My GT came with the Shaker 500 system. I have since replaced the head unit and added subs in the trunk. My question is, do I have subs in the front doors under the grills? I can't hear them. Were they disabled when I removed the factory stereo? If they are there, how can I get them to work with my new Pioneer head unit? Or are they so crappy they need replaced? Do they make the doors rattle too much? What replacements could I purchase that would fit perfectly?
Also, someone mentioned on here once (I couldn't find the thread) that a stereo system in our cars would actually sound better with good front speakers only and disabling the rear deck speakers. Is this true?

 

I went to a pro and they said that it would be a fortune to replace the mini subs due to there size. and that the connections were unique. So you might of not spiced correctly when you put in your radio.

 

Your wireharness should've had connections for the front subs, I know mine did. Unless of course, you spliced directly into the stock harness.

 

you need to have an additional harnes that most shops dont sell. crutchfield has them.... ohh yea to replace the front subs you have to trim the door panel (not the door) to have new ones put in.

 

You have PM.

I was the person who mentioned that for the sake of soundstaging, a good set of front speakers will outperform any mediocre set of front and rear speakers, especially when combined with a rear subwoofer. I can get into more elaborate detail if you want. Basically though, there is no need for, and it would be counterproductive to use, your door subwoofers in addition to rear subwoofers that overpower them. It would take a lot of tuning to make them flow harmoniously from a soundstaging point of view.

 

It all depends on how you want it to sound. I added a sub in the trunk but used it just to "feel" the music and not hear it. I have the door subs hooked up so i can really hear the bass. I just purchased some infinity kappa 6x8's for the doors and the rear deck. I'll use those for the mids and highs. To my ears, having a sub or subs in the rear and a set of front speakers lacks fullness. You get the highs and the big bass but not much in between. You tend to get too much bass when you don't want it. It's the cheapest and easiest way to go for an audio system but imo not the best. Unless you just listen to boomy rap music. For anything else there are better options.

Get the correct harness from crutchfield if you want to get the door subs working. They're actually decent subs and don't need to be replaced unless you want to really control the level with an aftermarket amp. They do create some rattle but you can correct that if you want with sound dampening material. Our cars have a lot of plastic inside so you're going to get rattles. You'll also need to get a 5v voltage regulator from radioshack that you'll have to solder inline on your harness. It's only $1.59. Without it your aftermarket headunit will send a 12v signal to the factory sub amps when they only want 5v and every time they turn on will make the subs pop really loud. After you get them working you'll have to do some tweaking with your head unit and your rear sub amp to get the levels right. If you don't like how it sounds you can always un hook them. As for the speakers if you just want a good front stereo image then just replace the fronts. If you want that all channel stereo effect like you would get in your home system then replace the front and rear. I myself have an in dash dvd head unit so i wanted both front and rear's replaced.

All too often speaker size is over looked. There are different speaker sizes for a reason and all serve their purpose. If you want to build a good system don't overlook it.

 

Have you installed these yet? If so, how are they? I have a pair on the way for the back deck, since I am replacing the skipper 500 with an Alpine HU.

Also, since there has been talk in this thread about the separate harness for the subs, the voltage regulator, etc., thought I would include this link I found yesterday. I know this doesn't refer to a Mustang, but it does show the harness, the voltage regulator, etc. I have been asking alot of these same questions recently in prep for the HU changeout....(SPECIAL THANKS TO 05BLUEGT FOR HIS INFO AND PATIENCE....!!!)

http://www.dennisjudd.com/archives/000947.html

Mike

 

Mine are on the way too. I'll have them early next week. I had kappa's in my last stang so i know they'll sound good. I've got a 4 channel Alpine v12 amp that i'm going to hook them up to.