Alpine PSS-23WRA Sound System Upgrade - Review and Suggestions

[Zotch]

Just installed this yesterday and followed Winesmile's config and it sounds MUCH better. Only problem I see is if I turn up the AMP front and rear gain I get white noise thru the speakers, even when volume is 0. Noises increases the higher you set the gain.

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[JLscorpio31]

I know there are number a different threads that include discussion of the Alpine PSS-23WRA sound system upgrade for the JL, but as those threads are embedded among other issues/discussions, I thought it would be helpful to have a dedicated thread for those contemplating this upgrade. So here it is...

I purchased and installed this system 2 weeks ago, and overall am very happy with it. I wanted to share a few thoughts re: buying the system, and then on to some installation lessons learned and general tips:

First, on buying: the system is a bit pricey at $1299. You may find a vendor selling it at $1199, but most are at the suggested retail of $1299. The $1299 price can be mitigated, however. The bonus of the PSS system is that you get all of the plug 'n play harnesses, and a custom mounting bracket for the amps, making installation very doable for the layperson. But Pacparts sells all of the harnesses and the mounting brackets that come in the kit for a total of $260. The rest of the PSS kit comprises a KTP-445U amplifier ($170), a PWE-S8 sub woofer ($300) and a pair of SPR-10TW dash tweeters ($120). All together this totals $850 - a far cry from the $1299 sticker price Alpine has put on the combined package. (I understand that bundling should impose some premium, but $450??)

So, the lesson is: you can buy everything the PSS-23WRA kit contains and save $450.

Second, on installation: the system install is fairly straight forward. Some reviewers have claimed they installed in under an hour. I seriously doubt that, as it took me 3, and that is the time that Alpine and Quadratec state should be expected. And you want to do it right, so take your time. The main areas that took me some time:

1. Running the power cable from the battery underneath the chassis to the entry hole under the passenger seat. Be sure to follow the OEM wiring harness and then tuck your cable along the chassis beam. It helps to take a wire hanger, long zip tie, or anything that can serve as a guide and insert that through the hole under the passenger seat, from inside the vehicle, so that it sticks out below the vehicle. You can then tape the power cable to that and pull it back through the hole to bring the cable to you. Drill a small hole through the rubber floor plug so that you can push the power cable through the rubber plug and have a water tight seal when you reinstall the rubber plug in the floor board.
2. Reinstalling the passenger seat once the amp assembly is in place. I had to push a bit on the brackets that come with the PSS assembly in order to bend them to line up with the seat mounting holes. And then, a bit more bending to get the seat glide release bracket (metal bracket underneath the seat that lifts when you release the manual seat adjustment rod for forward/backward seat adjustment) to clear the sub woofer housing and fully release. Check this release bracket after installation by looking under the seat as you glide the seat forward and fully backward. On mine, the metal bracket kept bumping up against the sub woofer housing, scraping the housing and not allowing the bracket to fully release. I loosened the seat mounting bolts, pushed hard on the subwoofer toward the center console, and then retightened the seat mounting bolts. This did the trick and allowed the release bracket to clear the sub woofer.

Also, Alpine has mounted the KTP amp with the gain settings for front and rear speakers facing in, toward the center console, instead of out. This is unfortunate because once you install you cannot adjust the gain. And even though Alpine has provided suggested gain settings, I found these to be unreliable because Alpine has different suggestions for these settings between the paper installation manual that came with my PSS system and their online installation manual for the same PSS system. That's right - the same manual has different gain settings for both the KTP amp and the PWE sub woofer. I called Alpine and asked about this; they stated they revised the recommended settings, and their website is most current. The lesson: check Alpine's website before you settle on gain settings, if you are going to go with their suggestions versus establishing your own settings. (And shame on Alpine for not notifying their retailers so the retailers could note this on the product page.) I am considering taking my seat out again and seeing whether I can reverse the mounting of the KTP amp so that the gain settings will be accessible from the door side of the passenger seat. Unfortunately, I don't think the same can be done for the sub woofer because of its size and the shape of the floor well, but it suffers from the same deficiency: the configuration switches and knobs are all on the end that faces the center console, and are inaccessible once installed. So, you may want to see whether you can reverse the mounting of the KTP amp before you complete the installation, just in case you want to fiddle with front and rear speaker gains later.

Overall, I recommend this kit, as it has greatly improved the sound in my JL. I have the 7" factory head unit, and OEM 4" knee panel speakers. Both of these do not require improvement, in my opinion. I did opt to replace the sound bar (roll bar) component speakers with 6.5" coaxials using the SSV Works adaptor plate, and that worked well to improve the fill sound that the rear speakers provide. But most of the sound comes from the front of the vehicle and the sub, so not absolutely necessary to do this, again, in my opinion. The PSS-23WRA is a big improvement on its own, and worth the spend. And if you can do it for the $850 that the components cost, you've got a great sound system upgrade for a helluva price.

