My audio system upgrade with lots of photos

[DrBriGuy]

I get a kick out of these posts. I think these folks are doing amazing things, and I’m a tad jealous, but with four kids I can’t even imagine having the time to do this kind of stuff. The best I can hope for is no one leaving chip crumbs all over the back seat, .

I feel your pain. chips aren't allowed in the bronco. the back seat of my wife's SUV is completely annihilated. would be embarrased to try to sell that vehicle to anyone in the future. explaining no "crumbly" snacks to 2 and 4 year olds is interesting.

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[rhldy]

Let’s pretend you were a person that didn’t know anything about electrical work, but wanted better sound in your Bronco. This looks more sophisticated than what you can get at Best Buy. How would you go about finding a shop that could pull off a build like this?

 

[Hossfire]

Well done, sir! Nice pictures as well.

 

[Bronc-O]

How much time have you had with the system since install? Are you getting any rattle from the tailgate? That would be my main hesitation in choosing that for a location.

A little Dynamat on the backside of the gate would be a good idea.

 

[B A C N O W]

Let’s pretend you were a person that didn’t know anything about electrical work, but wanted better sound in your Bronco. This looks more sophisticated than what you can get at Best Buy. How would you go about finding a shop that could pull off a build like this?

I would start with Yelp for custom car stereo installers that have established a reputation and have enjoyed longevity in the field! Then, you should attempt to determine the level of upgrade and your budget!

 

[Rem234]

A little Dynamat on the backside of the gate would be a good idea.

Have you looked inside the tailgate? There is hardly any accessible flat panels of tailgate to stick it to. There is a ton of internal braces running in every direction. Honestly it does not rattle anywhere except right at the door handle so I may try to put some in that area (which also happens to be pretty easy to access, see my photos). If it gets worse down the road, I believe the spray in dynamat would be the only way to get the rest of the tailgate.

 

[lilkajun]

As you are all aware, the standard audio system is lacking, especially if you spend any time with the top and doors off and actually enjoy music. It is subpar for a 2021 vehicle in any price range. Here is what I did to improve. First I tried to take the inexpensive way out and installed the Infinity 4" REF-4032CFX speakers front and rear. This did yield an improvement in sound quality and a minor volume improvement. Back in the 90's I was really into car audio and did some decent installs, so I decided to go all in and give our ride the sounds it deserves for true top off enjoyment. Here is what I have now:

Infinity Reference REF-4030CFX (4 of them)
Rockford Fosgate P1675-S 6 3/4 components
Wave Tech link 4 line out converter
Rockford Fosgate T1000X5ad 5 channel amp
JL Audio CS112LG-TW3 12" Sub in sealed box
T-Spec 4 ga. wiring and RCAs

Rather than purchase adapters for the 6.75 I made my own from 1/2 thick plastic. The stock kick panel speaker is a 6.5", but there is plenty of depth and space for the 6.75 to fit. As these were the only ones my local shop had in stock, I went with them. I did trim the back of the kick panel trim grill area (see photo) to ensure that the speaker would not touch as it travels. I mounted the tweeters to the dash top grills.
The amp is running like this:
2 channels - 4" Infinitys in the dash
2 channels - 6.75 components
1 channel - JL 12" at 2 ohms

I left the rear speakers running off the stock head unit and they only provide some minor rear fill. I tapped the kick panel speaker wiring (under the head unit) to feed the Wave Tech line out converter, mounted under the steering column. From there two sets of RCAs feed the amp mounted in the rear fender area.
The link 4 has a remote level knob that controls the sub volume and it is mounted under the dash (see photo).
I mounted the fuse to the lid of the fuse box under the hood and ran the 4 ga. wire down the drivers side and then across the back behind the seat, following the factory wiring harness. The RCAs, speaker, and remote wires are routed down the passenger side.
Originally I tired using the factory ground location towards the top rear of the fender area. This provided a lot of ground loop feedback so I ended up moving it to the location shown in the photo closer to the seat belt.
I cut the carpet off the sub box and coated it with two coats of Herculiner truck bed coating. I machined two custom t-slot nuts that fit into the oval cut outs in the tailgate. I used these two t-slot nuts and three rivet nuts across the top in existing factory holes to attach the box to the tailgate using five 1/4-20 bolts. Since the tailgate is not flat I placed some 3/16 thick rubber between the box and tailgate. I ran the wires to the sub inside of the factory wire loom and then close to the box brought them out into their own loom for a factory look.
The amp is mounted to a board attached to the fender using three existing studs in the fender. Everything is in loom or protective sleeve where it could be exposed to movement or wear. I removed practically every interior panel to complete this job and only managed to break one clip, and that was on the dash speaker grill after the third time taking it out.
Thank you to all of you who have posted photos and information on here to help me educate myself before I started the project. This system is overkill and is clear and loud enough that cruising with the top off is going to be awesome!

