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2015 JKU Sport Stock Speaker Upgrade

10K views 25 replies 9 participants last post by  Big-Dog1 
#1 ·
Hello!
(This is my first post ever on WranglerForum so I apologize for any mistakes.)

I have a 2015 Wrangler Unlimited Sport with the stock speakers and head unit (Uconnect 130S, it has Sirius so it isn't the lowest model). I also have the connectivity package. After owning this vehicle for a couple months now, I am very impressed and I absolutely love it. The speakers, however, are not very loud and always become distorted- they definitely need to be upgraded. I have done a lot of researching but cannot find anything that would be perfect for me. I am not very technologically inclined or comfortable taking apart my brand new Jeep so I would prefer more of a "plug and play" solution as I have found here (MOPAR 77KICK10 - MOPAR® Kicker Audio Speaker Upgrade for 05-15 Jeep® Wrangler JK, Unlimited JK, Liberty & Grand Cherokee - Quadratec) Are these good enough with the factory head unit and no amplifier? I am looking for louder speakers with slightly better bass. (I will eventually invest in a small subwoofer in the trunk, so heavy bass isn't required.) I also know that the 2015 roll bar speakers are different than previous models with the tweeters being a separate speaker to make it have 8 speakers. Does this make a difference in which speaker I put in? (If I were to keep the factory tweeter in the roll bar.)

Thanks so much for any opinions or advice!
 
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#2 ·
Hello!
The speakers, however, are not very loud and always become distorted- they definitely need to be upgraded.
The problems that you speak of, have nothing to do with the speakers per se.
For louder sound, I'm sure you understand that you need amplifier, not speakers. Although, with an amplifier, you may need higher watt speakers.

The distortion is also NOT caused by the speakers, but the HU. So, again, you would need a amplifier that would pump out enough wattage so that you achieve your desired decibels before your hear the unwanted distortion(if any) from your HU.

HU's themselves normally provide decent %THD with nominal volume. The problem is that most people press the loudness button thinking that is meant to increase their volume loudness. The loudness button is not meant for this purpose. It is meant to give good fidelity at low volumes. When you use the loudness button for louder sound at higher volumes, all you are doing is increasing the distortion. What you want to do is to turn off the loudness button and crank up your stereo without that button. And, you might put a little EQ into the equation to deduce the clipping effect. Once you do this, you might find that the problem is not the Headunit at all. If the stereo doesn't sound "live" enough, then a better EQ is necessary, and/or a subwoofer.

Good bass cannot be achieved by midrange speakers. You will always have subpar bass with midrange speakers. For good bass, you need a bass speaker, I.E. a subwoofer. I would never look for a midrange speaker to fix a bass problem.

Therefore, there is no cheap, easy fix for the problems that you have mentioned. A serious audio upgrade is necessary to fix the problems that you have mentioned. I.E.-Amplifier, Subwoofer, and better speakers, and maybe a better HU with a good EQ.
 
#4 ·
GolJKU,

I have been researching this topic for a hot minute and my jeep isn't even in my hands yet (its being shipped to Germany). I understand you aren't technically knowledgable with audio so let me see if maybe I can get you guided towards a solution. If you would like to keep your stock JK headunit (HU) then the next step in my opinion would be speakers but rather digital processor/line out converter see here. What you will then do is identify the line outs of the HU going to each speaker and then cut them.. Yes cut them. Then plug those lines from the HU into the digital processor/line out converter and run that to a amplifier via RCA cables. IF you missed the conversion what the digital processor will do is take your standard copper wire signal in and then change it to RCA signal out the other end. Once you run the RCA to a amplifier you can then route the output lines of the amp back up behind the HU and attach them to the other half of wires you cut which lead to the speakers throughout the vehicle. This will prevent you from disassembling your jeep. This is what I plan on doing and starting when my jeep gets here. following that ill upgrade the speakers. If you are planning to do a subwoofer then ensure you plan your build for a sub by ordering a large enough amp by first deciding the exact sub you are going to use. from there you can pick some speakers based on the amount of amps essentially left over to feed the speakers. If you have any questions feel free to ask. I am by no means a gooroo for audio but I am very careful and meticulous when building electronics. I have done audio work in the past.
 
