Audio System Upgrade Recommendations

[jsteph262]

Alright so I made the rookie mistake of researching things more after already purchasing a bunch of components and then wondering if what I purchased is what I really want.

Just like everyone else I found the base audio lacking in pretty much every way, I'm by no means an audiophile, but I enjoy some good quality audio. That being said, I did some searching around the forum and decided on going with the kicker key setup, both the 200.4 and 500.1, Kicker KS speakers all around, 6.5 pods in the rear, and stinger tailgate sub. Bought the plug and play kit for the install, have everything ready to go, just waiting on some halfway decent weather to install. While I've been waiting, I've been doing some research and I'm seeing that the amp rating on the speakers far exceeds that of the what the 200.4 will be putting out, especially in the case of the front corners sharing a channel. I've done some speaker upgrades before but never a whole system like this so wasn't paying too much attention to the details.

In y'all's experience/opinion, would it be worth the hassle and extra money to go with a 6 channel rather than the 200.4 in order to get dedicated channels for all the speakers? I'm spending a decent amount of money on this upgrade and want it to be done right, but if I won't notice much of a difference as an audio novice then I'll just stick with what I have. I may totally be overthinking this, but since this is the first full system I've done I'm just ignorant to the importance of certain things.

I'm fully aware that the speakers are only using a fraction of their rated amperage 99% of the time, but at what point would only providing 50 amps to a pair of speakers rated at 75 and 100 be a problem?

Sponsored

 

[Brian_B]

Not really an issue. Actually it's preferred this way (speakers a bit, but not ridiculously, oversized compared to the amp), as you won't risk damaging the speakers if/when you get to the point of clipping on the amp.

A 6 channel will sound better and be easier to tune. They are also larger, have fewer clean available installation locations, require more wiring changes, and are just more expensive over all. So Give and Take.

I'd recommend installing what you got - there are a lot of folks around here with that identical setup that are pretty happy with it. There's always a crowd that wants something better, and maybe you are in that - but what you have now will be a significant upgrade from the base stereo in almost every way you can imagine. And then see what you think it's lacking from there - if anything, and you can target that specifically. It may be a 6 channel amp upgrade, it may be as easy as just changing the front speaker arrangement from parallel to series. It may be that you think it sounds great and no changes needed at all.

 

[Karl_in_Chicago]

Alright so I made the rookie mistake of researching things more after already purchasing a bunch of components and then wondering if what I purchased is what I really want.

Just like everyone else I found the base audio lacking in pretty much every way, I'm by no means an audiophile, but I enjoy some good quality audio. That being said, I did some searching around the forum and decided on going with the kicker key setup, both the 200.4 and 500.1, Kicker KS speakers all around, 6.5 pods in the rear, and stinger tailgate sub. Bought the plug and play kit for the install, have everything ready to go, just waiting on some halfway decent weather to install. While I've been waiting, I've been doing some research and I'm seeing that the amp rating on the speakers far exceeds that of the what the 200.4 will be putting out, especially in the case of the front corners sharing a channel. I've done some speaker upgrades before but never a whole system like this so wasn't paying too much attention to the details.

In y'all's experience/opinion, would it be worth the hassle and extra money to go with a 6 channel rather than the 200.4 in order to get dedicated channels for all the speakers? I'm spending a decent amount of money on this upgrade and want it to be done right, but if I won't notice much of a difference as an audio novice then I'll just stick with what I have. I may totally be overthinking this, but since this is the first full system I've done I'm just ignorant to the importance of certain things.

I'm fully aware that the speakers are only using a fraction of their rated amperage 99% of the time, but at what point would only providing 50 amps to a pair of speakers rated at 75 and 100 be a problem?

Just a small data point . . . I believe you may be confusing wattage for amperage. Both are important but in terms of matching speakers and amplifiers it's normally the wattage that is used and THEN calculating required amperage. A basic ROT is the amp should be able to provide ~1.5-2.5 times the wattage of the speaker's continuous power rating (usually in *watts*). Like all ROT's it's just a guide and not carved in stone but it should provide some guidance as to a range of values. Once the amp (and its power rating) has been chosen the required *amperage* can be determined which is important for calculating the power supply and connection to it. For car audio that supply is typically the battery and the connection is the wiring back to the battery. Fancy competition audio setups that use extreme power configs may use separate battery supplies and/or additional generation capabilities such as more/higher output alternators; this isn't going to be the case for your average car audio setup so with the Bronco you are mostly talking about the wiring from the amp back to the battery.

