So I went ahead and bought some Focal ISU 200 components and the NVX subwoofer kit, but have not installed them. Was going to install them first, and maybe consider the dash speakers, but now I'm thinking of getting infinity/faital dash speakers and just doing it all at once. I'm wondering if it's even worth dealing with the dash speakers (or maybe just skip the one in the middle along with the center tweeter, as they look to be a pain to install).
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Has anyone upgraded door speakers (like the focal ISU200) and not dash?
- Thread starter gundam83
- Start date
E.Potter
Member
if you do it...do it right...change them all...difference in sound and what they can handle....you notice...so
I think you are on the right track...I'd like to change mine as well...are they just plug and play or no?
I think you are on the right track...I'd like to change mine as well...are they just plug and play or no?
I was surprised to find out my Focal ISU200 drivers arrived from Germany already, although the snow we had slowed down delivery to tomorrow. I just installed the Infinity dash drivers and was so pleased with the result I thought I'd do these woofers too. Now I have to order the brackets and cable adapters either from Amped Garage or Audioliphe.
I just installed the passenger side Focal door woofer and even just one makes a huge difference to the sound. I'll do the other tomorrow.
I'll have to say though that the videos I saw made removing and replacing the door panels looks way too easy. It is not. Getting that first clip to pop is difficult and it feels like you are going to break something. Getting it all back together is also difficult because somehow not everything aligns and not all the clips would pop back in. I also had clips that pulled from the frame and the panel and not apart. Installing the driver was the easy part. I read somewhere that you should pick up extra door clips before you start as you will undoubtedly break one or two and that is good advice.
I'll have to say though that the videos I saw made removing and replacing the door panels looks way too easy. It is not. Getting that first clip to pop is difficult and it feels like you are going to break something. Getting it all back together is also difficult because somehow not everything aligns and not all the clips would pop back in. I also had clips that pulled from the frame and the panel and not apart. Installing the driver was the easy part. I read somewhere that you should pick up extra door clips before you start as you will undoubtedly break one or two and that is good advice.
I did the other and it really sounds better. It isn't so much that the bass is deeper but there was a point where it sounded like the OEM drivers were bottoming out. This doesn't happen anymore. But it has only been one drive around town so far and the real test is on a longer trip where you'll have the music on for long periods. Does it get fatiguing or not? The originals certainly did. While both installing the dash drivers and the woofers have vastly improved the sound I'm leaning towards thinking the dash drivers were the bigger bang. How is it that something that was supposed to be so good, the "partial premium" sound system, was really not that good at all?
My entire build:
2 pairs of Infinity Ref4032 CRX : $118
Amped Garage brackets : 15
Amped Garage cables : 24
1 Pair Focal ISU 200 : 200
Amped Garage brackets : 40
Amped Garage cables : 20
Total : $417
I had Paypal credits from SmartCharge of almost 200 plus I sold some audio parts that I was never going to use for 100, so out of pocket was just over $100. Not bad. I also now have an extra Infinity and a pair of the Focal Tweeters, plus a full set of original Tesla drivers. Speaking of which, if you are interested in a single Infinity driver let me know.
My entire build:
2 pairs of Infinity Ref4032 CRX : $118
Amped Garage brackets : 15
Amped Garage cables : 24
1 Pair Focal ISU 200 : 200
Amped Garage brackets : 40
Amped Garage cables : 20
Total : $417
I had Paypal credits from SmartCharge of almost 200 plus I sold some audio parts that I was never going to use for 100, so out of pocket was just over $100. Not bad. I also now have an extra Infinity and a pair of the Focal Tweeters, plus a full set of original Tesla drivers. Speaking of which, if you are interested in a single Infinity driver let me know.
It's funny I initially bought the focals because i thought they would be the easier install vs the dash speakers, but it sounds like it's just as equally annoying. Too bad about the single infinity driver, as I had just purchased the brackets for the other recommended alternative for the dash midranges (faital 4FE32). So it's gonna be the focal set in the doors, and then 3x faital 4FE32 midranges and a Dayton ND25FN tweeter in the dash.
Thank you for the insight though!
They are both a PITA to do. If you treat your car like I treat mine you cringe at the thought of breaking something and you want it to all go back together like it never came apart. Doing the second door woofer was much easier though, but in the end I had the same problem as on the first one, the one screw hole did not line up under the door release button. There must be a trick, maybe to line that screw hole up and put the screw in before snapping the door back into place? I'm not willing to take it off to try again though. The dash speakers had a few issues going in. First, there is a clip on the right side that the bracket will interfere with. I cut that part of the bracket off. Second, the middle speaker screw that is so close to the windshield it is hard to get anything in there. I used the T bit by itself and turned it with a wrench. Even the low profile ratchet set I bought was too tall. Third, one of the ears on the middle bracket gets in the way of the grill, so I cut that off too. Then it all snapped back together. Just make sure you cut the ear off the middle before you screw it back in because it is a real PITA to get it out and in again. I believe it is the one closest to the car driver that needed to go. It helps to have a second person when putting the grill back on so both sides can be clipped in at once.
