Why does my stereo suck so bad

[rc51kid]

I have the factory stereo with a Pioneer head unit and looks like pioneer door speakers all done by the previous owner. But it just sounds so bad. Mostly like there is VERY little volume coming from the front speakers or like it is cutting some frequency. I know there is a factory amp. Does it have a cross over or anything that would prevent all the frequency to going to the door speakers? I see that there are basically 8 speakers, ash, front doors, back doors and back head liner. In my mind that makes a 8 channels. I would imagine that the (after market) head unit has 4 channels coming out and going to the amp. Then the amp has 8 channels coming out Is this right? I dont really rcare to have a great stereo, just something to listen to. If it matters the rear sub was unplugged so i puled it all out.

 

[MrMoMo]

I have the factory stereo with a Pioneer head unit and looks like pioneer door speakers all done by the previous owner. But it just sounds so bad. Mostly like there is VERY little volume coming from the front speakers

Not quite sure I fully understand how you have a factory stereo with a pioneer head unit, however, I would check the following... In order...

1). Look for a button that says "ATT". That stands for Attenuate. It reduces the volume level without completely muting it. It will still allow you to control the volume, but at a reduced level. The idea is you can have your stereo cranked, then just hit the ATT to quickly drop the volume. Hit it again, and it goes back to where it was.

2) check that you don't have the fader set all the way to the back (not much sound from the front?)

3) do you have crackles and pops? If so, check for bad connections at the back of the head unit. If the PO did a crappy install, they may have "twist and taped" the speaker connections. This results in poor electrical connections and you loose a lot of sound quality...

4) does the head unit get hot?

5) is the factory amp connected? Is it hot? Is there something shorting out the connections?

A few places to start anyway...

 

[Timpanogos Slim]

Yeah, the factory amp may still be behind the passenger side dash speaker. Take it all the way out.

Try disconnecting the headliner and dash speakers too. If those are factory, they are basically 64-ohm paper cone tweeters. And at any rate they are wired in parallel with the door speakers.

Also, which pioneers? My PO had installed some 4" pioneer coaxials which are flatly terrible. I put some Polk marine 6.5" in the front doors and while i am not exactly in awe of their performance, it's a lot better.

 

[Timpanogos Slim]

Also i find that many people set up their stereo in stupid ways, or the factory defaults are themselves stupid. Check the EQ settings.

 

[rc51kid]

Let me clarify. I have factory setup with a aftermarket head unit and some different front door speakers. But the rest is factory. I also went through the head unit settings and set it all to zero.

 

[MrMoMo]

Also i find that many people set up their stereo in stupid ways, or the factory defaults are themselves stupid. Check the EQ settings.

^^^ agree! people have a tendency to mess up all sorts of settings. Also, if they have friends in the fire service, things like that get done intentionally... Just be happy your truck doesn't have a siren, or it would be on every time you start the truck!

 

[Delancy]

Because your volume doesn't go to "11".

 

[landcrshr]

I have.....some different front door speakers.

Are they the correct size? Or did the PO try to 4" speakers in the 5" holes? That would cause it to sound tinny if there were any gap around the speakers.

To answer another question, the factory amp is 4-channel and does use crossover filtering on the rear speakers.

 

[rc51kid]

Are they the correct size? Or did the PO try to 4" speakers in the 5" holes? That would cause it to sound tinny if there were any gap around the speakers.

To answer another question, the factory amp is 4-channel and does use crossover filtering on the rear speakers.

Where is the crossover and how is it wired? is i put in new rear speakers with the sub unplugged will the rear door speakers get the full spectrum?

 

[rc51kid]

Does anyone know how to get the dash speaker grills off?

 

[thatcabledude]

You don't actually take the grills off to get to the speakers. You take that part of the dash off.

 

[Timpanogos Slim]

You don't actually take the grills off to get to the speakers. You take that part of the dash off.

Right. There's a small panel next to the glovebox, and on the driver's side the whole knee panel comes out with a few screws, though it'll still be tethered by the release cables for the hood and fuel door.

 

[landcrshr]

Where is the crossover and how is it wired? is i put in new rear speakers with the sub unplugged will the rear door speakers get the full spectrum?

The (electronic) crossover is built into the amplifier. I believe there are additional capacitors on the roof speakers too.

The rear door speakers do not get the full spectrum. And nor does the "sub" woofer for that matter, which is why it sucks!

 

[Timpanogos Slim]

The (electronic) crossover is built into the amplifier. I believe there are additional capacitors on the roof speakers too.

The rear door speakers do not get the full spectrum. And nor does the "sub" woofer for that matter, which is why it sucks!

my headliner speakers did not have caps on them.

it may vary by year and by yota vs. LX.

I understand that the lx450 has a "better" speaker system that is still terrible.

 

[gothodgie]

i just re-wired everything, the stock wiring is just a mess of parralel/series speaker wiring... I ran new wires to the door speakers and elimated the others...

I have a Kenwood HU and it has enough power for the mids/highs to keep up with my 4 10s...

 

[landcrshr]

FWIW, there are no series-wired speakers in the system.

 

[gothodgie]

FWIW, there are no series-wired speakers in the system.

i did not know that... i figured there had to be in order to get the ohm load right... i guess it just done with the speakers ohm loads...

 

[landcrshr]

Yeah, car makers don't really conform to any audio standard for their systems. They will use whatever it takes to achieve their goal.

 

[Timpanogos Slim]

Yeah, car makers don't really conform to any audio standard for their systems. They will use whatever it takes to achieve their goal.

The factory door speakers being an extreme example of that.

Nakamichi should be ashamed that they are accused of having designed them.

 

[Roc Doc]

I have the factory stereo with a Pioneer head unit and looks like pioneer door speakers all done by the previous owner. But it just sounds so bad. Mostly like there is VERY little volume coming from the front speakers or like it is cutting some frequency. I know there is a factory amp. Does it have a cross over or anything that would prevent all the frequency to going to the door speakers? I see that there are basically 8 speakers, ash, front doors, back doors and back head liner. In my mind that makes a 8 channels. I would imagine that the (after market) head unit has 4 channels coming out and going to the amp. Then the amp has 8 channels coming out Is this right? I dont really rcare to have a great stereo, just something to listen to. If it matters the rear sub was unplugged so i puled it all out.

I'm a big fan of Pioneer head units mostly because of the adjustability. They have a good EQ section, and adjustable x-over for use with subs. I have one in my Cruiser, and with some Alpine speakers in the doors (not my first choice but they were there when I bought the rig), and a powered 8" sub under the drivers seat it sounds pretty damn good, but I spent the time cutting frequencies and selecting the right crossover point for the sub.

You may be high passing signal to the speakers so that would explain a lack of bass, as would some speakers not being in phase with the othes. Is it bass that you think is missing? As far as the output goes, I dunno