Car audio. Help! Petrol head EDUGEEKERS!

[Koldov]

Hi All,

 

I bought my GF a second hand '03 Peugeot 307s last year, but have to admit the audio is really poor and the speakers distort.

 

Does anyone have any idea about upgrading this? She has her heart set on an amp & sub, but I thought a speaker upgrade would sound better in general.

 

Trouble is after much researching I find my self going round in circles, as some people say speaker upgrades won't help or in fact will sound worse due to the poor factory head. The fact that it's pre-set with power output and EQ.... In fact some say the factory speakers would sound OK with a new head!

 

I'm not sure a sub is a good way to go as surely although this will give it a heavy bass, the car speakers will still sound rubbish and distort at reasonable levels won't they?

 

I really want to sort this out by xmas as a present but money is tight so trying to get a decent sound for minimum spend.

 

Kol.

[synaesthesia]

You'll probably get more from just upgrading the head unit and some decent speakers. That way, going away from the OEM unit you're free to explore amps and subs if she so wishes, either immediately or further on down the road. You don't even have to spend much these days to get something that sounds nice, £80-£100 for an mp3 head unit and same again for a couple of pairs of speakers depending on how the car is set up.

[ZeroHour]

I would also consider a new head unit first, its the heart of the whole system and feeds the amp. I actually have a Pioneer singe cd head unit kicking around here (plays mp3's on a cd as well) but not sure whats involved in switching out factory head's if you have the whole moulded dash thing, I presume normal slots are just hidden behind but never had the issue myself.

Does the GF use iphone for music much? maybe a bluetooth one would be useful then you can consider a mic lead for handfree calls and music. You also have GPS options too with some but that may be overkill.

Halfords were pretty good for advise and installs but that was years ago, its certainly somewhere you can go and try out a few combo's of head units and speakers but ideally bring a cd and ipod to try your own music on it.

[Koldov]

Thanks guys,

 

The factory head unit swap out to fit an aftermarket head is a bit of a pig from what I can gather. It will probably only add to the cost, due to needing an auto electrician to fit it as it also has a steering wheel control and a dashboard display, which need extra adaptors.

 

This from a Peugeot forum:

 

You will however have to buy an adaptor set to get your stalk working again. for peugeot 307 you will need Autoleads PC99-X44 and a patch lead. the patch leads are different for each make, sony and pioneer are PC99-Son etc. You will also lose the display info on your top display regarding radio station, track number etc.

 

Plus there will need to be a blanking plate or something for the disc changer, which is also rubbish...

 

Am I right in thinking that there has to be some specific connectors on the head to connect an amp for a sub? Something like RCA's?

 

Kol.

Edited December 16, 2013 by Koldov

[Norphy]

I agree, upgrade the head unit first. I had a Mk1 Ford Focus a couple of years ago which had a god-awful sound system. I was planning on changing the whole system, i.e. swapping the head unit and getting the door panels off and replacing the speakers. I replaced the head unit first (I wanted iPod connectivity, that was more important at that point) and was surprised at what a difference it made. I didn't bother replacing the speakers in the end but I did get rid of the car a few months later, I think I must have got a Friday afternoon special.

[twin--turbo]

The autoleads kit will make it dead simple wiring wise.

 

And yes the amp output is on RCA's

 

Rob

[Sirbendy]

Mm. Jems Fabia has had a PO that decided to upgrade the stock speakers..they're all iffy, badly fitted, badly wired with bell wire (!), and to add insult to injury the stock Symphony head unit was replaced (again badly) with a Goodmans CD/MP3 unit, and 4 yards of wiring and adapters that caused it to not sit in the dash.

 

The Goodmans went in the bin, which IMHO is the best final location for them. The wiring got rejigged, and I bought and fitted a BEAT175 Head Unit with SD/USB capability..a £30 Amazon Far east wonder. I also have one fitted to the Astra. Decent little units, lots of power, no moving parts.

 

Still got to find time to rerun all the speaker wires, and I want to go scrappy raiding in 2014 to find a Golf/Polo with a stock speaker set and fit those back to the Fabia. God knows where they sourced the units in it, they're AWFUL.

[newpersn]

Im guessing the 307 is fitted with door speakers and tweeters up in the dash?

 

Change headunit first. This dose make the difference. (Clio i got now had the stranded Philips stereo and door speakers/tweeters. Change the unit to my Kenwood unit and sounds much better)

[fiza]

@Koldov - I have an 02' 307. I swapped out the Head unit for a Sony MEX BT2600. Not the greatest unit in the world but it has MP3 and is bluetooth so gives me hands free for the phone. I left the CD Changer in place so that the new head unit fitted in the 1 DIN slot vacated by the original head unit.

