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Terra Acoustics vs Traditional Upgrade

pangmaster

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I have had the TA speakers in my Jeep since the launch, and I am still happy. Yes they were expensive compared to the Kicker KSC350s they replaced, but they sound much better to my ears.

As others have said, the plug and play aspect, plus the custom speaker grilles with the tweeter dome made it worth the extra money for me.
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TheDukeofLark

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I have had the TA speakers in my Jeep since the launch, and I am still happy. Yes they were expensive compared to the Kicker KSC350s they replaced, but they sound much better to my ears.

As others have said, the plug and play aspect, plus the custom speaker grilles with the tweeter dome made it worth the extra money for me.
YOU ARE THE GUY.

I've been looking for someone who had upgraded using "traditional" upgrade speakers, and could speak to their performance vs Terra. It appears you are the guy. So, if you wouldn't mind, what is your setup? Alpine or Standard? What head unit? Any other modifications for sound?
 

pangmaster

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YOU ARE THE GUY.

I've been looking for someone who had upgraded using "traditional" upgrade speakers, and could speak to their performance vs Terra. It appears you are the guy. So, if you wouldn't mind, what is your setup? Alpine or Standard? What head unit? Any other modifications for sound?
No pressure! 🤣

** Note that I'm not what I would call a car audio nerd or anything like that, but I am well versed in music, sound, acoustics, and electronics, and one thing I can't stand is having to suffer shitty sounding music in my ride.

I have the "premium" Alpine system with the 8.4. My Jeep was a custom order, so I was getting exactly what I wanted, which was all the things except proximity locks and the stupid safety pkg.

When I got the Jeep I thought the audio was decent enough for a factory system. The 8.4 uconnect and CarPlay integration works really well for me. At any rate it all is way better than anything I ever had in my CJ or TJs.

Of course I can't leave well enough alone when I'm a regular here. So when I started reading about how people had gotten dramatically better sound with some simple and low cost dash speaker swaps, I headed over to crutchfield.com.

Installation of the Kicker KSC350 speakers wasn't bad, but I had read that the Metra adapters sent by Crutchfield are reversed, so I spent a bit of time with that. Once done I felt that they were a good upgrade and worth the trouble. All-in they cost me about $75 back in 2020.

I probably would have just kept the Kickers, but one of them had started buzzing and I was going to have to figure that out. Before I got a round tuit I got the email from Terra Acoustics and decided to take the plunge. I first swapped out the buzzing speaker with the TA, and did some rudimentary A/B testing between L/R channels (which I know is not exactly a valid test). I find the TA speakers do sound better to me.

They look and sound great. I've spent way more money on other things that were either less satisfying or that didn't last, so I can't complain about them being $250.

My wife's Jeep is a '21 JLU with the Alpine and 8.4. She hasn't made any speaker changes, and I can definitely tell the difference between the front "sound stage" in mine vs hers, though my wife would just say that I'm biased ;)
 
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TheDukeofLark

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No pressure! 🤣

** Note that I'm not what I would call a car audio nerd or anything like that, but I am well versed in music, sound, acoustics, and electronics, and one thing I can't stand is having to suffer shitty sounding music in my ride.

I have the "premium" Alpine system with the 8.4. My Jeep was a custom order, so I was getting exactly what I wanted, which was all the things except proximity locks and the stupid safety pkg.

When I got the Jeep I thought the audio was decent enough for a factory system. The 8.4 uconnect and CarPlay integration works really well for me. At any rate it all is way better than anything I ever had in my CJ or TJs.

Of course I can't leave well enough alone when I'm a regular here. So when I started reading about how people had gotten dramatically better sound with some simple and low cost dash speaker swaps, I headed over to crutchfield.com.

Installation of the Kicker KSC350 speakers wasn't bad, but I had read that the Metra adapters sent by Crutchfield are reversed, so I spent a bit of time with that. Once done I felt that they were a good upgrade and worth the trouble. All-in they cost me about $75 back in 2020.

I probably would have just kept the Kickers, but one of them had started buzzing and I was going to have to figure that out. Before I got a round tuit I got the email from Terra Acoustics and decided to take the plunge. I first swapped out the buzzing speaker with the TA, and did some rudimentary A/B testing between L/R channels (which I know is not exactly a valid test). I find the TA speakers do sound better to me.

They look and sound great. I've spent way more money on other things that were either less satisfying or that didn't last, so I can't complain about them being $250.