#5 ·
Okay thank you! Personally I like the stock look of the radio, but I have another question. If I were to upgrade the head unit to another stock part but instead of the Uconnect 130 I bought a Uconnect 430, would it be more powerful and control the speakers better? Upon buying my Wrangler upgrading the head unit was on my list of things to do but only with another stock part such as the 430 because I like the stock look and I want all the steering wheel controls and Uconnect to be usable. (And not to mention an easy install!) Would this 430 unit be better for sound output?
 
#6 ·
Gizmo.C basically said the same thing that I said to you. He just went into more detail. The problem with stock HU's is that they don't have RCA outs, like aftermarket headunits. So, you have to use a line out converter, unless your amplifier allows high level speaker inputs, which is rare. For connectivity issues, I think you have the right idea, in keeping your stock HU for the time being. But, you need an amp and subwoofer to solve your problem. And then, you will probably need better speakers that can handle the higher wattage from the amp. You can go into an audio shop and get it that way. But, I wouldn't recommend it. You are probably looking at around $1500.00 to do the job right.

A Head Unit alone will not solve the problem. One stock Headunit is not going to have much more volume amplification, if any, than another stock Headunit. For this purpose, you need an amp. In fact, an amp is sometimes offered with an premium factory audio package for this very reason. But, if you are willing to spend $1500.00 for an new upgraded radio, you are on the right path with the cost. You are just looking to spend it in the wrong way to acheive your desired results.

You can try to do it cheaply with a brand new 2015 Wrangler, but I wouldn't recommend it. Hacking a brand new Wrangler is something I would never do. What I would do is research or ask questions. I would get everything together based on your research and take it to a professional installer. You won't get the best from an audio shop, as they are just trying to sell their inventory for a profit. You could go to an audio shop and ask them what they recommend for amplifier, subwoofers, speaker package, and how much it would cost. As them if that amp would need an line out converter and ask them if that cost is included as well as the installation cost. Get the "price out the door". Get model numbers too, this is important. Then, you can come back here and post that information to get feedback. People here will tell you if the recommendations are really good, if the total cost is fair, or if there are better choices for the same price or less.

This is the way I would do it, if I were not that familiar with audio. Don't let one person tell you what is best for you. Get a group of people, that will help you get to the best solution. Even better is to hear the speakers, subs, amp etc. before you get them installed. Then, you can either get those products from the audio shop or buy them online and take them to the audio shop once you get all the parts. Get it professionally installed, this is what I did when I first had my audio upgraded in my Wrangler. I didn't know how to take apart my brand new Wrangler, and I didn't want to mess it up. Once I saw how to properly disassemble my Wrangler, I was able to fix the mistakes the "professional" installer made. Those guys are good but, I am a perfectionist. I guess that's what you call an audiophile now. Good Luck.
 
#8 ·
Depending on whether you have a four door or two door, I would look at this subwoofer box, and then a Alpine PDX-V9 5-channel amplifier. Then, you need to decide on your speakers which would need to have at least 100wattsRMS. The Kickers that you listed are only 75wattsRMS. You also need to know if your front speakers are components or coaxials. Components have separated tweeters, so the tweeters might be on top of the dash, in the corners, and the midrange speaker would be in the corners of the dash. Coaxials have the tweeter mounted on top of the midrange speaker. These are normally used in TJ's. This is why it is best to research and plan your upgrade properly so that you don't waste money trying to get it right.

Your speakers don't have to have good bass, as the bass comes from the subwoofer. With a subwoofer, the bass if filtered out of the speakers, which is best, because they aren't bass speakers. It's called high frequency filter, or low frequency filter, which is switched by the amplifier. Without an amp, you get full range sound, which causes a lot of distortion in the bass range, and gives much worse sound to the speakers as they can't really handle bass. Proper speakers will cost $100-150 a pair and you will need two pairs. Expect to spend about $200 to $300 dollars for the professional install.

07 15 Jeep Wrangler 4 Door Custom Sub Woofer Box Loaded 2 Image Dynamics CTX 10 | eBay


http://www.amazon.com/Alpine-PDX-V9...&qid=1425146581&sr=1-1&keywords=alpine+pdx-v9

A Better Spec page for the Alpine PDX-V9 is here.

