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Speakers / amp question

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Audio and Electronics' started by rrolff, Sep 4, 2009.

  1. rrolff

    rrolff Prius Surgeon

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    I'm starting an upgrade project, and looking for some help on speakers and amp. I'm starting with stock stock...

    For speakers, it seems there are 6 (or 8???) speakers. For external amplification, does this mean I need a 6/8 channel amp - or are the speakers (front,front/back,back) run in parallel ???
     
    #1 rrolff, Sep 4, 2009
  2. GeoGeek

    GeoGeek Member

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    If you have a 2009 Package 2 Prius, without the JBL radio, then you have 6 speakers. Two 6½" full range speakers in the rear doors, two tweeters in the front door sail pillars, and two 6½" mid-bass drivers in the front doors.
    The most common speaker upgrade is to put a new set of 6½" component speakers (these come with separate woofers, tweeters, & crossovers) in the front doors and a new set of coaxial 6½" speakers in the rear doors. You can drive these off the factory head unit, but you'll do much better to add an aftermarket amplifier (4-channel). The amp will either need to have speaker level inputs or you'll need a line level converter (like the Scosche SLC-4).
    Good Luck!




     
    #2 GeoGeek, Sep 4, 2009
  3. rrolff

    rrolff Prius Surgeon

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    Yes - it looks like I have 6 speakers... I'm swapping the whole system - but need to buy an amp and speakers for the head unit which is coming...

    I'm just trying to find out how it will be wired, and what to buy. I'm guessing the speakers in the front door, and the speakers in the dash corners are wired together (so in parallel). This would change a 8ohm load to a 4 ohm load - which any amp can handle.

    It seems for level control etc, I need matching 'tweeter/mid thingy mounted in the dash', and door speaker - otherwise, one may end up louder (???). The other option is going to a 6 channel amp, and discretely driving each speaker (amps have level control).......

    Hrmmm - seems 6 channel amps are not a commodity item (not so common)

    Right now I'm staging (buying) all the stuff, and hoping to get it right the first time :cool: - HU dash kit from Toyota UK, HU and camera from China, DTV box from Ebay, and now speakers and amp from (EBAY?????)???????
     
    #3 rrolff, Sep 4, 2009
  4. banshee08

    banshee08 Member

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    Has anyone verified that the front door of the Prius II is a 6 1/2 " driver? I thought it was a 6x9 driver??

     
    #4 banshee08, Sep 4, 2009
  5. banshee08

    banshee08 Member

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    Rrolff,

    If you get a component set (i.e. 1" tweeter and 61/2" mid bass) for the front and a co-axil 2 or 3 way 6 1/2" speaker for the rear,then all you have to do is get a 4 channel amp. You will not need to worry about the ohm calculations and the gain balancing for he front stage, the passive crossover will take care of that for you.

    That is unless you are going to go to a active crossover in which you will need a sound crossover/processor between your head unit and your amps. You will then need 1 amp channel per speaker.

    If I were to go with a passive setup, in my opinion is to abandon the stock tweeter location and mount the tweeters on the door as close to the mid bass. It would should much more balanced. If you want to mount the tweeters in the stock location then I would suggest the active crossover setup to be able to properly tune the front sound stage.

    Hope I did not confuse you. One more note is, check to see if the head unit from UK is capable to tuning into US AM/FM. I know that some system have a switch or way to switch between European FM/AM frequencies and US frequencies. If not they you will have a hard time tuning to US FM channels.

    Give me a PM. If you are in Sol Cal, I would be willing to help on your install. Since we have the same Prius II model.



     
    #5 banshee08, Sep 4, 2009
  6. rrolff

    rrolff Prius Surgeon

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    Banshee - thanks for the info... We're dealing with 6x9s in the door - and who knows what for tweeters in the dash (also who knows how to pull them). http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-iii...67089-removing-front-door-6x9-speakers-3.html is a good thread on the door piece.

    I'll let you know as I get closer - there are soooooo many things to get from all over the world to make this happen (hopefully) right...

