speaker questions, 2008 m35x, bose

[jharm73]

so ive been searching these forums for about an hour and cant find a solid answer for what i want, seems everyone has a differant story. please help if you know what your talking about.

i want to replace the front and rear door speakers (not tweeters) and also the rear center speaker/sub (depending what your take is on it)

i dont want to install any after market amps if i dont have to. possibly would for the rear center sub but not for the door speakers.

what ohm and efficiancy do the replacement door speakers need to be so i dont destroy my factory bose amp?

also what ohm does the rear center channel need to be, and can this be replaced without another amp?

[rgb129]

BEFORE READING: This is with regards to the premum 14 speaker system

If you are not willing to add amps forget the door speakers and sub and just replace the tweeters.

Most people on here have replaced the doors with 2ohm infinity reference speakers. I tried that...it sucks. The piece of crap Bose amp cannot power them...they start clipping about half way up. You also need to pay attention to the wiring of the front doors with regards to the tweeters....series/parallel with the mids. The rear center is the sub (if you can call it that).

I tried this road and wasted a lot fo time and money. I ended up ripping it all out. I have an old school JL Audio amp power Polk componets (DB6501) in the front and polk coaxials (DB651) in the rear. I ended up ripping out the sub and building a fiberglass enclosure in the trunk behind the wheel well. It has a Alpine 10inch with the PDX-M6 amp. It sounds terrific. My only complaint (this is from someone who is very picky about sound) is the speakers in the cabin need to be delayed a hair to accomodate the distance the lower frequencies from the sub need to travel. I know that is picky and most people will never tell the difference, but that is my only complaint now.

[jharm73]

thanks for the answers though that is not the news i wanted to hear, but what i figured.

I will probably just do the amp and sub then for now.

[rgb129]

thanks for the answers though that is not the news i wanted to hear, but what i figured.

I will probably just do the amp and sub then for now.

That is a good starting point. You might invest in a MTX re-Q which will correct for the diminishing bass problem for your sub. You can tap right into the stock subwoofer lines and tie it into the re-Q and use the low level from the re-Q to feed the sub amp. It would be an easy install to do that. Where are you located at?

MTX re-Q

[jharm73]

located in Baltimore. is there a way to tap into the preamp lines that go into the bose amp? did this at the back of the HU in my 2001 audi worked great.

[jharm73]

rgb129-- also if i plan on doing the rest of the speakers in the future should i get the re-q5?

[rgb129]

rgb129-- also if i plan on doing the rest of the speakers in the future should i get the re-q5?

You can, but not necessary. What I did is take the front two line level inputs and ran that through the 3 channel re-Q and ran the low levels from the re-Q to the JL amp. To feed the Alpine amp to power the sub, I used the pre-outs from the JL amp. You could also run the sub line level to the 3rd input on the re-Q and feed your sub amp directly from the re-Q. I chose the easy route in this case and just used the front two.

[wingFeather]

One day I would like to hear the difference all of these modifications make. I personally love the stock system - would be neat to hear what other people prefer in it's place.

[jharm73]

One day I would like to hear the difference all of these modifications make. I personally love the stock system - would be neat to hear what other people prefer in it's place.

Stock system lacks that low bass and sometimes i notice a clipping when turned up loud, or my speaker is blown, only hear it from the front passengers and from the rear center....

[cruzad3r]

i've swapped my stock bose to the infinity speakers from amazon and i like it. i think it's a good upgrade and not fairly expensive. i do have the 14 speakers system.

the question is, what do you want out of your sound? unless you want to compete, i think swapping the speakers is a good choice/starter. Especially when they're fairly cheap on amazon. Search for the speaker upgrade on here; it's a very good post with HOW-TO included. when i have time, i'll post my installed pics

[SchoonerVanHelmet]

I agree with the above statements, as what do you want out of your system? The bose amp is okay, but I didn't want to lose my phone and navigation sound through my stereo. I have the 8 speaker bose system..

I ended up replacing the front & rear door speakers with the Infinity Kappa 63.9i 3way speakers (2 ohm) but had to use the existing bose speaker mounts to fit to doors due to depth.

http://www.onlinecarstereo.com/CarAudio ... _639i.aspx

The stock bose amp for these is okay, but not to the potential these speakers can produce.