If you choose to go the 6 channel amp route as you suggest do keep in mind that the default in-place wiring for the Bronco's front speakers has the dash and kick panel speakers sharing a single pair of channels so to exploit the extra channels you will either have to rewire the speaker connections OR bridge the channels so make sure the chosen amp supports that config (not all do).

As you have seen a lot of people here are running the equipment you've chosen and are happy with it. Some have determined they needed "more". Since you already have everything why not just go with what you have and let *your* ears determine if it's enough or if you need . . . more . . . and what that more might need to be. Once you've taken the steps to install an aftermarket amp and run the wiring it's not that hard to do a push/pull replace; the biggest limitations are size and wiring (this is where the amperage requirement comes back in).

Honestly the stock system is so lacking that unless the install is botched pretty much any new system will sound better.

 

[plugnplaykits]

If you want, you can give me a call directly and I can explain everything to you and help you out as there’s a lot of misinformation in this post . 203-889-1843 joe

 

[Big Lig]

If you want, you can give me a call directly and I can explain everything to you and help you out as there’s a lot of misinformation in this post . 203-889-1843 joe

Hm, was reading through this and now I am wondering... what is "a lot of misinformation"? Most of what others said made sense to me...but I don't know what I don't know.

 

[Brian_B]

Hm, was reading through this and now I am wondering... what is "a lot of misinformation"? Most of what others said made sense to me...but I don't know what I don't know.

Given that I'm one of only 2 posts, I'm kinda wondering the same thing. If I'm spewing BS, I'd like to know it so I can either fix it, or cite a source for my position.

 

[jsteph262]

Given that I'm one of only 2 posts, I'm kinda wondering the same thing. If I'm spewing BS, I'd like to know it so I can either fix it, or cite a source for my position.

I talked with Joe and I don't think anything you said was inaccurate, so I don't know that he was really aiming that at you. Thanks for your input. I'm weighing whether I feel the additional cost will be worth it to me or not. I'm sure the setup I have would be "good enough", but sometimes its nice to have things done the right way. And I really dont want to have to undertake this job again if I feel the need to redo it down the road.

 

[Big Lig]

Hm, was reading through this and now I am wondering... what is "a lot of misinformation"? Most of what others said made sense to me...but I don't know what I don't know.

That's good to know!

So, what kit did you go with? Really, I am curious if yours included an LOC, like the AudioControl LC5i, then you should be very happy with the difference.

Key word is difference... your preferences will decide if you love it overall. That boils down to music taste, expectations, and the system's ability to deliver that. IMHO, you can get great results so long as you include the LOC, without having to FORScan any changes. Having that device in your signal change, from the T-Harness, and before the amps, will provide the necessary signal to really make the before and after difference.

Let up know how it goes!

 

[Karl_in_Chicago]

I talked with Joe and I don't think anything you said was inaccurate, so I don't know that he was really aiming that at you. Thanks for your input. I'm weighing whether I feel the additional cost will be worth it to me or not. I'm sure the setup I have would be "good enough", but sometimes its nice to have things done the right way. And I really dont want to have to undertake this job again if I feel the need to redo it down the road.

Hmm, as the only other contributor at that point I guess that leaves me as the BS spewer? Curious as to what I posted that was so inaccurate. Watts ARE still different than Amps, right?

 

[indio22]

Alright so I made the rookie mistake of researching things more after already purchasing a bunch of components and then wondering if what I purchased is what I really want.

