Details / Specs on PUP audio system

[flashflooder]

Ok, so I've had my car for a couple months... love it of course, but now I'm starting to get the itch to see what I can do to improve the already amazing stock (Premium) stereo. This made me realize that VERY LITTLE is known, in the way of actual specs / configuration.
So I figured I'd start this thread with what is known (to me, at least), and invite anyone with more info to contribute. I'll update the OP as the info rolls in and hopefully we can use this thread as a repository.

Model 3 PUP audio system
Speakers
# speakers: 15

1 x 6" subwoofer in passenger trunk well - dual voice coil @ 2x4Ohm, 2x80W
3 x (3.5"?) midrange speakers in dash - impedance and watt rating unknown
1 x (1"?) tweeter in dash - impedance and watt rating unknown
2 x (3.5"?) midrange speakers at side mirrors - impedance and watt rating unknown
2 x (1"?) tweeters in A-pillars - impedance and watt rating unknown
2 x (6.5"?) woofers in front doors - impedance and watt rating unknown
2 x (6.5"?) woofers in rear doors - impedance and watt rating unknown
2 x (3.5"?) midrange speakers in trunk lid - impedance and watt rating unknown

Amplifiers
# of amplifiers: 2(?)

1 x (wattage unknown) amplifier next to subwoofer in trunk - wattage unknown - powers subwoofer & (anything else?)
1(?) amplifier to power remainder of speakers? - wattage and location unknown.



References:
subwoofer & amp:
So That's Where They Hid the Model 3 Subwoofer...

Dash speakers:

 

[flashflooder]

Figured I’d reply to my own thread, I’m amazed at how little is known about the audio system.... figured Tesla owners would be natural tinkerers??

Anyway, here’s some update info gleaned from the parts catalog. Confirmed most of the speaker sizes:

Model 3 PUP audio system
Speakers
# speakers: 15

1 x 6" subwoofer in passenger trunk well - dual voice coil @ 2x4Ohm, 2x80W
3 x (4") midrange speakers in dash - impedance and watt rating unknown
1 x (1”) tweeter in dash - impedance and watt rating unknown
2 x (4”) midrange speakers at side mirrors - impedance and watt rating unknown
2 x (1") tweeters in A-pillars - impedance and watt rating unknown
2 x (8”) woofers in front doors - impedance and watt rating unknown
2 x (3.5") midrange speakers in rear doors - impedance and watt rating unknown
2 x (3.5”) midrange speakers in trunk lid - impedance and watt rating unknown


8” woofers in front doors! No wonder the bass is so good in this car...

 

[flashflooder]

At the risk of seeming like a crazy person who is talking to himself....Here's some more info I was able to drum up. Everything listed is definitive, unless otherwise noted.

All that's really left to crack is how the amp(s) are arranged. I have an inkling that the single amp in the rear is NOT powering all the speakers, and that there is an additional amp somewhere in the front (kind of like the Model S premium setup). My plan is to get to the rear amp and test the wires coming in and out and try to assign them to different speakers or inputs.


Model 3 PUP audio system
Speakers
# speakers: 15

(1x) 8" subwoofer in passenger trunk well - dual voice coil @ 2x4Ohm, 2x80W (equivalent to a minimum of 160W @ 2 Ohm, see below)
(3x) 4" midrange speakers in dash - 3 Ohm, 33W each
(1x) 1” tweeter in dash - 4 Ohm, 25W (note that this tweeter is passive, meaning it has an inline crossover)
(2x) 1” tweeters at side mirrors - 4 Ohm, 25W each (note that these tweeters are active, meaning they're only sent high frequencies)
(2x) 2.5" midrange speakers in A-pillars - 4 Ohm, 2W (!!)
(2x) 8” woofers in front doors - 4 Ohm, 80W each
(2x) 4" midrange speakers in rear doors - 3 Ohm, 33W each
(2x) 4” midrange speakers in trunk lid - 3 Ohm, 33W each

A few observations:

-The speakers located in the upper A pillars (these are the ones that turn on/off with the "Immersive sound" option) are extremely wimpy... They are rated at 2W!! I don't think I'll even bother replacing them since they're not doing much of anything.

-There are 4 wires (2 channels) going from the rear amp to the subwoofer. This leads me to believe that those 2 channels are bridged internally in the amp, and the sub's voice coils are therefore wired in parallel... for a minimum of 160W @ 2ohm. I say minimum because the subwoofer is marked as 80W x 2 and 4Ohm x 2, and typically wiring up a 2Ohm load gives you a little more power than the sum of the 4-ohm loads.

