Alpine Stereo Sound Disappointing

[papabear_va]

The subwoofer is behind the rear seat in the middle from what I understand. I see a box there, but didn’t investigate any further.

My RAM had it under the rear passenger seat in that trough storage area. My JT has that trough but no box - which I'm putting in on Thursday. I have that Bluetooth speaker behind the rear seat.

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[bill61]

My RAM had it under the rear passenger seat in that trough storage area. My JT has that trough but no box - which I'm putting in on Thursday. I have that Bluetooth speaker behind the rear seat.

Right. I have the Bluetooth speaker on the passenger side behind the rear seat. But next to it (in the middle) is the subwoofer, I just confirmed that. It’s not a real big cabinet.

 

[jac04]

I read this thread…

https://www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/...g-help-with-an-upgrade-to-the-soundbar.90279/

and decided to go with replacing the 4” speakers in the soundbar as a starting point if I can’t get better sound. They say that gets more volume and sound quality. Next I’ll switch out the 3 1/2” in the sound bar. If I still feel the need I’ll switch out the dash speakers.
I’m still messing with the equalizer for sound improvements to try and avoid replacing speakers. I only have 250 miles on my 2024 Gladiator so still fine tuning.

IMO, do the dash corner speakers first. My experience is that is will make a significant difference.

 

[KevinC]

I read this thread…

https://www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/...g-help-with-an-upgrade-to-the-soundbar.90279/

and decided to go with replacing the 4” speakers in the soundbar as a starting point if I can’t get better sound. They say that gets more volume and sound quality. Next I’ll switch out the 3 1/2” in the sound bar. If I still feel the need I’ll switch out the dash speakers.
I’m still messing with the equalizer for sound improvements to try and avoid replacing speakers. I only have 250 miles on my 2024 Gladiator so still fine tuning.

As @jac04 stated above, you are doing it backwards. Replace the dash speakers first. Those speakers are working way more than any other and it is what you are hearing the most.

You never replied to my question of "was your JK Alpine system stock? Or had some speakers been replaced?"

 

[bill61]

As @jac04 stated above, you are doing it backwards. Replace the dash speakers first. Those speakers are working way more than any other and it is what you are hearing the most.

You never replied to my question of "was your JK Alpine system stock? Or had some speakers been replaced?"

Yes. It is a stock system.

 

[ttn333]

Terra acoustic dash speakers was an appreciable improvement. Sound was definitely clearer hence requiring less volume. I stuff the soundbar with acoustic stuffings and tighten up all the screws. That improved the midbass but still limited by the quality of those speakers. I have a set of kickers/select pods and tweeters to replace those speakers but havent had the time. I'm not a bass head so will not be upgrading the sub. But I think the next step up would be the knee pod speakers. I'm not ready to tackle that install yet. Looks to be pretty involved and time consuming.

 

[bill61]

I was looking to research the Terra Acoustic speakers last night and it appears they are out of business.
But I guess when I’m ready I’ll start with dash speakers. And I agree, the knee speaker pods look to be a big hassle as are the door speakers.

 

[bd100]

The 4" speakers in the sound bar are not really the issue. They do their mid range job well enough, and can do full volume w/o distortion. I found no particular improvement from upgrading them. The sound bar 3.5" speaker may be worth upgrading if you go full volume, but in my truck the entire sound bar is just fill, at least to the front seat occupants. Although it's definitely worth adding some poly fill to avoid vibration.

The main sound is up front, and the front 3.5" speakers made the biggest difference. Any upgrade there will be worth it.

At this point, having upgraded 3.5" front and above, and 4" above, and poly fill for all, I can turn it up to full volume just fine. But I don't, because I also value my hearing!

 

[Deleted member 54903]

That terrible Alpine system was one of the first things that got swapped when I bought mine new. It's all Rockford Fosgate speakers now with an amp and sub box behind the rear seat. It sounds great.

 

[c.schill]

Coming back to update as promised. I installed the TrailSeven pods with the kicker speakers. Definitely a marked improvement. The sound is much more clear in the mids and highs from the soundbar now, same as the improvement I noticed from changing out the dash corners with the infinity speakers I linked before. I don't know that there was a whole lot of change to the bass response from the old speakers, but the bass doesn't cause the soundbar to buzz anymore at high volume. There's also no distortion when cranking it up, which there was with the stock setup.

Overall I'd say a worthwhile purchase. Definitely could be done cheaper as a DIY job, but for the ease of install, I suppose I'd chalk it up to the old "what's your time worth" thing. These took all of 5 minutes to install.

 

[ttn333]

Coming back to update as promised. I installed the TrailSeven pods with the kicker speakers. Definitely a marked improvement. The sound is much more clear in the mids and highs from the soundbar now, same as the improvement I noticed from changing out the dash corners with the infinity speakers I linked before. I don't know that there was a whole lot of change to the bass response from the old speakers, but the bass doesn't cause the soundbar to buzz anymore at high volume. There's also no distortion when cranking it up, which there was with the stock setup.

Overall I'd say a worthwhile purchase. Definitely could be done cheaper as a DIY job, but for the ease of install, I suppose I'd chalk it up to the old "what's your time worth" thing. These took all of 5 minutes to install.

I'll agree to that. I just installed the select instrument pods with the kicker tweeters and midwoofers. It's a very noticeable improvement in both bass and clarity overall. I've had the Terra acouatics in the dash for awhile now. And am surprised at how big an improvement I'm getting from upgrading the soundbar. I guess it makes sense since I was still hearing distortion from the overhead soundbar. Now I'm curious about the amount of distortion I'm getting from the knee pods. I may have to tackle that too. But for now, I'm very happy with the setup, especially considering the little effort it took to get it done.

 

[c.schill]

I'll agree to that. I just installed the select instrument pods with the kicker tweeters and midwoofers. It's a very noticeable improvement in both bass and clarity overall. I've had the Terra acouatics in the dash for awhile now. And am surprised at how big an improvement I'm getting from upgrading the soundbar. I guess it makes sense since I was still hearing distortion from the overhead soundbar. Now I'm curious about the amount of distortion I'm getting from the knee pods. I may have to tackle that too. But for now, I'm very happy with the setup, especially considering the little effort it took to get it done.

Yeah, I got the same feeling about the knee speakers afterwards. Now that I've replaced the rest, I'm almost bothered enough to tackle those ones, just to finish the job. We'll see how I feel about it in a few weeks.

 

[YGBSM]

Yeah, I got the same feeling about the knee speakers afterwards. Now that I've replaced the rest, I'm almost bothered enough to tackle those ones, just to finish the job. We'll see how I feel about it in a few weeks.

That 's one of those mods where you need to start with a shot of whiskey.

 

[bill61]

Tearing the dash apart to change the knee pods is one heck of a job for sure. I think if I disliked the sound that much after a dash and soundbar speaker change I would hire a quality stereo shop to tackle that task. And have them update the sub while they’re performing that task.

 

[bill61]

I just finished installing Infinity Reference 307F speakers in the dash. I’m going with Kickers in the soundbar. Easy peazy

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