Stereo Really Sucks Part II
 

So I went to the stereo guy yesterday.....

I am not sure if the 986 has the same setup as my 987 so let me explain.

There are two different sized round speakers in each door I suppose providing bass and midrange and 3 small speakers in the dash that must be providing treble (one in the middle and the other two on each side of the dash). This is the cheap stereo Porsche provides and it sounds like mud.

So stereo guy is saying to change everything to Alpine. I do not think his reason for this is because Alpine is the best but rather that Alpine is the best he has here.

The plan is we will change the two door speakers on each side, put two tweeters in the front and forget about the middle speaker in the dash. In the trunk we will stick in some sort of huge subwoofer and amp.

I am told this will sound kickass and will be heard from far away?

I would like to hear other people's opinions on this because I really have no clue anymore about what is a good stereo.

Unless the shop ports the subwoofer in the trunck to the cabin don't expect to hear anything from it while driving...

Would it be better to put the subwoofer in the front?

In the front as in the front trunk? Yes that would be the only one you would get any type of sound from. The rear has the motor inbetween and you wouldnt be able to hear anything.

Our cars are designed for both Left and Right hand drive, so there is an opening in which the port should run from the front trunk to the cabin. It is a about 3.5" in diameter.

However, the BEST place to put a subwoofer in this car is in the passanger footwell. This will give you the best sound.

This is probably a stupid question, but isn't the passenger footwell where the passenger puts his feet? On the floor in front of the passenger's seat? If so, with a subwoofer there where would the passenger put his feet?

In the trunk obviously gosh......


On a more serious note, the sub would be small such as an 8" which doesnt need much air space in the box. I have one in my car which no one even notices. Super small and compact.



P.S. For all these posts im doing for you the least you can do is post some picture of your "ASSistants"

Maybe I am just a little slow today but I still do not follow. Where does the subwoofer exactly go? On the floor?

Here's a stupid question...

I think my stereo sounds awesome !

Is there any way to tell if my speakers are still "stock" without taking off the grills ?

My ipod is hardwired to the factory stereo, and I have never listened to the radio or a CD in the car, but I doubt the ipod alone would account for the superior sound.

I do have the premium audio package ( non Bose ) in my '99.

Any thoughts ?

I believe I have a picture of Reus's subwoofer setup in my thread here:

http://986forum.com/forums/boxster-general-discussions/6322-reus-systems-987-audio-enhancement.html?highlight=reus+audio

It doesn't take up the whole passenger footwell.

one thing the stereo shop isnt telling you is that convertibles are notorious for not so great sound when it comes to stereos, the rag top doesnt help the sound move well in the cab. Plus i think its not a good idea to spend 3-4k on a stereo system. do something more productive with you money rather than buying a stereo that wil loosen all your bolt and clips of your interior.

I second TriGem's request.......more ASSistants please.

You can also get away with one 8inch sub behind the passenger seat. Make sure this is a REALLY nice sub with a HUGE magnet on the back so it can get the lows, not just the mid bass.

about 250 watts RMS should be good for this sub.

KRZ

I third the request! haha

IMO, the single best thing you should do right now is replace the stock headunit with a quality aftermarket one. That will instantly give you better sound, and you'll have more control over the EQ and sound processing. You may find that you don't need to upgrade the speakers like you thought. Unless you are a true audiophile like me (it doesn't sound like it from your questions), it might be just enough. And you won't have to go tearing into your car to do it.

Replace the HU, then evaluate whether you need new speakers.

Yes, that link is exactly what I wanted to see.

I do not want to keep the original head though since there is no Ipod hookup. I wonder how weird it will look with an aftermarket head in it????

Any suggestions for a head unit that would not look out of place? I want a stereo that shakes the buildings when I drive by, one that will scare little children when they run up to the car. My questions may sound clueless but it is not that I do not appreciate a good stereo. I just do not have the option of going to the local stereo store to see what is new. If I want something really good I will have to buy it on the Internet and have it shipped to me.

There are two different sized round speakers in each door I suppose providing bass and midrange and 3 small speakers in the dash that must be providing treble (one in the middle and the other two on each side of the dash). This is the cheap stereo Porsche provides and it sounds like mud.

So stereo guy is saying to change everything to Alpine. I do not think his reason for this is because Alpine is the best but rather that Alpine is the best he has here.

The plan is we will change the two door speakers on each side, put two tweeters in the front and forget about the middle speaker in the dash. In the trunk we will stick in some sort of huge subwoofer and amp.

Yeah, good idea to not replace the middle speaker in the dash, since it's actually the air conditioner sensor. :)

Base 987 has four speakers. SPP has seven and Bose has 11. On the 986 it went 2, 6 and 10.

Have you considered the idea of retrofitting the sound package plus (adding three speakers). You may be able to order from the dealer, and it's OEM. From comments I've read, it's an improvement. You could always subsequently swap out the head unit and then have the seven speakers to work with instead of four. Might be worth contacting your dealer to see if possible and what would be involved.

When I had my base, I investigated a sound upgrade from a high-end shop here in La Jolla that had worked on other 987s and they said to keep the head unit and add the enclosed subwoofer in the footwell as the first step (as others have suggested).

Speakers
 

I have had good luck with replacing the two door and four dash factory speakers with good quality JL Audio speakers. I replaced the head unit with a top Pioneer unit and powered it all with an outboard 4X75 watt JL Audio Slash-series amp that I mounted in the front trunk. Cost me about 1.7K installed and it sounds very good, and plays very loud. I do miss a subwoofer, but not all the time.

Ed

2000 2.7L Boxster
Arctic Silver/black, 50K
TTP intake, headers, cats
AutoThority Performance Chip
Upgraded Audio

why are you so concerned with the speakers in the boxster. apparently you were selling the boxster, what happend...couldnt afford the 911..............


"After owning a new Boxster for only about two months I have decided to sell it.

I hope to buy another Porsche, probably a 911, in the near future but for now I will be back to my scooter. "

I changed my mind on selling the Boxster when I found out the 911 is over $200,000 USD here.

Someday though I might move back to Toronto where I could afford a 911 except I would have to park it in the garage 11 months of the year. ;)

well i guess so if you have no where to go. get out make some friends, not 16 year old friends, but find away to be social, and you and your 911 wont be parked in a garage. we can send you some tips on how to communicate with the rest of the world...its really easy for most peeps. you might find this task difficult......seeing that you hate on most of the world.

I LOVE the whole world! In fact I have been in 14 countries in the last three years. I will be in Brazil on Friday. It is just Canada that I do not like. Cold climate, communism, fat women, everything is a big #2 to the United States, insecure people, bad food, snow, socialism, french people........the list could take up a whole page.

Why do you keep trying to bring my posts off topic though? I know Canada does not have a very good education system but please try to stay focused. ;)