The definitive stereo and subwoofer upgrade thread

[doug97gxe]

i have it on order... 67 bucks from ebay. mid week. I went to best buy and bought a cheepo thing for $15

The cheap One will be harder to dial in trust me I went through 3

Start with your bass on the radio at 1/4 then increase as u go along .. turn down the gain of the amp and turn off all bass boost

Here are my settings







Start low and slowly increase it will get better with the lc2i u can dial it in better and your bass notes will be way more accurate .. my system is totally balanced now and when the wife and kid are in the car I put my bass to half which they both don't find over powering


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[audis4culver]

Cool.. will try that when the lc2i arrives. Thanks for the pics.. very helpful!!!!


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[doug97gxe]

Cool.. will try that when the lc2i arrives. Thanks for the pics.. very helpful!!!!


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Check my lc2i settings too when yours comes in


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[doug97gxe]

? Did someone say they have 2 10” subs?? I assume going with something smaller – 500W or 300W is logical? It’s the watts not the size of the sub that make it so loud?

now that i have talked you off the ledge for now.. let me answer some of these questions.. yes you're correct its.. not the size of the sub or the amount of subs that makes it loud or better quality. I have a buddy with 4 10's in his Titan .. they are in the cabin and they are still not as loud as my IDMax.. it blew his mind because when he was getting his truck setup i told him not to buy 4 subs just get one 1 ID. Watts definitely tells apart of the story.. also the amount of decibels the sub will put out. Usually more watts a sub can handle is the more decibels it will put out.. but its not always the case in all situations. Then there is SPL (how loud a sub will get aka decibels) and SQ (how good of sound quality the sub will produce) .. ever heard some cars where the trunk is vibrating and the sub sounds like farts? that's a bad SQ sub but maybe a good SPL sub... ever heard a nice detailed note sub but not loud at all or gets deep? that's a good SQ sub.. The ID Max is a sub with both SQ and SPL .. oh yeah there is also excursion but we will leave that a lone for now

[audis4culver]

awesome.. this is all starting to become much clearer for me. Yes !! Driving around town I sometimes hear some car with the entire trunk sounding like its about to unscrew itself.. bad SQ - got it. I dont want to join that club. I dont know all the audio lingo yet.. but a "nice detailed sub note not too loud" .. that will take me some time to understand. i drink way too much wine and I know what I like and dont.. "nice notes".. but audio is tough to define. Thanks professor ! all this is very helpful education. Love absorbing it all.

now that i have talked you off the ledge for now.. let me answer some of these questions.. yes you're correct its.. not the size of the sub or the amount of subs that makes it loud or better quality. I have a buddy with 4 10's in his Titan .. they are in the cabin and they are still not as loud as my IDMax.. it blew his mind because when he was getting his truck setup i told him not to buy 4 subs just get one 1 ID. Watts definitely tells apart of the story.. also the amount of decibels the sub will put out. Usually more watts a sub can handle is the more decibels it will put out.. but its not always the case in all situations. Then there is SPL (how loud a sub will get aka decibels) and SQ (how good of sound quality the sub will produce) .. ever heard some cars where the trunk is vibrating and the sub sounds like farts? that's a bad SQ sub but maybe a good SPL sub... ever heard a nice detailed note sub but not loud at all or gets deep? that's a good SQ sub.. The ID Max is a sub with both SQ and SPL .. oh yeah there is also excursion but we will leave that a lone for now

[Drunktank]

If you add the 8 inch passenger side pocket sub from the B8 Subwoofer Shop can you power this from the existing B&O setup without having to upgrade the amplifier?

I doubt it. That aftermarket speaker is definitely going to crave more power. The good thing is, you can get a nice, compact class D unit that will barely heat up and is easy to stow away behind a trunk cubby for not very much money.

HOLY HELL... My IDMAX 10" Sub just arrived.. the damn thing weighs a TON !!

Lol, you skipped a lot of power levels and went straight to crazyville with that thing. You'll probably never get close to using it to it's full potential, but I'm sure you'll still be happy.

[miztahsparklez]

Did someone say they have 2 10” subs??

I do, but I have a full system for sound quality. I have nothing left of the b&o.

The key to balance is just turning it down. Headroom is good. Set your b&o bass levels to middle and turn up the treble and midrange.