Just like everyone else I found the base audio lacking in pretty much every way, I'm by no means an audiophile, but I enjoy some good quality audio. That being said, I did some searching around the forum and decided on going with the kicker key setup, both the 200.4 and 500.1, Kicker KS speakers all around, 6.5 pods in the rear, and stinger tailgate sub. Bought the plug and play kit for the install, have everything ready to go, just waiting on some halfway decent weather to install. While I've been waiting, I've been doing some research and I'm seeing that the amp rating on the speakers far exceeds that of the what the 200.4 will be putting out, especially in the case of the front corners sharing a channel. I've done some speaker upgrades before but never a whole system like this so wasn't paying too much attention to the details.

In y'all's experience/opinion, would it be worth the hassle and extra money to go with a 6 channel rather than the 200.4 in order to get dedicated channels for all the speakers? I'm spending a decent amount of money on this upgrade and want it to be done right, but if I won't notice much of a difference as an audio novice then I'll just stick with what I have. I may totally be overthinking this, but since this is the first full system I've done I'm just ignorant to the importance of certain things.

I'm fully aware that the speakers are only using a fraction of their rated amperage 99% of the time, but at what point would only providing 50 amps to a pair of speakers rated at 75 and 100 be a problem?

I've got some similar components as you, waiting for a warm Chicagoland weekend to install, which means probably next spring, lol. Trying to keep relatively low cost.

Planning to install the 200.4 in bi-amp mode, basically the amp takes care of sending mid-bass to the stock kick panel speakers, and higher frequencies to Kicker KS 4" co-axials that will go in the dash. 50 watts to each speaker, which I think should be ok.

Also because the Kickers have a raised lip around the edge, I should be able to seal them to the dash grills, which is an issue with some other speaker installs.

I've got efficient Infinity 4" speakers for the rear roll bar speakers, that will remain powered by the stock head unit amp. I don't see needing to crank those as they will be more for fill, and that way I keep the head unit fader functioning.

The 500.1 will be for the sub, still thinking about which sub speaker to buy. Most likely 2 ohm for more volume. I make full use of the rear cargo area, so it will have to be in the stock location on the passenger wheel well.

You should consider turning off the factory EQ stuff with Forscan, it's relatively easy to use. I've already used Forscan to turn off many of the annoying ding/alert sounds.

 

[jsteph262]

Hmm, as the only other contributor at that point I guess that leaves me as the BS spewer? Curious as to what I posted that was so inaccurate. Watts ARE still different than Amps, right?

Don’t know what he took as misinformation we just chatted about what his recommendations were. I did misuse amps/watts in my original post, I am aware of the difference that was just me typing without proof reading.

 

[jsteph262]

I've got some similar components as you, waiting for a warm Chicagoland weekend to install, which means probably next spring, lol. Trying to keep relatively low cost.

Planning to install the 200.4 in bi-amp mode, basically the amp takes care of sending mid-bass to the stock kick panel speakers, and higher frequencies to Kicker KS 4" co-axials that will go in the dash. 50 watts to each speaker, which I think should be ok.

Also because the Kickers have a raised lip around the edge, I should be able to seal them to the dash grills, which is an issue with some other speaker installs.

I've got efficient Infinity 4" speakers for the rear roll bar speakers, that will remain powered by the stock head unit amp. I don't see needing to crank those as they will be more for fill, and that way I keep the head unit fader functioning.

The 500.1 will be for the sub, still thinking about which sub speaker to buy. Most likely 2 ohm for more volume. I make full use of the rear cargo area, so it will have to be in the stock location on the passenger wheel well.

You should consider turning off the factory EQ stuff with Forscan, it's relatively easy to use. I've already used Forscan to turn off many of the annoying ding/alert sounds.

Right there with ya waiting on the weather. Fingers crossed we get a nice day sooner than spring...

Yea 50 to each front one should be enough. How its currently set up would only be sending 25 to each which isn't ideal. I wanted some more midbass coming from the back which is why I opted for upgrading from the 4" on the roll bar. Leaving those on the head unit for me would just be waste, hopefully your infinities work out well for you.

I was debating on what sub to go with for awhile too. I don't use ALL the storage space very often so I just opted for the tailgate sub, seemed like a good option and only takes up a few inches of space in the back. Plus its a 12" instead of a 10" which is a plus.

I've turned off some stuff with Forscan as well, will definitely be looking into what changes should be made for the audio system after the install

Sponsored