DIY stereo upgrade for under $500.00

[lateralis]

Finally found some time to finish hooking up the amp, LC2i and the sub. The trigger works as you guys said it would. I’m using the auto sense from the sub hi Levs into the LC2i and then triggering the amp from the LC2i. I just find it interesting if you even unlock the truck and open the back door and look at the equipment, it’s powered up. Even before you hit start, there is Signal out from the B&O kicking on my equipment. It seems to shortly power off however if the truck is not started or turned on for that matter. So all seems fine.

Like @smurfslayer said it's normal. The truck uses the stereo for door chimes and other alerts so it kicks it on.

 

[K223]

Thanks for confirmation. I was under that impression the system is used for so much, that it maybe normal. Things shut down properly, so I’m happy with it.

It turned out to be a pretty simple wiring job with the LC2i sharing and working off the Amp’s power and sharing the remote trigger.

Now to dial it in. And see what it brings. I was disappointed to find the factory enclosure to be of a ported design. Probably a last ditch effort in the design to get more bass response. However I don’t like ported designs.

 

[RobP]

Finally found some time to finish hooking up the amp, LC2i and the sub. The trigger works as you guys said it would. I’m using the auto sense from the sub hi Levs into the LC2i and then triggering the amp from the LC2i. I just find it interesting if you even unlock the truck and open the back door and look at the equipment, it’s powered up. Even before you hit start, there is Signal out from the B&O kicking on my equipment. It seems to shortly power off however if the truck is not started or turned on for that matter. So all seems fine.

Nice!

 

[ljn21]

Thanks for confirmation. I was under that impression the system is used for so much, that it maybe normal. Things shut down properly, so I’m happy with it.

It turned out to be a pretty simple wiring job with the LC2i sharing and working off the Amp’s power and sharing the remote trigger.

Now to dial it in. And see what it brings. I was disappointed to find the factory enclosure to be of a ported design. Probably a last ditch effort in the design to get more bass response. However I don’t like ported designs.

Any pics of your wiring and where you tapped into wiring? Initial thoughts even before dialing it in? Did you also dynomat the enclosure?

 

[DBRaptor]

I already upgraded and installed all 4 door speakers to the JL C2's on my new 2019 SCREW(6x9 front, 6.5 in the back). Dealer installed them as part of my negotiation. Love them but now I definitely want to install an amp and sub to power everything. I'm looking at a JL Stealthbox and XD amp, plus the Audiocontrol LCQ-1 and wiring on Crutchfield and it has me at $2700 (including wiring, kit etc).

I took the truck to an audio place by my house and they quoted me at $3700 all-in for the above including labor, taxes etc.

My question is how hard is this all to DIY? I'm not an electrician by any means, but I am pretty handy - I've been building PC's for 20 years, know my way around wiring house stuff etc. I just never did any of this on a car before. Looking to save the $1k if I can...

 

[Hush Car Audio]

You would get a much better price going through me just saying lol. I'll also help walk you through the process. If your truck has the B&O you'll need to bypass it entirely for a good sound. The LCQ-1 isn't what should be used if this is the case. Even if you don't have the B&O then you should use a better DSP to control all the sounds. PM me if interested. I can get you whatever for cheaper than Crutchfield.

 

[DBRaptor]

I do have the B&O - 19 SCREW 802A. I don't want to replace the HU.

The audio place by my house actually quoted me for a Fix86 not the audiocontrol. Crutchfield advisor recommended the Audiocontrol.

 

[smurfslayer]

Not to take anything away from Crutchfield, as I’ve had really positive experiences with them and found them very helpful and responsive.

That said, we have a really solid cadre of supporting vendors here on FRF. they’re spending time and effort answering questions on here, it’s at least worth a conversation.

My question is how hard is this all to DIY? I'm not an electrician by any means, but I am pretty handy - I've been building PC's for 20 years, know my way around wiring house stuff etc. I just never did any of this on a car before. Looking to save the $1k if I can...

Buy once, cry once. Go big, get extra of everything and yes, it can be done in the driveway. Count on battery home runs for power and ground, and have extra so you can make it fit properly.

Figure out how you will mount the amp(s) early. Make sure it will work. My very clever plan did not work out and I spent about 2.5 hours on mounting my amps correctly. FWIW, I failed to account for the change in available depth behind the seat as the seat is bottom is lowered from the up position.

Since you know PC’s and some house wiring, you know better than to severely bend, kink, knick, cut or otherwise compromise the conduit, but once you have connectivity, verify you have +12v and a good ground. Homeruns should take about 1-1.5 hours for an in the driveway install.

harnessing in the amp, mounting, probably an hour if your plan works out.
Once you have sound, you need to at least get it to “flat signal” to tune with. Once you’re at flat signal with gain set, you’re at least ok to listen to it and begin fine tuning. That part can take a while.

Whether this outlay is worth $1k to you, only you can answer. You build it, you own it. You farm it out, and there’s at least someone you can complain to when it doesn’t sound right.

I’m fairly handy with tools, so I did the install myself. So did a few of the rest of us. Lots of stuff on youtube as well.

good luck!

 

[dhmcfadin]

I do have the B&O - 19 SCREW 802A. I don't want to replace the HU.

The audio place by my house actually quoted me for a Fix86 not the audiocontrol. Crutchfield advisor recommended the Audiocontrol.

Both Crutchfield and that shop are wrong. If a shop is recommending ANYTHING other than the Zen a2b to integrate with the b&o system, you need to find another shop. Using the fix86 or any other device will require you to mutilate your factory harness and you still won’t get the necessary signal out of the system. If you have b&o, you need the NavTV Zen a2b. No other alternative. The a2b is 100% plug and play and completely removes the b&o amplifier and dsp. You will then have perfectly flat and full frequency signal for your system while maintaining all factory features, chimes, and alerts.

 

[Hush Car Audio]

Yeah I totally agree with dhmcfadin on this one as we have both worked on many, and I mean many many many F150s to get great sound out of these trucks. Crutchfield and your local shop are totally wrong on this and don't specialize on this platform hence them giving you bad info. The NavTV unit works great to bypass the factory garbage tuning. Once that is done you have so many options as what you may do.