2023 alpine 9 speaker upgrade question

[skates15]

Hello,
I am looking to replace the speakers in my 2023 1500 9 speaker alpine system, 12" screen. I'm not looking to add amps right now, just a straight speaker swap for starters.

Question - are the rear headliner speakers 2", 2.5" or 3.5"? Crutchfield only displays one 3.5" speaker which fits the rear headliner, which I thought is odd considering there are many 3.5" speakers which fit the front dash.

Second, after reading the various threads on this subject, I was considering the following setup:
Dash - 2-way 3.5" speakers - JBL Club 34F - 3ohm https://www.crutchfield.com/p_109CL34F/JBL-Club-34F.html

Front door - 2 way 6x9 speakers - Either Infinity Reference REF-9632ix (4ohm) or Pioneer TS-A693FH (4ohm) or MTX Terminator69 (4ohms).

Rear door - 3 way 6x9 speakers- JBL Club 964M 3ohm https://www.crutchfield.com/p_109CL964M/JBL-Club-964M.html

Rear headliner - JBL Club 34F

My music genre is punk/60s-70s rock and some classic. I'm not looking for booming bass, so keeping the sub, but want to improve on the mids/highs.

Question - would I need to place bass blockers for the 3.5" speakers?
Also, is the setup correct with 2 way in dash, front door, rear headliner and 3 way in rear doors?

Thanks for any input.

 

[canadiankodiak700]

If you're actually going to upgrade the system. Why not just upgrade the two front corner 3.5 inch dash speakers, and then a really good set of 6x9 mid-range in the front doors and forget about the rest of the garbage speakers. The money you save on all the other speakers you could invest in a good four-channel amp active on those four front speakers that I mentioned. The sound quality alone that would provide would blow everything out of the water you have in there now. That Alpine system is garbage.

 

[skates15]

If you're actually going to upgrade the system. Why not just upgrade the two front corner 3.5 inch dash speakers, and then a really good set of 6x9 mid-range in the front doors and forget about the rest of the garbage speakers. The money you save on all the other speakers you could invest in a good four-channel amp active on those four front speakers that I mentioned. The sound quality alone that would provide would blow everything out of the water you have in there now. That Alpine system is garbage.

Good point. I like to fade the sound a little to the rear so I wanted to replace those speakers. If I add an amp, would an 8 channel be the way to go?

 

[canadiankodiak700]

No I wouldn't amp any of your other speakers. Your headliner speakers I would disconnect because they're pointless and those rear speakers. I would leave stock just for a little tiny bit of fill in the rear. All your sound should be coming from the front. Just like going to a concert speakers are up front. Not at the back other than some small towers. Possibly for rear fill but your primary speakers are always forward. So I would grab a four channel amp run two channels to the front doors, two channels to the dash using it as an active crossover. Whereas the dash speakers handle all your highs and the doors will handle your mid-rainage leave the rear doors connected to the factory head unit. No need to amplify or do anything to the rear speakers. A very easy way to amplify those four front speakers that I'm speaking of cheaply and do an active crossover would be to pick up a kicker. Key amp. Is small and will do that job nicely.

 

[skates15]

No I wouldn't amp any of your other speakers. Your headliner speakers I would disconnect because they're pointless and those rear speakers. I would leave stock just for a little tiny bit of fill in the rear. All your sound should be coming from the front. Just like going to a concert speakers are up front. Not at the back other than some small towers. Possibly for rear fill but your primary speakers are always forward. So I would grab a four channel amp run two channels to the front doors, two channels to the dash using it as an active crossover. Whereas the dash speakers handle all your highs and the doors will handle your mid-rainage leave the rear doors connected to the factory head unit. No need to amplify or do anything to the rear speakers. A very easy way to amplify those four front speakers that I'm speaking of cheaply and do an active crossover would be to pick up a kicker. Key amp. Is small and will do that job nicely

This sounds doable, leaving the rears doors in for fill. Thanks!

