[AWD]

The O.E. double din system in my Corolla has conked of. Now I want to replace it with a single DIN player. Have some queries:

- Firstly I would need a bracket/kit that would fit in after the removal of double din system. From where to procure it? A local dealer was quoting it for ~3k, that's too high.

- Regarding the Single DIN, I need basic MP3, USB, Aux in, FM. Budget ~5k.

- Speakers: Should I keep the original ones or replace them too?

- Woofer: one woofer for that effect! budget ~ 3k

- Amp: Should its supply be given to rear speakers + woofer or only woofer? Budget ~5k

Though I have an alternate arrangement in my mind but not sure of it. Is there some device through which one can play ipod/iphone music directly from car speakers i.e bypassing the stereo? I ask this because the OE HU, does not have AUX in/USB port.

Im using a FM transmitter but quality is poor.

Please suggest a good combination!

[navin]

Originally Posted by AWD

The O.E. double din system in my Corolla has conked of. Now I want to replace it with a single DIN player. Have some queries:
- Firstly I would need a bracket/kit that would fit in after the removal of double din system. From where to procure it? A local dealer was quoting it for ~3k, that's too high.
- Regarding the Single DIN, I need basic MP3, USB, Aux in, FM. Budget ~5k.
- Speakers: Should I keep the original ones or replace them too?
- Woofer: one woofer for that effect! budget ~ 3k
- Amp: Should its supply be given to rear speakers + woofer or only woofer? Budget ~5k
Is there some device through which one can play ipod/iphone music directly from car speakers i.e bypassing the stereo?!

1. I dont know exact prices for all the brackets out there but I would guess that 3K is a fair price for the toyota bracket.

2. For 5K if you need a CD player JVC and Pioneer are the brands to consider. If you dont need a CD player there is a machine from JBL that sacrifices the CD player but gives 3 pre outs so you can add amplfiers for front, rear, and/or subwoofer channels.

3. Speakers are usually the weakest link given that they convert electrical energy to mechanical energy. Upgrade OEM speakers if the budget permits (a set of 4 6" speakers for front and rear would start at about 8K).

4. You can get a decent 4 channel amp for 6K from Pioneer, JBL, and Kenwood. Use it to drive the front speakers and subwoofer.

5. 3K for a subwoofer is a bit low. Consider a budget of atleast 5K for a basic 12" woofer in a sealed box.

[zulfi hansi]

I am going to take sometime before I can advise you since I am also going through this phase with my Corolla. But I can say one thing for sure is that YOU NEED TO CHANGE THE OEM SPEAKERS, and all four of them. They are horrible and you will see what you were missing once you get rid of them. Also take a look at double DINs, prices have come down. Also if you are short on budget, powerful JBL, or any other good brand speakers (400W) will do the trick with the right amp, do not pinch pennies on amp, it can transform the quality of sound capabilities of the speakers up to 100% (loudness to certain extent, but the quality of sound a world apart, I have seen great speakers struggling to perform without a good amp). But you need to practically experience this in some car that has this set up, without which you may not be happy.

You should know the golden rule in ICE, they are like a cricket team, mismatch them and they loose. Let me get more info in my research and come back to you on this.

[zulfi hansi]

@navin, you are a veteran, I need advise on this one:

Is there a suitable amp which which can be connected to all 4 speakers and the woofer too. I am keen on a basic woofer.

[camchennai]

Below are my thoughts.

1. I owned a Corolla and when I thought of getting a bracket cost was 1500/- with Toyota A.S.S., not sure why it is 3k now. Also I have seen some brackets for Corolla in Team-BHP classifieds, please check.

2. You can get Pioneer, Sony and JVC for that budget

3. OE speakers are Panasonic and they worked well in my car, check the speaker condition if they are ok stick to it else go for a change

4. For 3k you wont get a good woofer, shell out more and get a good one with sealed box

5. Get a 2 channel amp and power your woofer to it, if you can stretch your budget then go for 4 channel and power your sub and front components.

[navin]

Originally Posted by zulfi hansi

Is there a suitable amp which which can be connected to all 4 speakers and the woofer too. I am keen on a basic woofer.

There are many 5-6 channel amps that will allow this.

If you use a 4 channel amp to do this using the Tri-way mode you will not have independant level control of all channels. Some 4 channel amplifiers like the old but hardy Pioneer 944 could take this abuse. Others like the Ampline MRV F340/540 need a special crossover box.

see the picture half way down on this link to understand what tri-way mode wiring looks like.
Using an amplifier in Tri-Way Mode: Enjoy Great sound economically | acousticsforyou.com

[zulfi hansi]

@Navin: That link was really helpful, thank you.

Now I am undecided, I ended up first buying and installing good pair of speakers in a bid to upgrade my ICE set-up in a phased manor due to budget constrains. If I had read this I wouldn't have bought rear speakers and I would have spent the same money on components instead. What I have now are Polkaudio front 60W RMS and rear 100W RMS, both coaxial. The Tri-Way set-up would have worked perfectly but now that I have already invested in the rear speakers, what do I do?

