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I know this might not be the popular opinion regarding upgrading the B&O system but here goes. I drank the Kool-Aid wanting to get more performance out of my B&O system so I went out and bought all new speakers, including a sub, pigtail adapters (so I didn't have to butcher my OEM harness), an amp, and some sound deadener. It was tough to decide which speakers to get because it seems like for every member that loves one speaker in a certain position there was another member that said that that's not the speaker to get for that position...but I went with CS speakers for the three in the dash and the two kick panels, and then Focals for the pods. For the sub, I went with a kicker 8-in DVC and a Kicker 500.1 amp.
For context, with my OEM system when I hit about 12 on the volume it was plenty loud enough for me. With the new system, I can go all the way to 25 but it's not as loud as it was on 12 with my original speakers. The sub is a different story altogether because I am taking a high level signal and amplifying it separately from the other speakers.
I was having some trouble with the sub because even though I wired it correctly and in phase I was getting very little sound out of it. I have sent sent the amp back and I'm waiting for the new one which should arrive soon. In the meantime, I had called Sounds Good Stereo. He had explained to me that many people make the mistake of running out and buying all new speakers and then noticing only a marginal if any improvement (and in my case, a pretty significant loss of volume at comparative levels between old speakers and new speakers). That is typical, because when you go with a higher performing speaker you generally get more clarity and truer reproduction of sound but at the expense of taking more watts to drive that particular speaker. Our factory speakers, even though they seem on the budget side with their paper cones and lightweight materials, were meant to match with our low-brow amp that we're stuck with unless we want to spend another 800 bucks to buy an adapter and then buy another amp to replace that with and possibly a DSP if we want really good sound. I can guarantee that anybody who swaps out the 3-speakers the kick speakers and the pod speakers with higher end speakers is more than likely going to experience the same thing I have...having a system that doesn't get nearly as loud. I understand that a true sound afficionado would definitely want the higher-end speakers because of the more accurate sound reproduction and clarity, but at the same time those folks would probably also start with a proper amp. Most of us especially those who take our tops off are going to simply just want something loud enough to be able to hear over the road noise and the brick-shaped aerodynamics. That said, I suggest that anybody who's thinking of swapping out all their speakers holds off on that and instead focuses on just addressing the sub and an amp to power it. It is the biggest bang for the buck so to speak, and the thing that is missing most from the B&O system.
Thanks to the lengthy conversation I had with the stereo guy, I also now understand that anyone who uses the four wires that feed the factory sub are going to experience some issues. Specifically, the B&O system above volume 14 is meant to "roll off" the bass so as not to harm the factory would be speaker. The kicker key amp can correct certain signals that come to the amplifier but it cannot make up for the roll-off characteristics of the B&O system. The stereo person told me that above volume 14 then the sub will constantly be fighting itself to compensate for the roll-off. The solution was to buy a harness from that stereo guy that plugs directly into our factory amp and then the other end plugs back into the OEM harness and then the shop solders on an additional pigtail that connects directly to the kicker amp. By doing so, instead of using the four wires that are subject to the roll-off effect, this setup takes signals directly from the kick panel speakers. The kick pedal speakers are high level, so you simply plug that pigtail in from the new harness and then the amp gets a high level signal...and that high level signal triggers the amp so you don't need to run a remote wire to turn the amp on. Although a high level signal is typically not the most desirable signal, the kicker amp has a switch for running higher low inputs and then it has a key correction feature so most people won't even notice.
The moral of my story is I'm hoping to save people $500 or more on speakers and convince them that spending $300 on the amp and another 80 bucks on the sub and possibly $100 for the custom harness is the best way to get pretty decent performance out of the B&O system without going overboard and having to spend $1,500 to $2,000 to bypass the woefully inadequate OEM amp.