 

[platoon2063]

Just changing speakers normally doesn't garner too much improvement. The stock speakers while not the greatest in quality are optimized to play with the stock amp power. Unless one was changing out to aftermarket speakers that were extremely efficient I would suggest not wasting much time or money.

As mentioned above, adding an amp to the front four speakers (corners of dash and lower doors) and leaving the rears on stock power as rear-fill would be a definite improvement. Depending on the speakers installed, of course.

Aftermarket audio can run you down a rabbit hole for sure. I could give suggestions if you like.

 

[RamDiver]

I'm always surprised to hear of users who are dissatisfied with the 9-speaker Alpine system. There must be quite a significant range of quality for the same radio set.

Yes, it doesn't come close to the quality of my home stereo but I'm pretty pleased with mine.
It is certainly the best OEM stereo that I've heard.

When I first used it, the bass boomed horribly and it sounded very tinny, and not good.
After reducing the bass, and moving the center position of the sound just slightly rearward, I'm pretty satisfied with how well it sounds.

Keep in mind that some CDs use far too much file compression resulting in horrible sound quality. Some of the older content I hear on Sirius truly bites and others are great. This confirms in my mind, that it is a source-related issue and not my radio.

Before you start rolling out the bucks, be certain that your music source isn't the real problem.

PS; I worked in the broadcast industry for decades and I'm not deaf, yet.





.

 

[platoon2063]

@RamDiver
Good sounding audio is subjective of course.
You are correct in stating that the source of the music plays a vital role in how it may sound. terrestrial and satellite radio is highly compressed. Certain music is recorded different as well. That being said, a good sound system set up correctly can help overcome much of that.

I'll also agree that the stock Alpine system albeit it's not really Alpine, that's just marketing, does sound good for a stock system. It just was not good enough for me.
To each their own.

 

[skates15]

Just changing speakers normally doesn't garner too much improvement. The stock speakers while not the greatest in quality are optimized to play with the stock amp power. Unless one was changing out to aftermarket speakers that were extremely efficient I would suggest not wasting much time or money.

As mentioned above, adding an amp to the front four speakers (corners of dash and lower doors) and leaving the rears on stock power as rear-fill would be a definite improvement. Depending on the speakers installed, of course.

Aftermarket audio can run you down a rabbit hole for sure. I could give suggestions if you like.

I'd appreciate any suggestions for the set up you described and thank you.

 

[skates15]

@RamDiver that is how I have my audio setup as well, fade to back and the same EQ. It does help. I'm in broadcast as well.

 

[RamDiver]

@RamDiver
Good sounding audio is subjective of course.
You are correct in stating that the source of the music plays a vital role in how it may sound. terrestrial and satellite radio is highly compressed. Certain music is recorded different as well.

That being said, a good sound system set up correctly can help overcome much of that.

I'll also agree that the stock Alpine system albeit it's not really Alpine, that's just marketing, does sound good for a stock system. It just was not good enough for me.
To each their own.

I don't know where you ever got that idea. Sure some audio information can be tweaked to compensate for deficiencies but an audio signal that has been heavily compressed and digitized, uplinked, downlinked, then transcoded back to an audio stream?

Sure it's possible but not with any OEM or aftermarket audio equipment that I've ever heard. We used to often use the term GIGO. Garbage in, garbage out.

Yes, sound quality, like video quality is subjective and YMMV.

.

 

[RamDiver]

@RamDiver that is how I have my audio setup as well, fade to back and the same EQ. It does help. I'm in broadcast as well.

Maybe, I'd be a bit more picky if I weren't retired and if I had a larger income to compensate for my expenses but chances are, I'd find something else for scuba or kayaking that was more important to me than trying to adapt my truck into a sound chamber.

My truck is a daily driver that is used to move my toys around. I sit in my living room if music is my focus.

I understand we all have different priorities and that's best.

.

 

[platoon2063]

I don't know where you ever got that idea. Sure some audio information can be tweaked to compensate for deficiencies but an audio signal that has been heavily compressed and digitized, uplinked, downlinked, then transcoded back to an audio stream?

Sure it's possible but not with any OEM or aftermarket audio equipment that I've ever heard. We used to often use the term GIGO. Garbage in, garbage out.

