OK, so I need some advice on how to upgrade the audio in my Jazz please . I think the HU needs to be addressed first, so I have come up with the following ideas.


Problem 2010 Honda Jazz ES UK model (R.H.D with steering wheel controls but no tweeters) - I'm happy with the volume of the system, it's just the quality of the sound is poor with muddy bass, no midrange and shrill treble.


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OPTION 1a

JL Audio Cleansweep £270
Small 4ch Amp £100ish

Total £370

Ideally, I would've preferred the cleansweep to have a built in amp and simply put the speaker wires directly into it, but I'll have to settle on spending more and buying an amp as well

Advantages: Retain the OEM look as well as the steering wheel controls and clock etc.
Disadvantages: Expensive and there may not be enough space behind the centre console to mount the amp (which is why it needs to be small)


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OPTION 1b

Single DIN HU + pocket spacer OR Double DIN HU £230ish
RHD Fascia kit NOT MADE
Radio aerial adapter £20
Steering wheel control adapter £20
wiring harness adapter £15

Total £285 + cost of the fascia kit when someone makes one

A lot more leads to buy to ensure steering wheel as well as factory wiring integration (even the aerial connector is an odd shape )

Advantages: Much more flexible in that I can pick and choose my HU and there's no need for an amp. Ability to add a sub at a later date as most HU's have pre-outs nowadays
Disadvantages: Not an option as I cannot find a RHD version of the Scosche or Metra fascia kits anywhere anyway

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Now onto the speakers


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OPTION 2a

4x coaxials to simply replace the existing stock ones £100ish
4x speaker brackets not made in the UK yet or simply re-use the OEM ones by cutting the factory speakers out and discarding them and placing the new ones inside £0
Factory trim removal tool £5

Advantages: Retain the OEM look with no drilling - simply drop in replacements
Disadvantages: May not sound the best?


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OPTION 2b

2x Coaxials to replace the rear speakers £50ish
2x Components to replace the front speakers £100ish
4x speaker brackets not made in the UK yet or simply re-use the OEM ones by cutting the factory speakers out and discarding them and placing the new ones inside £0
Factory trim removal tool £5

Advantages: Better sound up front (where I want it )
Disadvantages: More expensive and requires drilling/mounting new holes for the tweeters (and I have no idea where to mount the crossover either).

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I'm leaning towards options 1a and 2a at the moment but which combination would you recommend and why? (bearing in mind I'm finding it difficult to source the fascia for RHD here in the UK for now , and I think an OEM look wouldn't be that bad really )


Thanx for any help

 

If you're wanting to maintain the factory look then go with 1a, but don't forget that you will also need an amp power kit which will run you another $50 (£33) and you will have to hook that up to your battery. So that adds some money as well as a PITA.

I just upgraded my head unit (double din) as well as all four coaxials (maintained the stock tweeters) as well as Dynamatted the door speaker locations and the sound is great. The installer had to maintain the stock speaker mounts by cutting out the factory speakers, then trimming them down to accomodate for the larger aftermarket speakers.

Hope this helps.

 

Aaaah, I didn't think of that, cheers .
So that looks like 1a is even less vfm as it's now topping the £400 mark ......

I don't mind 3rd party HU because even though I would prefer stock OEM, I'm not too fussed if 3rd party sounds better, is cheaper to do, and easier to fit as well ).
Looking at reviews of the CleanSweep., it seems that it has it's own volume control and I can't use the stock one anyway......so that defeats half the purpose of keeping it OEM in my view if I can't even use the OEM volume knob sitting there plain as day in the middle of the dash (another nail in 1a's coffin).
Now the Q is single or double din for aftermarket? (am leaning toward single as most double din (non-nav) units I've seen are pretty ugly imo )

I also think I'll separate the HU/speakers upgrades to allow myself to make it more feasible and do either 1a/1b first followed by a couple moths gap, then 2a/2b at a later date (not both together).

Re:speakers, baring in mind I will be doing it myself, will the components be a massive step up from co-axials or do you think I won't notice much difference in such a small car? (the problem is, dealers over here charge a lot of money to do simple things like install straight-swap speakers so I dread to think what they'll charge me to mount new tweeters somewhere too - although that would probably be the better sounding option).

The final problem is I still can't find RHD fascia's anywhere . I might go back to Honda themselves and see if they'll supply the fascia they use with their satnav option and sell that separately to me (if not, 1b is a no-go).

So thanx for the info.......it's looking good for 1b, but I'm still not sure on 2a or 2b .

