[Tomfin2000]

So after reading though posts on this site and several others, I have a few questions on upgrading the stock speakers in my 2015 SE.

1.) The factory head unit most likely rolls off frequencies before sending the signal to the speakers, so the best I can hope for from only replacing the stock speakers is better clarity and stronger volume. Is that correct?

2.) The factory head unit sends one signal to the components up front. There is a passive crossover built into the tweeter, but is there a passive crossover built into the "woofer" or is it essentially a full range coaxial speaker with the tweeters only serving to raise the sound stage?

3.) If so, then could I simply replace the four lower door speakers with aftermarket coaxials and either unplug the tweeters or keep them running to raise the sound stage? Do I really need a component set with an active crossover? The tweeters sound fine to me, and they're certainly loud enough. I'm more interested in the mid-range and upper low-range. Think bass guitar vs booming, low bass.

4.) Ideally, I would use 2 ohm speakers with the stock head unit, but I can use 4 ohm speakers. It's just that the 2 ohm speakers would play 3db louder at the same volume as the 4 ohm speakers. However, it's unlikely that I would ever drive the volume high enough for this to make a significant difference, especially if the speakers I select have a higher sensitivity rating than the stock speakers. Is that correct?

Thanks in advance for any insight you can give me!

 

[tenergy]

yes, yes, no, maybe, possibly, yes.

Just kidding, I didn't answer those accurately.

The factory unit 'probably' rolls off frequencies, especially bass at higher volumes. Replacing the speakers will give you somewhat better clarity, but you're still limited by the head unit.

You don't need a component set if you don't want one. You can, if you do. Replacing the speakers is good enough.

2 ohm, 4ohm, 90db or 98db sensitivity, most of it isn't going to make a noticeable difference, in my opinion. I would want the speakers to match the output of the head unit but it's such a small matter it's almost pointless to consider.


The only way you get a truly noticeable difference is by adding an amp to the speakers, which it sounds like you don't really want.

I used a Clarion amp on my 13 Elantra that was small enough to fit inside the dash behind the radio but it didn't make much of a difference, but that could have been because of my choice of cheap speakers.

 

[broderp]

1.)Rolling off low frequencies prevents clipping and distortion. This should not affect the dB being output by the radio. (In theory) Better clarity and stronger volume - subjective.

2.) Most OEM speakers (non amplified) send the full range to the speaker. They have to as the tweeter is passively crossed at the speaker. The speaker may have a natural roll off that would limit its ability to reproduce high frequencies.

3.).It is generally accepted that components are better for sound staging and a simple 12dB passive cross over will suffice (like what the OEM tweeter uses). I have had really good success with component speakers and using the OEM tweeter and crossover. Sound enthusiasts will tell you otherwise - but I always say that every situation is different and you should let your ears be your judge. Replacing just the midbass will improve the punch of the lower end.

4.) Before running 2 ohm speakers be sure your radio can handle the low impedance. Power and volume can be somewhat hard to navigate. Do a bit of research as lower impedance does not mean twice as loud as 4 Ohm nor does a 100W amp twice as loud as a 50W. It DOES mean your amp will put out more power, but a cost - so be careful.

 

[hochiinn]

i replaced the factory head unit, and kept the factory speakers. huge difference. with factory unit on full volume, sound is weak and distorted. with new head unit, about 1/4 volume, system is very loud, but clear.

 

[broderp]

i replaced the factory head unit, and kept the factory speakers. huge difference. with factory unit on full volume, sound is weak and distorted. with new head unit, about 1/4 volume, system is very loud, but clear.

Nice. What head unit did you wind up putting into your car? I'm always interested in seeing these (a pic would be nice) as the Elantra has such a unique bezel shape - not every radio that fits looks nice. But function should come over form~ right? I liked the performance of the NAV unit radio, so when I bought my car I searched out one with that audio system. It does not disappoint. The only improvement I would even consider (sound wise) would be to add a small (read 8-10") powered sub to supplement the base. Other than that OEM premium is pretty impressive.

If money was no object I would lobe to see how hard it would be to install the newer Hyundai Elantra HD Radio - I love that interface....

 

[Tomfin2000]

Thanks for the replies. I appreciate it!

So I got over a lot of my trepidation after installing a Pioneer MVH-200EX in my daughter's 2012 Elantra GLS earlier this week. I basically had four hours to do the install and spent three of those hours fighting the four phillips-head screws holding the OEM radio in. However, I was very impressed with the sound quality (factory speakers) for the brief amount of time I was able to listen to it before turning it back over to my daughter.

I put a set of Infinity Primus components in front doors of my 2015 yesterday. I wanted to see what the stock head unit sounded like with upgraded speakers before putting in a Pioneer AVH-501EX.

