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TJJL19

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What is your mailing address? I'll send it to you for the cost of postage. I don't know what that will be for a padded envelope sent regular mail (I'll know when I get to the post office, but likely under $5, plus the envelope), but if you want to pay $8.30 I can send it priority mail flat rate...

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I'm not sure how to do a private conversation on this forum
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emgeesea

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Just started a private conversation with you. - fyi
 

Maverick18

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Anyone with this system lose full seat movement? it appears like there is a little sensor on the bottom of the seat that scrapes the top of the subwoofer. Also i have a little rattle from the seat when the base is turned up. I was losing daylight last night and couldn't see what is rattling. Any thoughts?
 
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emgeesea

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Anyone with this system lose full seat movement? it appears like there is a little sensor on the bottom of the seat that scrapes the top of the subwoofer. Also i have a little rattle from the seat when the base is turned up. I was losing daylight last night and couldn't see what is rattling. Any thoughts?
  1. 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.
 

Maverick18

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I guess I should have read your write-up more thoroughly lol! Thanks!
 

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emgeesea

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I guess I should have read your write-up more thoroughly lol! Thanks!
I'm betting you're experiencing the same issue. It was preventing my seat from gliding all the way back as well. But once you correct this, all's good!
 

3kiddos

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Have been considering this for my JLUS. Thanks for the excellent write up!
 

TJJL19

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Emgeesea thanks again for all your help with my install,RCA'S worked great!
 

Cutterone

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Gentlemen, let me save you all the trouble, look up Alpine PWD-X5. Its a single unit with a 165 RMS 8' sub, a 4ch amp for the main speakers at 25 RMS, and a built in DSP to tune it all!!! Why am I the only one that knows about this unit!!! And its on sale for less than $500 right now! Im finally having mine installed Saturday! Gonna mount sub on side in rear and hope that does ok there, dont want it under seats. Also this comes with a 15ft prewired braided cable for easy hookup, just need to do the t harness at the headunit...maybe it will suck but it seems like a one stop shop unit for our base systems...
 

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Alright peoples, I finally got my Alpine PWD-x5 installed, and I gotta say it is really impressive. If you want an all-in-one easy clean solution, look this unit up. It definitely exceeded my expectations, though of course opinions vary, but I highly recommend checking it out...sorry having problems uploading image, I had it installed where Alpine sub usually is behind right passenger seat, fits perfect...
Jeep Wrangler JL Alpine PSS-23WRA Sound System Upgrade - Review and Suggestions IMG_8228
 

eball

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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.
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.
I hope you don't think this is a dumb question but does this kit make the music sound better too? I see that it amplifies the music so you can enjoy the stereo when the top is off, which is great but is the sound better too? I bought a new 2020 and did not realize how important the premium sound would have been. I have buyers remorse as the stereo sucks so bad, is not loud and the music sounds like an old fashion radio.
 

eball

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I hope you don't think this is a dumb question but does this kit make the music sound better too? I see that it amplifies the music so you can enjoy the stereo when the top is off, which is great but is the sound better too? I bought a new 2020 and did not realize how important the premium sound would have been. I have buyers remorse as the stereo sucks so bad, is not loud and the music sounds like an old fashion radio.
 
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emgeesea

emgeesea

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I hope you don't think this is a dumb question but does this kit make the music sound better too? I see that it amplifies the music so you can enjoy the stereo when the top is off, which is great but is the sound better too? I bought a new 2020 and did not realize how important the premium sound would have been. I have buyers remorse as the stereo sucks so bad, is not loud and the music sounds like an old fashion radio.
Hi. Yes, the sound is much better. Primarily due to: (1) better dash tweeters to reveal high tones, (2) subwoofer for bass tones, and (3) amplifier for powering the radio signal, which means more volume at lower levels (= less distortion). I think for the $850 spend, as I described above, it is well worth it, and you will not be disappointed. (Unless you need ear-blowing volume! It is loud, but not live concert, front row, loud. For that you'd need a more powerful amp than the KTP, which I believe you could do with the other components, but it would not be plug 'n play, as the harnesses would not match up.)

If I had to do it over, I would still install this kit. But I would probably not bother replacing the sound bar (roll bar) speakers, and just stick with the Alpine kit as designed. The sound improvement is significant over stock, and not just louder.
 

DeeGee

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Hi, Emgeesea. I'm DeeGee. I just purchased a Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Black & Tan Limited Edition model in White & Tan. My vehicle didn't come with the Alpine system. Thank you for the information about purchasing individual parts for a build, from PacParts. After looking at the components, I wanted to know how you connected the brackets to the amplifier for installation. Are there holes on the bottom of the amplifier to allow one to connect the brackets for installation? Also, would the screws need to be purchased separately or does screws come with the brackets? Thanks.
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