 

As for head units, most online stores I've seen provide discounted (or sometimes free) Metra or Scosche (whichever they carry) fascia (dash kits). Such as this. (i'm assuming you have a 2009/2010 model but keep in mind if you do it may be a different kit for UK Fits, not sure)

Also one thing to keep in mind is that if you want components up front, you will really need to power those with a separate amplifier, as most head units will not provide ample power to components. (they won't sound that great)

 

Re: Headunits, the problem I'm having is that the RHD version is the mirror of the LHD ones you get, but no one in the UK makes them. 2 big brands here are Autoleads and Connects2 and neither of them do either .
So I visited a well-known general automotive shop (not specialist - Halfords) and they had no info on where or when it would be produced RHD (btw, yes it's a 2010 Honda Jazz RHD). They even rang up Autoleads and Connects2 and were told they're not made yet.
....but this is ridiculous because Japan and Australia are RHD too and they must get fascia kits for their aftermarket DIN stereos? .

So I go to a specialist installer and they confirmed that none are available in the UK as RHD, and if they were to install it, they'd simply ring up Honda UK Spares and order a new fascia surround that Honda normally install with their satnav options.....so why don't I ask direct?

I'm due to visit them next week in person anyway, so I'll ask then. Hopefully it's no more than £50ish if they're willing to sell separately.


So after having a long think about it, I'm now more and more decided on part 1 :

1a = pretty much out now, I REALLY don't like the idea of not being able to use the factory steering controls for volume and use a small crappy/fiddly knob on the CleanSweep - looks cheap and tacky to me and defeats half the purpose of staying OEM too ...


1b

HU = Kenwood DPX-503U = can match the instrument display, has digital time alignment, has USB input £200

Connects2 CTSHO003 + CTSKENWDLD = Wiring Harness + Steering Control patch lead = £23 from ebay

Autoleads PC5-67 = Aerial adapter = £7 from ebay

I can also add a Rockford Fosgate powered sub to the HU = Have one in my garage = £0

Total cost = only £230 not including the fascia panel......so it works out a whole bunch cheaper than 1a anyway .


Re: Speakers, the car I traded in I had installed MB Quart components up front powered from the Sony MD HU, and they sounded great but I think only because that's all the HU was powering (the sub in the back had it's own amp connected from pre-outs.....the same one that's now in my garage).
I think you're right in that if I tried to power 4 outputs that way, they'd be underpowered, so I might just plump for 2a.

My worry is that it simply won't sound very good with just coaxials .

 

I really like your Kenwood head unit choice. It's gotten a lot of good reviews. Can't really go wrong, and it'll match your dash lighting like you mentioned. From what I'm seeing though is that it doesn't have built-in Bluetooth. You have to get an add-on kit. Don't know if that's a big deal to you or not, as you may have mentioned that in a previous post.

Is Bluetooth all that? Well I'd say it depends on how much you drive your car. Here in the states I drive 30% city and 70% interstate mainly. My bluetooth mic is installed above my rear view mirror and I think it picks up on wind noise when I'm at high speeds.

One cool feature of Bluetooth so far has been that it'll receive audio from my phone. I really like that feature for Pandora. But I'd say my main source of audio in my car is from USB.

All in all, sounds like you're making some progress with your decisions in going with a head unit upgrade and then (perhaps) waiting on a speaker upgrade.

You mention your want/need for components up front. I was in the same boat until I found these speakers. I replaced all four door speakers with them and it's been great. It may be your best alternative to true components. Check out how the tweeter is mounted. Why don't more companies do this with coaxials? Boggles my mind...of course I don't know of the availability in the UK but it's worth a look.

Will your (free) subwoofer add-on require a power kit to the battery? I'd assume so.

Also I forgot to ask if you are driving an '09 or a '10 Fit. Just curious.

Either way, sounds like you know what will come first and that's the head unit. When I replaced mine I just told myself I'd sell the factory one on eBay. Which reminds me I need to get around to doing that...

Cheers.

 

Yep, I bought my BT option when I got the car.
I opted for the parrot minikit slim. Yes, not as "integrated" as the other parrot products but I have an iphone and this had a few pluses - namely that it syncs contacts seamlessly with it, has it's own voice tags and the voice quality is excellent. I also like the fact that it's unobtrusive (on the sun visor) and I can remove it from the car into any other one.


I find using it essential in the car because I hate missing calls and this cheap (£50) unit does everything I need.

I rang Honda UK today and explained that I wanted the fascia surround that they normally fit when customers choose their satnav option (minus the satnav of course, I just want the surround + brackets). They said they'd find out a standalone cost and ring me back some time so fingers crossed for a quick reply (as soon as I can get one, I'll do the upgrade and get the HU and wiring).

I just checked in my garage and luckily I still have the wiring power kit for the sub (blue "remote on" wire, thick red power wire with inline fuse and thick black ground/earth, and the long phono-phono lead needed to connect it to the HU) .

Yep, it's a '10 car (only had it 2 weeks now - already on to the upgradeitis as I cant stand the commute to work with poor SQ ).

Thanx for the speakers link. They'd match the sub/amp (RFZ1412 sub in it's own ported box with their 2.6x bridged 2ch amp screwed into the side) combo and even if they aren't available here, I'm prepared to get 'em shipped from the US if need be .


Gaffer