PowrRam
Senior Member
- Joined
- May 12, 2018
- Posts
- 767
- Reaction score
- 625
- Location
- Minneapolis
- Ram Year
- 2018 Big Horn
- Engine
- 3.6L V6
I lease vehicles so I don't go gonzo on modding the sound system.
My previous truck was a 2015 Big Horn with the Alpine 9 speaker system with subwoofer. I replaced the corner dash tweeters with Polk's DB351's and disconnected the center dash speaker. That was an easy and noticeable difference in sound quality. My typical settings for the UConnect equalizer was:
Bass: +2
Midrange: flat
Treble: +1
My new 2018 Big Horn has the stock 6 speaker system with the 8.4 UConnect. Wow, what a step down in sound quality. Not that the Alpine was the greatest sounding system, but the difference is noticeable between the Alpine 9 speaker and the stock 6 speaker system. I found by playing songs from my USB stick whose sound quality was well-remembered by me, I could compare to the stock system. Sadly, the bass response is woeful in the stock 6 speaker system. I don't need bass to rattle my windows and knock out my fillings but I do want to feel it and know that it is there.
Here's my equalizer settings for the stock system:
Bass: +8 (only goes up to 8)
Midrange: +1
Treble: +3
With Bass set at max, it sounds a bit muffled and distorted. I had to mentally search for the bass notes that were easily heard with the Alpine in my old truck. I started shopping for subwoofers. I've settled on either the Kicker Hideaway or the Cerwin Vega VPAS10. These are self-contained powered subwoofer boxes that fit under the seat or behind the back seat. Perfect for a leased vehicle because they are (relatively) inexpensive and I can easily remove it and transfer it to another vehicle.
First thing I did was put the Polk's from my previous truck in the dash of my new truck. Instant improvement in clarity and high end response. I'm still missing the bass, though. Equalizer settings now:
Bass: +8
Midrange: +1
Treble: +1
I decided to replace the front door 6X9 speakers with something else. The problem here is the depth of most aftermarket 6X9 speakers are too deep to mount in the front doors. The alternative is a 6 1/2". After much searching I found a set of Pioneer 6X9's that would drop right into the front doors without any modifications. They were highly reviewed on Amazon and amazingly inexpensive. I figured if I didn't like them I could put them in the rear doors and get 6 1/2" for the fronts.
https://www.amazon.com/Pioneer-TSA6...=1529421912&sr=1-1&keywords=pioneer+TS-A6966R
Yes, Amazon and Crutchfield will tell you this speaker does not fit the Ram 1500, but trust me, they drop right into place, easy-peasy. (You do need Metra wiring adapters 72-6514)
Here's a pic of the Pioneer and the stock speaker. I should have taken a shot showing the height of each speaker. The Pioneer is about 3/8" taller than the stock one:
Here's the Pioneer speaker being weighed. BTW, the stock speaker weighed 17.6 ounces. The majority of the weight difference is in the magnet.
Once installed I started playing with the balance and fader controls. I've got to tell you, those rear door 6X9 speakers are terrible. Sounds like they are submerged in vegetable oil inside a plastic container. Muddy, indistinct, muffled. Yuck!
The Pioneers really livened up the sound of the system and brought clarity. They also brought some bass. Tight, good sounding bass. On some songs it's almost good enough to not want a subwoofer. Almost. Here's my settings on the equalizer now:
Bass: +6, (sometimes +7)
Midrange: Flat
Treble: -1 (sometimes -2)
On a scale of 1 to 10, I'd say the stock system was a 4. I'd say the changes I made brought it up to a 7. Really, the stock system should sound like mine from the factory without needing to change out speakers. It's not that expensive. I bought the Polk's three years ago for $45. I got the Pioneers a week ago for $38. So, $83 bucks and about an hour and a half of work (hey, I'm slow). If anyone is hesitant to take off your front door panels and replace the speakers, it's really easy. The only tricky part is getting the plastic screws out because they are somewhat delicate and require a torx driver. Here's an excellent video that I referenced:
Even though I gained a lot of clean bass with the Pioneers, I think I'm going to get the powered subwoofer.