Good morning. I installed the PSS-23wra just the other day. Followed the procedure for my non amplified system cause I didn’t get the alpine system. Sub works but I’m getting no sound from my speakers(yes I did the fade test) I took a small speaker as my rig set up and was getting sound from the harness behind the radio, tested the harness input of the Amp and was good but I was not getting any sound output of the Amp. Can I conclude that the Amp(ktp-445u) with this kit is bad?? Any suggestions and assistance is greatly appreciated. To add, I did changed all the factory speakers(Kick panel and sound bar) to the alpine 6.5”

 

[KrzybonesJLU]

Good morning. I installed the PSS-23wra just the other day. Followed the procedure for my non amplified system cause I didn’t get the alpine system. Sub works but I’m getting no sound from my speakers(yes I did the fade test) I took a small speaker as my rig set up and was getting sound from the harness behind the radio, tested the harness input of the Amp and was good but I was not getting any sound output of the Amp. Can I conclude that the Amp(ktp-445u) with this kit is bad?? Any suggestions and assistance is greatly appreciated. To add, I did changed all the factory speakers(Kick panel and sound bar) to the alpine 6.5”

When the car is on do you see the blue light on the sub? I’d double check all the wiring is correct in addition make sure that the RCA (red white plugs)cables are connected correctly And Nothing pinched when bolting down the seat again. If everything seems to be ok— disconnect the entire kit and plug the HU back into the factory harness just to confirm that everything is still working... then connect everything again... sounds like a pain but it’s gotta be done.

 

[JLscorpio31]

When the car is on do you see the blue light on the sub? I’d double check all the wiring is correct in addition make sure that the RCA (red white plugs)cables are connected correctly And Nothing pinched when bolting down the seat again. If everything seems to be ok— disconnect the entire kit and plug the HU back into the factory harness just to confirm that everything is still working... then connect everything again... sounds like a pain but it’s gotta be done.

Yeah blue light is on and rca for sub is connected and that works too, i disconnected and reconnected the OEM harness and all the speakers work fine. Just reconnected the pss-23wra and still no sound out of them. I again took an old speaker and connected to the harness going into the amp and I’m getting sound, but no sound coming out of the amp.

 

[JLscorpio31]

Stupid question, but is the blue power light indication light on Sub supposed to stay on even when the Jeep is turned off?

 

[beaups]

Stupid question, but is the blue power light indication light on Sub supposed to stay on even when the Jeep is turned off?

For a bit. Once the jeep goes to "sleep" after a bit (doors closed and fob out of range) it will eventually power everything down.

 

[JLscorpio31]

For a bit. Once the jeep goes to "sleep" after a bit (doors closed and fob out of range) it will eventually power everything down.

Ok, I waited 10mins, came back and the blue light is still on(passenger seat is still off).

 

[beaups]

Ok, I waited 10mins, came back and the blue light is still on(passenger seat is still off).

Mine always eventually turns off. Did you have the fob in your pocket when you came back? That may wake it up. Also I'm assuming you are using the alpine harness and factory radio (that supplies the correct remote turn-on signal).

 

[JLscorpio31]

Mine always eventually turns off. Did you have the fob in your pocket when you came back? That may wake it up. Also I'm assuming you are using the alpine harness and factory radio (that supplies the correct remote turn-on signal).

Yes, just to make sure it works. I disconnected the auto amp turn on and plugged it back in, I’ll check in 7mins without key fob.

 

[JLscorpio31]

Here’s a stupid question...is the blue light on the sub supposed to stay on even when the Jeep is off?!?

 

[JLscorpio31]

Just installed this yesterday and followed Winesmile's config and it sounds MUCH better. Only problem I see is if I turn up the AMP front and rear gain I get white noise thru the speakers, even when volume is 0. Noises increases the higher you set the gain.

Am I wrong here? Is the blue light on the sub supposed to stay on even when the Jeep is off?!?

 

[KrzybonesJLU]

Am I wrong here? Is the blue light on the sub supposed to stay on even when the Jeep is off?!?

It will turn off after a min or two after turning the car off

 

[JLscorpio31]

It will turn off after a min or two after turning the car off

Yeah just installed mine, before re-installing the seats I figured to trst everything. Turned the radio and Jeep off and the blue light stayed on. Locked it walked off for about ten minutes and blue light was still on. So I disconnected the remote wire from the harness located in the back of the radio and was still getting 12-14volts with the Jeep off. Any ideas?

 

[Du0377]

If anyone is able to find the parts for this system ahywhere else please post here. I waited too long to order and see Pac Parts is out. Thanks.

 

[jgdiablo]

Anyone replaced with soundbar and knee pad speakers yet, with the PSS setup? If so, what did you choose? I’m thinking of Alpine R-S65.2.

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