I have a stock stereo system with nav which sounds pretty crappy. Anyone know where the stock amp is located? I have seen a black box in the trunk, but I think that is for the nav. Will just replacing the amp making it sound better, or do I have to replace the speakers and sub as well?

 

I can't say much about the GS, but I can say that replacing your stock sub and amp will sound much much better! I personally have a sealed box that I built in my LS, it sounds great.

 

It's not as simple as just replacing the amp. The stock amps take a very low input, much lower than "standard" aftermarket amps. You'll need some kind of "line converter" (Audio Control makes some nice ones) to up the voltage for an aftermarket amp. The next thing (not really a problem, but something to be aware of) is the impedence on the stock speakers is low (like about 2 ohms), to get more "output" from the stock amp. This isn't a problem for most aftermarket amps, but could be a problem for the speakers as it would be easy to overdrive them.

Your simplest solution is just to replace the head unit. You can get decent ones with more than enough power to improve the stock system.

Another option (or maybe your first choice) is to replace the stock speakers. The only issue here is that because they're a higher impedence than stock, they won't play as loud with the stock amp, but they will sound better at the lower volume.

Of course, the REAL answer is to scrap the stock system and do it all over

 

To answer you question simply...if you replace just the amp with a more powerful one, you'll most likely be able to play your music louder. For most people out there this can be considered better. For some it may require some more upgrades. Define your systems goals and plan accordingly. Oh and the stock amp if I'm not mistaken should be behind the glove box on the right above the kickpanels.

 

I can't replace the head unit, unless I get rid of my nav right? Also, I like having the touch screen features avaible with my stereo. Do you know if the stock amp powers the sub only or all 4 channels plus the sub?

 

I don't know how it is in the GS (I'll leave that to somebody who knows), but in the SC, there's a 4 channel amp in the back passenger fender (under the CD player), and the sub has it's own amp mounted on the back shelf (next to the sub). The crossover is in the headunit so you have a seperate feed for each amp, along with a remote turn on line.

I'm still using my stock HU, and an Audio Control "Matrix" line driver to boost the signal to my SoundStream amps (via an external crossover and other processors). The amps are driving MBQuart Q series (5 1/4" all around) and a JL Audio 10IB4 sub in the stock location.

I'm not thrilled with the radio reception, but CD's are just amazing...

It's a HUGE improvement over stock!

Bottom line is, keep your HU if your satisfied with it, there's lots of options for upgrading without replacing it

 

Man, I don't know what I would do if I had stock nav, hmm....

Well, home stereo or car stereo, the biggest improvement you can make are the speakers. Replace all your stock speakers with some decent aftermarket ones and you'll be good to go.