 

I got the Stalk Adaptor from http://www.dynamicsounds.co.uk/connects2-ctspg007-peugeot-207-307-308-407-807-stalk-control-adaptor-p-8851.html

 

Didnt bother with the display adaptor as I didnt feel I needed it.

 

Sounds good with the standard speakers but then again I dont crank it up so the whole world can hear it!!!

Edited December 17, 2013 by fiza

[3s-gtech]

I can only echo what has previously been said. Nice new headunit (the last place to scrimp IMO, look for the the features you want but in a trusted brand that tend to have better SQ, build quality and servicing). Then move on to getting some sound deadening around and behind the front speakers (this can transform stock speakers alone). Next job is some good quality replacement speakers - usually components are designed to be separately amped so decent co-ax may be your first port of call depending on what's fitted as standard. After that, an amp and sub should be on your list - a sub isn't just for bass heads! A small, discretely fitted sub can do wonders for your system, doesn't need to take up the entire boot. From there - depends how far you want to go! You can make big improvements to your setup for £150 or so all in, but it's easy to get carried away too. One of my previous cars had £1500 worth of audio in it, and it was still comparatively modest...

 

The best car audio advice IMO can be found at the TalkAudio forums.

[newpersn]

@Koldov - I have an 02' 307. I swapped out the Head unit for a Sony MEX BT2600. Not the greatest unit in the world but it has MP3 and is bluetooth so gives me hands free for the phone. I left the CD Changer in place so that the new head unit fitted in the 1 DIN slot vacated by the original head unit.

 

I got the Stalk Adaptor from Connects 2 CTSPG007 - Peugeot 207, 307, 308, 407, 807 Stalk Control Adaptor

 

Didnt bother with the display adaptor as I didnt feel I needed it.

 

I think its only sonys and some alpine head units work with the display

[Andrew_C]

I'll differ.

 

Check that the speakers aren't actually damaged. Over driven with melted lacquer on the windings will make it sound vile. If they are, no money spent on the head/ amp will make the slightest difference.

 

Further, I would suggest that spending money on "moving parts", ie speakers, will return the biggest improvement in ANY sound system.

 

Wahtever you do, working on a French car, you will need an extra joint surgically implanted between your elbow and wrist. Fun it is not!

[twin--turbo]

usually components are designed to be separately amped so decent co-ax may be your first port of call depending on what's fitted as standard..

 

Components usualy come with a passive crossover, all 4 sets I have kicking arround do.

 

Rob

[broc]

Autoleads & Connects2 do a range of fascia plate adapters to convert factory radio apertures to single & double DIN along with the leads for converting wiring harnesses & connecting steering wheel controls. I swapped out a Peugeot Boxer radio in my motorcaravan & replaced it with a double DIN JVC multimedia unit and connected it to the steering wheel controls, it works a treat. The cables are generally radio vendor specific... JVC, SONY, Kenwood etc. It should be 'plug & play' with the right leads

[3s-gtech]

Components usualy come with a passive crossover, all 4 sets I have kicking arround do.

 

Rob

 

Of course, but the sensitivity drop and impedance (they're often closer to 5 or 6 ohms in use) of components compared to coax usually mean that you won't get the best out of them from a headunit - I have seen many examples where they were inferior and certainly quieter than standard coax. Andrew_C is quite right too - nothing will help if your standard speakers are mullered. I found the OEM fit ones in a 306 would take serious punishment though, not sure about the 307.

 

If you choose to run fresh speaker wires to the doors on a Peugeot; be prepared to swear, remove all skin from your hands, and generally not enjoy the experience.

[nikaso]

One option is to look for any upgraded OEM units from the same range, you sometimes get multi-tiers of ICE in a range from the bog basic to BOSE etc. If it's an OEM unit it should be a straightforward swap.

[Dos_Box]

Some pretty sound advice from everyone so far.

I'd just add that if you do get a decent head unit (which can be had for very little these days) then don't spoil it by getting a sub fitted. if you want good audio quality then the sound padding on doors and a good set of speakers will make your journeys far more enjoyable than muffling everything with bass.

I got some Focal speakers some time ago and they really do bring music to life. As with most higher end kit, they are not cheap, but you do get what you pay for.

