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need aftermarket audio upgrade help

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Audio and Electronics' started by coleman22, Jun 11, 2014.

  1. coleman22

    coleman22 Junior Member

    Joined:
    May 7, 2008
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    Location:
    austin texas
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    i bought a 2014 prius with the JBL system. its really not to my liking and i am going to begin modifications.
    i already own a PPI 480 amp( 4 ch 80 watt) from a previous car. Ultimately i want to revamp the entire system but for now i am thinking about just doing a small subwoofer to fill out the sound.

    I have been given a little advice thus far. one shop said all powered subs are inferior and crap and he recommended a JL 6" enclosure. he said it was plenty for the prius seeing how i dont listen to hip hop and electronic. another shop said the infinity bass link was very good and he recommended that one if i go the powered sub route. that guy said i should start at 8" minimum for the sub. any other powered subs that i should look at?

    another route would be to get a nice front component set and a small sub and power it with the amp i have. but here are where my questions start:
    -if i do this, what do i need to get to keep my stock HU and steering wheel functionality intact- i keep reading about the Audio control Lc2i or lc6i....
    -i see many people are using coaxials for the fronts but others are adamant about using 6.5 component setup. i had read that the front tweeters have to be left alone to keep the HU and steering controls functional.
    -can i use the other channels on the amp i already own to power a small sub?
    -would i then disconnect the rear stock speakers?...they sound like shit anyways....
     
    #1 coleman22, Jun 11, 2014
  2. JordanC

    JordanC Junior Member

    Joined:
    May 12, 2014
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    Location:
    NY
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    To answer a few of your ?'s, I would always recommend that you listen to the subs you are looking at and purchase what you feel will suit your needs. I am a huge fan of JL subs and have been using them for many years. You can't go wrong with an 8" Micro Sub box with the 8W3. I used the LC2i on my install and it is the bomb! You need to wire it in directly off of the back of the head unit and you will need to worry about any wiring config on the front dash tweeters as you wouldn't be using stock speaker wire anyway. You old PPI amp is a great 4ch amp but probably wouldn't meet the power needs for a sub. I am in the component speaker camp as they give you the best possible sound. As for the stock rear speakers you can leave them as they will not make much of a difference. Any other ?'s let me know but you are on the right track. I posted a few pics of my install which may help you out.
     
    #2 JordanC, Jun 16, 2014
  3. coleman22

    coleman22 Junior Member

    Joined:
    May 7, 2008
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    Location:
    austin texas
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    So I am also looking at the possibility of just focusing on the front stage for now and doing a sub later if needed.

    I have been eyeballing the hybrid audio imagines either 6.5 comp/coax or 6x9 used as coax and maybe using the rear amp channel to run a 3.5 squawker replacement in the dash.

    With the hat 6x9 I don't know how much I will miss a sub. Just not sure if they will fit. What's the mounting depth like in the front doors?
     
    #3 coleman22, Jun 17, 2014
  4. lopgok

    lopgok Member

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    May 2, 2012
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    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    Your best bang for the buck is replacing the dash speakers.
    If you open up the doors, you should replace the factory speakers, as they really suck.
    You should also add some sound deadening to the doors, as they have very little.

    For the door speakers, make sure they are efficient if you will be using the head unit.
    I just bought some 6x9 speakers that are 93db efficient, and they are 4 ohm speakers.
    I don't know how efficient the speakers you are looking at, but the head amp is quite weak and efficient speakers
    are critical to getting a reasonable amount of volume.

    As for power, there is much uninformed opinion about. You might want to use your amp for the oem speakers.
    With a bit of power, replacement speakers sound pretty decent. I have a 8 channel 20w amp, and there is a reasonable amount of bass.
    I will be adding a subwoofer, but likely driving it from 2 channels of my amp. Each woofer is 93db efficient. With both chammels, I should get up to 109db of low frequencies. Your 80w amp is plenty powerful enough, unless you want to make your ears bleed.
     
    #4 lopgok, Jun 18, 2014
    Last edited: Jun 18, 2014
    Chris S likes this.
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