I have come to a quick conclusion - the stock speakers have to be the worst in the industry. I went with the stealthbox and JL amp connected to the stock stereo with stock speakers. Since the stock speakers fall off at such a high frequency range, I had to xover the sub very low with a steep 24db xover slope. If I didn't do this, many songs with strong lower frequency midbass would pull the image into the back of the truck.

Here are my suggestions:

1. Replace at least the front speakers. Go with a high quality 5x7 or create a mounting plate for a component set. If you have a lot of money, think about a midbass in the doors and a component set in the doors.

2. Replace the factory stereo. Unless you are going super high end with only RCA outs, you can power your door speakers off the deck.

3. Run RCA's to the back and go with a sub and amp. Think carefully about your overall design and you might go with a multichannel amp that handles subs and front speakers. When you run the power cable from the battery, consider your future needs. You might as well go with at least 4 gauge here. I personally like circuit breakers over fuses near the battery.

4. If you didn't put the front speakers on an amp in step 3, do so now.

5. If you didn't replace the rear door speakers, consider an upgrade.

** In all steps, dynamatt any bare metal locations you come across. Also be prepared to go hunting for vibrations after the fact.

 

St Louis, are you not liking the stock-JL stealth combination? So there is a lot of pull to the back, did you try using the resistors for the rear speakers yet? What about just fading the balance to the front?

I am new to the whole 'system' mod world, and I am just starting my new system. I would like to make as few mistakes as possible.

 

I'm running stock speakers running from an Alpine 7893, and 10" Alumapro at the back. 4WL HOGG has a good suggestion of adjusting the fade towards the front. I have mine set to 3 biased to the front.

The stock speakers are definitely not the best sounding 5x7s, but adding a little power to them like a better head-unit, can noticeably improve the sound. Even if you had great aftermarket speakers, if the brain of the system is not giving you juice, it will not sound any better than stock speakers.

I have so far had experience in running a dedicated power source for my sub, and a multi-channel for speakers. I had this setup on my old regular SuperCrew and it was actually cheaper than a package for a 5-channel amp.

Components may or may not be better than coaxials depending on how you mount the tweeters. I am very reluctant in doing any cutting on our beloved doors just to get tweeters.

Those are very good suggestions, and I agree that you plan ahead and possibly do it phases to reduce any chances of error.

 

I can adjust the line level on the amp to lower it's output without touching the fader. My thinking is, I just dropped $800 on this amp/sub and I want some decent output.

chesterc has a great point on using coax. There are some very nice models out there. JL makes a 5x7 with external crossover that sounds wonderful. In my case, I have a brand new component set that I bought but never installed in a previous vehicle. I don't believe I will have to do any door cutting. I will have to fashion a new mounting plate for the doors. I'll know more after this weekend.

-Mark

 

My advise is such as I did. Provides plenty of power, intonation, and volume to all (withoutbreaking windows). I deided to keep the stock head unit as to keep it inconspicuous. Ran the output to a 700watt HiFonics Zeuss amplifier. Replaced the door speakers with a higher quality adjustable tweeter design (really good idea as to "bend" the sound to the front from the rear speakers). Then ran the additional 500watts to twin 10's in an enclosure that fits perfectly under the rear seat. It can thump out the bass jams, yet you hear virtualy no distortion in the high end.

Mike