Replacing the factory sound system

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schabj3

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Fort Mill, SC
Looking to replace the stock stereo on 2006 X. Full disclosure - I've never had a stereo swapped out in any vehicle before so I'm a noob.

Not looking to upgrade speakers, just the stereo deck area with the AM/FM and single CD. Possibly something with Sirius XM? I really have no clue what good options there are these days.

Any suggestions are appreciated.
 
Crutchfield can be a helpful source. I prefer Kenwoods myself, but there are several good options with SeriusXM, Bluetooth, etc. Most aftermarket HU's will also give added power for the speakers. 25watts RMS X 4 is not uncommon.
 
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bobthetj03 said:
Crutchfield can be a helpful source. I prefer Kenwoods myself, but there are several good options with SeriusXM, Bluetooth, etc. Most aftermarket HU's will also give added power for the speakers. 25watts RMS X 4 is not uncommon.
Click to expand...
Sorry, you lost me at HU (hookup?), 25watt, RMS, and X 4... lol...
 
schabj3 said:
Thoughts on this: https://www.bestbuy.com/site/jvc-bu...-media-receiver-black/6395739.p?skuId=6395739
or
this: https://www.bestbuy.com/site/pionee...ia-dvd-receiver-black/6328679.p?skuId=6328679

Would appreciate thoughts on fitment, etc. First one is inexpensive with good reviews. Second is more expensive with more bells and whistles. Best Buy says both would fit the X.
Click to expand...
Neither one of those will fit your dash panel. Those are a double din style, and you'd need a bezel to fit that style.

Start here:

https://www.crutchfield.com/car/outfitmycar/mycar.aspx
 
I think I agree that best “no frills” option is to stick with single din.

Pioneer makes one that has a pop up screen but looks like it’d interfere with vents, and kind of looks tacky - not a flush fit.

Thanks again.
 
schabj3 said:
Looking to replace the stock stereo on 2006 X. Full disclosure - I've never had a stereo swapped out in any vehicle before so I'm a noob.

Not looking to upgrade speakers, just the stereo deck area with the AM/FM and single CD. Possibly something with Sirius XM? I really have no clue what good options there are these days.

Any suggestions are appreciated.
Click to expand...
As previously suggested, Crutchfield will make it easy. I would suggest also getting some Polk DB series speakers to replace the old stock garbage.
 
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schabj3 said:
I think I agree that best “no frills” option is to stick with single din.

Pioneer makes one that has a pop up screen but looks like it’d interfere with vents, and kind of looks tacky - not a flush fit.

Thanks again.
Click to expand...
Here's what a double din looks like installed. It's a 1 hr or so job.

I chose an Alpine head unit but there are many out there that fit your needs.

I upgraded the speakers as well.

1640709655698.jpeg


1640709832870.jpeg


Crutchfield includes everything you need and even has video's on their site if you get stuck.

1640709747385.jpeg
 
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I'm about to do a double din set up myself and have been looking at pioneer and Kenwood. If I were you I would get the JVC.

The PO burned a hole in my center dash and I was just going to replace it and I was going to get a single din. However, my mother in law bought me a double din center display by accident so I'm locked in now. The dash isn't to terribly priced and I now think ddin is the way to go if you are upgrading.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B078RVVK64/?tag=wranglerorg-20
 
If you're not concerned about having "Carplay" and don't want a double din, look at something like this.....

https://www.crutchfield.com/p_113KDCX704/Kenwood-Excelon-KDC-X704.html?tp=5684
It plays cd's, it has bluetooth and you can stream Pandora/Spotify with your Apple/Android phone.
Pair it up with a set of Polk speakers and you would be GTG.

I find no reason to have XM/Sirius when there is Pandora/Spotify.
 
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williambmac said:
If you're not concerned about having "Carplay" and don't want a double din, look at something like this.....

https://www.crutchfield.com/p_113KDCX704/Kenwood-Excelon-KDC-X704.html?tp=5684
It plays cd's, it has bluetooth and you can stream Pandora/Spotify with your Apple/Android phone.
Pair it up with a set of Polk speakers and you would be GTG.

I find no reason to have XM/Sirius when there is Pandora/Spotify.
Click to expand...
This happens to be the one I purchased. Install was pretty easy.

Funny story - couldn’t get reception from the antenna. Called Crutchfield support. Guy had no clue how to help me.

Turns out I connected one end of the antenna adapter to the receiver, and the other end to the original antenna. Then never made the connection to the exterior antenna. The seek button found zero stations until I made the final connection.
 
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I recently did the audio upgrade and am pretty happy with it. If I could do it again I would have used component speakers for front and rear. The front speakers are really low so having tweeters on the dash would have helped even out the sound in my opinion. I like most replaced the factory sub (which was badly blown) with a Kicker 6.75" subwoofer and external Kicker amp. Definitely more bass than before but the mid range is lacking. I should have put the Kicker sub in an enclosure & placed it in the trunk vs. putting it in the center console. The blown factory sub should have been retained but replaced with a cheap $25 Amazon sub to bring the midrange back.

  1. Component speakers (front and rear)
  2. Factory subwoofer replaced (not really a sub, more like midrange speaker to be honest)
  3. Kicker sub in proper enclosure placed in trunk
 
I’m actually looking for a high power HU option now since the MEXGS820BT option I was looking at (with 45watt RMS X 4 channel) is no longer available…. Trying to avoid needing an external amp for my speakers (other than the sub I’m thinking of installing)

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