JBL Audio or is it?

Possibly interested in this as well. I too am wondering how much effort to swap out the A-pillar trim, wire, and add tweeters there? @KrissyMattAlpha. Thinking this would be another nice add to already upgraded system. So 11 total nbr of speakers in my case. TIA

 

Can’t believe there is so few info and options for our trucks after all this time

 

Every website I look at (Amazon, crutchfield, Google) says they don’t have enough information for our trucks. I’ve had issues before with getting door speakers and the adapter not sitting correctly with the connectors and have to take the door apart constantly for sound. Never wanna go through that again.

so 6.5 for all 4 doors? 6 x 9 won’t fit? But 6 x 9 will fit in the front dash?

 

thanks you. I appreciate it

 

Been said before but, all oem stereos are basically junk. The 3rd gen JBL is an improvement over the previous gens but still rubbish overall. The problem starts with the truck having tinfoil thin metal doors that resonate absolute garbage out of the speakers. The first step in improving sound is treating the truck to sound deadening and noise control materials. Just this will greatly increase system output. Replacing the OEM plastic speakers and adding a simple amp will further improve all aspects of the system. You cannot slap new speakers in and expect greatness if you don't treat the environment they are playing in. I spent more just on acoustic treatments and environmental sound control than most spend on an entire aftermarket system. The greater you prepare the baffles (what the speakers actually are mounted to) and surrounding surfaces, the less the system has to overcome those inadequacies.

 

I think the biggest thing that would help is speaker size and what wire adapters to the speakers fit to avoid cutting. I ordered 3-4 that looked like they would work from Amazon and got the front and rears correct but the tweeters I couldn’t find. Lost the paper I had when I had my system done and ended up just having new wires ran anyways so didn’t need them.

 

It’s pretty easy to take the A-pillars off and there is definitely room to add tweeters in there. A shop placed mine relatively close to the glass and about midway up. I have Focal tweeters up there and they sit flush on the slight bevel by the windshield. I’ll get pics later but honestly I’m not a fan of the position and I am just going to swap the pillars for the JBL equipped ones and have them more discretely mounted.

 

I’m looking at my speakers now and they seem to be 6 x 9 on the front speakers and 6.5 on the rear doors

 

That'd be the same configuration found in the 2nd and 2.5 gen Tundras.

 

So your original thread is misleading it seems?! I read it as this these are pics of the JBL speakers and they are not JBL....does the stock 9 speaker system claim to be JBL?? My 12 speaker JBL system is clearly JBL speakers....When you look through all the speaker grilles with a flashlight, you can see a big "JBL" logo on them and the typical orangish ring on the speakers edge that JBL speakers have....

ALSO, I am hugely impressed with the 12 speaker JBL in my Platinum....NO, it will never be as great as if you do a full aftermarket system....but its WAAAAY better than the upgraded system I've heard in the F150, Silverado ECT.... Way to go Toyota!!

 

Thanks for info, good to know not too much effort. I bet your Focal tweets sound great. I too would prefer the stock OEM look so would go with the jbl one for the pillar itself. Adding tweets there would be a nice add to the existing setup. thx again

 

yeah, they sound REALLY good. Very happy with the speakers, just not location. Have the new A pillars coming in soon so looking forward to that. Here is how they are mounted now. Not terrible, just not discrete like I prefer

 

I installed the beat-sonic a few weeks ago. It has completely transformed the JBL system. Highly recommended!!

 

thanks for photo! oh wow, looks WAY better than i expected. Matches well with the interior and size is perfect, i dig it. Perhaps located below the grab handle facing inward toward the cabin a tad more would be my preference but looks fine as is too. Either way, sounds incredible no doubt and this would be a very nice add here. Thank you for sharing!

 

It’s been 2 years now and nobody took interest in developing a bypass harness to integrate the Toyota system to an external amp , then to new speakers.
There is no other way to integrate your speakers . Each speaker is tuned to a certain frequency that it is designed to play. Together , these speakers give you a total sound. Engineers in Toyota are not idiots, they are tasked to design the cheapest route to decent sound. But that means unless you can match each speaker replacement perfectly (which you will not) you will have to bypass the system and use only the audio signals from your own amp then to your desired speakers. Those of us who already went down these paths previously know what that means. It’s not cheap. Total bypass.

Taco sounds is a good representation of what has to happen, unfortunately their high price tag does not mean high quality components, you are paying mostly for labor. Their rebranded amps look cheap . Don’t know the speakers brand , but obviously they did not produce these.

Either way that is a good sample of what you will have to do to achieve good audio

No low volt outputs from stock radio so you have to use high level line output converter , like LC2I, then run your audio to a 4 channel amp and a sub amp then to speakers. Simple.
Start tearing stuff out


recommendation of what I have done in the past with my jeep

JL Audio for speakers, very good sound, clean and crisp
Alpine 900 watt amp , 100 watts a channel, plus 500 for sub, very reliable amplifiers. Cheaper way is to use the alpine power packs . Still good.
LC2I line voltage converter , good bang for the buck

This should be way cheaper than taco tunes and better quality .

 

you can get a harness for the power/remote from this place http://autoharnesshouse.com/
And an 8 wire jumper from Amazon (ASIN: B09DTY8PMD) to make your own with way higher quality wires/components than TT.

