Silvergs that's what I thought. Something I'll double and triple check when I install the new speakers this weekend. I'm wondering if this is a problem for most owners and could be why do many complain about the sound quality. Now I know most or all aftermarket speakers will sound better.


Sent from my Autoguide iPhone app

 

The easiest way I was taught to check the polarity of a speaker (and this applies to EVERY brand, including factory) is to wire up a dry-cell (AAA, AA, C, D which I find easiest) to the speaker terminals using a couple of stripped wires. When you make the connection, the speaker will either press outward and hold (if correct polarity), or press inward and hold (for incorrect polarity). Check the polarity of the battery cell to determine the polarity of the speaker terminals, and match it to the aftermarket speakers.

Just don't hold the battery there for a long time though! 1.5V for less than a second to check is one thing, but a constant power flow might not sit well with the driver!

 

Stock Amplifier question

For anyone who has done work on the upgraded 360 watt amp - Are there gain controls on the amplifier?

TIA Randy

 

For anyone who has done work on the upgraded 360 watt amp - Are there gain controls on the amplifier?

TIA Randy

No, unfortunately, and it clips at the higher levels.

 

Space in rear door cavity

Still figuring the components to use - have a question: Is there room behind the rear door panel to place a cross-over?

 

Still figuring the components to use - have a question: Is there room behind the rear door panel to place a cross-over?

It all depends on the size of the crossover but there is quite a bit of room behind the panels. The panel is very easy to remove and you might want to pop it off to confirm.

 

Installing some alpines today. Can't wait.


Sent from my Autoguide iPad app

 

nunman216, so u upgraded speakers on ur elantra (w/nav)?
any difficulties at all?
thank you

 

no issues at all. Took about 2 hours. 30 minutes per door. the hardest part was popping the door back on, and that was easy

Upgrading the speakers made a world of difference. Sounds so much cleaner now.

 

Tweeter Install

First,

Thanks for taking the time to post the quality pictures and narrative concerning installing speakers in the front door of your Elantra.

I'm very interested in what material you used to manufacture the bracket used to hold the tweeter in place? Can you help me with some information on how you made the bracket?

Thanks

C

 

First,

Thanks for taking the time to post the quality pictures and narrative concerning installing speakers in the front door of your Elantra.

I'm very interested in what material you used to manufacture the bracket used to hold the tweeter in place? Can you help me with some information on how you made the bracket?

Thanks

C

The brackets were made from sheet metal straps. It's the same type used by plumbers found at hardware stores. Another option I had at the time was to use aluminum. The brackets were fabbed up by chance and formed simply with the use of pliers. Aligning the securing points, adjusting the tweeter mount and angle had it's slight challenges but pretty easy to do.

One very easy tip I can suggest is to prefab up a template with cardboard. Draw the shape to create the bracket. Once done, transfer that image directly to the strap of choice.

To support the tweeter I used the Infinity supplied screw combined with automotive 3M emblem tape. Mounting to the door, the bracket shared the factory mounting screw locations.

 

Just ordered the the same infinity setup $149.65 shipped for both pairs for my Elantra. My Sonata se turbo factory system kills my Elantra system so hopefully this should even them up a bit.

 

where did you get them for $150 shipped?

 

I got the rears in yesterday and installed them and got the components in today and about to put those in. I installed my loc for the amp and all the wiring and putting in a JL audio 10 w3 today as well.

I got the speakers off ebay new
Front -$98.15 shipped Item # 170780604198
Rears- $51.50 shipped Item #330691455098

 

I started putting my Infinity Kappa setup in yesterday, Kappa 62.9i Components in the front door. My car is one with the speakers riveted in, so it's not as simple as unscrewing the speaker housing, I have to drill the rivets out, and use a pop rivet tool to put the rivets back afterwards. Have yet to do the back doors, but playing with the fader, you notice a huge increase in clarity. I'm comfortable running the Kappas at 4 ohm until I get my amp in because the speakers I pulled out were 4 ohm rated too.

