Am I doing right with sound upgrade?

[tkim78]

Hi guys

Recently I got 2012 wrx sedan and I'm planing to upgrade sound system (OEM sound is hell!!)

I ordered

-Pioneer FH-P8000BT for HU

Pioneer FH-P8000BT CD receiver at Crutchfield.com

-1000W JL Audio + RE Audio Bass Package for sub

1000W JL Audio 12W1v2-4 Sub + RE Audio XT8002v3 Amp + Amp Kit + Box

Do you guys think I got good choices for better sound quality? or still need to buy aftermarket speakers?

And for speakers, do I need to buy another amp? If it is please recommend me some good speakers and amp!!

thanks

[DemonWRX]

You are going to want new speakers for the front doors atleast...the back doors are really just filler, so stock is fine for now, unless you have the money for all 4 doors. You do not need an amp for the door speakers, though adding one for the fronts will not hurt things

Personally, I am a fan of Memphis Car Audio....they are only available through brick-n-mortar audio shops...no online sales. I have the 15-MC6202 (6.5" coaxial speakers, with crossovers) in my doors and love them...they run about $150 a pair

[Rambo]

Hmm, I wouldn't consider that particular head unit much of an upgrade to be honest. If it were me, I'd have saved up an extra $100 and gotten one of Pioneer's DVD head units, such as this:

Amazon.com: Pioneer AVH-P4400BH 2-DIN Multimedia DVD Receiver with 7" Widescreen Touch Panel Display, Built-In Bluetooth, and HD Radio™ Tuner: Car Electronics

Pioneer is a good brand though. I currently have a single DIN HU from them, and it sounds great, and and has held up well. Never had a problem with it.

[EJ257]

I really like the W3 series subs from JL Audio. Relatively inexpensive, good output, but nothing too overpowering.

For a budget upgrade, a H/U and subwoofer is a great start. It allows for added SQ tuning, a little more power to the speakers, and the subwoofer allows the speakers to focus only on the mids/highs.

For something a little more in-depth, a nice set of component speakers powered by an amp is where I'd stop in terms of upgrading. Demon mentioned about rear speakers being fill, which is true; aftermarket speakers back there can mess with the staging. Speaker choice, like exhausts, is subjective. What sounds good to me, may not sound good to you. Your best bet is to make a CD covering a broad spectrum of music you'd listen to, and hit up your local car audio store, listening to the different speaker options they have on display.

Sound deadening with CLD/CCF will also help. Rick@RAAMaudio has a pretty good write-up (this applies to older model STIs, but probably would still be pretty good base of info for your car):
NASIOC - View Single Post - STI sound deadening, new tutorial

To sum it up, to do a very nice sound upgrade with a moderate budget, I'd recommend the following:
Headunit
6.5" Component Speakers (Front)
Subwoofer
4- or 5-ch Amplifier (1/2 for the speakers, bridge remaining channels for the sub)
Moderate Sound Deadening with both CLD/CCF (Option 1 from the post I linked to)

[putt_putt79]

Pioneer AVH-P2400BT DVD receiver at Crutchfield.com

Take a look at this pioneer unit it is much nicer than the one you are looking at.

[jpatt]

I'm going to second the Pioneer 4400BT. I've heard it in person and it is a great unit. Personally, I also wanted nav so I went with the x930BT.

You will be surprised how much better the stock speakers sound with just a new HU.

[etnpnys]

I bought the Pioneer Premier AVIC F90BT and it was a piece of crap. It did everything it advertised, but it was horribly underpowered and the UI made no sense at all in a lot of ways.

It sounded fantastic, though, and it had a lot of ability (XM, Sirius, DVD, NAV, iPod, USB, BlueTooth...). It was also easily hackable - which was almost completely necessary in a lot of ways. Imagine if Subaru sold us all the WRX but just didn't let you use the steering wheel without voiding your warranty. The system was that bad.

This unit burned me on Pioneer. It's like it was the red-headed stepchild of their stuff for some reason, but it was their top-of-the-line model... Yet, they didn't seem to care that everybody with that unit was basically paying to beta-test some stuff so that they could iron it out later and not offer any upgrade path to their current install-base. Bummer, but I surely hope their newer stuff isn't as bad. Next time, I'm going with something not Pioneer.