Last week I was able to get all of the new audio components installed. It definitely felt good to make a little progress on something and the finished product sounds fantastic. As mentioned in my above posts the components consisted of Polk DB 4x6 and 5.25" speakers in the dash and sound bar, a Pioneer MVH-1400NEX double din Apple Carplay receiver and a Kicker 6.75" sub in the factory center console along with a 200 watt Kicker amp.
I'm extremely happy with all of the components as the speakers don't clip at higher volumes and stay clear through the ranges, the receiver is fantastic and the Kicker sub and amp add the perfect amount of low end bass for this setup and my listening style. If I were to change anything right now it may be to buy a pair of the 5.25" speaker pods for the front dash area and swap out the 4x6 speakers for another set of 5.25" Polks. The sound bar definitely overpowers the front speakers to the point where I can't distinctly hear them in the sound field. This may change once I've had a chance to play with settings and sound field adjustments but if it doesn't the swap may happen at some point to satisfy my curiosity.
Here is a shot of the Kicker sub mounted in the factory inclosure. I used a Dremel with a cutoff wheel to remove interior plastic material to allow this sub to mount flush in to the enclosure.I also used a silicone caulk to close up a few small holes that were left from removing some of the factory heatsink parts. This is a dual 1ohm voice coil model that I'm running at 0.5ohm with the Kicker amp that is rated at 200watts at 0.5ohm. Again, it sounds great in the jeep.
This is a shot of the Kicker amp. Its a relatively small, lightweight model that was created most likely for use in UTVs (Razrs, Commanders etc) and this allowed me to hide it up inside of the dash. I could have just set it behind the glovebox without it really moving but I ended up mounting it to a metal plate that is directly above the glovebox opening. The surface is flat and almost the perfect size to hold the amp. To keep it in place I used 3m heavy duty adhesive tape. I usually keep a roll of this stuff in my toolbox and have had great success in using it over the years to mount things that I didn't want to move unless I wanted them to.
The Pioneer MVH-1400NEX was a great choice for me. I've become a big fan of Apple Carplay as its in my daily driver F-150 and this unit also included a small speaker for the hands free calling and Siri as well as full control for the subwoofer attached as well as SiriusXM. The screen is capacitive instead of resistive so the response time and feel is pretty much identical to my iPhone. My neighbor next door who has a 2002 TJ liked it so much that he ordered one the other day to replace his single din Pioneer receiver. The double din installation wasn't too bad once I researched a few other how-tos and videos. It did require for me to break out the Dremel again to remove a plastic support bracket for the factory radio that was between the AC controls and stock radio opening. Once it was out I was able to easily slide in and mount the new double din receiver. I did have to do a little plastic soldering to reuse the OEM top dash piece but it went without a hitch and I went ahead and installed a Daystar storage piece on top.
Here is a shot of the microphone placement for handsfree calling and voice commands. I tested it out with the wife while the front of the soft top was open and the windows were down and she could hear me clearly.
For now I decided to run the USB connection for Apple Carplay under the center console/shifter area and have it come out by the emergency brake. This allows me to connect a lightning cable to it and its right by the cupholders which comes in handy for holding your phone.
When I installed the 5.25" Polk DB speakers in the overhead sound bar I ended up overtightening the factory speaker grills which caused the screw heads to break through their mounting holes. I opted to grab some extra screws and mount the included Polk speaker grills in their place. I rotated them a bit to allow me to drill new holes once they were centered over the opening. (The grill looks not centered in the picture but it's just from the angle I took it)
Again I'm extremely happy with the component choices and am really enjoying the sound this LJ can now put out. The ability to have Apple Carplay and handsfree calling also brings a very functional modern touch to this platform without having to get too involved in modifications to accomplish it.