-I'm a little surprised that the speakers are mostly 3/4 Ohm. Based on Model S and X, I was expecting most of these to be 1/2 Ohm. Makes aftermarket replacement much easier, especially if looking to do it without replacing factory amps.

-given the wattage going to the woofers and dash speakers, I think simply adding an aftermarket sub and mono amp should be doable without drowning out the rest of the system.

 

[crackers8199]

has anyone figured out how to add an aux in yet?

 

[flashflooder]

I put in a pair of Infinity Reference 4" in the dash last night.

I was planning to do all 3 4" speakers, but the center hole has next to no depth clearance, and the replacement speaker just simply would not fit. The left and right holes JUST barely had enough room for the replacement. Overall, it was pretty easy to do and the speakers are cheap enough that I would consider this a no-brainer.

The stock speakers have harnesses, so rather than cut these and splice my wires in, I chose to use male headers from an electronics kit (something like this Short Feather Male Headers - 12-pin and 16-pin Male Header Set) and solder my speaker wires to this so I could just plug the pins in to the harness. If I ever want to go back to stock, I can just plug the harness back in to the stock speakers.

Also, there is VERY little clearance to remove some of the Torx screws holding the speakers in place. I had to use a pair of pliers holding a hex bit and turn it that way (i.e. very slowly). If you have one of those low profile ratcheting wrenches, would probably make it a lot easier.

 

[groovyd]

Regarding the 4" mids replacement how has it affected the sound? Is it still relatively 'flat' with the other speakers unchanged and in terms of sensitivity. Better clarity? Any idea what the crossovers going to these speakers are providing?

 

[flashflooder]

Regarding the 4" mids replacement how has it affected the sound? Is it still relatively 'flat' with the other speakers unchanged and in terms of sensitivity. Better clarity? Any idea what the crossovers going to these speakers are providing?

They sound more clear, to my ears. If anything, they sound a little bit louder than the stock speakers, as well. I don’t know what types of frequencies are being sent to the speakers, unfortunately.

At $40/pair, it was worth it for me. The panels in this car are very easy to take apart and put back together

 

[groovyd]

same 4" as the rear trunk deck? Also what tweeters did you use? Also mind posting a link to the 4"s you used?

 

[flashflooder]

Yes, all the 4” speakers in this car are the exact same part #.

I used infinity reference 4”:

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01E8OYQE4/ref=ya_aw_oh_bia_dp?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The tweeters are part of a component set from Focal, the ISU 200. One of the few kits that comes with 8” woofers.

 

[groovyd]

cheers, ordered 2 sets of the 4" from amazon to hopefully eventually also do the trunk with. does replacing the rear door 4's really look difficult?

 

[groovyd]

Regarding the ISU 200 and the subs, was that easy to swap out and did you swap the amp out too?

 

[flashflooder]

cheers, ordered 2 sets of the 4" from amazon to hopefully eventually also do the trunk with. does replacing the rear door 4's really look difficult?

I’m not going to attempt it. The speakers are fused to the door trim.

 

[flashflooder]

Regarding the ISU 200 and the subs, was that easy to swap out and did you swap the amp out too?

I didn’t swap out the amp, only added mine on. The isu 200 tweeters were a piece of cake to swap our, the woofers are a bit more complicated due to tight clearances in the door.

 

[davitsio]

Flashflooder, I really appreciate that you are working on the speaker project, as I most certainly will be too in the spring (up in the frozen land of Boston). I know all the threads I am reading say the Tesla Premium sound is so amazing, but I think I am spoiled by (admittedly cheap) aftermarket setups I've done on my previous cars: somehow the Tesla sound is warm and inviting but also flat and muddy to me... I want clear highs and definition across the spectrum!

How are you feeling with the modifications you've done so far? Are you loving the Focals and also the Infinity speakers or would you swap them out if you could for a different aftermarket product?

Also, I saw that you mention the tweeters on the front that you swap are active tweeters, so I assume you left off the high-pass filter line to the focal tweeters? Same question for the Infinity midrange drivers: shouldn't they have low-pass filters applied being they are so small in diameter?

I apologize if I am speaking from ignorance!

 

[flashflooder]

Flashflooder, I really appreciate that you are working on the speaker project, as I most certainly will be too in the spring (up in the frozen land of Boston). I know all the threads I am reading say the Tesla Premium sound is so amazing, but I think I am spoiled by (admittedly cheap) aftermarket setups I've done on my previous cars: somehow the Tesla sound is warm and inviting but also flat and muddy to me... I want clear highs and definition across the spectrum!