I also removed the so called bose sub in the rear deck and placed an inifnity 12" enclosed sub with a 500w Orion amp (250w to sub) in my trunk. I utilized the existing sub wires and attached to the the "High Level" inputs of the Orion amp and tapped into the remote wire of the bose amp.

http://www.onlinecarstereo.com/CarAudio ... 220se.aspx
http://www.onlinecarstereo.com/CarAudio ... O5001.aspx

Not sure if there are adaptors so you could "Clean" the entire system with all new amps while keeping the phone & navigation sound through the stereo. My system is okay, but could be a lot better if the bose amp was replaced.

I would suggest replacing the front & rear speakers, replacing the sub with an enclosed sub with an amp in the trunk first to see if this sound is good enough for your ears.. Just my 2cents..

[jharm73]

good call, yeah i think thats where im headed for now, though i did find my wifes old alpine 4way amp in the garage sooo i dont know :-)

[wazzu mille]

I'm running a bridged Coustic amp (don't have the power rating off hand) powering an 8" JBL sub in a sealed truck style box. Used line out converter to rca to the amp. Amp and sub are in the trunk. Problem is that the M is so well insulated for noise that the sub is not very effective in the trunk. Much different result than the same exact setup I had in the Audi A6 (used stock Bose system system as well). The Audi trunk provided MUCH more bass output.

I have turned up the gain but that just makes the trunk lining rattle. So I would tell you that adding an amp and sub might not get you the results you're looking for. Or maybe try a ported box, or a 10" sub?

[rgb129]

One day I would like to hear the difference all of these modifications make. I personally love the stock system - would be neat to hear what other people prefer in it's place.

You really don't. If you hear it, you'll want to change it. There was already one guy (M35 with the 8 speaker) who thought stock was great, then he listened to mine and was ready to start swapping part. For me, I am a bit of an audiophile and want things to sound as the should.

The hard part is everything is all about going loud nowadays not clear sound reproduction. Also the subs are designed for the window rattlers (what i call one note bass heads) where there is a 3dB+ jump in the 35Hz-45Hz range depending on the sub. When designing your box, I use a combination for WinISD and a couple of other online calculators to build the ideal or as close to as possible enclosure. Finding a good setup that sounds great at an "acceptable" listening level is important.

[DeanM45]

I went ahead and took the plunge today. I have the 14 speaker system and ordered the 62.9i kappa and 1031t tweeters. I've only swapped the driver's door at this point. The sound is much cleaner than the stock setup, comparable to my Lex GS stock system. Lacks some mid bass but I am pretty sure it will sound better as the speakers break in/loosen up. I used the stock mounts with the bose speaker guts removed. Dynamatted the door and sealed the speaker and mount together and to the door frame.

The sound level is slightly louder than stock but there is NO distortion or clipping. I give the stock CD sound a 6/10 and the Infinity speakers an 8/10. DVD sound is night and day, MUCH better.

At low/medium volume the sound is more "discreet", much more detail can be heard. At high volume the sound is far less "muddy", much cleaner.

I'll do the passenger side tomorrow and see how the system sounds together.

The system definitely needs a better sub so that will be next on the list. Might replace the rear door speakers as well. I have a couple of old Kenwood 744 amps and a 929 amp. Might use the 744s to drive the door speakers and the 929 for a sub at some point.

I'd like to hear about anyone else's upgrades.

Thanks

[DeanM45]

Now that I have the other side installed I am VERY pleased with the results. The new woofers give a good deal more bass (some is probably due to sealing the door up as well) than I thought but the real highlight is the tweeters on the upper doors. Much much better sound. On the co-axle woofers I have the tweeters at -3db and the imaging is really good.

I would like more "deep" bass so I pulled the trunk liners out and started looking around. Found out that I have a full size spare which was a cool find.
There is FAR more bass in the trunk than in the cabin (with the deck lid open) so that got me to thinking......there are NUMEROUS holes on the trunk skin, some of which must undoubtedly find their way into the cabin. In an infinite baffle (stock) system it is extremely important for the cabin to be sealed from the trunk.
I am going to go through and seal as many of the holes as possible (expanding foam, roofing tape, etc.). That ** should ** improve the sound output and quality from the stock sub.

