A customer from Baltimore, Maryland came to WSS Westminster Speed & Sound recently to get his windows tinted in his 2012 Dodge Durango. While it was there we noticed that someone had changed out the front speakers. We asked the customer about that and he explained that he was in the middle of doing a sound quality audio upgrade in his vehicle. We asked him what he had done so far and he mentioned just the front speakers. We asked him what he was doing next and he told us the shop he used was going to add new rear speakers, a 5 channel amp to power the front and rear speakers, and install his subwoofer from a previous vehicle. We asked him if the shop that was doing the work understood how his factory navigation radio talked to his factory amplifier, and he told us this shop was going to eliminate his factory amp. We then proceeded to tell him that he should consider NOT using this shop as they did not understand the layout of the system very well. We now had his attention.
The Other Shop Just Didn’t Understand The Dodge Durango Audio System
We explained that he would not be able to get enough volume for his Bluetooth for phone calls or enough volume for his voice prompts from the navigation system if he removed the factory radio. We said that we knew how to properly integrate with the factory amplifier. We had him thinking. So he went back to the other shop, asked several questions, and decided to come back and talk to us as we understood the Alpine premium system in his Durango.
More Efficient Use Of Amplifiers and Speakers = Better Sound
We then rocked his world again by explaining that we suggested NOT doing rear speakers and using a 5 channel amplifier that could run the front speakers in an active configuration. We explained that this would sound better and his money outlay would actually be lower. He then decided to take some of the money we were saving him and add one of our JL Audio subwoofer enclosures which would take up very little space. He is a drummer and uses all of the space in the back when he is carrying his equipment from show to show. He liked the solution we offered him and an appointment was scheduled.
Audio Control and Hertz Interface Perfectly With This Dodge
We left his 6.5” components that were installed in the front doors already. We used an AudioControl LC6i to integrate with the factory Alpine amplifier. This device allowed us to get a full range signal by summing the 6 discrete channels of sound coming out of the Alpine amplifier. From there we ran the signal into a Hertz HDP5 amplifier. As you can see from the pictures, the amplifier is very compact. We were able to remove the factory subwoofer that was no longer being used and hid these two pieces of electronics in that spot. That way he lost zero trunk space. The HDP5 amplifier uses a sophisticated crossover network, allowing us to use discrete amplifier channels for the subwoofer, woofers, and tweeters. This gives us much finer control over the sound, and the clarity skyrockets.
JL Audio Provides The Bass Without Losing Precious Space
We used a JL Audio enclosure with a 12TW3 woofer. It uses a very small enclosure. We gave the customer extra speaker wire so he could move the subwoofer around depending upon how much equipment he was carrying that day. To finish it all off we installed a bass level control in the front of the vehicle in a convenient location so he could control how much bass he had in any given song.
A Very Happy Musician
When the customer came to pick up the vehicle, he was all smiles. I started demonstrating some of his music and he just kept bobbing his head and smiling. I think that picture just painted a thousand words. If you own a Dodge, Chrysler, or Jeep with the premium sound system and you want it to sound better, stop by or contact us here. Let us put our decades of experience to work for you and then you will be driving down the road smiling and bobbing your head to the music. Feel free to stop in, give us a call or Contact Us today!
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