last time I used it out of curiosity)

The car stereo music industry has been lying to the end user through obfuscation for years. The FTC even tried to regulate and legislate understandable standards for the consumer, but lax enforcement and indifference have resulted in this WATT INFLATION market we have today.

I am looking for an HONEST manufacturer who will publish (even in the fine print) true RMS ratings for their amplifiers............

[wayoflife]

:eek: wow, thanks for the schooling :D

so, with all the cynicism you have for the car stereo industry, what would you recommend? is there a make/model out there (within relative affordablility) that you'd get instead or are they all just a bunch of hype and that the factory unit would do just fine? :rolleyes:

[jocrazy0]

Well, sorry for the cynicism, I really do think the factory stereos these days sound marvelous. I just rail against the marketing machine that says we're all stupid and put out numbers that are at best misleading and at worse downright lies.:mad: Besides, my hearing is so bad these days (too many years in noisy computer rooms (let alone the military) that I just leave the factory stereo to do its thing. When the top is down, or the windows are down, I turn the thing off because I can't understand or even hear it most times anyway:sad: And because there are other priorities for me (winch, lift, tires, lights, recovery, armor, etc. etc. etc.) the stereo is way down my list of upgrades. I think it'll fall right after the car PC and navigation upgrades.:D

So I really can't recommend any one manufacturer, the only thing I can say is go listen to as many different setups that you can. Then pick the one that sounds best for you. How's that for generic advice?:)

[wayoflife]

LOL!! :o No need to apologize for being cynical - I'm right there with you, just too uneducated in these matter to know any better :embarrased: I guess what I was trying to say in my post was that I was glad to know that I wouldn't have to think about getting another stereo as this one seems like it would do the trick... or at least well enough :)

[Cesar]

On my Jeeps in the past, i would immediately gut the crappy stock head unit and throw an alpine, some mb quart speakers, a small sub, and a decent amp. Made all the difference in the world. I'd still do 65mph and hear my music just fine.

On the JK's...I'd suggest minor upgrades such as non paper speakers, if it doesn't already come with some.

The factory head unit on these JK's looks really nice!

[JByer323]

Where does the sub sit now? It's gone from the center console, right?

[wayoflife]

Where does the sub sit now? It's gone from the center console, right?

It sits in the rear next to the tailgate now. You can see it here:
http://www.project-jk.com/wp-gallery2.php?g2_itemId=1223

:)

[JByer323]

Thanks for that shot, I didn't notice it the first time.

[wayoflife]

No problem. Actually, if you click next on the gallery, there are about 2-3 more shots of it :)

[ericdewayne]

i have a $600 deck in my truck right now. Think it'd even be worth swapping into my soft top JK? My last experience with a nice sterio in the states was somebody throwing a brick through the t-top of my camaro and ripping it out with a screwdriver... :( id sure hate to come out and see my soft top with a big hole cut in it...

[JByer323]

Removable faceplaes are the way and the light.

[laxstar46]

We really don't know how the stereo in the jeeps is designed yet to make assumptions. but if u want a really good manufacturer to replace all this stuff. Here are my fav people in the audio industry. Polk audio(makes great mids/highs speakers) JL Audio (great all around great sound quality in their stuff) Rockford Fosgate (some of the best amps on the market. There t10001bd amp is supposed to make 1000 watts at one ohm. Almost all the ones ppl get make close to 1500 watts at 1 ohm. That is true for all their amps. and the ratings are in rms power at 14.4volts) I'll have to post some pics of what i have in my jeep but i ahve a Jl audio subwoofer in a ported box behind rear seat of my tj. Then i have a set of polk 4x6 champ series in the front and a set of 6.5 polks in the back in soundbar. This set up is great for me. I run the mids/highs off the 18 watts rms that my h/u puts out. And i have the sub on 400 watts rms. It sounds amazing. It gives me a great sq setup that also gets reallly loud if i want it too. also that pic of the sub in the back of the jk. That thing is way tooo small of an enclosuer to let that sub actually do a good job of producing bass

[Phishjeep]

I get what you're saying, but I think the RF Amps are about the most over-rated equipment for auto audio. They are fair, but outrageiously expensive. Before you buy anything, check out USAmps. They developed the technology for Medical Equipment and then refined it for use as Auto amps. They are 1/4 Ohm stable. Still not cheap, but check out the setup for the last ten winners of the auto stereo loudness contests.

Also, Polks make nice speakers, but for my money, Infinity is the way and the light (I like that expression from another post) Nobody's subs are more accurate, and they sound great in sealed boxes (Not the loudest around, but definitely the tightest).

[ericdewayne]

I want bass, but too big is waaaay too annoying, and i dont plan on cruising the high school and mall blairing Dr. Dre...

[laxstar46]

I get what you're saying, but I think the RF Amps are about the most over-rated equipment for auto audio. They are fair, but outrageiously expensive. Before you buy anything, check out USAmps. They developed the technology for Medical Equipment and then refined it for use as Auto amps. They are 1/4 Ohm stable. Still not cheap, but check out the setup for the last ten winners of the auto stereo loudness contests.

Also, Polks make nice speakers, but for my money, Infinity is the way and the light (I like that expression from another post) Nobody's subs are more accurate, and they sound great in sealed boxes (Not the loudest around, but definitely the tightest).


yea rf is a bit expensive but their amps put out way more than what they are rated for. most amps put out 500 watts more also rockford fosgate is one of the only american made audio stuff. Personally i pay a bit more for american made. 1/4 ohm stable thats nice specially for running multiple woofers where sometimes goin lower in resistance is the only option for wiring. I really like jl amsp with the circuits that put out the wattage the amp is made for at any ohm between like 1 and 6ohms. or something around thos e numbers

[Phishjeep]

I believe USAmps is also American made. I know the company is based here, but I don't know if they are made here. I had an amp rated at 150W running to two DVC10" Infinity Perfects. They tested it at over 1200W for that setup while they were installing it. I don't remember the specs of the subs, but I imagine the were 4 ohm reduced by parallel to 1 Ohm (maybe).

[BeerMonkey]

if you look on the box of decent deck or amp and see the cea2003 or 2005 or 2006 label and you will find the ACTUAL wattage of the unit, cea is a voluntary system to show the consumer the real power a amp will make not the made up max power that most companys advertise, you know what im talking about, the $100 jensen amp that claims 1500 watts.