The Pioneer is going in after work this evening...hopefully without a another prolonged battle with phillips-head screws. However, I'm not sure the Priums components are going to work for me. Too much high end, and I'm not a big fan of having to use the fader or cut the tweeter frequencies to compensate. I'll see how it sounds tonight with the Pioneer head unit, but I'm VERY intrigued by this idea:

3.).It is generally accepted that components are better for sound staging and a simple 12dB passive cross over will suffice (like what the OEM tweeter uses). I have had really good success with component speakers and using the OEM tweeter and crossover. Sound enthusiasts will tell you otherwise - but I always say that every situation is different and you should let your ears be your judge. Replacing just the midbass will improve the punch of the lower end.

I may have to give this a try. I was VERY careful to make sure that I didn't alter the car doors, the wiring, or the factory components at all in case I wanted to go back, so this would be easy to do. The factory tweeters can go right back in. All I would need to do is crimp the spade connectors back onto the metra harness for the Primus woofer, then hook that back up to the factory woofer harness...or just pick up a another Metra harness for a very clean install.

Thanks again for the replies and suggestions. I'll post an update this weekend after I've done a little more work on it.

 

[hochiinn]

Nice. What head unit did you wind up putting into your car? I'm always interested in seeing these (a pic would be nice) as the Elantra has such a unique bezel shape - not every radio that fits looks nice. But function should come over form~ right? I liked the performance of the NAV unit radio, so when I bought my car I searched out one with that audio system. It does not disappoint. The only improvement I would even consider (sound wise) would be to add a small (read 8-10") powered sub to supplement the base. Other than that OEM premium is pretty impressive.

If money was no object I would lobe to see how hard it would be to install the newer Hyundai Elantra HD Radio - I love that interface....

pioneer avic-8200nex. newegg had a deal, 525/shipped. got the faceplate and wiring harness from crutchfield. i wanted nav, and android auto. this radio drives the speakers to beyond performance capabilities. i am no audiophile, but stuff like bass and treble are many times better. it has capabilities way beyond my needs.

 

[broderp]

pioneer avic-8200nex. newegg had a deal, 525/shipped. got the faceplate and wiring harness from crutchfield. i wanted nav, and android auto. this radio drives the speakers to beyond performance capabilities. i am no audiophile, but stuff like bass and treble are many times better. it has capabilities way beyond my needs.

I'm not a huge Pioneer fan, but that radio looks really nice. They are claiming 50W per channel which in this case equates to 14W RMS. That would be a true clean 14W. I love the interface. Nice grab.

 

[Tomfin2000]

A week later, the Pioneer AVH-500EX is in. The Infinity Primus components sound great now. There just wan't enough power from the factory head unit to drive anything at road volume other than the higher frequencies. With the Pioneer, everything sounds balanced.

The biggest headache I had, and continue to have, is the PAC Audio RP4.2-HY11 module that allows you to keep all of the factory functions. The first one I got was bad, so I had to wait for a replacement from Crutchfield. The second one...sorta works. On the Steering Wheel, the volume up/down, track up/down, mode, and mute buttons all work. The voice recognition (probably isn't supported by the Pioneer), and pick up/hang up phone buttons do not.

The backup camera comes on when the car is put in reverse, and goes off when the car is put into drive, but only if I manually select it from the A/V menu first. As dumb luck would have it, I can select the camera using the end call button on the steering wheel. The factory Aux port works fine, the USB port does not.

So, kind of a mixed bag. I'm rarely on the phone in general, much less in the car, so having to make, pick-up, or hang-up a phone call through the touchscreen isn't that big of a deal to me. I can do all three easily without taking my eyes off the road. I don't have CarPlay on this unit (didn't like it on my 2017), so really, the only thing I'm missing from the USB port is possibly better sound quality, and I used bluetooth almost exclusively on my 2012 anyway. Plus I can always run the USB extension cord that came with the unit if I decide I can't live without it.

I do want to get these things fixed, but I need to take a break for a couple of weeks before I get back in there again.

 

[hochiinn]

A week later, the Pioneer AVH-500EX is in.

The biggest headache I had, and continue to have, is the PAC Audio RP4.2-HY11 module that allows you to keep all of the factory functions. The first one I got was bad, so I had to wait for a replacement from Crutchfield. The second one...sorta works. On the Steering Wheel, the volume up/down, track up/down, mode, and mute buttons all work. The voice recognition (probably isn't supported by the Pioneer), and pick up/hang up phone buttons do not.