My previous truck was a 2015 Big Horn with the Alpine 9 speaker system with subwoofer. I replaced the corner dash tweeters with Polk's DB351's and disconnected the center dash speaker. That was an easy and noticeable difference in sound quality. My typical settings for the UConnect equalizer was:
Bass: +2
Midrange: flat
Treble: +1
My new 2018 Big Horn has the stock 6 speaker system with the 8.4 UConnect. Wow, what a step down in sound quality. Not that the Alpine was the greatest sounding system, but the difference is noticeable between the Alpine 9 speaker and the stock 6 speaker system. I found by playing songs from my USB stick whose sound quality was well-remembered by me, I could compare to the stock system. Sadly, the bass response is woeful in the stock 6 speaker system. I don't need bass to rattle my windows and knock out my fillings but I do want to feel it and know that it is there.
Here's my equalizer settings for the stock system:
Bass: +8 (only goes up to 8)
Midrange: +1
Treble: +3
With Bass set at max, it sounds a bit muffled and distorted. I had to mentally search for the bass notes that were easily heard with the Alpine in my old truck. I started shopping for subwoofers. I've settled on either the Kicker Hideaway or the Cerwin Vega VPAS10. These are self-contained powered subwoofer boxes that fit under the seat or behind the back seat. Perfect for a leased vehicle because they are (relatively) inexpensive and I can easily remove it and transfer it to another vehicle.
First thing I did was put the Polk's from my previous truck in the dash of my new truck. Instant improvement in clarity and high end response. I'm still missing the bass, though. Equalizer settings now:
Bass: +8
Midrange: +1
Treble: +1
I decided to replace the front door 6X9 speakers with something else. The problem here is the depth of most aftermarket 6X9 speakers are too deep to mount in the front doors. The alternative is a 6 1/2". After much searching I found a set of Pioneer 6X9's that would drop right into the front doors without any modifications. They were highly reviewed on Amazon and amazingly inexpensive. I figured if I didn't like them I could put them in the rear doors and get 6 1/2" for the fronts.
https://www.amazon.com/Pioneer-TSA6...=1529421912&sr=1-1&keywords=pioneer+TS-A6966R
Yes, Amazon and Crutchfield will tell you this speaker does not fit the Ram 1500, but trust me, they drop right into place, easy-peasy. (You do need Metra wiring adapters 72-6514)
Here's a pic of the Pioneer and the stock speaker. I should have taken a shot showing the height of each speaker. The Pioneer is about 3/8" taller than the stock one:
Here's the Pioneer speaker being weighed. BTW, the stock speaker weighed 17.6 ounces. The majority of the weight difference is in the magnet.
Once installed I started playing with the balance and fader controls. I've got to tell you, those rear door 6X9 speakers are terrible. Sounds like they are submerged in vegetable oil inside a plastic container. Muddy, indistinct, muffled. Yuck!
The Pioneers really livened up the sound of the system and brought clarity. They also brought some bass. Tight, good sounding bass. On some songs it's almost good enough to not want a subwoofer. Almost. Here's my settings on the equalizer now:
Bass: +6, (sometimes +7)
Midrange: Flat
Treble: -1 (sometimes -2)
On a scale of 1 to 10, I'd say the stock system was a 4. I'd say the changes I made brought it up to a 7. Really, the stock system should sound like mine from the factory without needing to change out speakers. It's not that expensive. I bought the Polk's three years ago for $45. I got the Pioneers a week ago for $38. So, $83 bucks and about an hour and a half of work (hey, I'm slow). If anyone is hesitant to take off your front door panels and replace the speakers, it's really easy. The only tricky part is getting the plastic screws out because they are somewhat delicate and require a torx driver. Here's an excellent video that I referenced:
Even though I gained a lot of clean bass with the Pioneers, I think I'm going to get the powered subwoofer.
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