Bought a new head unit - does it make other upgrades worthwhile?

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Hi folks. This is my very first post here so please be gentle if I'm asking an incredibly stupid question. In my defence I've read a few FAQs and am aware of a few basic audio gear principles. Also please be aware I'm infamous for long-winded first posts. ;-)

I recently upgraded my car stereo with a Pioneer SPH-10BT head unit. My car (a VW Up if it matters) came with a very basic factory radio that actually *annoyed* me on  long trips, and I make 500-mile round trips every couple of weeks to see my elderly parents. The factory setup sounded, I don't know, it managed to sound both muffled and tinny at the same time if you know what I mean (and you probably don't). Well, let's leave it at: it was really annoying and tiresome.

I reckoned a decent sound system would really enhance the experience, so I headed to the local car stereo place with half a mind to replace the speakers and came out with a new head unit. Shop guy said the speakers were fine (4x JBL Selenium 6TR6A 3-way coaxials on the doors, dealer upgrades) and on being asked about reasonably priced replacement head units he pointed me to the Pioneer display and I selected that SPH10BT unit.

My requirements were simple: something that sounds nice without being too loud or boomy and that plays nice with my iPhone on bluetooth - for Spotify music (downloaded / highest quality setting ) and podcasts. I'm playing for definition rather than power here. The car lets a lot of road noise into the cabin (it's a cheap VW) and has a thrummy 3-cylinder turbo engine so maybe I was chasing unicorns anyway, but the thing is, I'm still not satisfied with the sound. It's still kinda muffled but now has some bass and some highs. I've been messing with the stereo's eq - both Pioneer presets and DIY - but I still don't like '/ haven't found the sound.

QUESTION TIME, THEN: Is that Pioneer unit a decent buiding block for a better setup or is it just a cheap-a** little radio? Is it worth upgrading the speakers with that head unit? Adding a not-too-expensive amp or something?

I feel I'm already going down a bunch or Google rabbit holes that could potentially cost hundreds of dollars here (JL Audio anyone? I like the reviews and these within my budget). But I don't want to waste money on speakers or amps or whatever only to find that the HU is way out of step with the rest of the stuff.

Thoughts?

(sorry about the long post)

 
that's not a head unit where you can really upgrade your audio system properly, only two pairs of 2 volt rca outs yuck.  If you can, return that head unit for something a bit better because that one is pretty damn trashy for audio.

your speakers are bad as well and I think the speaker install is bad aka no deadening, no gasket recreation along with no proper amplification etc.. which creates the muffled tinny sound. Any kind of aftermarket speakers would need power to work properly. 

 
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that's not a head unit where you can really upgrade your audio system properly, only two pairs of 2 volt rca outs yuck.  If you can, return that head unit for something a bit better because that one is pretty damn trashy for audio.

your speakers are bad as well and I think the speaker install is bad aka no deadening, no gasket recreation along with no proper amplification etc.. which creates the muffled tinny sound. Any kind of aftermarket speakers would need power to work properly. 
Thanks!

Would an amp correct any of that?

If not, what's a (reasonably priced) HU that would provide a base for decent audio quality? (again, I don't like it loud but would love crisp, detailed)

 
Amp is always better than using HU power.....because not only louder but you've already stated you didn't want it screaming loud but having that headroom and power from an amp will be much better than trying to overdrive your HU because they can only get so loud, thus creating distorted signal and crap sound.

 
You'd have to go a LONG way with amps/speakers/subs before that HU became a problem.  Is it perfect?  Obviously not.  But for what you want it's perfectly adequate.

The issues you have are one, those speakers aren't going to do anything for bass.  They weren't meant to.  And two, they need 50-60w rms to perform optimally -- they're getting 14.  Adding power isn't just about playing loud (which you need a little of anyway for a loud car) -- in terms of sound quality it means there is plenty of power available to pick up the dynamics present in a lot of music.

If I were you I'd look for a decent 4 channel amp (doesn't have to be JL, or even close to it) and a decent sub -- a 10" or even a good 8 can add quite a bit to your experience.

With a 4 ch -- 75x4 or so -- you'd have plenty of power to run your front speakers with 2 channels, and the other two could be bridged for 200w or so to power your sub.

Plus -- you'd be able to filter the lows from your front speakers allowing them to better do what they are intended to do, and of course you'd low pass your sub and it would handle all the low frequency stuff.

Decent amp would be $150-200 -- sub probably $100-150.  Install -- I don't know - $100-150?

 
this is what id budget for, for good stuff, more or less...

deck $300 

front speakers $200 

sub $250

amps $250 

plus install costs

 
You can buy a Pioneer DEH-80PRS for 245, front speaker components for a good set can be bought for 100-125 you just have to look around as I have found Focals & Hertz for 125 a set shipped, sub I just paid 145 shipped for a Sundown Audio SD-3 10" 2 ohm refurbished and they are rebuilding all sorts of them for a lot cheaper and they look like brand new. Amps you can buy Taramps for under 200 each and get a really good amp with a lot of power plus they have done very well all over the world on the dyno testing.

Focal now makes specific Focal VW install speakers but they do cost quite a bit. But if you are some skills installing this stuff is not that hard.

 
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