Hi guys im new here.

Picked up the 200 last mon - time for a stereo upgrade already.....

I have read a fair bit on here so far. i realise there is a factory amplifier, behind the glove box? and from all accounts it is best to remove this as part of the install.

At this point i was planning on upgrading the head deck - probable to a double din screen set up. i have seen various fascias around - which brand or supplier (i have seen a few forum members names mentioned here) is the best match for the factory plastic finish and colour?

With the head deck upgrade i was going to add a 5 channel amp and a single sub. i was planning on running the factory speakers for a while.

I had a look at the rears - which appear to be 6x9. but they are listed as Wo2ohms and Sq4ohms - now im guessing this means they are classing the 2 ways as 2 different speakers.... What is the over all ohms load from this speaker? will i have problems with my aftermarket amps loading running these speakers?

The front speakers are splits. are these wired with a crossover like after market splits, or are they wired with the amp doing the crossover? or simply have an inline filter on the tweeters? What ohms load do these present?

Cheers
Stew

wow i didn't understand a question there (haha not a sound guru) but aparently the rear speakers are 2 speakers in 1 (so i heard) hence why we have 8 speakers in 6 positions. someone correct me if i'm wrong

HAHAHA, did it not make sense? or did you just not know what i was talking about... :D i'm pretty used to that.

Basically a speaker is a resistor - it resists the flow of electricity and creates noise... kinda like how a light globe produces light.

Resistance is measured in ohms.

Depending on how you wire speakers together, you can change the combined resistance. ie if you had 2 x 4ohm subs (4 ohms is a standard resistance for a speaker) and you wired the 2 subs together to one channel of an amplifier there are 2 ways of doing it.
1. series wiring - this is where the positive of one speaker goes to the negative of the other and onto the amp - this will show the amp a load of 8 ohms.

2. parallel wiring - the two positives are wired together and the 2 negatives are wired together of the speakers - this will show the amp a load of 2 ohms.

Now generally the lower the resistance (ohms) the more power the amp will make (it will draw more current to do this) and make your stereo loader. But not all amplifiers can handle being loaded this hard- particuarly the internal amplifiers in head units.

So bassically i am trying to figure out how the factory has it set up, so i can best design my new system.

Cheers
Stew

anyone????

ive picked the head deck...

really need to sort out the replacement fascia and the amp...

Cheers
Stew

If you want a Double DIN unit with a fascia kit that looks oem there really is no compromise with the toyota JDM double din item.

Ask Nick on this forum to price you one.

As for an amp your better of with 2 amps imo, one for the sub and one to drive your mid ranges.

hi mate,

thanks for the reply.

i think that i have found that i will need 2 amps - i was hoping to keep it down in size - but will struggle to fit it anywhere neat. even the 2 amps i had here would be very difficult to fit how i would like.

The toyota fascia - the that the one that is blank and you need to cut it out?

is it xnickx i need to harass from NZ?

Cheers
Stew

Depending on your budget you can go for some trick looking Alpine PDX amps they are very small and efficient cheap amps. I kinda wish I went with something as efficient and small and cheap as these instead of spending huge $ on my amps that take up half my bootspace :rolleyes:

Yes the toyota item needs to be modified but it matches the dash plastic grains perfectly whereas other brands imo look shit as the tone of the plastic is different and the gran is different also, which makes it look out of place and cheap in a lexus..(I posted up a DIY on this forum in the audio section)

Yes he is your man :)

The 2 rear speakers (on each side) are individually amped as far as I know - so you'd need a 4 channel amp to power them, which is capable of 2 ohms (and 4 ohms at the same time).

Best bet is to pick up some other 6x9s.

Sorry about the hijack, but i've been wondering..

PDX over audison lrx31k....
think its about 1200w @ 2 + 250 x 2 @ 4 A/B+D config.. for about 1.3K

The reason I ask is that unless its bought from a shop I can visit, warranty is kinda pointless, to an extent,
where as i'd prefer to stick with a audison/hertz (electrodynamics) combo as i'm not giving up my hertz Dual 4ohm 600w rms sub + there's future expadibility for another set of 250w rms spilts that can run on the 2 x 500w @ 2ohm A/B amping and a larger rms or 2x600w rms @ 4ohm subs in parralell.

