I have a 2012 Five with ATP. If I want to leave the stock headunit, what can I expect to gain from a high end car audio shop? Can they work with the stock headunit, replace the speakers and amps, and still give me back something that sounds much better than the stock system?
I actually think the JBL system on the V (mine is a 2010) or Five is decent, and given the very noisy interior of the Prius, I question whether spending potentially a lot of money upgrading the sound system would be worth it. Something to consider.
they can work with the stock unit, may not be the best sound buy they can make it work with a amp and speakers. The debate is speakers before head unit. You can try different speakers, dont like it , then decide a HU or amp or both. Its all in how and what you want to hear.
I just want a noticeable difference from what's there, including some good tight bass. My 2012 is not noisier than my Audi was. I think they upped the sound insulation. Plus I would have the audio shop do some insulation/sound deadening in the doors. I know replacing the headunit would be best, but that's not a road I want to go down. I know in the past I've seen electronic gizmos that allow you to work with the stock HU in other cars. To me the stock system sounds cheap/tinny. It's sounds like a base system and I want the Bang and Olufsen equivalent. So not audio competition craziness, just something equivalent to what you'd find as the upgraded audio in the luxury segment.
You can achieve excellent results utilizing the OE head unit if it is integrated properly. Run the outputs into an Audiocontrol product (LC2i or LC6i) to boost/clean up the signal. Spend most of your money on your front speakers - that is where you will notice the most improvement. The Gen 3 Prius lends itself well to a 3-way component set. 6.5" midbass in the door, 4" midrange in the OE dash location and a tweeter flushed in the A pillar. Here are some shop recommendations in the Houston area: Fry's #26 - Rick Paul TC Customs - Todd Krueger Feel free to tell either of them that Anthony Tozzi (Sony) from 12V Insider sent you in.
What about Custom Car Stereo on 59? That's where I was planning on going. TC Customs i haven't heard of (but can check it out), and places like Fry's or Best Buy scare me, honestly.
Custom Car Stereo is another good one. TC Customs is a higher end shop that does a lot of custom work but VERY good with basic audio as well. Normally I'd NEVER send someone to Fry's or BB. The only reason I suggested that particular Fry's is because of Rick Paul. He is a VERY talented installer and an MECP Master Certified tech (there are only about 300 Master techs out there). I work in the industry and I'd trust Rick with my own set up.
Holy cow, d2MINI - in your '12/5ATP you have JBL/GreenEdge, right? In my '12/5ATP I have JBL/GreenEdge, and I find it to be quite a fine sounding system; that's coming from a guy who has been a rock/blues/jazz musician for over 50 years now. Admittedly, there are times when I have used 100% of the output power, but even then - I sense no symptom of over driving anything - just loud, thumpin', sweet sounding tunes. Also, I find the eq to be a little light on the super high freqs (say above 8 to 10 kHz), and instead of having a three band eq, I wish it were 5 band at least. More than 5 band eq would be a blessing, indeed. Also, being a bassist and a rocker, sometimes I would use a little more of the very bottom between 20 and 60 Hz, but that's not to say that the stock system is severely lacking there. I plan to leave my heads, amps and speakers alone, but try adding some tactile transducers (bass shakers) crossed for 100 Hz and down, mounted under the two front seats. In my mind's eye (or my butt), I believe this will be pleasant and functional addition to the GreenEdge. Also, it is important to listen to the finest of source material. I prefer satellite or HD radio, DVD's and remastered/remixed cd's. I can't imagine needing a more capable sound system in any car except maybe for sound competition. What are your thoughts? MrBill
Ya, it's "ok" for a stock system, but I've had custom ones before and there is a big difference. I think the majority of what I'm missing is the hard tight bass that I like. But if I'm going to add an amp and bass, might as well upgrade the stock speakers, amp and add some sound insulation and vibration reducing material. I spend a lot of time in my car and that's pretty much were most of my music listening is done. I've had cars with upgraded sound where Pink Floyd's live version of Shine On You Crazy Diamond sounds just unbelievable. The stock green edge system just aint it.
I'm lookin' forward to seeing what you decide to do, d2MINI. You are aware that the JBL/GE amps & drivers operate at elevated voltages and reduced currents, right? The amp outputs are matched to the speaker impedance in a way that is (traditionally) non-standard. I have no idea how the HU interfaces with the amp inputs, etc. It seems to me that an upgrade will involve removing all that good stuff and starting over - head to toe. IMHO, you gotta want it bad to do all that! I'm gonna start with shakers!
No, i do not realize that... or even know what any of it means. That's why I've leaving it to the pros. Here's my key... have at it, boys.
If you want to keep the factory head unit you will need to use a device like the JBL MS-8 to undo all of electronic crossing-over and equalizing done by the factory head-unit/amp. Then you can get a clean, flat signal to feed into an aftermarket amp. Then you'll want decent aftermarket amplifier(s) driving decent component speakers and subwoofer.
I would suggest an MS8 all day over anything as the first step, with the things it has avail for the price you would be silly to get an aftermarket radio unless you need DvD. You can start with the MS8 then go from there as you have money avail.
For the money you would spend on an MS8 you'd be better off having someone modify the OE head unit to provide pre-amp outputs.
For $500 and the reviews I read on the MS8, sounds like it's worth every penny. Seems like it accomplishes a lot more than just adding pre-amp outputs.
The MS8 is very powerful but I don't like that you can no longer use the OE steering wheel controls or head unit volume. You also should mount the display somewhere. If you want DSP and a more powerful crossover check out the DQL8 http://www.audiocontrol.com/t34/524...iary-Input-and-Digital-Signal-Processing.html