I was thinking what if I just put a 4 channel amp and forego the woofer, what do you say. Will it really rob me of that eternal sound? I am not much of a thump guy, I am more into real definition of sound quality. I normally listen to club, house, trance, the currant top 20 types, but my passion is in soft/soul rock, and the guitar strings really need to be heard.

[swopsk293]

Guys I also have a 2004 Corolla.
I was wondering whether I could just get an Aux-In connection built into the stock HU?
I only use my iPod to play songs & don't want to waste a ton of money on a new HU.
Thanks!!

[vigsom]

^^ a good Electronics repair shop should be able to do that for you ; alternatively,you could get the cheapo fm modulator

[swopsk293]

I have a Kensington FM Transmitter that I bought from the Apple iStore for 1500 bucks.
The sound quality is good, but it lacks in bass and also there is a lot of jugaad involved with keeping the transmitter in a certain position to get a good sound quality.
Can the electronics shop get an Aux-In connector built in to the stock HU? It won't affect the sound quality of the stock speaker in any way??

[zulfi hansi]

Originally Posted by swopsk293

I have a Kensington FM Transmitter that I bought from the Apple iStore for 1500 bucks.
The sound quality is good, but it lacks in bass and also there is a lot of jugaad involved with keeping the transmitter in a certain position to get a good sound quality.
Can the electronics shop get an Aux-In connector built in to the stock HU? It won't affect the sound quality of the stock speaker in any way??

I have gone through this all with my 2005 Corolla in past 6 months, believe me you will not be satisfied with the solution that you are thinking will solve the problem. For one you wasted Rs. 1250, buying the FM modulator, even the cheap Rs. 250/- will do the same job, now if you are not ok with this setup, you will need to go through a complete overhaul by that I mean, change the HU. In this HU you cannot have any input of AUX, with this HU you cannot have any Bass what so ever, no provision for SUB. Take your call.

[swopsk293]

Thanks! Guess I will have to change the HU then. Can you tell me the setup you installed in your corolla?

[zulfi hansi]

Originally Posted by swopsk293

Thanks! Guess I will have to change the HU then. Can you tell me the setup you installed in your corolla?

I made a lot of mistakes first I bought a set of Polk ovals for the back (about 180 watts rms) and a set of coaxes for the front again Polk (about 100 watts rms), nothing wrong in buying these speakers, but I should have bought the HU first (I gave it a miss because its the most expensive item in the set-up and I did not have the inclination to do it), just as you are thinking now even I though if I have a good set of speaker it should sound good, it did sound good but the limitations of the HU could not exploit their potential, then on impulse and again because I was getting a good deal I bought a Sub (Pioneer top of the line), but I was way out of the line since I did not have a amp. By this time I realized that I need to see a pro, then cam Satya aka Blue raven on tbhp, he own Evo at Bangalore and he is really good. I did my fair bit of research before I approached him and had finalized on Kenwood 7046 BT. He got me the Kenwood 7046 BT, and it works like a charm. But other than that I left everything to him. I was on tight budget and he worked well within it. Had to install a single din adapter (which is imported & expensive, but worth it). He gave me a Blaupunkt Amp, connected it to the Sub and front, the front is an interesting set-up, Satya installed cervin vega tweeters with cross-overs and connected it to the existing coaxes of Polk, (since the speakers were only about 4 months old and I wanted to use them no matter what) they work just like any good Components. Rear speakers are connected to the HU directly and they are performing good too.

But you should first buy a good HU along with front components in one go, (as the OE speakers are junk, much worse than the quality of OE HU). And depending on your budget you can pick either rear high power speakers, or a Sub (I would suggest Sub, in that case you need not even touch the rear speakers, either remove them altogether or let them just be, connected to the HU), use the Amp as I did, its a tried and tested way from what I have learnt here from the Gurus. The power to the sub in my case is not enough but it sounds good nevertheless and I am not much of BOOM BOOM guy. And last but not the least (absolutely not the least), you need a good Amp. Invest in a good Amp and HU it will go a long way.

[swopsk293]

Originally Posted by zulfi hansi

But you should first buy a good HU along with front components in one go, (as the OE speakers are junk, much worse than the quality of OE HU). And depending on your budget you can pick either rear high power speakers, or a Sub (I would suggest Sub, in that case you need not even touch the rear speakers, either remove them altogether or let them just be, connected to the HU), use the Amp as I did, its a tried and tested way from what I have learnt here from the Gurus. The power to the sub in my case is not enough but it sounds good nevertheless and I am not much of BOOM BOOM guy. And last but not the least (absolutely not the least), you need a good Amp. Invest in a good Amp and HU it will go a long way.

Thanks a lot!! So including the HU, Single DIN Adaptor, Amp, Sub & the front speakers.... How much should I expect it to cost?? Its an ageing car and may get sold in 1 or 2 years. So I don't wish to spend much on it...