Decent setup for an 05 crewcab?

taterthedog · Oct 12, 2011

Hey guys, just got an 05 crewcab for the wife. She is thinking she needs a better stereo with some sort of subwoofer. I don't mind buying good stuff, but I'm not looking for something too expensive. Basically I'm thinking of a new doubledin head unit with bluetooth etc.., new speakers in factory locations, and a subwoofer or 2 (and an amp I guess, new to subwoofer stuff) behind the rear seat.
I'm looking for suggestions . I put a JVC 810 doubledin unit in her last truck, an 02 f250. It worked pretty good and was very easy to use. I don't think I need nav with it but I'm not opposed to it either.
What do the experts suggest? :toast:

jdc753 · Oct 12, 2011

I would be glad to help but just got a couple of questions first.

What is your budget?
Does the truck have the power sliding rear glass?
For stock location are you wanting to stay with the stock 6x8 or willing to move to a round 6.5"?

Millions of choices and mounting locations for you to go with pick speakers and sub(s) then the amps will follow

SaNnDnSurF · Oct 12, 2011

kenwood ddx514 is a good HU

taterthedog · Oct 12, 2011

jdc753 said:
I would be glad to help but just got a couple of questions first.

What is your budget?
Does the truck have the power sliding rear glass?
For stock location are you wanting to stay with the stock 6x8 or willing to move to a round 6.5"?

Millions of choices and mounting locations for you to go with pick speakers and sub(s) then the amps will follow

Budget is a bit flexible. I'm thinking around $600 for the head unit, $150 per set of speakers??, not sure what amps and subs setups go for. 3-400?
Looking to keep the stock location and size for speakers. (is switching to 6.5" a big deal? benificial?)
Rear window is sliding but not power.

Thanks

jdc753 · Oct 12, 2011

sounds like a very reasonably budget, should be able to get some good stuff for that range.

6.5's and even some 6.75" speakers will drop right into the stock location, worst case you may need a little bit of trimming. Now the differences may not matter to you much since it is more of a audiophile critic coming down to the physical size and shape of the oval speaker vs the round speaker. Essentially oval speakers are used by the manufacturers to acheive a compromise between clarity and raw output. An oval speaker has a larger cone area which directly affects output, however the oval shape of the surround doesn't necessarily allow for 100% uniform travel for the cone and hence true sonic reproduction.

PLUS, opening up your choices to include round speakers and not just exactly what the manufacturer put in the truck will greatly increase your choices of a quality speaker within your budget.

For the subs and in that price I would probably be looking at the Pioneer shallow mount subwoofers, they are cheaply priced and seem to preform quite well. Check out the boxes offered by www.spl2k.com for a well engineered setup that uses these pioneer subs in the entry level setups he sells.

The 04+ trucks have VERY little room behind the rear seat so you will essentially be reduced to using shallow mount only sub woofers. For the amplifier I would save that choice for last, once you narrow down your speaker and subwoofer selection then you can best match the amplifier to your speakers and subwoofer setup. Also as you probably know you'll need to budget some for wiring, subwoofer box, and various small installation pieces that will add up quickly.

taterthedog · Oct 13, 2011

SaNnDnSurF said:
kenwood ddx514 is a good HU

This must be an older HU? Doesn't list it on their site or any of the retailers I checked. Closest I found was a ddx418, but all the customer reviews for that one said the bluetooth mic was crappy. This would be one of the features that I need to work well.

taterthedog · Oct 13, 2011

jdc753 said:
sounds like a very reasonably budget, should be able to get some good stuff for that range.

6.5's and even some 6.75" speakers will drop right into the stock location, worst case you may need a little bit of trimming. Now the differences may not matter to you much since it is more of a audiophile critic coming down to the physical size and shape of the oval speaker vs the round speaker. Essentially oval speakers are used by the manufacturers to acheive a compromise between clarity and raw output. An oval speaker has a larger cone area which directly affects output, however the oval shape of the surround doesn't necessarily allow for 100% uniform travel for the cone and hence true sonic reproduction.

PLUS, opening up your choices to include round speakers and not just exactly what the manufacturer put in the truck will greatly increase your choices of a quality speaker within your budget.

For the subs and in that price I would probably be looking at the Pioneer shallow mount subwoofers, they are cheaply priced and seem to preform quite well. Check out the boxes offered by www.spl2k.com for a well engineered setup that uses these pioneer subs in the entry level setups he sells.