I had a 12" with my b&o and it was fine for that system.

I compete in SQ competitions, so I'm a little bit more extreme. Lol


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[audis4culver]

thanks. my lc2i audiocontrol arrives today.. I'll replace the cheep one I have and see what the difference is. Its been 3 days and after all the balancing suggestions I'm actually slightly starting to like it...still shocked at how heavy the thing is though. I never knew about sq comps .. with all those speakers.. the car must weigh a ton - no worries about slowing it down or just not an issue? my dash looks like this with no midrange .. but I dont think i can really notice the difference anyway. thanks again to all.[IMG][/IMG]

[doug97gxe]

thanks. my lc2i audiocontrol arrives today.. I'll replace the cheep one I have and see what the difference is. Its been 3 days and after all the balancing suggestions I'm actually slightly starting to like it...still shocked at how heavy the thing is though. I never knew about sq comps .. with all those speakers.. the car must weigh a ton - no worries about slowing it down or just not an issue? my dash looks like this with no midrange .. but I dont think i can really notice the difference anyway. thanks again to all.[IMG][/IMG]

either its the DSP settings or the B8's are different from the B8.5

[doug97gxe]

I would love to go to an SQ competition .. i've been to SPL Competitions and hated them.. wasn't for me.. but everyone there was excited and happy .. its nothing nicer than hearing sweet notes across the range

[audis4culver]

when I go into the dsp settings.. all I get are some b&o stuff... no midrange.. must just be b8 vs b8.5 I'm not that good anyway.. to me 'midrange' means going 60mph in 2 gear. really starting to like this speaker though... cant wait to get home from my lovely job to hook up the lc2i
i might have to start messing around putting something into my bmw and jag.. dont think my wife would like her q7 to magically have bass.. that would not go over to well.

[doug97gxe]

when I go into the dsp settings.. all I get are some b&o stuff... no midrange.. must just be b8 vs b8.5 I'm not that good anyway.. to me 'midrange' means going 60mph in 2 gear. really starting to like this speaker though... cant wait to get home from my lovely job to hook up the lc2i
i might have to start messing around putting something into my bmw and jag.. dont think my wife would like her q7 to magically have bass.. that would not go over to well.

I actually though the same thing to my wife's RRS.. then i turned up the sub and bass and it put the stock BO Sub to shame.. its not ID territory but it had some nice deep bass

[PeteRock]

I decided to go with the Trunk Storage Sub from the B8 Custom Subwoofer Shop for my 2017 S5 and I couldn't be happier! It looks and sounds AMAZING! I went with the Carbon Fiber enclosure and added a blacked out S5 Badge...thanks Chris Bowen!

I went with a 250 Watt Mono Alpine Amp and the LC2i Converter and had the install done at Rays Electronics in Bloomingdale IL....thanks Shaun Patel!

Here are a couple of pics....


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[cspcrx]

Looks nice. I am really leaning towards one of his boxes. Seems to be the least disruptive install option. Is that an 8in sub in yours? Did you leave the factory free air in place and working? Did you grab signal from the factory sub or from the full range in the rear deck?

How was the seller to work with? I want to contact him but it seems like I have to make some kind of account or something.

Sorry for all of the questions.

[doug97gxe]

Looks nice. I am really leaning towards one of his boxes. Seems to be the least disruptive install option. Is that an 8in sub in yours? Did you leave the factory free air in place and working? Did you grab signal from the factory sub or from the full range in the rear deck?

How was the seller to work with? I want to contact him but it seems like I have to make some kind of account or something.

Sorry for all of the questions.

based on the pics on the site and dimensions i would say 8"

[PeteRock]

Thanks! It's a JL Audio 8w3 and I disconnected the B&O Sub for the signal but left it there.

The seller was awesome to work with and very responsive to my questions. I had quite a few as his Subs are designed for the B8 S4 and I have a B8.5 S5 so he wasn't sure about the fit. All you need to do is create an Etsy account which took less than 5 mins and I Unsubscribed to their emails so it's painless. I paid online and he shipped it immediately. Totally seamless.


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[cspcrx]

Thanks, video on his site makes it look very easy to install

[itr325]

So question for you guys running the LC2i, are you bypassing the remote side and running a switched 12V to the amp remote? Cause for what ever reason, my LC2i will not turn on unless I supply 12V to the remote in. I thought this LC2i can turn the amp on without having to find a switched 12V for the remote. Am I missing something?