.

the EXACT same thing happened to me. i had that module replaced 3 times, tried resetting, manual setting, NOTHING. finally, i called the company(not crutchfield, pac-866-931-8021). watch out, because when you call, it appears that they will only talk to an installer or tech. the person i spoke to at first did not want to talk to a customer. wtf? when i explained, then he asked what numbers were on the unit. you have to do a firmware update. apparently, they send a basic module, then you gotta go to their site, and download the firmware for your car. once i did that, ALL the swc work perfectly. i told crutchfield about this, they had no ideal. i guess they STILL dont.

 

[Tomfin2000]

I actually did update the firmware. I was reluctant to do so, because I thought that might have been what killed the first PAC module, but it was probably bad to begin with. I tried installing the second one without doing the firmware update, but NONE of the steering wheel controls were working properly, so I didn't have much to lose at that point.

I only knew that the firmware needed to be updated from reading through reviews and various forum posts.

 

[hochiinn]

I actually did update the firmware. I was reluctant to do so, because I thought that might have been what killed the first PAC module, but it was probably bad to begin with. I tried installing the second one without doing the firmware update, but NONE of the steering wheel controls were working properly, so I didn't have much to lose at that point.

I only knew that the firmware needed to be updated from reading through reviews and various forum posts.

when i did the update, i then checked each function. press each button, and i think you get a green lite. if not, then i would call pac and rag on them. i got really good at getting the radio out, then back in. but the update worked right away. perhaps you should try updating again. crutchfield must spend a lot on warranty for the module.

 

[Tomfin2000]

So you were able to get the factory USB port working with the PAC Audio interface? I still can't get mine working. The port definitely recognizes that a device has been attached, be it an iPhone or USB drive, but it won't read anything. I keep getting the "No Response" message from the head unit. I'll have to go in and try to connect the USB drive directly to the unit. I was hoping it was a simple matter of doing a firmware upgrade to the Pioneer to get it working with IOS 11 since a lot of people seemed to be having issues with that.

I know I can just run the USB extension cable from the back of the head unit, underneath the center console floor trim, and then out near the center console, but I'm being stubborn. I hate to have wires showing, even if it's only a foot or so.

 

[hochiinn]

So you were able to get the factory USB port working with the PAC Audio interface? I still can't get mine working. The port definitely recognizes that a device has been attached, be it an iPhone or USB drive, but it won't read anything. I keep getting the "No Response" message from the head unit. I'll have to go in and try to connect the USB drive directly to the unit. I was hoping it was a simple matter of doing a firmware upgrade to the Pioneer to get it working with IOS 11 since a lot of people seemed to be having issues with that.

I know I can just run the USB extension cable from the back of the head unit, underneath the center console floor trim, and then out near the center console, but I'm being stubborn. I hate to have wires showing, even if it's only a foot or so.

our radio has 2 usb ports. one is to connect(on the crutchfield harness) to the car's usb(it works, also for apple carplay), the other is for direct connect to android. i made a small hole in the partion in front of the shifter, and ran the cable out thru there. i leave the phone in there, it is always connected.
dunno what the pac module has to do with this, but everything works as it should. the only one that is funky is the mute button, if i have waze/google maps running(and i always do), when using the mute, it will change the display on the radio to google maps, but it does mute. since the radio has nav, i use the radio nav, with waze in the background. the radio nav has, for me, a better nav display

 

[Tomfin2000]

Well, I never did get the OEM USB port to work. I thought I had it figured out when the + and - data pins for the USB on the PAC module appeared to be reversed compared to the OEM wiring diagrams, but that still didn't solve the problem. I finally gave up and just ran the extension cord through the glove box and straight down into the center console floor panel. Then I ran it underneath the panel and out between the front seats. I think I actually like this better than the factory location, because I can keep that compartment shut now, and I just tuck the USB connector between the seats and out of sight when it's not being used.

So the microphone wire is completely hidden, the USB wire is completely hidden, and the steering wheel controls and OEM AUX port are working properly. I'm just down to the backup camera not switching on automatically. I have to manually select the camera view first which isn't that big of a deal, but I've come this far, so I might as well figure the rest of it out.

 

[Andy Schmidt]

I used a Clarion amp on my 13 Elantra that was small enough to fit inside the dash behind the radio but it didn't make much of a difference, but that could have been because of my choice of cheap speakers.

What amp was this? I like the idea of bring able to hide it, and not tuck it in trunk or under a seat.

Sent from my LG-H872 using Tapatalk

 

[tenergy]

What amp was this? I like the idea of bring able to hide it, and not tuck it in trunk or under a seat.

Sent from my LG-H872 using Tapatalk

It was a Clarion XC series amp.. I don't recall which model but it was 50wx4 anyways... but like I said somewhere, it didn't make much difference, perhaps because of my choice of speakers (Sound Ordinance, cheap house brand from Crutchfield, won't do that again).

There's other amps similar in size that people have used.. might be worth researching and comparing.