So now it is time to give the car a good wash! By hand of course. There are no touchless car washes in all of Brooklyn.
So now it is time to give the car a good wash! By hand of course. There are no touchless car washes in all of Brooklyn.
now that you've had it for over a month, do you think it's still worth the time and effort? what's your overall impression with all those replaced?
It was definitely worth it. My impression of the original drivers was that they were indistinct and ran out of steam. The replacement drivers actually sound good and can be cranked up. The highs are there and the door woofers actually produce bass without the boom boom sound of subwoofers.
It’s also been over a year. I wrote that last year and a month ago. I haven’t tired since f the sound at all, and that’s a good thing.
Also, I use Tidal and always keep my phone tethered. I get cd quality sound this way. The compressed sound of Spotify bothered me.
It’s also been over a year. I wrote that last year and a month ago. I haven’t tired since f the sound at all, and that’s a good thing.
Also, I use Tidal and always keep my phone tethered. I get cd quality sound this way. The compressed sound of Spotify bothered me.
I did the dash upgrade a while ago with Infinity Reference, and the improvement was noticeable but not groundbreaking. I did the door speaker upgrade (RWD so no active tweeters in the doors yet) and the difference is much more pronounced. The old midbass was muddy and lacked refinement, but was quite loud and at certain frequencies, there was quite a bit of bass. I installed Hertz MPK165.3's in custom brackets and they are quite spectacular overall. The quality of bass has improved a lot, and while certain frequencies are not as loud as the factory woofers, there might be a bit less bass overall there is a broader range of much better bass, most noticeable with punchy "fast" bass and the quality of lower bass. It still needs a subwoofer so I feel once that's installed it will round out the low end nicely, and tweeters will complete the high end. The tone or characteristics of the Hertz woofers matches the infinity's better than the stock woofers did and the system doesn't sound as "disjointed" I'm not exactly sure how to accurately describe the overall sound with Infinity's on the dash and Tesla midbass but something just wasn't quite right.
The color of the bracket is a bit odd in the installed picture.
I also bought Stinger Roadkill Fast rings, but didn't install them yet, does anyone have experience with these?
The color of the bracket is a bit odd in the installed picture.
I also bought Stinger Roadkill Fast rings, but didn't install them yet, does anyone have experience with these?
tuner1129
Member
Can I ask where you buy these brackets? Or did you print them yourself? I want to go this route with the hertz and place the crossover somewhere in the panel and swap the stock tweeter as I have the red so not active.
I designed and printed them myself. If you are using the same Hertz woofers I could print and sell you a set, same with the tiny rings that make the tweeters (MP25.3) mount nicer. I also bought extra factory connectors if you need them. You would probably just run a factory connector into the crossover and wire up the woofer/tweeter directly if you go that route.
I thought I'd put my experience out there with my '21 M3 SR+ to pay it forward. Not going to explain the 'why' I ended up where I did for brevity, but feel free to ask.
The dash speakers are a pain. Dremeling/sawing a bit in half (to reduce height), along with vice grips covered in tape to save the windshield, is a slow but cheap way to get the screws if it's all you have. Take your time, this too shall pass. My A-pillars attached via black plastic I hadn't seen on videos. After the initial pull off the pillar, you have a black piece of plastic to remove from the white plastic of the covering. Best I can describe is if you had your hands flat, then made a plus sign out of them. You have to pull the first 'hand' through a slit, then turn 90 degrees, and pull the other 'hand' through. I spent too much time trying to pull the other end out of the metal a pillar hole.
I did L/R dash with 4fe35 (from parts express, note that last digit). It's the cheap-magnet version of the 32's. It fits there fine with Amped bracket/adapter. I snipped off the foam rim on the 1/3 of the speaker circumference facing the driver/passenger to allow the grill to lay flat.
The center dash is a 4fe32 with ND25FN tweeter. I used hot glue to hold the tweeter bracket 'sandwich' together and eliminate any rattle chances.
If you have dash rattle, stuff some duct putty against the body under the plastic dash using the speaker holes while you have the speaker out. Mine is gone for the ~2 weeks since doing it.
I had to cut a 1" bit of plastic near the center dash speaker because it was conflicting with the amped bracket and speaker screw mount. It could have been user error that this was needed, but I left as much of the dash cover 'leg' as possible to provide support. Be careful lining up the clips before pushing in. If you push the metal clips through, you have to use a magnet through a hole very near the dash to fish them out.