Yes, sound quality, like video quality is subjective and YMMV.

.

Looks like I didn't finish my statement from earlier. What I meant was that even if your source sounds subpar, if the audio system is of greater quality than stock then it can still sound decent. I never intended to come off saying a compressed signal can be "uncompressed" by a good system. Sorry for the confusion.

And like I stated to each their own. I prefer a clear sound with a center image coming from the front. As if one was at a concert. Which I enjoy and have probably attended a few hundred in my lifetime. Some people like surround sound music or treat music as background noise. That's not me.

 

[RamDiver]

Looks like I didn't finish my statement from earlier. What I meant was that even if your source sounds subpar, if the audio system is of greater quality than stock then it can still sound decent. I never intended to come off saying a compressed signal can be "uncompressed" by a good system. Sorry for the confusion.

And like I stated to each their own. I prefer a clear sound with a center image coming from the front. As if one was at a concert. Which I enjoy and have probably attended a few hundred in my lifetime. Some people like surround sound music or treat music as background noise. That's not me.

No worries, I'm just happy that I was able to tweak the settings to make the sound satisfactory for my preference. There are too many other things I want to change/improve that cost money.

That would explain your lack of satisfaction if you have the sound aligned more front-oriented.
I didn't have too much appreciation for the sound quality when I was aligned in that fashion either.

And yes, I prefer the background for tunes while I'm driving, mostly.
Sometimes, I might prefer it to be more in my face and just jack up the sound a bit.

.

 

[platoon2063]

I'd appreciate any suggestions for the set up you described and thank you.

A few factors are involved. How much $$ you want to part with? How much of an improvement you want over stock? Are you going to install it or have it installed?

Name brand products in car audio aren't always the way to go, BTW.

examples:
system 1
Pair of Audiofrog GS25's for the dash corners (through Crutchfield $400)
Pair of Stereo Integrity TM65's for the lower doors (through stereointegrity $400)
Kicker key200.4 amp which has a built in EQ (through Crutchfield $300)

system 2 (my current system)
Pair of Audiofrog GS25's for the dash corners (through Crutchfield $400)
Pair of Stereo Integrity TM65's for the lower doors (through stereointegrity $400)
Pair of JLAudio 10TW3 subwoofers in a custom box ($1200)
DSP from Helix (arguably the best dsp) (used from diymobileaudio forum $500)
Sound deaden and soundproof the front doors (Resonix $500)
2 amps, one-mono and one six-way (Musway amps locally for $1000)
Local install for $1000

System 3
complete Morel Elate Carbon system for $2500
Mosconi amps for $2500
JL subs for $1200
Helix dsp new for $1000
complete sound proofing $2000
tuning $500
custom install $3000

My point is not to discourage or to brag in any way. There are just so many possibilities in aftermarket car audio.
Just changing out stock speakers to lower end aftermarket speakers will not garner much improvement. Stepping up to a nicer speaker and amplifier will get you a lot of bang for your buck for as little as $700-1000.
Obviously there are those that can and will throw big money at aftermarket audio systems costing $10k and up.

 

[Riccochet]

Couple things worth noting.

The dash 3.5's are paper. Upgrading to a 2 way cone/tweeter will improve sounds considerably. Even using some take offs from the HK equipped truck is a drastic improvement since they are 2 way speakers.

The front door 6x9's are mid/low's only as they are crossed over at the factory amp. Putting full range speakers in there is pointless. 6.5" woofers with adapter plates is a better option

The rear door 6x9's are full range. Swapping to full range 2 way 6x9's will improve sound and stage.

You don't have to go nuts to get better sound.

 

[platoon2063]

Couple things worth noting.

The dash 3.5's are paper. Upgrading to a 2 way cone/tweeter will improve sounds considerably. Even using some take offs from the HK equipped truck is a drastic improvement since they are 2 way speakers.

The front door 6x9's are mid/low's only as they are crossed over at the factory amp. Putting full range speakers in there is pointless. 6.5" woofers with adapter plates is a better option

The rear door 6x9's are full range. Swapping to full range 2 way 6x9's will improve sound and stage.