 

Thanks for the info. haven’t verified this yet but it looks like the 2020 to 2024 harness is the same. Good site. Thanks

 

Best sounding factory system has to be the Harmon Kardon in Rams. I’ve had 3 of those over last 3 yrs. This JBL actually sounds good, to me. It sounds MILES ahead of the Bose system in GM products!! I had a Sierra 1500 AT4 before this Tundra and the Bose was GARBAGE!! I had a Bose in a 2013 Chevy, back in the gap, and it was garbage too! I figured by 2022, Bose would’ve advanced! NOPE!

 

A quality sound system can actually protect your hearing. You can play it at low levels and enjoy quality sound. The JBL system in the Tundra is too harsh/tinny on my ears, even at lower levels.

 

Mark Levinson in our Lexus vehicles are the best stock systems I have ever heard, especially in our IS350. It sounds like an aftermarket system was put in. I use to be an installer, when I was in college.

 

This is super important. You have to match the impedence, or your aftermarket speakers will sound worse. Too loud or to low.

 

For what it’s worth, here are the
Non-JBL specs
Dash speakers: 3-in Panasonic 8ohm 10 watt x3
Tweeters: 1-in Denso 4ohm 20 watt x2
Front doors: 6x8 (in 6x9 housing) Panasonic 4ohm 20 watt x2
Rear doors: 6.5in Pioneer 4ohm *watts not stated x2

 

Would the low wattage be a big reason for the low quality sound? I’d imagine it’s like a midget with a sore throat screaming in an opera house

 

the main culprit is the JBL/toyota tuning in my opinion . they think all the bass should come from the doors and not the sub. This is why it has a "mushy and/or muddled sound" like the reviewer in the video stated. I think they let the mid drivers roll off on their own , they need to be crossed over higher IMO, let the sub handle <80 hz

I wonder if this is what that plug and play box is doing, it may be correcting the tuning while leaving the stock components to get more separation and thats why it sounded clearer to him, it wasnt all muddle and jammed through the door speakers like JBL insists on doing.

my last tundra was the same way until I ripped it all out and went aftermarket everything of course.

 

Thanks for the pics. Very helpful .
I thought I could use these but not worth it.
Noticed the caps on the woofers. So the front doors do nothing else then handle all the bass. The head unit, non amplified only , puts out 15watts rms. Not sure on this but Im speculating as I seemed to read this somewhere.
The 9 speaker Tundras , non amplified would be really easy to upgrade. But you can’t keep any of the speakers. These are pretty much garbage.

The J&L XD amps, like XD1000, have line level inputs built in so you can keep you Factory 14” radio, run your speaker wires from the HU out to the amp and then back out of the amp into the factory speaker harness, then to your choice of speakers. 1 sub would be plenty in the Tundra.
Ideal location would be behind the rear seat .

If you can purchase the Taco tunes harness it would make things simple. Or make your own.

 

That is the best setting for the system here as well. I have the hi-pass crossover filter option set to 80hz on amplifier to let sub handle <80hz.

 

I have the 14” screen. It’s nice. The size I mean. Other then that the stock radio gives you almost nothing of value besides Apple CarPlay or android auto.
I just installed alpine f511 halo in my wife’s 2017 highlander. It’s a a 11” screen. Honestly , if I didn’t have the 14” screen, I would rip out the stock radio and put in the Alpine. I am envious of the amount of useful features in the highlander now. Way beyond what my 14” is offering. It has so much intergration with the OBD2 . I can use the screen for speedometer, tach, reading tire pressure and temp, check engine codes, adjust seat heat, etc, etc, and if I want I can plug in my phone to hdmi and mirror it on the screen to play whatever I have on the phone , no Belize box or whatever.

If you have a 8” stock radio, and thinking about upgrading. That would be a choice that you should start with.
The 14” screen is nice but even with that Im giving up a lot. Integrating it into a better sound system is easy but getting any additional functionality from it is zero.

 

The HU should do so much more than what it is right now. there is a lack of intergration with the vehicle computer. The new datalink maestro handles that much better nowadays, without going to the OBD2 directly. Maybe there will be a aftermarket adapter of some kind to utilize the 14” screen. Otherwise it’s just a nice looking CarPlay screen and nothing else.

I did notice with my wifes highlander that it is much louder and cleaner sound. thats with her stock speakers. The alpine unit doesn’t have that much power , only 18watts rms , but it is a very clean signal. I noticed that immediately.

 

The amplifiers are going to have high level inputs for factory wires but the signal isn’t going to be very clean and most lower level amplifiers aren’t going to have a DSP to clean it up. Have to be careful with relying on factory signaling from the head unit too as it starts to clip out around 45 on the volume knob.

Garbage in, garbage out basically so would at minimum consider something like an

$129 audiocontrol LC7i 6-channel line output converter with accubass

audiocontrol LC7i or an amplifier with DSP/stand alone DSP.
Someone is welcome to correct me if I am wrong but you also run into voltage issues if using high level inputs (speaker wires) as signal as you have up to 8v of power which may exceed some amplifiers limitations which can again induce early clipping.

this is why I “had” to go with an LC7i and amplifiers with DSP (JL Audio vx800/8i) on my build.

 

this is the way ^

when I put all my stuff back in this truck, JL 10" sub, 3 way focals, and 2 JL amps, I will add a stand alone DSP to flatten and clean the signal, then EQ to my taste

something also like a JL fix or JL tweak can work.

that way you keep the head unit but strip out all the JBL and toyota bullshit tuning, and put some power to a real set of speakers and sub

I had an aftermarket head unit in my 16 tundra, system sounded awesome, but this time around I want to keep the factory head unit as the screen is remarkably clear and fast but you have to do something with the signal if you want a really good sound