    The Toyota plastic surround mount is coming form the UK
    The HU is coming form China (if it's half what it looks like it should be very cool - great 3D iGo NAV, 800x480 TFT display - PIP for nav and DVD etc etc....
    A DTV box is coming from middle America thanks to EBay
    I'm ordering soundproofing material (once I get a confirm on what thickness to get) from Soundproofing & Noise Control Materiels Prices
    CCD Backup cam is coming from China (still waiting on specs) - along with a distance sensor that shows how many feet you are away on HU screen...
    DTV antenna is still unknown
    Speakers are still unknown (need tweeter info)
    Amp is unknown until I get the speakers ordered.....

    It shouldn't be that hard once I've amassed all the right stuff.... Right now it kinda seems like a big monstrous puzzle and I'm missing bunches of pieces.

    OBTW - I'm down southward (Coto de Caza - south OC)

    Cheers,

    Rolf
     
    #6 rrolff, Sep 4, 2009
  7. radioprius1

    radioprius1 Climate Conspirisist

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    Did you order that weird "OEM" nav unit thing? I hope that works out for you. The whole thing just seemed weird to me and looked odd.
     
    #7 radioprius1, Sep 4, 2009
  8. banshee08

    banshee08 Member

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    South OC. Nice area. I lived in the Irvine and Tustin area for 10 years so its not too far if you need help. I currently live in the San Gabriel area. All sounds good. If you are looking for sound material I recommend Second Skin Damplifier Lite. http://www.secondskinaudio.com/products/vibration-mat-damplifier-lite.php.

    Check them out. It is some of the lightest stuff I have seen and works rather well. Of course the thicker the better but there must be sacrifices for decent MPG. hahaha
     
    #8 banshee08, Sep 4, 2009
  9. rrolff

    rrolff Prius Surgeon

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    e=radioprius1;950595]Did you order that weird "OEM" nav unit thing? I hope that works out for you. The whole thing just seemed weird to me and looked odd.[/quote]

    I am worried about MPG (the wattage will cause drain, the weight is a huge deal, I am looking for the most bang for buck - and I think i'll get it - I will do a thorough analysis of MPG at some point :cool:
    After much research, I moved away from most of initial OEM things out there. This one (2 Din Indash DVD GPS Navi Toyota RAV4 Digital Panel PIP - eBay (item 260470331610 end time Sep-30-09 03:38:37 PDT) seems more next gen to me (at least from the correspondence I've had with others and this one). Everyone says the GUIs are poor - but that was earlier WINCE 4 and 5 versions (which I think have been fixed from what I have seen in the generic 7" screen version - they clearly have moved forward in the GUI side).... From the screen caps I've seen, it looks less Asian (not a slam at Asians, just an observation as someone who has traveled there, and had worked with many engineers there - it's funny - the cultures like different ideas in what makes a good GUI - like having "Hello Kitty" everywhere :D). Of course, I'm hoping this works out - but my expectations are not wildly high. *If* the nav really is the latest available (with 3D maps etc etc - though it maybe is pointless on this version - I can install almost any nav - TomTom etc), and *if*, and *if*, and *if*, and *if, and *if*, and *if*, and *if*, and *if*, and *if*, and *if*, and , and *if*, and *if*, and *if*, and *if*, and *if*

    Many ifs to deal with.........

    I want a really good nav, ability to run DVDs (long ski trips etc with kids), DTV is cool (seems like a nice cheap addition - maybe $60 all in from Ebay sources), backup camera is essential (and getting an actual distance on the screen is VERY nice since I hate our Lexus GX camera because I can never tell really how close I am) because I think the Prius has VERY poor visibility back there (Toyota hasn't figured this one out - my father had a Celica with crazy bad visibility), and finally a stereo (I could qualify as an audiophile, but not in the car - just want decent sound - would've liked a center channel though for DTS DVDs :cool:)

    I'm pretty sure I'll be VERY happy with the nav (ability to run any and latest available). I think PIP sounds very cool, and I really like the backup cam with distance sensor that shows on the display. Not sure how it will look - or even if it will work......... I'm clearly in uncharted waters - even the backup cam mount and location:confused: - or sensor mount and location, DTV mount/location, tweeter swap...............................................................................................................

    It seems I'm one of the first - so this will be an adventure....
     
    #9 rrolff, Sep 4, 2009
  10. banshee08

    banshee08 Member

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    Rrolff,

    I would suggest the Boyo cameras as they have great night vision and good lenses. As for amplifiers, I would recommend any class D amp. Amps using class D circuits are much more efficient and very small (easy to hide and install). Look at the PDX series of amps from Alpine or the HD series from JL. I think of myself as a audiophile so I would only go with Class A/B amps but for the Prius I am going Class D to cope with the efficiency issue.