[doug97gxe]

So question for you guys running the LC2i, are you bypassing the remote side and running a switched 12V to the amp remote? Cause for what ever reason, my LC2i will not turn on unless I supply 12V to the remote in. I thought this LC2i can turn the amp on without having to find a switched 12V for the remote. Am I missing something?

it doesn't work.. i think i also said this prior in this thread.. the sub signal isn't powerful enough.. you must the remote lead

[itr325]

Damn....Looks like I'll need to break out the multi-meter and looked for a switched source.

[doug97gxe]

Damn....Looks like I'll need to break out the multi-meter and looked for a switched source.

B8 .. there is a red row of fuses in the trunk... B8.5 you can use the relay

the B8 has a red row of fuses in the trunk.. the B8.5 does not.. i tapped into a relay and it works

[itr325]

Is that pic of a B8 or 8.5? I've got an 8.

[doug97gxe]

Is that pic of a B8 or 8.5? I've got an 8.

That's a B8.5 in the B8 it will be red row of fuses




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[itr325]

Haha!! I'm business, many thx!!!

[briceportier]

What if there was a way to completely bypass symphonys, concerts, MMI2/3G Highs & Lows, etc and (almost) instantly upgrade your B8 to a B9:

http://cloud.tapatal...ist(public).pdf

I've been following Daniel's progress for some time and what he has achieved almost single handedly is nothing short of exceptional... Have a look...

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[doug97gxe]

Haha!! I'm business, many thx!!!

No prob and great to hear


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[doug97gxe]

What if there was a way to completely bypass symphonys, concerts, MMI2/3G Highs & Lows, etc and (almost) instantly upgrade your B8 to a B9:

http://cloud.tapatal...ist(public).pdf

I've been following Daniel's progress for some time and what he has achieved almost single handedly is nothing short of exceptional... Have a look...

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If I'm upgrading my whole system is far cheaper to use high end equipment and the interface is way better and will sound much better


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[daytonas4]

i have not seen anyone install a "high end " audio system for pure sq in a b8.5 s4 . id like to see it .. im deciding if i want to take the leap into a true sq system in my car . but it will take a huge amount of time and effort that i dont know if im willing to dish out yet . i am a high end audio nerd . so we will see what this winter brings

[doug97gxe]

i have not seen anyone install a "high end " audio system for pure sq in a b8.5 s4 . id like to see it .. im deciding if i want to take the leap into a true sq system in my car . but it will take a huge amount of time and effort that i dont know if im willing to dish out yet . i am a high end audio nerd . so we will see what this winter brings

Most don't do it because BO is pretty clean and only needs a sub


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[Dirt]

i have not seen anyone install a "high end " audio system for pure sq in a b8.5 s4 . id like to see it .. im deciding if i want to take the leap into a true sq system in my car . but it will take a huge amount of time and effort that i dont know if im willing to dish out yet . i am a high end audio nerd . so we will see what this winter brings

Would you consider this high end? Or no?

http://www.audizine.com/forum/showth...4#post12317384

[miztahsparklez]

i have not seen anyone install a "high end " audio system for pure sq in a b8.5 s4 . id like to see it .. im deciding if i want to take the leap into a true sq system in my car . but it will take a huge amount of time and effort that i dont know if im willing to dish out yet . i am a high end audio nerd . so we will see what this winter brings

I don't have anything b&o left except grilles.


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[fmzip]

I decided to go with the Trunk Storage Sub from the B8 Custom Subwoofer Shop for my 2017 S5 and I couldn't be happier! It looks and sounds AMAZING! I went with the Carbon Fiber enclosure and added a blacked out S5 Badge...thanks Chris Bowen!

I went with a 250 Watt Mono Alpine Amp and the LC2i Converter and had the install done at Rays Electronics in Bloomingdale IL....thanks Shaun Patel!

Very nice install. Is there a way to control the sub output from the drivers seat? My old JL500/5 amp had a nice little volume control knob which was useful to dial in less/more sub as needed

[PeteRock]

Very nice install. Is there a way to control the sub output from the drivers seat? My old JL500/5 amp had a nice little volume control knob which was useful to dial in less/more sub as needed

Thanks! I actually ended up upgrading the amp to a JL Audio 500 watt mono amp.

