This 2007 Jeep Rubicon came in for a bit of an audio upgrade and receive and unexpected overhaul. Many times we like to look at our client’s vehicle during a free consultation to see what may already be installed, how we may need to integrate new product and whether additional upgrades are required to achieve the desired results. In some cases, such as this, we are not able to truly see how much additional work we will need to put into the installation until the trim panels and existing components are removed.
Here we will cover some of the procedures that we use at LIS Audio to achieve a proper and reliable installation while also showing what not to do. Some of the differences will be blatant and others somewhat subtle but I will go into detail as to why we do things the way choose to. The before pictures you will see were performed by a local “professional” audio shop, which I will breakdown a bit for you to help if you are not able to clearly see the issues in the pictures. Here is a list of the product were agreed upon for installation in this vehicle for this client.
Products
- JVC Touchscreen Stereo
- DS18 EXL 6.5” Component Speakers
- DS18 GEN X 6.5” Coaxial Speakers
- Kenwood 800W 5 Channel Amplifier
- T-Spec V10 OFC Amplifier Wiring Kit & RCA’s
- DS18 GEN X 12” Subwoofer
- Custom LIS Audio Subwoofer Enclosure
Lets start by taking a look at the previous stereo installation situation and compare it to how it sits now. The client did not like the previous stereo, which was a bit out dated, so we decided to install a new JVC touchscreen in its place. As you can see once we removed the already installed stereo there was a bit of a mess of wires around the integration module in the dash. We removed the previously used harness and stereo and returned them to the client, along with the rest of the removed components.
Before 
Before
After 
After
We reorganized the wiring and installed our new wires in a much more organized manner. If for any reason, an automotive tech needs to pull the dash apart for repairs, having clean organized wires will insure that everything goes back together with ease the first time. We also integrated the already installed Alpine back-up camera into the new JVC stereo and also reinstalled the wire from the system that ran through the vehicle over the carpet and panels. It has a much more factory look now.
Before 
Before
Before 
After
We removed the aftermarket 6.5” coaxial speakers from the dash and remove the tweeters from the dash as well. This combination wasn’t the most ideal seeing as how there were tweeters located on the coaxial speakers as well as at the top of the dash creating a much too prominent amount of high frequency output. You can also see that wiring of the previously installed tweeter crossovers were very poorly connected and improperly mounted. As well as the tweeters themselves begin loose in the factory positions.
Before 
After
Before 
After
We added the components set to the dash speaker and tweeter locations to create stage separation. Tweeters operate more efficiently in line of sight rather than down lower on the dash, which made using coaxial speakers below somewhat redundant. You can also see that we mounted the crossovers properly and made the tweeters look much cleaner utilizing the factory mounting positions. We decided to add coaxial speakers to the sound bar overhead as well for the rear passengers.
The entire system is power off of one 5 Channel marine grade amplifier so that our client won’t have to worry about a bit of moisture making its way into the jeep. Installing the amplifier under the front seat keeps it out of the way and allows for the subwoofer in the rear to be easily pulled in and out leaving a single wire and quick disconnect. Having the amplifier tucked away also keeps it safe from projectiles and keeps the wires protected.
In the rear we wanted to add a 12” subwoofer and enclosure. We built a custom LIS Audio enclosure to help maximize the subwoofers performance and efficiency more than a traditional prefabricated box would. Build the enclosure also allowed us to make it fit in the hatch area with plenty of functional room to spare. Building a properly tuned and sized custom ported enclosure like this one will most certainly allow the subwoofer to play louder at specific frequencies.
Due to the fact that we wired everything up correctly and installed wires properly there is nothing for the client to worry about, and if the installation is taken care of it should last for the extent of the vehicles life. This Jeep now sounds great and is ready to hit the trails and do some off-road tailgating!
Thank you for reading our LIS Audio Blog. Stay Tuned for next month to see which build or installation makes the next feature. Who knows… it could be yours!!
Contact LIS Audio if you have any questions…
Phone: 913-912-6990
Email: info@lisaudio.com
Address: 631 S. A-Line Dr, Spring Hill, KS, 66083
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