How are you feeling with the modifications you've done so far? Are you loving the Focals and also the Infinity speakers or would you swap them out if you could for a different aftermarket product?

Also, I saw that you mention the tweeters on the front that you swap are active tweeters, so I assume you left off the high-pass filter line to the focal tweeters? Same question for the Infinity midrange drivers: shouldn't they have low-pass filters applied being they are so small in diameter?

I apologize if I am speaking from ignorance!

no problem! I'm loving the speakers I've put in. Was a little concerned about losing some volume, since i do not know how sensitive the stock speakers are... however, the Infinity 4" drivers sound a little louder (and clearer) to me. The focal tweeters, similarly, sound great. Haven't gotten the 8" woofers installed in the door yet, due to it being a very tight fit. I'm trying to 3d print spacers, but I don't have that much time to mess with it right now.

You are correct, I left off the filters when I installed the door tweeters. I did not add any filters at all when replacing the speakers, I'm assuming the crossover is happening either in the amp or the MCU. In other words, each speaker is only sent the frequencies it's designed to handle. The passive tweeter in the dash is the only one that doesn't make much sense to me, unless they're just piggybacking the signal for that one off of another speaker.

 

[davitsio]

Wow, thanks for the quick reply! Is the focal fitment trouble because the stock Tesla woofers are not fully 8"? I guess what I'm asking is: would it be wise for me to go with slightly smaller door speakers that might just drop into the factory spots, or do you feel that the 8" replacements would fit perfectly with just a small spacer? For me, I want to keep the stock look (I think...) so I want to be sure the door panels still fit perfectly flush and all that. This of course might be a question you won't know the answer for until you have time to try fabricating a solution.

Also, I assume the stock 4" speakers were not 2-way, but just a single cone? An audio-newbie question: if that's true, is it generally superior to "upgrade" them to two-way speakers, or do you sacrifice anything in doing so?

 

[davitsio]

Part of that question is inspired by my seeing that Infinity offers straight-up midrange drivers (in the Kappa series) and wondering why someone would want to separate all three components, when you could ostensibly have a little crossover in the 2-way speaker that would provide (clearer?) sound than having a midrange try to produce all frequencies it is sent?

 

[flashflooder]

Wow, thanks for the quick reply! Is the focal fitment trouble because the stock Tesla woofers are not fully 8"? I guess what I'm asking is: would it be wise for me to go with slightly smaller door speakers that might just drop into the factory spots, or do you feel that the 8" replacements would fit perfectly with just a small spacer? For me, I want to keep the stock look (I think...) so I want to be sure the door panels still fit perfectly flush and all that. This of course might be a question you won't know the answer for until you have time to try fabricating a solution.

Also, I assume the stock 4" speakers were not 2-way, but just a single cone? An audio-newbie question: if that's true, is it generally superior to "upgrade" them to two-way speakers, or do you sacrifice anything in doing so?

re: the focal woofers, the diameter is fine (a little larger than stock, but should still fit). The issue is arising from the clearance behind the speaker... The stock woofers have magnets that look like a stack of maybe 7-8 quarters, while the Focals are much larger (despite these being their "Integration" series, designed to fit in OEM spaces - read smaller magnets). The stock woofers already sit in a bracket because there is basically zero clearance between the actual speaker cutout (in the door metal) and the window when it's rolled down. So, the trick is imply to design a bracket that gives the max clearance while still allowing the door trim to be put back on. I've gone through a bunch of iterations, just need to keep fine tuning. Another option, if you're willing to destroy the stock speakers, would be to simply cut the stock woofer away from the bracket and mount the Focal's to it. I'm not willing to go there (yet).

The stock 4"s are single cone, correct. Without knowing exactly what frequency ranges they are fed from the stock system, it's hard to say whether you gain anything from replacing them with 2-way's. If the higher frequencies are filtered out, it likely makes no difference. I don't think it hurts anything to "upgrade" them, though.

 

[flashflooder]

Part of that question is inspired by my seeing that Infinity offers straight-up midrange drivers (in the Kappa series) and wondering why someone would want to separate all three components, when you could ostensibly have a little crossover in the 2-way speaker that would provide (clearer?) sound than having a midrange try to produce all frequencies it is sent?

That's the idea, yes. The 2-ways do have built-in passive crossovers. The problem with the Kappa series (for me) is that they have a low sensitivity rating... Not an issue if you're providing aftermarket amplification, but if you're looking to drive these with the stock units, you're better off getting the most efficient speaker you can find.

 

[PoitNarf]

Any updates on this? Are there any not super expensive replacement options for the 8 inch woofers in the front doors?