Upgrading speakers… Not that simple

[Lej512]

In case anyone was curious what the B&O speakers look like. Not much to look at. Top three are the dash speakers and the bottom two are the kick panels. Weak to say the least.

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[Hydro556]

U P D A T E - I completed my Trail Seven install today. Took about four hours total but I added some steps. First off let me say, I can hear a HUGE difference from the factory speakers to the Trail Seven Kit.

I opted to do the Kicker CS kit with the Trail Seven rear pods. Install video was spot on. I added dielectric gel to all the connections and polyfill for sound dampening. The kick panels are still (IMO) the hardest ones to change. Hard to explain but you have to route the harness through an opening in the sheet metel below the speaker because of the way it's designed. The opening is somewhat rounded but I wanted to add a small piece of split loom to the metal edge just to be safe. The other thing I noticed was that no matter how careful you are with your trim removal tool, (the video showed a metal one, I used a plastic one) you still end up with minor blemishes on the edges of the speaker grills. NO BROKEN OR LOST CLIPS THOUGH!

I chose not to remove the top which made accessing the screws on top of the pods difficult to get to but not impossible. Using a low profile ratchet, once you get the screws started works best. Just have to be patient and determined. Everything fit perfectly. You do have to snip the allignment pins off the front speaker openings - Small flush cutters work best.

I call the cars of today LEGO cars because they're mostly plastic and snap together. I wouldn't want to make it a habit of taking them apart. On the other hand, snapping everything back together is a breeze. My last suggestion would be TEST EVERYTHING before you put all the trim pieces back. I used MC Hammer's "U Can't Touch This" as my test which coincidentally is my motto when I'm driving the Bronco.

Not a very technical write up but if anyone has any questions, I'll answer them as best I can. Overall, I'd give the project a 9.9 out of 10. Getting the screws in to the top of the pods caused me to utter several discouraging words.

Thanks for all the advice!

Nice. Glad you like them.

I'm neutral in the b&o system in my 25. It's ok, but not great.

Just don't want to drop a pile of cash on it. Was wondering what you think about just replacing the front dash speakers and adding a powered sub. Wondering if that would be worth the hassle.

 

[Brian_B]

Nice. Glad you like them.

I'm neutral in the b&o system in my 25. It's ok, but not great.

Just don't want to drop a pile of cash on it. Was wondering what you think about just replacing the front dash speakers and adding a powered sub. Wondering if that would be worth the hassle.

A lot of folks have found that just upgrading the dash speakers had a nice improvement for low cost. Biggest bang for the buck right there. $100-200 can give you a pretty good bump in quality here, and the replacement is pretty easy to do.

Adding a powered sub - the B&O system already has one, and it gets a bit complicated with the B&O system since it's all digital. Lots of options, but you are talking a lot more money, and it's a lot more complicated install getting at either the factory sub to replace it, or pulling enough panels to route the wiring for an additional externally mounted sub.

 

[Fast Eddie]

Nice. Glad you like them.

I'm neutral in the b&o system in my 25. It's ok, but not great.

Just don't want to drop a pile of cash on it. Was wondering what you think about just replacing the front dash speakers and adding a powered sub. Wondering if that would be worth the hassle.

I have a 25 with the B&O system. I replaced the front LR speakers with Infinity 4" 2 ways and the sub I replaced with an 8" Kicker DVC sub that went in with some trimming. It made a substantial difference and was well worth the less than $200 cost.

 

[EOD98]

I have a 25 with the B&O system. I replaced the front LR speakers with Infinity 4" 2 ways

You picked the right speakers for the dash if you don't plan on adding an amp. I did the same thing before I gutted everything. I'm surprised that 8" pushes out much of anything without adding an amp. Glad it worked out for you. Definitely saved some money.

 

[Fast Eddie]

You picked the right speakers for the dash if you don't plan on adding an amp. I did the same thing before I gutted everything. I'm surprised that 8" pushes out much of anything without adding an amp. Glad it worked out for you. Definitely saved some money.

The sub really hits way above its weight class. I was surprised to see the rear view mirror vibrating with the bass. I did find something opposite of what is normally recommended. I left the port open. I had forgot to close it and loved the result but later while having the panel apart I decided to close it based on recommendations. Meh, certainly was a step backwards so a few months later I had the panel off again and I opened it. Back to loving the result.