    -Chan
     
    #10 banshee08, Sep 5, 2009
  11. rrolff

    rrolff Prius Surgeon

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    CHan,

    The Boyo look very similar - it does look like I'm going to get stuck with license mount - now where to mount the distance sensor - that's another question...

    Re: amps - that makes sense - and they aren't crazy expensive - though my 150lbs 32 tube ARC amp would keep the car warm in the winter :cool:
     
    #11 rrolff, Sep 5, 2009
  12. banshee08

    banshee08 Member

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    Wow Arc Tubes, that will suck the amps out of your 12V system quite well. I guest that would be a great use of the DC to DC converter in the Hybrid system to keep warm. hehehe. I have not see those amps in quite some time.

    Just a warning though, I have not really experience the noise pattern of he electrical system of the Prius but I have in my Nissan Altima Hybrid. I was able to put two 4 channel McIntosh in it and two Arc Audio Amps without any noise issue from the drive system. I find that due to the DC to DC converter in the hybrid system, things are great for audiophiles since I have not see my voltage in the altima hybrid drop below 13.8V when the car is on.

     
    #12 banshee08, Sep 5, 2009
  13. rrolff

    rrolff Prius Surgeon

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    I was toying with taking an old electrostatic speaker panel I have, and fitting it as a rear sunshade - since they're pretty translucent, and I already have poor rear visibility - it's pretty much a win win (great sound from the back, and passengers sitting there have a sunshade).

    Tapping the hybrid synergy drive to step up the voltage to 5000 V should be an interesting project. Of course, since we're already talking about supplying the tubes with 500V, what's a bit more...

    Now I'm worried about the effect on MPG.......
     
    #13 rrolff, Sep 5, 2009
  14. bottomfeeder

    bottomfeeder New Member

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    Rolff, I followed the adaptation of a prior generation of this HU into a Volvo in another forum. The product had it's issues, e.g. very slow gui, mediocre quality audio specs. (I can't yet post links, if you want them pm me.)

    The unit you selected, 2 Din Indash DVD GPS Navi Toyota RAV4 Digital Panel PIP, seems to have the same (very) limited EQ, 2 band 100 Hz & 10K Hz. and power stats. It's screaming for an aux amp and EQ.

    No doubt the display on the new version is better, I look forward to reading your reviews when you receive it.
     
    #14 bottomfeeder, Sep 5, 2009
  15. shawnb2

    shawnb2 Active Member

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    I will agree with banshee on the amp upgrade. Both the Alpine PDX and JL Audio HD series are great amps. They are extremely efficient, powerful and come in a very small package. I have the new JL Audio 900/5 HD 5ch. amp in my car and it is amazing. A bit more pricey than the Alpine stuff but a bit more power too which is never a bad thing. I have a single 10" sub in the car as well which is why I went with the 5ch. unit. Not sure if you'd go that far, but a little added bass never hurt anyone if you like good sound. Good luck with your project and please feel free to ask any questions if you have any as I have already jumped in to with both feet. The great thing for you is not having the JBL system to have to work with or more favorably around as I am in the process of doing. Enjoy.
     
    #15 shawnb2, Sep 5, 2009
  16. venom700

    venom700 Just call me Brian...

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    What limitations does have the JBL system impose? I am looking to get a 4-channel amp and replacing the 4 main speakers. Are there some major restrictions or am I am suppose to be looking for 6x9's for up front and 6.5's in the rear?
     
    #16 venom700, Sep 5, 2009
  17. venom700

    venom700 Just call me Brian...

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    Or am I supposed to be getting 6.5's for both the front & rear doors?
     
    #17 venom700, Sep 5, 2009
  18. banshee08

    banshee08 Member

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    Venom700,

    It would be a good idea to read into Shawnb2's thread about his intall. There maybe problems with getting a clean signal to a aftermarket amplifier.

    As for speakers, you can do a 6x9 in the front door and 6.5" in the rear doors. Else you can make simple MDF brackets to mount 6.5" or maybe even 8" speakers in the front doors. As I recommended on the other thread you have. I would abandon the stock tweeter position and go with full range speakers in the doors.

    -Chan

     
    #18 banshee08, Sep 6, 2009
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