Just my 2 c's worth here

.... i don't get the obsession with 6x9's in the rear of a car :wacko: when you have a perfectly good subwoofer just below to provide you with all the bass you should ever need.

surely a good pair of splits like what i have done (pic attached ) would suffice ?

and all of this fits below the factory grills.

i painted the custom bord baffles before refitting the parcel shelf.
clean tidy and best of all stealth :ph43r:

ok it appears the image fell off in the mail @#$^@%^@& work networks

will attempt to post later tonight

3rd time lucky

yeah i agree with having 2 sets of splits if you have a sub...

i was looking at the factory amp today - do people normally take it out or just disconnect it?

as i see it, it is kind of used as a bracket to support the glove box - it seems flimsier with it unbolted.

Cheers
Stew

I have a set of soundstreams in the front due to the somewhat shallow door space, and those huuuge older alpines in the rear and went whole hog new head unit and a 4 chanel amp.

Gave the whole factory system a miss and just unplugged where i could and used a breakout loom to make it easier to refit everything for a later date when we decide to upgrade to a new model (maybe a lexus next time).

i understand wanting to use the factory gear as a "cheaper" option but... as you can read here and through other lexus forumsit can be more work than it's worth.

running new wires out to the doors was so easy to thread through with the factory wires.

spending a few dollars now will save you a lot of hastle in the long run.

again just my 2c worth of opinion

Just installed my avic-hd3 a couple weeks ago with a set of jl zr 650 splits, next month comes the xxx-15's ;) If you need any wiring help or general questions about the install pm me its fresh in my head :)

80mil fatmat ~1-4 layers through the whole cabin.

wow looks awesome trust you are going for a full custom job then ?

i'm currently trying to figure out the best way of mounting my 2 SL12 kickers currently rear facing i 1 cube foot boxes

thinking i will have to give the spare tyre a miss and build into the tyre well.

Someone on the NZICE forums recommended to me to use Soundsteam SST6.9 with the tweeters disconnected if you have to use a 6x9" for rear fill. Sounds good in theory, haven't got that far in building my system yet. Took me 4 months to get around to install the head unit so who knows how long it'll take me to get around to the speakers.

http://www.mobileelectronics.com.au/

HIGHLY recomend this site. I learned everything I needed to know about car audio from these guys and because of this I had one of the best sounding camry's in NSW. It won 3 SQ competitions and was just a dream to listen to. That was a long time ago...

I wont give anyone tips and trick cuz Im no where near as qualified as some of these guys but I know a fair bit being an electronics tec :D If i can help I will.

panasonic subs and amps any good for an is200/?

how long is a peice of string ?

We each have our opinions about what is best but it comes down to what sounds good to you and how much you can afford.

When it comes down to it and you are locked into a budget take 10-15 % off for wires etc and buy the best you can afford. Ask questions listen to the answers and test drive (listen take music you are familiar with) where you can.

For me, i have a mix of alpine rears (pic above) soundstream fronts and two kicker 12 inch square subs. sounds awesome to me(and will sound better when it's finished). but you may not like it.

no one regrets buying quality :D

Hi guys,

Firstly i'd like to give a huge thanks to LEXISM, he has sent me heaps of info on this install.

its done - bar the sub.... though the wiring is done for the sub amp.

I'll answer my original questions from the start of this thread in case someone comes here looking for it....

The factory system is quite a strange set up. most systems are based around 4 ohm loads for speakers (sub setups vary).

as you know the factory system has an amp behind the glove box. the power and illumination swtches etc for the head deck in my car were wired via this amplifier - ie remove it and all the power goes....

The front speakers are splits and have a very basic crossover located behind the tweeter up on the pillar. the signal from the amp goes to the tweeter first, then back to the mid range speaker.

the rear speakers are a strange set up. they ARE wired as two seperate speakers - a 2ohm 6x9 woofer, and a 4 ohm high range (about 2 in). the smaller one actually sits on a metal basket above the woofer. The reason for the woofer being 2ohm is to get more power from the amp (the lower the ohm, the greater the power generally) this is partly why the factory system has reasonable bass. the is a crossover in the amp that splits the signal and sends it seperately back to these speakers.
i believe there is a big risk running these speakers of an aftermarket headunit - depending on how it is wired.
a 2ohm load could well burn out the small internal amp in a head deck.

if you were to remove this and just run the small speaker - i think it would sound horrible - my recomendation would be to swap the rear speakers at the same time as the head deck.