 

[T800]

Nice. Glad you like them.

I'm neutral in the b&o system in my 25. It's ok, but not great.

Just don't want to drop a pile of cash on it. Was wondering what you think about just replacing the front dash speakers and adding a powered sub. Wondering if that would be worth the hassle.

Anything you get at around the $100 range per pair, will be significantly better. The Hertz DCX 100.3 are a popular replacement.

It's not worth spending more than that if you're not doing an amp.

 

[Hydro556]

Anything you get at around the $100 range per pair, will be significantly better. The Hertz DCX 100.3 are a popular replacement.

It's not worth spending more than that if you're not doing an amp.

So just a quality set of dash left and right are a noticeable improvement? nice to hear. Maybe that and a powered sub will be all I need then.

 

[FoxyRoxy]

Standard 6 speakers no amp. I bought 6 new speakers on black Friday from Crutchfield with all the wire connectors to make it plug and play. Pioneer 4 inch x4 and Focal 6" x2. Sound was much better but no real bass. that was $250 bucks and 2 hours of my labor. Then I upgraded the rear pods to 6" and put some JBL back there for a bit more bass but not having to add a sub.. again about another $250 bucks .. Time to install was longer as I have a rack and needed to remove the rack before I could jack up the rear part of the hard top to access the rear hardware. total about $500

 

[T800]

So just a quality set of dash left and right are a noticeable improvement? nice to hear. Maybe that and a powered sub will be all I need then.

That would sound better. Figure the stock speakers would be worth around $20 / pair if you could buy them.

Always going to be better with an amp. Though still worth it to just replace the front. Likewise, any powered sub is also going to sound better. I pulled the fuse for the factory sub. I did do an amp and all speakers though.

 

[Fast Eddie]

So just a quality set of dash left and right are a noticeable improvement? nice to hear. Maybe that and a powered sub will be all I need then.

It is very important to get a set of speakers with high sensitivity (corrected from impedance). The factory ones are fairly efficient so if you get a pair with low sensitivity then they will play lower than the stock ones. Very important when not changing amps. That's a main driver for me choosing the infinity...

 

[MKZoom]

It is very important to get a set of speakers with high impedance. The factory ones are fairly efficient so if you get a pair with low Imp then they will play lower than the stock ones. Very important when not changing amps. That's a main driver for me choosing the infinity...

worth noting that sensitivity is the metric that determines how loud something plays at a particular voltage. i would actually recommend NOT looking for high impedance speakers as the amps are not optimized for high impedance loads. in simplified terms If the amplifier is maxed out at 20 volts, an 8 ohm speaker is unable to get more than 50 watts, vs a 4 ohm speaker that could reach 100W

 

[Fast Eddie]

worth noting that sensitivity is the metric that determines how loud something plays at a particular voltage. i would actually recommend NOT looking for high impedance speakers as the amps are not optimized for high impedance loads. in simplified terms If the amplifier is maxed out at 20 volts, an 8 ohm speaker is unable to get more than 50 watts, vs a 4 ohm speaker that could reach 100W

Crap you are right. I meant to say sensitivity. I am fixing original post. I guess this happens with age lol.

 

[Like2Detail]

Anyone have a link to the best simple instructions on wiring the Kicker 48CWR84 and Kicker 47KEY500.1 to replace the B&O subwoofer? I see tons of threads that get into complicated explanations. I ordered from Crutchfield with the wiring kit & polyester fill. Everything comes Wednesday.

Just looking for the best amp placement, routing path for the power wire from the battery, which wires to splice from the B&O amp and if I use the RCA jacks or high level inputs etc.

Not changing anything else at the moment, the OEM sub just misses about half the tone range I'd expect for the price of the system. My son's 23 Wrangler Alpine system blows this B&O one away.

Some of the videos were long and complicated, just need some directions. Thanks in advance!

 

[EOD98]

I know you are going a different route but… Easiest option would have been to call Joe at plugandplaykits. Get the premade T-harness. The amp kit with proper lengths, etc. Then you really don’t even worry about splicing or finding wires, etc. Also, then it’s super easy to put everything back to factory if you needed to.
3d printed Gearshade enclosure is also the best way to go. If replacing the factory sub.

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