Alpine PDX-V9 1600W 5 Channel Class D PDX Series Car Audio Amplifier
 
#9 ·
Goljku,
Like you, I also want better sound in my 2015. I have a Willy's with the 430 head unit. I don't think the 430 has any better sound than the 130, it just has more options.

I am building my sound in stages, speakers then amp, then sub. I went with quality for the speakers and did the install myself. The first YouTube I watched to help suggested taking nearly the entire dash apart. There is no need for that. The process was straight forward and easy.

I went with Focal Performance 130AS for the speakers. A little pricey, but quality. The amp will be next. I will go with the digital processor and amp combo, but not yet sure of which model amp. I do like the Alpine mentioned in the earlier post, but I will have to wait for a boost in my bank account. When I get the amp done, I'll post more.

The speakers made a marginal improvement with no other modification. The real improvement will be noticed later.
 
#11 ·
I was curious so, I looked up those speakers. My search shows a 5.25" speaker for that model, and the 2015 Wrangler has 6.5" speakers, if I am not mistaken. Also, those speakers are 50RMS, and no where near the wattage needed for the Alpine amp.

Now, I'm sure that someone will come along and say that you can lower the gain,yadda, yadda, but, we have been down that road too many times. The gain control on an amp is not a volume control or power limiter. If the gain is set properly, it will blow those speakers quite easily.

130 AS | Focal America

Focal Performance 130AS Access Series 5-1/4" 2-way component speaker system at Crutchfield.com
 
#12 ·
Now, I have the CDT's for my Alpine and at 5.25" they were 110WattsRMS. The 6.5" convertible speaker is 160wattsRMS. Now, these speakers may not be as expensive as the Focal or some of the other high end/low wattage output speakers, but they are excellent for subwoofer systems. Some people complain that they don't have great low end. But, no low end midrange speaker is going to sound that good. They will all distort horribly in the bass range. For the bass range, you need a bass speaker, not a midrange speaker. These CDT's are a powerful speaker to be used as midrange/tweeter speakers, and work well with a subwoofer. I know, I have them.

CDT Audio Regional Dealers

Note: Make sure you get the 4 ohm version.
 
#15 ·
2015 Stereo Upgrade

I want to increase volume and bass on my 2015 JK and make it look just like factory. My idea was to install an amp under the drivers seat. Replace the 2 6.5 rears and install a sub in the tool storage area. I use my cargo area everyday and don't want to lose any space. Any suggestions or pics?
 
#23 ·
Yeah, I haven't been able to upgrade yet, I've been busy and haven't had the time. So I guess I'm open to researching more products. I have heard a lot about the Mopar kicker upgrade on this forum and it seems to have positive feedback. I haven't heard about the Rockfords though.
 
#26 ·
The 2.5" speakers have a small capacitor (passive crossover) glued up against the wiring connector. That cap keeps bass out of that speaker, but allows mid range and high frequency to pass. The 6.5" speaker is supposed to play the bass and also mid range, so there is overlap between the two speakers in the mid range. The woofer is not designed to reproduce the treble tones.
 
#25 ·
When considering sound system upgrades, I always try to figure out 1) what will give me the most bang for the buck, 2) what is easiest, and 3) what will fit in with later upgrades.

Rather than start with cutting wires and adding amps, I recommend you first upgrade the speakers in your overhead soundbar. If you use the MoPar 77KICK10 Kicker speakers, they are a direct plug-n-play - no wiring to cut and splice, no mounting adapters needed. About $75 on Amazon for a pair. No matter what you do later on, you will still be able to use those speakers, so no money lost. If you like that upgrade, next you would probably want to upgrade the 6.5" dash speakers (more work, but ultimately a good upgrade). Then replace the 2.5" speakers on top of the dash with hard dome tweeters such as Pioneer TS-T110 (not too hard, and only about $30 for a pair).

No matter what you do later, all those speaker upgrades are keepers.

I had the 130 head unit, and my first upgrade was to change out the crummy factory speakers in the soundbar. It made an amazing difference in sound.

By the way, I ended up upgrading my HU because it got static on every radio station. The new Kenwood I replaced it with has no static, and has plenty of volume.

Good luck....
 
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