jollycj
Well-Known Member
Thanks for the detail, helpfulOk, so here’s what I got:
Already had the upgraded factory 7” touchscreen receiver/display that came with the Jeep - worked great with this setup:
- The sub I had installed was a Kicker 46HS10 10” powered hideaway subwoofer - got from Crutchfield. Much better than the Alpine 8” option that comes in the jeep upgrade kit (I was actually able to compare side by side at a local shop - night and day better). This thing has plenty of thump for a Jeep install; don’t think I’ve ever turned it up more than 50%, even with top off! I listen to a lot of electronic and drum & bass, and like to “feel” my music. Total win here. Had it installed under passenger seat, good fit. Had independent sub volume knob mounted to the front of the center console just above the parking brake lever - perfect spot to comfortably adjust volume without lifting my arm off armrest. The sub itself is about as big a hideaway you can get with it still ‘just’ fitting under the seat. I think there’s even a YouTube video on this out there as well, and even at the end, the guy was like “I could really see this unit being a big win for all the jeep folks out there!” He was dead on.
- Got a pair of “Kicker 47KSC3504” - also from Crutchfield - to replace the 2 in-dash speakers (top). Again, wow what a difference! They are noticeably louder and very clear! The difference in vocals was huge, and even more surprising… actually output good bass. Yes…really, from an upper in-dash speaker. It is not surprising that Jeep includes new upper-dash tweeters in their upgrade kit - the stock ones stink in comparison. These were pretty plug and play and can be easily installed yourself using the existing factory wiring.
- I did not mess with the 2 under-dash knee-level speakers. They are still stock. Really, these are just mid-level “fill” speakers anyway in the overall soundstage, and are a pain in the ass to upgrade due to how they are situated. Given the other parts I did, these are still fine.
- Finally, because the new top-in-dash speakers and sub were soooo much noticeably better… of course I had to go and upgrade the soundbar speakers as well! I was hoping to avoid messin. With the soundbar, but yeah, the other components were so much better, I pretty much had to! So went over to Best Buy and got a pair of Kicker 6x9’s installed (same series as front ones / can’t recall the mfr part, though). They were work for the tech to get in there, but I didn’t have to pay for installation, so that was on them! Lol. maybe go with component replacements to be nicer to your installer…? Either way, they had it in stock and the tech helped me pick them out.
-Ordered part “MB Quart JE1-169SB” from Crutchfield also - replacement soundbar speaker grille pair and bracket for 6x9 install. (Need this to convert to 6x9 in soundbar).
So yeah, all new kicker brand component system for a really good price installed. As a means of comparing volume, I usually ran my Serius XM music at volume level 38+ On the highway and top down when it was stock, and still needed more. Stock speakers really couldn’t do higher vol than 40 without signal dropout, if that. I now get the same db levels at vol 25 with full bodied sound. If I go to vol 30 now, it with top off and highway speed. Plenty loud. And no, I didn’t install an amp, either. The kicker speakers are just better quality/higher sensitivity than the stock ones - but you could throw an amp in there if you wanted to - that’s another great thing about kicker - expendability down the road if you want. Hope that helps!
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