Explorer Audio upgrade(s) | Page 2 | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

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Any updates on your project deewan?
 



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Lol nice golf cart....LMAO
 






That's neat-o!

Now all you need is the Caddy Shack theme blasting on them :)
 






That's neat-o!

Now all you need is the Caddy Shack theme blasting on them :)

I don't have the music, although I could play some Kenny Loggins through an iPod and the stereo. BUT I do have an electric horn that play's "We're In the Money" much like Rodney Dangerfield's car does when he first pulls up to Bushwood's. I'm gonna take a guess the older members at the country club won't like me much once this cart is complete. :)
 






jl audio has a stealth box for the explorer that goes right where the factory sub goes. Still gives you the ability to fold the 3rd row up and down. Obviously it is money.. but a nice semi-factory look with a high quality product.
 






Thanks for the suggestion, but that JL box is WAAAAAY overpriced for what it is, seeing as I am a DIY guy. And it requires removal/replacement of the rear panel as well as the loss of some cargo room. I need every inch of width possible to haul golf bags and I'm not a fan of paying that much for what it is.
 






Thought I would dust off this old thread and see how it was going deewan :)

I did find out something the other day though. I was fumbling through the voice commands and was trying to play the Amadeus motion picture sound track. After I gave the command the car thought I said Monkey Business and started playing the Peas. Well, to my surprise, the subwoofer came to life and the car was vibrating from stem to stern. It was thumping pretty good, enough that I would be happy if it could muster that sort of bass response more often. That got me to thinking, and I am not so sure the current subwoofer is as bad as I thought, but that the crossover is set horribly low, so that only 'thumpy' music really triggers it. I have the bass setting cranked all the way up, and it doesn't do much good. I feel the crossover frequency is set too low, and causes the bass to get lost as the other speakers aren't going low enough to cover the gap. If only there was a way to hack the Sony and reset the crossover.
 






I hope to be revisiting this upgrade in a few weeks times. Summer sports have consumed all my free time.

After removing the factory subwoofer driver this past spring and inspecting it, it is better than what I thought it would be, but it isn't anything fantastic. You are right that the crossover point would effect the drivers performance, but I think the system is setup as sort of a 2.1 system. I believe the door speakers run full-range and the subwoofer has a high-pass filter to only block high freq from playing and damaging the driver.

In a good audio system, the EQ only needs to be adjusted to correct room nulls, not to correct any mechanical performance shortcomings. From the few people I've talked to, they have the bass turned half way or more up on the EQ in their Explorer. That means the sub isn't keep up with the rest of the system (or people have a bad taste of what music should sound like). While the speakers in this system do have their shortcomings, they are not horrible when compared to many factory systems. When compared to after-market drivers it gets pretty bad pretty quick.

My biggest concern and desire for the upgrade is the huge dropoff on the bottom end and the low quality of bass. The Black Eyed Peas have bass in their music, but it isn't that low or that sharp/crisp. So the factory sub can normally handle it with ease. It's difficult to describe why the Sony factory driver doesn't suit be using words, so the best I can do is I want to hear BUM-bum-BUM-bum-BUM-bum...
the alternation of two different notes. The current driver provides me with BAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHMMMMMM
 






It definitely isn't musical, that is for sure. I thought it just couldn't reach low, but it can when forced. Like you, I wish it were a bit more articulate in the lower realms. A lot of my music I listen to in the house sounds completely different when I listen to it in the car, and it goes beyond the quality of the speakers. It seems to me more how the speakers are set up in relation to each other. I think the sub needs to be active a bit sooner to round out the music fully. Of course, if the sub isn't up to the task, having it kick in a bit sooner will only make things worse, lol. I would like to give it a try though, just to see what it is capable of in the hopes that I might be pleasantly surprised.

My father-in-law's Avalanche with the Bose system just kinda hums all the time muddying the sound trying to fill bass in everywhere, but without any sort of purpose. He hates it, lol.
 






Hey deewan you ever find out if the amp feeds just the sub or the entire system?
 






Hey deewan you ever find out if the amp feeds just the sub or the entire system?

I haven't confirmed it, but I believe it feeds the entire system. Next time I open up the back end, I plan on finding out.
 






I haven't confirmed it, but I believe it feeds the entire system. Next time I open up the back end, I plan on finding out.

One amp feeds all speakers, the wiring diagram was posted in a thread sometime last year. I can confirm the wiring diagram is correct because I used it to install an aftermarket amp/sub in my 2011
 






One amp feeds all speakers, the wiring diagram was posted in a thread sometime last year. I can confirm the wiring diagram is correct because I used it to install an aftermarket amp/sub in my 2011

Can you please post the wiring diagram ? I'm also interested in installing an aftermarket amp/sub in my 2011. Thanks!!
 






Well, since you care deewan, I decided to bump this thread :)

Any updates on the subwoofer rework?
 






Can you please post the wiring diagram ? I'm also interested in installing an aftermarket amp/sub in my 2011. Thanks!!

I would also be interested in seeing the wiring diagram... Haven't been able to find it in the forum though...
Thanks!
 






Working on the 2009 Expedition sub, head unit, and speaker upgrade first, since it needs it more. Then the Explorer. Possibly a home Theater sub upgrade first. So many projects to get done before the snow flakes fly. :eek: And I am back to thinking of replacing all the speakers and possibly the amp.

The wiring diagram is shown here: http://www.the12volt.com/installbay/vehiclewiring/1/yeard/Ford.html
 






I'm looking forward to the continuation of this upgrade.

On a positive note, the factory Ex sounds SO much better than the Durango.
 















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Sorry, I missed that question. No, there is not an update yet. So many other projects have my attention right now.
 






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