You don't have to go nuts to get better sound.

A 2-way speaker would work however, IMO, 2-way speakers aren't great at sound separation without a proper crossover. That's why I mentioned the Audiofrog GS25's. They are a true wideband speaker that will easily cover frequencies from 300hz on up. I measured them in my 1500 crewcab and they are solid through 15khz. Not too shabby. Yes, 6.5's are the way to go, IMO in the front doors. If you don't use a sub just find a reputable speaker that does well down to 60hz are so.

 

[woojyee]

A few factors are involved. How much $$ you want to part with? How much of an improvement you want over stock? Are you going to install it or have it installed?

Name brand products in car audio aren't always the way to go, BTW.

examples:
system 1
Pair of Audiofrog GS25's for the dash corners (through Crutchfield $400)
Pair of Stereo Integrity TM65's for the lower doors (through stereointegrity $400)
Kicker key200.4 amp which has a built in EQ (through Crutchfield $300)

system 2 (my current system)
Pair of Audiofrog GS25's for the dash corners (through Crutchfield $400)
Pair of Stereo Integrity TM65's for the lower doors (through stereointegrity $400)
Pair of JLAudio 10TW3 subwoofers in a custom box ($1200)
DSP from Helix (arguably the best dsp) (used from diymobileaudio forum $500)
Sound deaden and soundproof the front doors (Resonix $500)
2 amps, one-mono and one six-way (Musway amps locally for $1000)
Local install for $1000

System 3
complete Morel Elate Carbon system for $2500
Mosconi amps for $2500
JL subs for $1200
Helix dsp new for $1000
complete sound proofing $2000
tuning $500
custom install $3000

My point is not to discourage or to brag in any way. There are just so many possibilities in aftermarket car audio.
Just changing out stock speakers to lower end aftermarket speakers will not garner much improvement. Stepping up to a nicer speaker and amplifier will get you a lot of bang for your buck for as little as $700-1000.
Obviously there are those that can and will throw big money at aftermarket audio systems costing $10k and up.

Mine is a JL Audio c7 3-way front stage in Custom A-Pillars, JL Audio VXi 8 channel DSP amp, 2 JL Audio 12Tw3 on a JL HD1200. JL C3-650 (rear fill). I'm over 8k for gear and install supplies but I sound treated and installed it all myself. The system was tuned by a JL Audio rep with their MAX measurement and tuning device and it sounds amazing!

I went to look at a severely marked up Raptor R and they were "appraising" my Ram for a trade in. The guy came in and said to me, is that the system Ram is putting in their trucks now??? I said, yeah man, you guys are way behind the 8 ball... I didn't have the heart to tell him it was aftermarket and that I was only there to smell the new of the Raptor...

 

[IDSandman]

Mine is a JL Audio c7 3-way front stage in Custom A-Pillars, JL Audio VXi 8 channel DSP amp, 2 JL Audio 12Tw3 on a JL HD1200. JL C3-650 (rear fill). I'm over 8k for gear and install supplies but I sound treated and installed it all myself. The system was tuned by a JL Audio rep with their MAX measurement and tuning device and it sounds amazing!

I went to look at a severely marked up Raptor R and they were "appraising" my Ram for a trade in. The guy came in and said to me, is that the system Ram is putting in their trucks now??? I said, yeah man, you guys are way behind the 8 ball... I didn't have the heart to tell him it was aftermarket and that I was only there to smell the new of the Raptor...

Badass! Bet it sounds amazing!

 

[platoon2063]

Mine is a JL Audio c7 3-way front stage in Custom A-Pillars, JL Audio VXi 8 channel DSP amp, 2 JL Audio 12Tw3 on a JL HD1200. JL C3-650 (rear fill). I'm over 8k for gear and install supplies but I sound treated and installed it all myself. The system was tuned by a JL Audio rep with their MAX measurement and tuning device and it sounds amazing!

I think a 3-way is in my future. My last ride was. I do miss the top end that a 3-way offers over a 2-way.