Has anyone upgraded just the subwoofer in their GS. I have nav and the stock Pioneer system in my car. I would like a little bass if possible without tearing into the whole system. Any solutions would be helpful
Thank you.

 

a few people on the board have went out and gotten a free air JL audio sub model IB4 which is a free air sub and just get a nice pheonix gold amp, or maybe a zapco, just make sure that its a good quality amp, dont get something like Xtant ( there good amps but not worth the mone).

or you can go with another route and go with a JL audio 10" W3 with a pheonix gold amp, or alumapro 10" alchemy with a zapco amp, or ID 10" with a ARC amp. Basicly all these come with a sealed box aplecation and dont need alot of room so all you have to do is mount a small box to the bottom of the rear dash and you wont lose any space in you trunk.

I would personaly go with the second option since you would have more options on the kind of subs you could use and the type of sound you want.

well I hope this helps

 

i'm thinkin to do some audio change too.. haven't really come up with what i want yet

 

Thank you

Is there an option of just replacing the stock sub with a larger aftermarket one w/o going to a box?

 

I did just that. I took the pioneer sub out of my 99 GS and replaced it with a Kicker free air. It is a lot better than the old Pioneer. I added a punch 100DSM and a Audio Control X2, Dynamat, and an Alpine High/Low convereter. I used to have a JL W6 sub in a box and it sounded good, but my goal was to not have the box. I might sell it if someone is interested. I am very happy with the Kicker's sound though. Even though I have not yet secured the Kicker sub to the rear deck, it sounds really good. I am not familiar witht the JL, but I think it handles more power, something 300 peak I believe. I decided on the Kicker because if I went with the JL, I would have to get a larger amp and Dynamat a much bigger area of the car. And who knows what else to make it sound good due to all the power it's putting out. I was not really looking for the Booming bass. Can't really get that from a free air anyway. But I still get a clean tight bass for Jazz, Rock, R&B, stuff like that. I tested the sound with some Too Short tracks and it actually sounded pretty good. Rock's bottom line; free air will save you space, money and give you good clean sound. Definately worth it. If there is something I did not mention here and you have a question, feel free to reply.

Rock

 

Which kicker would that be? And does it rattle the back dash? I have a es 300 and i've got space back there, but my friend who has 2 jbl's in his trunk of his car (buick regal) his rear dash rattles like crazy and the sub's not even mounted in it. Any info is greatly appreciated thanks!

 

Well, it does a little, but that's because I have not gotten around to doing the mounting yet or the Dynamat. But it's not like the car is falling apart. The sub is a Kicker F10C. I am very happy with it, but it really depends on what you really want. I hope this helps....

Rock

 

I have an LS400 and I was thinking of goign with a Pioneer VCCS free-air, it can handle something near 300 watts RMS.. But I want to hear it, and the other option was to go w/ a single JL. I actually wanted to get a W6... how much would you be willing to sell it for? Just a sealed enclosure? Do you know how this sub sounds in a bandpass? How big is it? I was going to buy it off E-bay, and there are pretty good deals there so tell me your price.. e-mail me suneet@suneet.com ..

 

suneet, did anyone respond to u about how the JL w6 sounded in a bandpass?? i was looking at getting the same thing and putting the new 2002 JL amp 250x1 RMS to it......

 

Kizoku,

If you're after SQ then DO NOT go with a bandpass! Too "peaky" of a sound and it'll drown out everything else. With a good SQ setup you'll either want a ported or sealed enclosure. An infinite baffle will do nicely also.

Percy

 

Percy so would a single 12 inch w6 in a sealed box be enough low end bass for the trunk of an LS for SQ? i dont want it to be obxnoxious but i want to have a nice thump in the trunk....... thanks again

 

Percy - Hope you don't mind me jumping in here but I am laboring over the sub choice as well although I have decided to go with a dyn. It has been a while since I got into upgrading sound systems but I am having a good time with the GS and THE BOOK. The ads 336im will go in the rear doors next but my choice for the sub is either the dyn 180 or 190. Obviously free air, which dyn says is OK. Oddly enough, I am not in any big need of bottom end. It came as a surprise to me but after looking at the stock speakers some more, it should not have. Replacing those weenie 4 inch door speakers with the 6.5 inch dyns was bound to have a dramatic effect on bottom end, even with the ported enclosure on the stock setup. It is amazing to feel the lower frequencies on my leg as I drive and the bass seems to be really present now. I know I want to upgrade the sub but not sure I will see as much improvement as I did with the door speakers on the overall SQ. I may eventually get around to an amp, that is after the speakers get upgraded but I can't decide between the two dyn subs. The 180 looks more like a 9 1/2 inch sub than a 10 and the 190 looks like a small 12. Obviously, these are just looking at physical dimensions, I expect either will perform significantly better than the stock sub. Looks like the biggest install issue is that the 190 gets installed from the bottom but either one should not affect trunk space much. Any thoughts on pros and cons? I think cost is something on the order of 60 or 70 bucks difference so it is a non issue compared to the labor involved in putting the little jewel in. Also, do you know where the factory amp is crossing to the sub on the 2k1 GS430 premium system (nonML)? Thanks again.

 

It should be pretty good. It's very easy to get too much "boom" from a dual setup...too much in that it drowns out the entire mid and treble range. So, a single 12 should do nicely if you're not after overkill SPL.

Percy

 

My best guess is around 100hz, possibly 80.

Percy

 

I have my 10 in the back dash removed and a custom job with a false wall in the trunk. The bass vents through the hole. My bass is boomin, I use the Lexus high's and turn down the bass to the 4 door speakers, also I have a Bass control for the 10"s. People always say damn what do you have in here. One question for the people with the systems; how did you secure the seatbelt bucket under the back dash?