I am doing everything I can to avoid running a sub box as I need all the space in the trunk that I can get. Plus removing the stock sub (to allow pass through from the box) will introduce unwanted road noise into the cabin. Before I go with a box I will upgrade the stock sub and add an amp driven off of the stock amp through a LOC. I've searched but have not seen any real input on upgrading the stock sub (brand, model which amp, etc).

If anyone has any feedback or suggestions it would be appreciated.

Thanks!

[DeanM45]

Sealed up all the holes in the parcel shelf (the openings for the, I assume, base audio rear speakers were leaking badly. There is a cover on them from the top (much like Dynamat material) but it was not sealed well. Also pulled out the stock sub and used some weatherstripping to seal it better in the parcel shelf. Found a few more holes from the top that I could not reach from the trunk area. The rear seat "bulkhead" is pretty well sealed and did not need much work. The ski pass through already has a pretty good weatherstrip type seal on it.

The slight rattle I used to get with Dirty Laundry (Don Henley) is gone now, I assume because of the slightly better mounting of the stock sub.

The sound output is now vastly improved from the stock sub and I mean vastly. I used about 1/2 a roll of Gorilla tape and two cans of "Great Stuff" expanding foam. LOTS of trimming and sanding makes the mods pretty much invisible. It is a bit harder to close the trunk now and you can see the sub move (from the top of course) when closing the trunk which leads me to believe that most of the air leaks have been sealed.

For testing I played the same group of songs from classical/big band to rock to hip hop at the same volume level (50%). The sound, again, is vastly improved as well as the over all volume output. For about two days worth of work, and $140 in materials (Infinity woofers and tweeters, Great Stuff, Gorilla tape) the sound system has been greatly improved.

For those that say that the sub volume falls off with higher volume, I disagree. I am willing to bet that it is just the door/surround speakers overpowering the sub as the volume increases. With the sealing that I did that does not happen, the sub and overall bass remains very strong up to full volume.

My next step will be to Dynamat (or similar) the trunk floor to help reduce road/exhaust noise although a lot of it was removed with the trunk sealing.
I have a pair of Aura bass shakers that I may throw in under the front seats as well for the sub 60 hz kick (4 ohm and only need about 70 watts to really wake up the system - I have two each mounted on my chairs for my home theater and they really pull you in).

[EniGmA1987]

Id be interested in hearing how you mount those shakers if you ever do. I would think there is too much stuff in too little space under the seat, but I suppose with enough know how and willpower it could be possible to do. I have some similar things in my home theater and if those shakers work well enough in the car I may follow your lead and do the same to my car.

[DeanM45]

Are you running the Aura Pros on your HT?
When I had the driver's seat out to re-weld the lower seat bracket it looks like there would be room enough for the bracket. I'll have to pull it out and verify. Only need about 2 1/4" X 6".

On another note, saw my buddy today who is Talking Heads' number one fan. I put on "Our House (in the middle of the street)" to see if he could tell a difference. "Holy crap! What the hell did you do? It sounds like night and day difference." Was the response.

[EniGmA1987]

I dont use Aura's, I heard they were just average so I didnt go that route. From my previous experience running audio at concerts I have used Buttkicker Concert shakers and had a few of the big ones laying around at work. I was given the ok to take them home so I use those in my home theater, they are much too big for a car so I would have to buy new, smaller units if I were to do this in my car.

[DeanM45]

Buttkickers are good but very power hungry. Great for HT, not so much for car. IMAX Theaters use BK and Clark in some of their theaters. Clarks are smaller and pack a HUGE punch, pricey at about $300/each for the small ones but at relatively low wattage (~75 watts) they can be almost painful especially without a subsonic filter. The Aura Pros are much better than the old, smaller units (without the heat sinks) and work surprisingly well with an old Yamaha amp (50 watts/channel) and no isolation of the seats from the wood floor. I am running a BA 12" sub (sealed) backed by a dedicated McIntosh amp for the HT but with the Auras I do not have to have the sub blasting at night and still get a good "feel" out of the sound. I'll try the Auras on the floor board (do not think that'll work well) and then in the seats. We'll see. Ultimately I will upgrade the sub system in the M so this is more of a stop gap and a "free" test since I have all the components.