Upgrading Audio: OEM Audio+ Buyer’s Remorse?

This is the exact bundle I went with last month. So far I absolutely love it and is such a major upgrade from the factory speakers. Everything is plug and play and took me about 2 hours to install all 8 speakers. The most time consuming part for me was getting the door panels back on compared to taking them off.

 

on a scale of 1-10, what was the overall sound improvement with the kicker speakers?

 

this may or may not save you much money but some newer amplifiers out there are powerful enough to power both door speakers and a subwoofer if applicable.

 

Id say a solid 7. The non JBL speakers are only 20 watt with a magnet that’s about the same diameter of a golf ball. Like previously stated I’m running the Dasaita T10 so of course it pushes the Kickers better than the Entune I took out.

 

Have you added anything else in the way of subs/amps?

 

Front Door:

https://www.crutchfield.com/p_20646CC693/Kicker-46CSC6934.html

Rear Door:

https://www.crutchfield.com/p_206DSC504/Kicker-43DSC504.html

Liftgate:

https://www.crutchfield.com/p_575R1525X2/Rockford-Fosgate-R1525X2.html

Dashboard:

https://www.crutchfield.com/p_130TSA709/Pioneer-TS-A709.html

I chose these based on reviews, so further research may change a few things.

One thing I don’t get is that the Fosgates fit in the rear doors and the liftgate, but the Kickers that fit in the rear doors don’t show up as a liftgate option.

 

Thanks for the link. The rear doors and hatch are 4 ohms in this set up, and with them wired in series they will put an 8 ohm load on the hu. I’ve been trying to decide on ones that are 2 ohms, thus putting 4 ohm load on each channel of the HU.

my research has me looking at speakers with a higher sensativity, I have a focal setup in my cart from the front and tweeter right now. It’s the rear and hatch that I’m stuck on. And yes it’s weird what crutch says will fit or not.

 

Would these also improve the JBL sound system?

 

that’s a very subjective question. the JBL sound system is a lot more complex than the standard system. long story short, it may or may not be an “improvement” depending on the kind of individual you are.

 

I noticed tba

I noticed that about the Rockford Fosgate when I was looking to build out on Crutchfield too, ha. I thought maybe it was a depth issue.

 

The Fosgates are a little deeper than the Kickers. I'll keep looking, if only out of curiosity.

I did, however, switch the rear-door Kickers to these:

https://www.crutchfield.com/p_20647KSC50/Kicker-47KSC504.html

Better performance for not a whole lot more money. Gonna review the front-door ones now.

ETA:

Yep. Switched front-door to these: https://www.crutchfield.com/p_20647KSC93/Kicker-47KSC69304.html

Maybe when I have some money.

 

Why did you choice those ones?

Currently in my cart I have:
https://www.crutchfield.com/p_091ISU690/Focal-ISU-690.html
And 2 sets of:
https://www.crutchfield.com/p_091ICU165/Focal-ICU-165.html

 

I chose them based on fit, brand, customer reviews, frequency response, and materials, not necessarily in that order. Not entirely scientific, but...

The second one does not fit my 4Runner, according to them. The first has separate Speaker and Tweeter, meaning I'd have to run wires from the dash to the door, and I just don't want to deal with that again for this.

Also, I'm a little weird on brands. Never heard of Focal...

 

Well my OEM+ system shipped yesterday (6 days after order with a stated 30-day lead is pretty good). It comes in Tuesday and I hope to have installed by next weekend, will report back on my experience.

 

Which one did you order?

 

Focal is a very good brand, they have some of the highest sensitivity and have been recommended to me by a few folks. I have also had kicker recommended as well. I am a little concerned about running the wires, but I think it will be ok for this.

 

I ordered the reference series/500…

I ordered the Reference 500 series…it includes the 8 speaker system, the sub + custom box, amplifier, DSP, and I separately ordered the integrated level controller so I can adjust the sub level easily.

once I get it in, I’ll make a call on if I think the dedicated sub amp is necessary.

 

Ah gotcha. I just wanted the headroom so went separate amp from the start. A buddy is debating a OEM + system for his 23 Runner. I told him just go full bore. They have a nice looking bass control knob that doesn't work with my system so I'm jealous of that.

 

Yeah I imagine I’ll end up getting the dedicated amp too. I’m actually really stoked for the control knob integration

 

Mine was done by someone there because they had to diagnose an amp issue I had so it doesn't look bad but the new knob looks really good.

 

I tried my best to keep the stock system, but its just so bad.

So I upgraded the amp to a 600 watt Alpine and Alpine X/R series speakers all around (Components up front) sounded great. Cost me about $1500, but it was not perfect so I also upgraded the head unit to a Kenwood DMX for another $1200. And wow, huge improvements and so many helpful features. No sub needed ether.



The key is to go with the best front component speakers and amp you can and ideally upgrade the head unit. Your system is only as good as the weakest link. But those front speakers will produce the widest range and all your bass.

 

thanks for your details; man idk how I feel about the head unit screen possibly blocking vents and stuff. How far out does that stick from being flush? Is it blocking the upper vents?

 

Could I trouble you to ID the mount you used to hold your GMRS handset?

 

Most floating screens have adjustable brackets. I lowered my Halo9

 

Yeah, its a pretty big screen but the arm puts the screen away from the vents a bit and it can be angled and lowered/raised as well. It does block the lower portion of the vents a bit but the spacing (and a diverter I made) let the vents blow unobstructed. Having all the features of this head unit and the beautiful screen was well worth any minor perceived obstruction.

My Midland handset came with a plastic mount but it just didn't stick well. So I commandeered my sons old Erector set and made a mount with more surface area to stick it. lol

 

My halo9, it's the 9." They have 11" also, so that makes a difference too.

 

I’m also on the fence to up grade to a full OEM audio + or other options. But I like the plug and play. Interesting info here.

 

Depends on what your audio need are. The headunit upgrade was what i was looking for. Louder (a bit), more features, and better antennas. My stock speakers can stay until they're blown and i really get into swapping things out.

 

yeah I don’t mind the look of this as much. Still going to give it a shot without changing from the factory HU, but there’s hope that some of the HU aren’t too bad.

 

My brother installed in his Tundra a set of Taco Tunes speakers w/subwoofer. Kept the HU. It sounds very good and very loud.

I was looking at OEM+ when I got my 4Runner but decided to just remain stock.
Liked the fact that OEM+ bypassed HU amp.
The only upgrade I would consider is speakers only.