Great write up
and thanks for sharing. Two questions: Do I need a LOC or can I just use the amplifiers high level output connectors to tap into the speakers? I want to run a 5 channel amp for the 6.5s and 4s in front (nothing on the 4" rears like yours) and a 8" subwoofer. I think I read somewhere the 6.5s and 4s in front are connected together. If so, do I tap into each speaker wire separately?

 

[Rem234]

Great write up
and thanks for sharing. Two questions: Do I need a LOC or can I just use the amplifiers high level output connectors to tap into the speakers? I want to run a 5 channel amp for the 6.5s and 4s in front (nothing on the 4" rears like yours) and a 8" subwoofer. I think I read somewhere the 6.5s and 4s in front are connected together. If so, do I tap into each speaker wire separately?

You do not need a LOC. The purpose of the LOC is to improve the voltage of the signal, giving you a more powerful and clear signal to the amp.
The factory wiring for the front speakers go to the 6.5's first then jump up to the 4's so there is really only one set of wires to tap into.

 

[lilkajun]

You do not need a LOC. The purpose of the LOC is to improve the voltage of the signal, giving you a more powerful and clear signal to the amp.
The factory wiring for the front speakers go to the 6.5's first then jump up to the 4's so there is really only one set of wires to tap into.

Thanks; so if I understand you correctly, I would tap into the both 6.5s for the input and then I would run the amp speaker wires directly to the speakers I want to amplify.

 

[Rem234]

Thanks; so if I understand you correctly, I would tap into the both 6.5s for the input and then I would run the amp speaker wires directly to the speakers I want to amplify.

Correct. Then once you have it working if you feel that it does not have the power and/or clarity you expected you can add a LOC/DSP.
I did it this way in my son's Focus and going from high level inputs to an audio control LC2i was a serious upgrade.

 

[lilkajun]

Correct. Then once you have it working if you feel that it does not have the power and/or clarity you expected you can add a LOC/DSP.
I did it this way in my son's Focus and going from high level inputs to an audio control LC2i was a serious upgrade.

Thanks again....well, I purchased all my equipment and just noticed my 5 channel amp does not have high level inputs; thus I will need a LOC. Anything in particular you recommend. Like I said I was going to run the front 4s on the dash *(CH 1 & 2), 6.5s kickers (CH 3&4) at 4ohms and a 8" subwoofer (CH5) at 4ohms.

 

[anthem]

I will mount this powered sub on the tailgate ..........

https://www.amazon.com/KICKER-46HS1...t=&hvlocphy=9030095&hvtargid=pla-869750699507

Killer, low profile sub. great choice. Added one to my old Tundra, didn't need any other base solution.

 

[buzpro]

Killer, low profile sub. great choice. Added one to my old Tundra, didn't need any other base solution.

i haven't heard it but the reviews are very good. Glad to hear you liked it. So yeah, if its mounted on the tailgate it will be sending the bass straight down the cabin. Then you can get a 2-channel amp for the rear speakers.

 

[gemask]

Is there a guide/page from a manual on how to remove the side panels in the back? I want to get behind the Driver's side to do some measuring for amp/sub mounting.

 

[Rem234]

Is there a guide/page from a manual on how to remove the side panels in the back? I want to get behind the Driver's side to do some measuring for amp/sub mounting.

Somewhere in this forum there was a CAD picture of the side panels showing the clip locations. I could not find it when I was ready to remove the panel so I just started carefully. If you look at my photo of the amp mounting you can see the white circle clips for location reference.
Once you take the trim piece off in the door jamb and the one where the soft top bolts on, you can see behind the trim pretty well so you can see where you need to pry for the clips. Just take your time and you will be fine. You have to pull the floor and piece behind the seat out first as well if you want to completely remove the side panel.

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