The 04+ trucks have VERY little room behind the rear seat so you will essentially be reduced to using shallow mount only sub woofers. For the amplifier I would save that choice for last, once you narrow down your speaker and subwoofer selection then you can best match the amplifier to your speakers and subwoofer setup. Also as you probably know you'll need to budget some for wiring, subwoofer box, and various small installation pieces that will add up quickly.

I guess the first step then would be to pick a head unit and some speakers. Is it a good idea to have the HU and speakers the same brand or not? What are some must have features for a HU?

skew12 · Oct 13, 2011

How are you guys changing the speaker mounts in the back of the cab? I've got an 03 crew cab with some very nice infinitys, and I can't hear the back speakers for ****. (pioneer DVD, but no amp)

taterthedog · Oct 19, 2011

Head Unit

I'm thinking about the Pioneer AVH-P3300BT
as a head unit. Anyone have any thoughts on this unit?
:gun:

Keanoknick · Oct 20, 2011

Don't know about that exact unit, I've got an older Pioneer Avic Z2, and I have been very pleased with it, does about anything that I'll ever need.

Zmann · Oct 27, 2011

taterthedog said:
I'm thinking about the Pioneer AVH-P3300BT
as a head unit. Anyone have any thoughts on this unit?
:gun:

Aw some unit and if the truck has steering wheel controls you can retain that as well

put some tweeters in the sail panels and add a small amp and sub
then I bet the oem doors speakers will be fine
what they are really missing is lows and highs

oh I used to love crutchfield till I found Sonic Electronix free install kit as well

taterthedog · Nov 28, 2011

Small update. I ordered a Pioneer 3300 and a backup camera. I've decided to put the unit in my 2001 F250 supercab instead of the wife's 05 crewcab. Call it a practice run I guess. My truck is a bit of a beater and it still fits in my garage. My wife's is up 6" on 37's so any work would have to be done outside. And it's winter here... So maybe in the summer, when I have one system in under my belt, I'll do hers.
So.. The head unit and camera is on the way. (Sonic Electronix, thanks Zmann.) I've gotten on trade a small MTX amplifier and a couple of subs. I want to build my own box for them. I'll be replacing the factory speakers later on. Still doing a lot of reading and learning on the whole subject yet.

Zmann said:
put some tweeters in the sail panels and add a small amp and sub
then I bet the oem doors speakers will be fine
what they are really missing is lows and highs

oh I used to love crutchfield till I found Sonic Electronix free install kit as well

I'm interested in the tweeters in the sail panels. What's involved in this? Do they run off your speakers in the doors, like a 3 way taken apart?

AKHILF · Nov 28, 2011

Iv been looking into the sail panels a lot myself. I cant find anyone who sells a set. I think im going to go to the junk yard and pick up another set to try a little but of glass work.

taterthedog · Nov 30, 2011

just picked up the subs today. They are Rockford Fosgate 10"s rfz3410. The Amp is a MTX RT251D. The 2 subs are mounted in a plywood box but I'm going to build my own boxes later on. Does it matter what you make your sub boxes out of??

MossBack · Nov 30, 2011

taterthedog said:
just picked up the subs today. They are Rockford Fosgate 10"s rfz3410. The Amp is a MTX RT251D. The 2 subs are mounted in a plywood box but I'm going to build my own boxes later on. Does it matter what you make your sub boxes out of??

Yes has to be MDF Med dense fiberboard. Regular ply wood has the tendency to seperate and break.

And 3/4" thick is the general rule of thumb. The Rockford s love to hit hard so 1 1/2" drywall screws and elemers wood glue. Check Rockford fosgate website for the box builder wizard. A box has to be made for the sub or it will sound horrible.

Search other forums there was one I can't remember the name but was all about box building. Personally I m lazy and the cost is so little for boxes that I just buy the pre-fab.

Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk

AKHILF · Nov 30, 2011

You can also build them out of birch. Mdf is what i always use though. i dont know about the lower 48 but up here in alaska you can go to the lumber yard and buy a damaged piece and that means a 1"x1" corner is messed up for $10

TxFireman1972 · Nov 30, 2011

AKHILF said:
Iv been looking into the sail panels a lot myself. I cant find anyone who sells a set. I think im going to go to the junk yard and pick up another set to try a little but of glass work.

I have two extra sets at the house. I picked them up at the dealer. They are not expensive at all. Give them a call, I bet you'll be surprised.