I have heaps of pics and stuff to follow soon.

Cheers
Stew

Thank you explaining that stew! every time i say to a friend when were looking at the sound system that the rears go dodgy with an aftermarket they say what would lexus people know about their own cars! >.<

so what gear did you end up putting in??


also BMYGRL panasonic is rubbish lol.. PM me your budget and ill get you a good stereo that cranks

No worries,

i have been around stereos for years now, and i reackon the install is well over half the final product. ie - good gear poorly installed sounds average. cheap gear installed well can actually sound ok.

As said earlier no one regrets quality... i have had nothing to do with panasonic so cant comment on that myself.

I did do an install in a mates hiace years ago.... kenwood deck, some front splits, cheaper jbl 6x9, california gold subs (cheap stuff from ages ago) and a 5 channel amp (crossfire i think). but i had heaps of room for a massive box (2 cubic foot each for a 12in sub.... recomended by the shop he got it from) integrated 6x9 into the box in their own internal boxes etc - it sounded really good for the dollars it cost.
put many of the strathfield done cars of the day to shame (perspex boxes etc - big dollar installs and gear).

so the moral to the story is to think carefully about what you are buying and where you are going to install it...


As for my system - i got a pioneer 4050 dvd/screen headunit. kicker 4 channel amp, a set of pioneer splits i had aside for my other car mounted in the back under the lexus grills. i left the factory fronts in there for the time being - i pulled off the trims - they were easy enough to get to later, and they sound quite good off the after market deck and amp. i did have another set of pioneer splits to put in there - but that can wait.
I also have wired up the boot ready for the sub. i have a 800wrms mono in my shed i may loan to this car depending on the sub i go with - im thinking a jl w3 at the moment. Any suggestions???? chasing something with decent punch, but very tight.

As it is i was very impressed with the sound quality. i had the amp crossed over at around 80hz and was still amazed at the low end response. heaps of grunt from the kicker amp and that new head deck is a joy to use.

Cheers
Stew

gotta say my kicker L7's in a cubic foot box (thats the recomended sealed enclosure size !!! and that's external dimensions !!! ) kick real hard if they are asked to :) .

For the lexus, having a small boot, I would recommend a Boston Acoustics G512 (if you can afford it but your looking at a w7 so....) as they have been known to be the best sub on the market for small enclosures.

They are factory rated at a 1cft enclosure and they are more suited to fast mild (around 40Hz) bass. Perfect for a variety of music and are very responsive. Pretty sure they are rated 350WRMS (true rms measured myself).

But if you want to sacrifice some room for some mega deep punchy bass obviously go ported. It requires 2cft but you would be sacrificing quality for spl. I wouldn't recommend it not saying they are bad in a ported config, I'm saying all subs enclosed in ported boxes have trouble with response and its the trade of of SQ for SPL.

They have the ability also to use a tunable radiator. This basically resonates at the same frequency as the sub to produce a higher spl without sacrificing quality or space. It can be configured to various settings (frequency response tuning!) you just need to place the radiator in the same sealed enclosure as the sub and wolla! Spending days and hours tuning the resonance of the sub enclosure will kill you with this set up but this is what won me comps and gave me crystal bass. HIGHLY RECOMMEND!

What I liked about this sub the most was its ability to be able to easily configure the input impedance. 2ohm, 4ohm even 1ohm if your daring! Being in Newcastle you can easily go check out these subs at your leisure at NPS in jesmond. dont let the guys talk you into anything cuz they will point you in the direction of the sony rack cuz it makes them more money but have a good listen to the range of boston gear!

Have fun!

He was looking at the JL W3 winnie which is less then half the cost of a W7 as you would know :)

What type of enclosure are you going to go with stew?

it will be a sealed box. i was planning on fitting it between the towers against the seat.

yeah i was think w3...

what kind of dollars are you talking for some of the others.

i must admit almost all my experience is first hand - i havent been to shows or anything like that. so i just like what i like - have seen a few stereos etc...

i would like to have a listen to something like yours shane to see just how good they can be. see how much difference i can see for the extra cash.