I put in the ISU200's in the front doors (Ebay, shipped from Germany, took about 2 weeks to arrive). Youtube videos describe well how to take off the paneling. I didn't bother trying to remove the non-speaker cables between the door and panel, so I did the work with the panel in my lap.
The big 'mistake' I made was not covering all the holes built into the Amped bracket. I was disappointed with the sound until learning about duct putty. I added a pound of putty on each speaker bracket and any gaps near the speaker in the door panels. Photo attached. I also put 1/8" foam tape around the bottom of the bracket to ensure a seal between the bracket and the door. This work made a huge difference in the amount and quality of bass.
Finally, I put 4fe32's in the rear doors. the 35's would not fit, surprisingly, since they're the same height as the 32's. The space is designed for that small neo magnet shape and the 35's are just too girthy.
I installed the Focal door tweeters but haven't enabled them yet. I've also purchased the OEM sub and alpine power supply that I'll tap into the Hansshow wiring for the front woofer.
My non-audiophile rating is that the dash speakers were maybe a 10 percent improvement. Hard to recommend on their own. The door woofers, post putty, are great. Maybe a 30 percent improvement overall. The OEM woofers have more 'thump thump', but seemingly at a single frequency, whereas the Focals are. . . I dunno. . maybe 'rich' is the best word?
I only notice the rear door speakers being louder. I didn't before test them so can't really say if the overall sound experience is better.
Should I have anything useful to say about the tweeters/sub, I'll reply to this post. Cheers!
The dash speakers are a pain. Dremeling/sawing a bit in half (to reduce height), along with vice grips covered in tape to save the windshield, is a slow but cheap way to get the screws if it's all you have. Take your time, this too shall pass. My A-pillars attached via black plastic I hadn't seen on videos. After the initial pull off the pillar, you have a black piece of plastic to remove from the white plastic of the covering. Best I can describe is if you had your hands flat, then made a plus sign out of them. You have to pull the first 'hand' through a slit, then turn 90 degrees, and pull the other 'hand' through. I spent too much time trying to pull the other end out of the metal a pillar hole.
I did L/R dash with 4fe35 (from parts express, note that last digit). It's the cheap-magnet version of the 32's. It fits there fine with Amped bracket/adapter. I snipped off the foam rim on the 1/3 of the speaker circumference facing the driver/passenger to allow the grill to lay flat.
The center dash is a 4fe32 with ND25FN tweeter. I used hot glue to hold the tweeter bracket 'sandwich' together and eliminate any rattle chances.
If you have dash rattle, stuff some duct putty against the body under the plastic dash using the speaker holes while you have the speaker out. Mine is gone for the ~2 weeks since doing it.
I had to cut a 1" bit of plastic near the center dash speaker because it was conflicting with the amped bracket and speaker screw mount. It could have been user error that this was needed, but I left as much of the dash cover 'leg' as possible to provide support. Be careful lining up the clips before pushing in. If you push the metal clips through, you have to use a magnet through a hole very near the dash to fish them out.
I put in the ISU200's in the front doors (Ebay, shipped from Germany, took about 2 weeks to arrive). Youtube videos describe well how to take off the paneling. I didn't bother trying to remove the non-speaker cables between the door and panel, so I did the work with the panel in my lap.
The big 'mistake' I made was not covering all the holes built into the Amped bracket. I was disappointed with the sound until learning about duct putty. I added a pound of putty on each speaker bracket and any gaps near the speaker in the door panels. Photo attached. I also put 1/8" foam tape around the bottom of the bracket to ensure a seal between the bracket and the door. This work made a huge difference in the amount and quality of bass.
Finally, I put 4fe32's in the rear doors. the 35's would not fit, surprisingly, since they're the same height as the 32's. The space is designed for that small neo magnet shape and the 35's are just too girthy.
I installed the Focal door tweeters but haven't enabled them yet. I've also purchased the OEM sub and alpine power supply that I'll tap into the Hansshow wiring for the front woofer.
My non-audiophile rating is that the dash speakers were maybe a 10 percent improvement. Hard to recommend on their own. The door woofers, post putty, are great. Maybe a 30 percent improvement overall. The OEM woofers have more 'thump thump', but seemingly at a single frequency, whereas the Focals are. . . I dunno. . maybe 'rich' is the best word?
I only notice the rear door speakers being louder. I didn't before test them so can't really say if the overall sound experience is better.
Should I have anything useful to say about the tweeters/sub, I'll reply to this post. Cheers!
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tuner1129
Member
Awesome sorry for the delay yes!! How can I order them with you? I need all the parts you mentioned.
Does anyone know if the signal to the front door is full range? If so, wondering if it would make more sense to use the included crossover with either the Focal or Hertz kits to connect the door tweeters, rather than messing with the Hanshow harness and having the amp handle the signal processing to the tweeters? I have an SR+, so currently no signal to the tweeters.
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