 

Got everything in and sounds great I also added a jl 10w3 and adjusted everything for sound quality rather than large annoying trunk rattling bass. The most annoying part of the install was the rivited in speakers. I had to drill them out and snap them off and the used screws instead. Well worth the money.
Also got in my 18" sonata se wheels from a board member which looks great and going from the 16" wheels to the 18" wheels gave it slightly better handling. I just ordered the x brace from shark racing so when it arrives in 2-3 weeks I'll give an update

 

Nice, the X-brace should be use in pair with the Strut tower brace but it should also work alone. Post pictures please when you're done. I'm going from 16'' to 17'' in april so my handling should improve too. I don't wanna 18'' because the roads are not so good here.

 

I planned on buying the shark racing solid strut bar and saw the x brace. I'm going to try it out and then if needed order the solid strut bar. Now if I could just find a set of projector headlights for a decent price

 

Thanks silvergls for the write up! I'm about to purchase and do the same setup. I really know nothing about car audio equipment so I got to ask,
I know you don't have your speakers amped but was wondering if you would reccommend it? I've been eyeing this:

 

Thanks silvergls for the write up! I'm about to purchase and do the same setup. I really know nothing about car audio equipment so I got to ask,
I know you don't have your speakers amped but was wondering if you would reccommend it? I've been eyeing this:
Amazon.com: Kenwood Kac-8405 720-Watt 4/3/2-Channel Amplifier with Variable LPF/HPF: DependableResource

Amping the system would be nice but for me the speaker swap and sub provided the sound I was looking for. Not familiar with that amp but it does look nice.

You too, I ordered my bostons last week, couldnt beat those discounts and I had $20 off coupon code on top. Still waiting for shipping but i got 6.5 comps for front and 2 way for rear. No sub here just factory replacement doors. First to get theirs installed makes the boston thread. :thumbup:

Tea Party?

i also had the $20.00 coupon code. they told me the 6.5 components wouldnt work????? did you get an amp for your set up?
i originaly was going to splurge on some infinity's like silver gls but with a infinity sub and 5 channel amp, then i ran into this deal and it was a no brainer. i have always heard great things about boston acoustics audio.

It could be that they are not taking into account of reusing the stock speaker buckets/spacers. Most aftermarket speakers has spacers included so installing them to the stock buckets might be necessary.

 

Sounds like we are all in agreeance that the stock speakers just arent that good. i just got a smokin deal on some boston acoustics speakers and jbl powered sub from Crutchfield. The order should be in on the 26th. i will post pics. im doing component 5 1/4 in front ( boston acoustic 6.5 mounting depth is too deep for the front doors) and 6.5 coaxil in back. they are the SE series. not running an amp. the sub is the JBL GT BASS PRO 12. i think this should be more than enough but we shall see.

 

You too, I ordered my bostons last week, couldnt beat those discounts and I had $20 off coupon code on top. Still waiting for shipping but i got 6.5 comps for front and 2 way for rear. No sub here just factory replacement doors. First to get theirs installed makes the boston thread. :thumbup:

 

i also had the $20.00 coupon code. they told me the 6.5 components wouldnt work????? did you get an amp for your set up?
i originaly was going to splurge on some infinity's like silver gls but with a infinity sub and 5 channel amp, then i ran into this deal and it was a no brainer. i have always heard great things about boston acoustics audio.

 

If these infinity fit then the boston should too with the methods outlined in this thread but if not somebody on ebay will get a good deal. Starting with no amp since I listen to music at low volume and just want better sound quality.

 

i didnt think of that. i dont think there will be that big of a differance between the 5 /14 and the 6.5.

 

I have a question about installing to the factory headunit. Sorry if this has already been asked but is it necassary to have use a line output converter? also what pros and cons if using or not? What model to use or is everyone using?
thanks

 

I'm undecided between the PXE-H600 and MS-8
I want something that restores bass at higher volume that the stock HU removes.

Here's a list of devices that I looked at.
MTX RE-Q5 = ~100$ ebay
AudioControl LCQ-1 = ~300$
Alpine PXE-H600 = ~250$
JBL MS-8 ~500$

The last 2 have the advantage of also doing DSP processing.
PXE-H600 looks like the best bang for your buck, it's a LOC and DSP in a cheap package, just need to spend some time tweeking it.
MS-8 is the most expensive, but it's getting excellent reviews.