Cheers
Stew

No worries mate, where in Newwy do you live?

I must admit my install is only half finished and still looks kinda shabby, and I'm yet to get a final tune (been to lazy too drive back down to FHRX) after the system was run in for a few hundred hrs (the gains on the amps are turned way down)

By memory my JL 10W7 was around $1K, but is a custom order from the usa through the jl audio oz distributor. For some reason they only stock the 12W7 ($1200) & 13W7 ($1500) n Oz.

The boston G512 is about $700 (510 is about $600)

hahahha here come the excuses..... i just stirrin mate....

Should see my 300rwkw 1jz celica in my shed... i'd take ya for a spin, but i have the motor out at the moment..... hehehe (actually do have one with the motor out... 300kw is yet to be confirmed lol)

That would be awesome shane - i'm at shortland, so not too far from anywhere really. i dont even work mon, tue, wed or thurs of next week (but do work this sat and sun night - last ones though, had enough of night shifts!)

those subs are a bit dearer than i was planning.... well have to see.

Cheers
Stew

Haha yeah I'm a bit of a 'neat freak' with my car, and not having the system finished annoys me @ times! A mate of mine who is a cabinet maker was going to make me up a a false floor etc to mount the amps into, but he is always too busy and most shops want crazy prices to make something like this up :( (the current amp rack takes up too bootspace)



Hmm would love to go for a spin in that :D

Shorty isn't far from where I work (5 mins away) Can definately catch up tues-Thurs next week, providing I dont ride my bike to work :)

Hmm yeah high end audio is fkn expensive! my system started well rather snowballed when my stock headunit died on me. I just figured it's a lexus I should only install the best components in my car.

sweet....
Sounds like a plan.

looks neat mate - love the sub install. the amp rack does take up alot of room back there!!!!
the missus is stoked about haveing a car with room - so im not allowed to take it all. thats why i have one amp under the seat.... one less to fit in the boot. lol

anyone got an opinion on the alpine type X subs?

there is a cheap looking one on ebay at the moment.....

I must admit I havent listened to a type x woofer but this fool loves his:

Alpine Type X

Haha love what he says in the end :D

Oh really w3 lol my bad so your not up for a reference sub but FYI the g5 is not really that exp anymore RYDA kudos for using FHRX studios one of the best installers in the country!

If your not spending big money on reference type subs (big [f**k] of high rms and really clean audio :P) I recommend using a G312. Basically the same as a G5 but less power and not as crisp but still bloody awesome for bang to buck and can still use the same sort of enclosures including the same tunable radiator ecy its just a step down Im pretty sure NPS has some on display but I'll put my name to them any day of the week. Give FHRX a call and see how much they can get one in for definetly worth it!


AS with the type X they are a good sub but are grosly overpriced for what they are Id be sticking to your guns with some unknown brands that every man and his dog hasnt got for bang for buck. JL audio, Boston acustics, Focal...

i am not meaning to offend any one here.. but the way our cars are setup they are rubbish for SPL.. doesnt matter what subs you have in the boot.. SPL is a different setup than street any way... so if its a good mixture of bass and sound you want ( rather than just bass like in SPL testing ) you should look at the MTX Range of subs.

alpine gear USED to be good..if you looking for good price Vs quality Vs boot space... you should look at the MTX range of subs.. you wont be dissapointed..

u sound like a strathfield salesman now...

What about boston? :P

http://z4.invisionfree.com/lexusaltezzaclu...wtopic=8146&hl=

hahaah ill stick with my jl zr650's thanks ;)

Lol, that guy is very speshal.... maybe i should avoid the type x if that is what would happen to me....

there was one on ebay with a start price of $350....

What MTX subs do you like???

The G5 boston looks good. i do like the look of the jl series - look real classy. i was even considering one of their factory boxes.

http://www.ryda.com.au/JL-Audio-W3-12-Encl...o112rdgw3v3.htm

I have only ever built my own boxes. what do people think of some of the factory ones now?

Cheers
Stew