My wife's Jeep is a '21 JLU with the Alpine and 8.4. She hasn't made any speaker changes, and I can definitely tell the difference between the front "sound stage" in mine vs hers, though my wife would just say that I'm biased ;)
Thanks for the detailed response. I know a couple of us are toying with a cheaper alternative, but it is sounding more and more like the TAs may be worth the money after all. There is a big difference between $85 and $250, but the ease of install is something to note, and if they really are tuned for the JL and compliment the stock stereo otherwise, it would be nice to know nothing else was required. You experience comparing them to other upgraded speakers says a lot.
 

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I have an extra TA buy link if anyone wants to step to the front of the line. Message me with your email and I will forward to you. They are worth the $. You have 60 days to return if you don’t agree.
Just put my name of the waiting list but if you still have that link that'd be great! Been reading a shit ton of reviews from complete systems like the OEM Audio, MB Quart etc. But think I'd like to start with these considering the awesome reviews from everyone so far!

Once I get these I'll figure what's the best route for sound bar, amp, subwoofer etc.
 

sailscall

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I have an extra TA buy link if anyone wants to step to the front of the line. Message me with your email and I will forward to you. They are worth the $. You have 60 days to return if you don’t agree.
Link sent to a forum member. Thanks for those who reached out, I wish I had more to share.
 

jim00

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If anyone wants my Terra Acoustics order link, let me know. I had put my name on the waiting list a long time ago but went a different direction in the mean time. PM me.

Update: Link given away already.
 
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jim00

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I installed the Kenwood Excelon KFC-X3C speakers in the dash location.

For me, this is an upgrade I don’t feel was worth the time and $80. The highs are a bit crisper and more present vs. stock.

However, the downside is that the sound stage moved toward the rear of the Jeep. Left and right remained in balance, at least to my ears. I had to adjust the front/back balance one to two positions toward the front in order to get it to feel that the music was on a stage in front of me.

As others have noted, vehicle manufacturers do a decent job these days with car audio and this seems to be such an example.

The question is, do I double down for another pair of Kenwoods and update the rear speakers in hopes of restoring balance to the force :).

(See my write up here on verifying speaker polarity was correct BTW - https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/threads/metra-speaker-harness-polarity.49506/post-1996795 ).
 

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I installed the Kenwood Excelon KFC-X3C speakers in the dash location.

For me, this is an upgrade I don’t feel was worth the time and $80. The highs are a bit crisper and more present vs. stock.

However, the downside is that the sound stage moved toward the rear of the Jeep. Left and right remained in balance, at least to my ears. I had to adjust the front/back balance one to two positions toward the front in order to get it to feel that the music was on a stage in front of me.

As others have noted, vehicle manufacturers do a decent job these days with car audio and this seems to be such an example.

The question is, do I double down for another pair of Kenwoods and update the rear speakers in hopes of restoring balance to the force :).

(See my write up here on verifying speaker polarity was correct BTW - https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/threads/metra-speaker-harness-polarity.49506/post-1996795 ).
This was my first audio upgrade. I agree with your assessment, however I felt that the clarity was better with these. I updated my whole system in steps, and it wasn’t until the whole system was amplified that I achieved what I was chasing.
 

Jkjones1

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I have a set of Terra Acoustics that I can sell. They were great, but decided i wanted a bit more power so installed the MB Quart system. I could let them go for $175 shipped. Just PM me if interested.
 

yoyoyoyo

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Just installed TA speakers (replace alphine) today. Pretty happy with the upgrade.

I never used other audio upgrades so I cannot tell which one is better, but my ears tell me this is a smart purchase.
 

jollycj

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Thanks for the detailed response. I know a couple of us are toying with a cheaper alternative, but it is sounding more and more like the TAs may be worth the money after all. There is a big difference between $85 and $250, but the ease of install is something to note, and if they really are tuned for the JL and compliment the stock stereo otherwise, it would be nice to know nothing else was required. You experience comparing them to other upgraded speakers says a lot.
i had the Kenwoods like many others and was a good upgrade for the $80 in my opinion. Also tried a couple other speakers but was never quite satisfied.

I installed the TA”s and feel they are the best overall as other have stated. Yes, expensive but overall sound, look and feel are great and I’m very happy.

I have the stock system and ended upgrading the knee pods with Focal 6.5 woofers, sounds bar with alpine R 6.9”s, and added a small powered sub woofer. Of all the upgrades felt the TA and subwoofer upgrades provided the best improvements.
 
 



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