 

thanks for the choices. i also saw this one Audio Control LC2i-2.
If i didnt get one would it sound bad? the powered sub has high-level input harness. this should work ok right?

 

Silvergls,

Sorry if I missed this in the thread, but I didn't see this discussed.

Did that metal bracket holding the new tweeter in place come with it or did you have to make that yourself? Do none of the adapters it comes with fit the hole?

 

Silvergls,

Sorry if I missed this in the thread, but I didn't see this discussed.

Did that metal bracket holding the new tweeter in place come with it or did you have to make that yourself? Do none of the adapters it comes with fit the hole?

That bracket was homemade using glavanized plumbing strap found at hardware stores. Very easy to work with and it already was in my garage.
From the Infinity kit, I used the single screw mount combined with a strip of 3M tape just to pad it (not needed).

 

Thanks guys for answering my questions. its nice to beable to get solid advice from people who are working on achieving the same goal. that goal is to get rid of the mediocre stereo our ride comes with. i wish the elantras came with a good premium sound system with a sub, but what we are doing would sound better and for half the money the mfg charges.

 

He only said it in a PM. I hope he doesn't mind if I post this, but I think this is good information.

I just wanted to give you an update. I replaced all my speakers, and added a 500w amp and 2x 10" subs and a 300w amp for the speakers.

I did all that and it sounded alot better. But the highs were way too high... and the bass was still missing the lower frequencies.

Then I installed PXE-H660... OMG best money spent... it balanced my system and tuned everything to my cars acoustics and the best part is now I have those lower frequncies. They must have been there enough for the processor to pick up on them and amplify them... I couldn't believe it I played my test tone of 25hz, 31.5hz, 40hz... and they were all there!!

I didn't think I would ever be satisfied but I am getting pretty close. I will post pictures soon.

I think I asked if he would give an update but never heard anything. I'm really eager to hear more about it so maybe he can come back and tell us how it's been after a couple of months. Crutchfield says the unit was discontinued but I'm not sure what the replacement would be (if any). Another site I found is still selling it for $250. Maybe it's just Crutchfield that stopped.

 

Great! If the H660 can restore the frequencies, I'm sure the MS-8 can too. Found a good deal for one on ebay.
I got some higher-end gear I'll be installing so I spent a bit more on the processor hoping to get the most of what I'll be installing.
I'll report back in about a month once I finish putting it all together

 

SilverGLS,

Thanks for your post. I picked up a couple pair of Infinity 6032's on sale at Best Buy and installed them in my wife's Elantra Limited. Reusing the speaker mounts was a great idea!

The new speakers made a world of difference in the sound. The adjustable tweeters are a nice feature, really nice to be able to direct the sound to the listeners individually.

Bob

 

This is a fantastic thread, and for the relatively low cost I made do this as well to my '12 sonata gl - but was also looking at a powered bazooka for the trunk. Cheers.

 

For those that ran new wiring to their speakers from their amps in the back, how much wiring did you ended up using in total (HU to speaker level input in the back, to front & back speakers). I'm wondering if a 50' spool is enough or if I need the 100' one.

 

Just a word of warning about doing this, as I've thought about doing this, too. The ridiculously thin stock speaker wire adds a bit of impedance to the circuit, which is why Infinity sometimes calls their 2 Ohm speakers True 4 Ohm impedance on stock systems. Even though the stock speakers may only be 2 Ohm, the amp may be seeing a 4 Ohm impedance as the total load. Installing bigger wires will reduce impedance and draw more current (therefore power) from the amp. I have no idea if the stock amp can handle a true 2 Ohm load or not, so keep that in mind if you go that route. Anyone done this successfully?

When I do my install in about two weeks, I plan on measuring the impedance both at the amp and the speakers, just to see what the wire adds. I've decided to leave the stock wires in place until I upgrade to a better amp in the future than I know can drive a 2 Ohm load.

I'm pretty sure a 50' spool would be more than enough though.