Yep! The Line Out Converter allows you to control the bass right from the MMI and I also ran a remote bass knob that I mounted right under the dash for controlling sub output.


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[doug97gxe]

https://www.amazon.com/Audio-Control...lc2i+bass+knob

LC2I has a remote knob available

[fmzip]

https://www.amazon.com/Audio-Control...lc2i+bass+knob

LC2I has a remote knob available

Thanks! I actually ended up upgrading the amp to a JL Audio 500 watt mono amp.

Yep! The Line Out Converter allows you to control the bass right from the MMI and I also ran a remote bass knob that I mounted right under the dash for controlling sub output.


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Thanks for the info! Do you have a link to where you purchased that JL amp? When I google it, I find a marine grade amp that looks nothing like it

[slacktide]

Thanks for the info! Do you have a link to where you purchased that JL amp? When I google it, I find a marine grade amp that looks nothing like it

That's the one. The amp doesn't know that it's not on a boat. https://www.crutchfield.com/S-X9mGWO...o-MX500-1.html

[doug97gxe]

if you're not caught up on the JL name you can find much better option with more power.. less distortion at same or better price

[doug97gxe]

this Zapco is less expensive and has a distortion of 0.2% .. that JL Amp cost more and has a distortion of 1%

http://www.woofersetc.com/c-3-amplif...amplifier.html

search Total Harmonic Distortion to understand how that affects clean power and why the lower the number is better for you

[doug97gxe]

Where did I bash JL? You don't want me to bash JL I could go on for days

JL makes a mediocre product at a premium price .. people who have been around car audio for a while know this.. JL is basically paying $40k for a maxima when an A4 is cheaper


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I've had setup's JL, MB Quartz, Diamond Audio, Rainbow Audio, Image Dynamics, Resonant Engineering and Morel as far as speakers

- JL was ok .. decent drivers.. not as clear and a high price tag
- MB Quartz was also ok .. along the same quality as JL but the Tweeters were muddy
- Diamond Audio .. excellent for the price tag and better clarity than JL
- Rainbow Audio .. by far my favorite of all for components .. quality materials .. excellent sound clarity .. Subwoofers were ok.. more SQ focused didn't go loud enough
- Image Dynamics .. my fav subwoofer .. blows away all competition .. even 1 10" sounded better than 2 12w6's a friend had
- Resonant Engineering .. loved this subwoofer .. not as great as Image Dynamics but my second fav
- Morel ... loved this subwoofer as well.. excellent sound quality .. could be a bit louder

Amplifiers .. i've had JL, Kicker, Rockford Fosgate, Rainbow Audio, US Amps and Kenwood

- JL decent product .. but at a slightly lower price my friends Zapco amp performed much better
- Kicker .. worked great when i had it.. but soon as it got hot the amp would shut down
- Rockford Fosgate .. the older equipment was great.. new stuff is not as good
- Rainbow Audio.. my fav amp.. super clean.. doesn't run hot and puts out watts as advertised
- US Amps .. this worked great for the application i had.. SQ not as good.. but it did work very good
- Kenwood was ok


I've found a lot of JL Owners i have met got sold into buying it from the Car Audio shop as the best thing since sliced bread and have never actually tried various set ups.. so they don't know any better..

If you've dealt with Car Audio shops for a while you know they like to push whatever they feel like pushing based on which manufacturer is giving them the discount at that point.. those guys are worse than used car salesmen

Remember when people were paying $100 for monster HDMI cables then monoprice came in selling them for $10 .. then you had people saying the monster cable was clearer even though the cables were digital so it was either it worked or didn't .. that's my feeling on JL Audio

Ironically i feel the same about Beats headphones which are also made by monster


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JL speakers are trash. Their sub are ok. Hertz is way better quality. And their JL Amps are way over priced.

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in case anyone missed these JL opinions

[SDV325]

in case anyone missed these JL opinions

To be honest i had a nearly complete JL system, nearly 10 years ago and i was very impressed with how long everything lasted and performed. I bought everything at a massive sale from a local store, paid a $2-3K for everything in my car (all JL and Alpine) and lasted nearly 10 years. Was all sounding great and going strong when i sold the car.

Not sure what their product is like now though, things change all the time.