[3s-gtech]

By all means, but bass shouldn't muffle or spoil; it can be as crisp and sharp as you wish, and the level is up to you. For hip-hop, DnB, Dubstep etc you might enjoy big dirty wobbly bass, but for SQ you can get something tight and understated. It's just like home audio. Most of the SQ boys will tell you that it's 90% installation, 10% equipment - poorly fitted top quality audio will sound worse than well fitted cheaper stuff.

[twin--turbo]

Base should be felt not heard

 

 

 

Our flying line array in our buildings atrium has a pair of 15" subs.. They sound OK,

 

But when you fill in with the two large floor enclosures it realy makes a huge difference...

 

Rob

[newpersn]

Base should be felt not heard

 

Our flying line array in our buildings atrium has a pair of 15" subs.. They sound OK,

 

But when you fill in with the two large floor enclosures it realy makes a huge difference...

 

Rob

 

Im trying to get our drama department to upgrade there system. May be abit of work needed. Anything better than the passive value speakers.. (amp is powerfull )

[Sirbendy]

The standard Astra setup is not bad at all..I have the 8 speaker setup, and dare only dial the HU up to 17/18 max, as it becomes too loud for comfort, and the thing will go MUCH higher than that. AC/DC, Def Leppard etc can fair thump the doors even on low.

[Gibbo]

As a Pug 307 owner I've found a great setup is the Sony BT range of stereos.

 

I'm using a Sony BT3700 at the moment, bought second hand from Ebay for just £40. You get Bluetooth music streaming, full hands free phone support (great quality too), as well as MP3 CD, USB and line in.

 

The factory fit speakers are pretty good, but I've changed mine for JBL ones in the past.

 

Pick up a CONNECTS2 cable from Ebay for £19 and that will allow you to use the steering column stalk. You'll lose radio info from the centre screen, but everything else (date, time, temperature, trip computer info) will remain.

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/PEUGEOT-206-307-406-Steering-Stalk-Control-Adaptor-CTSPG006-for-Sony-Stereo-/350516871893?pt=UK_Cars_Parts_Vehicles_Terminals_Cabling_ET&hash=item519c6f02d5

 

 

The factory head unit swap out to fit an aftermarket head is a bit of a pig from what I can gather. It will probably only add to the cost, due to needing an auto electrician to fit it as it also has a steering wheel control and a dashboard display, which need extra adaptors.

 

Completely untrue.

 

All you need are the right keys to take out the factory fit stereo. If you have the CD changer underneath or the storage cubby hole take those out first to give you more room to work.

 

If you have the 5 CD changer and it works perfectly then it could be worth upto £80 to those Pug owners who like to keep their cars original. If you need a tray then you can get them from ebay:

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/PEUGEOT-307-2002-DOUBLE-TO-SINGLE-DIN-CD-RADIO-FACIA-FASCIA-PANEL-SURROUND-TRAY-/360775245869?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item53ffe1602d

 

 

Then just unclip the ISO connector and aerial lead.

 

You can swap a stereo over in under 20 minutes and you definitely don't need an auto electrician.

 

Pick up a Sony radio from Ebay (search for the BT2800 upwards) and you'll have the job done for under £50.

 

We've covered this topic on peugeotforums.com quite a bit, its worth having a look there.

Edited December 17, 2013 by Gibbo

[gshaw]

Go with Alpine or Pioneer if you replace the HU, both known for good quality sound

[abillybob]

I have upgraded car speakers on all my cars although there is one major thing I have seen is that there is no point upgrading your stock speakers if you don't upgrade your headunit. The stock headunit normally can't match the new uprated speakers you have and vise versa. So either do both or non at all. This isn't always the case though it's a good idea to research the wattage output of your headunit and match that up with some good speakers. I have a 2011 Honda Civic Type S and the stereo in that is just a nightmare to change you need to spend a fortune to get it to work as other controls go through the stereo so you need adapters etc... things like the air con control. All I did was bridge my two back speakers to a small 10" sub and amplifier in the back and it really makes a huge difference. Make the speakers in the doors more treble and turn up your amp fully for bass boost etc... then you have decent bass through sub and can turn it up as loud as you want without door speakers distorting cost me around £40 and completely reformed my stereo system. I have spent a fortune on upgrading a Clio's head unit speakers, subwoofer installed 6x9's and to be honest I can't tell the difference anymore with the setup I have now that cost me £40 apposed to £380

[3s-gtech]

Make the speakers in the doors more treble and turn up your amp fully for bass boost etc

 

Cliptacular! Gain on full + bass boost (often equals) sending a square wave to your speakers = magic smoke