Even then, It is important to remember that we are also limited by the shape of the interior of our vehicle. The stereo guy had something funny to share...he said if a customer buys a $20,000 speaker and puts it in a bathroom and listens to it, that customer is probably going to come back and complain that the speaker sounds like it's in a bathroom...meaning there's only so much we can do with what we have to work with even if we go overboard with speakers and amps and DSPs. I personally am going to yank out the 3 dash speakers and the two kicks and put the OEM speakers back in for now...and get my loud (unclean) music back.
For context, with my OEM system when I hit about 12 on the volume it was plenty loud enough for me. With the new system, I can go all the way to 25 but it's not as loud as it was on 12 with my original speakers. The sub is a different story altogether because I am taking a high level signal and amplifying it separately from the other speakers.
I was having some trouble with the sub because even though I wired it correctly and in phase I was getting very little sound out of it. I have sent sent the amp back and I'm waiting for the new one which should arrive soon. In the meantime, I had called Sounds Good Stereo. He had explained to me that many people make the mistake of running out and buying all new speakers and then noticing only a marginal if any improvement (and in my case, a pretty significant loss of volume at comparative levels between old speakers and new speakers). That is typical, because when you go with a higher performing speaker you generally get more clarity and truer reproduction of sound but at the expense of taking more watts to drive that particular speaker. Our factory speakers, even though they seem on the budget side with their paper cones and lightweight materials, were meant to match with our low-brow amp that we're stuck with unless we want to spend another 800 bucks to buy an adapter and then buy another amp to replace that with and possibly a DSP if we want really good sound. I can guarantee that anybody who swaps out the 3-speakers the kick speakers and the pod speakers with higher end speakers is more than likely going to experience the same thing I have...having a system that doesn't get nearly as loud. I understand that a true sound afficionado would definitely want the higher-end speakers because of the more accurate sound reproduction and clarity, but at the same time those folks would probably also start with a proper amp. Most of us especially those who take our tops off are going to simply just want something loud enough to be able to hear over the road noise and the brick-shaped aerodynamics. That said, I suggest that anybody who's thinking of swapping out all their speakers holds off on that and instead focuses on just addressing the sub and an amp to power it. It is the biggest bang for the buck so to speak, and the thing that is missing most from the B&O system.
Thanks to the lengthy conversation I had with the stereo guy, I also now understand that anyone who uses the four wires that feed the factory sub are going to experience some issues. Specifically, the B&O system above volume 14 is meant to "roll off" the bass so as not to harm the factory would be speaker. The kicker key amp can correct certain signals that come to the amplifier but it cannot make up for the roll-off characteristics of the B&O system. The stereo person told me that above volume 14 then the sub will constantly be fighting itself to compensate for the roll-off. The solution was to buy a harness from that stereo guy that plugs directly into our factory amp and then the other end plugs back into the OEM harness and then the shop solders on an additional pigtail that connects directly to the kicker amp. By doing so, instead of using the four wires that are subject to the roll-off effect, this setup takes signals directly from the kick panel speakers. The kick pedal speakers are high level, so you simply plug that pigtail in from the new harness and then the amp gets a high level signal...and that high level signal triggers the amp so you don't need to run a remote wire to turn the amp on. Although a high level signal is typically not the most desirable signal, the kicker amp has a switch for running higher low inputs and then it has a key correction feature so most people won't even notice.
The moral of my story is I'm hoping to save people $500 or more on speakers and convince them that spending $300 on the amp and another 80 bucks on the sub and possibly $100 for the custom harness is the best way to get pretty decent performance out of the B&O system without going overboard and having to spend $1,500 to $2,000 to bypass the woefully inadequate OEM amp.
Even then, It is important to remember that we are also limited by the shape of the interior of our vehicle. The stereo guy had something funny to share...he said if a customer buys a $20,000 speaker and puts it in a bathroom and listens to it, that customer is probably going to come back and complain that the speaker sounds like it's in a bathroom...meaning there's only so much we can do with what we have to work with even if we go overboard with speakers and amps and DSPs. I personally am going to yank out the 3 dash speakers and the two kicks and put the OEM speakers back in for now...and get my loud (unclean) music back.
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