First-time Buyer with Wattage Questions

[Mesohungry]

Hey all, I recently acquired a 2011 Subaru Forester with the default stereo and speakers in place. Was hoping to upgrade to these on a budget:

Stereo: Boss 460BRGB (18 Watts RMS/50 peak)

Speakers: Kicker 43CSC674 (up to 100 watts)

Will the 460BRGB provide enough power to the kicker, and is this a reasonable combo?

Very new to all this so any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

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[kr15 5,000+ posts]

Those may very well be a downgrade. With the newer cars, i generally feel like stock is better than budget low end aftermarket

 

[Mesohungry]

Do you have an idea of how high I'd have to go to exceed stock quality? The current levels are pretty atrocious

 

[shredder1 10+ year member]

Hey all, I recently acquired a 2011 Subaru Forester with the default stereo and speakers in place. Was hoping to upgrade to these on a budget:Stereo: Boss 460BRGB (18 Watts RMS/50 peak)

Speakers: Kicker 43CSC674 (up to 100 watts)

Will the 460BRGB provide enough power to the kicker, and is this a reasonable combo?

Very new to all this so any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

The Kicker coax are acceptable... the deck is another thing!.. LOL!.. What someone else said!.. don't downgrade

I'd recommend maybe the coax

 

[BOOMINGRANDPA 5,000+ posts]

Hey all, I recently acquired a 2011 Subaru Forester with the default stereo and speakers in place. Was hoping to upgrade to these on a budget:Stereo: Boss 460BRGB (18 Watts RMS/50 peak)

Speakers: Kicker 43CSC674 (up to 100 watts)

Will the 460BRGB provide enough power to the kicker, and is this a reasonable combo?

Very new to all this so any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

no boss., let that company die.. my kenwood x301 has crap on it u will probably never need but also has hp over for speakers so they don't distort 24bit da convertor which will make music louder and cleaner and 22x4rms together it'll be about twice as loud as the boss it's about $119., i like pioneer speakers better than kickers, even rf has pretty decent coax

 

[LosIsATool 5,000+ posts]

no boss., let that company die.. my kenwood x301 has crap on it u will probably never need but also has hp over for speakers so they don't distort 24bit da convertor which will make music louder and cleaner and 22x4rms together it'll be about twice as loud as the boss it's about $119., i like pioneer speakers better than kickers, even rf has pretty decent coax

That kenwood isn't 22 x 4. Closer to 12x4

 

[Mesohungry]

Would my default stereo function well enough with the Kicker/Pioneer TS-A1676R?

 

[shredder1 10+ year member]

That kenwood isn't 22 x 4. Closer to 12x4

Yes, you can almost never believe the claims on a head unit! Look at the heatsink on a deck that says 50 x 4 and then look at an amp heatsink... Heck my old mobile es sony had a larger heatsink than most and was preout only...LOL!

 

[Boomin_tahoe 5,000+ posts]

If it were me, I'd remove all those, sell it dirt cheap and start all over with fresh new equipment, good brand(s).

Do you have a budget to work with?

 

[Jeffdachef 5,000+ posts]

Do you have an idea of how high I'd have to go to exceed stock quality? The current levels are pretty atrocious

it will sound 10x worse with the equipment you buy.

The only way it'll sound better if you use your whole budget for a proper head unit. Your stock speakers will become a completely different animal with a proper head unit in.

DO NOT swap the stock speakers. Not unless you are fully comitted into making acoustical door treatments turning your vehicle door into a speaker enclosure. Along with recreating the factory seal and a proper baffle to redirect the sound into the cabin rather than the sound waves getting stuck in the door cavity and fighting eachother.

If you do not do this step along with amping the speakers, The setup will sound like sh*t if you swap speakers.

A proper head unit will make music sound amazing right out the box however it'll have tuning options to make speakers sound amazing. Basically your stock speakers will sound like you just spent 200 dollars on new speakers if you tune it right with a new head unit.

TLDR get a good head unit, do a proper tune and you'll have 100x more results than swapping out for junk low end speakers yes those particular kicker and pioneer speakers are low end junk. That kenwood x301 is a good choice Head unit upgrade first before doing ANYTHING. dont look at junk head units either there's a reason why we recommend particular head unit models.

Would my default stereo function well enough with the Kicker/Pioneer TS-A1676R?

stock stereos are beyond garbage. You only get 3-5 watts of power per speaker with a stock stereo. Also has ZERO tuning options. What makes or breaks your system is the EQ, time alignment and power. Something stock stereos can never achieve.

 

[Boomin_tahoe 5,000+ posts]

it will sound 10x worse with the equipment you buy.
The only way it'll sound better if you use your whole budget for a proper head unit. Your stock speakers will become a completely different animal with a proper head unit in.

DO NOT swap the stock speakers. Not unless you are fully comitted into making acoustical door treatments turning your vehicle door into a speaker enclosure. Along with recreating the factory seal and a proper baffle to redirect the sound into the cabin rather than the sound waves getting stuck in the door cavity and fighting eachother.

If you do not do this step along with amping the speakers, The setup will sound like sh*t if you swap speakers.

A proper head unit will make music sound amazing right out the box however it'll have tuning options to make speakers sound amazing. Basically your stock speakers will sound like you just spent 200 dollars on new speakers if you tune it right with a new head unit.

TLDR get a good head unit, do a proper tune and you'll have 100x more results than swapping out for junk low end speakers yes those particular kicker and pioneer speakers are low end junk. That kenwood x301 is a good choice Head unit upgrade first before doing ANYTHING. dont look at junk head units either there's a reason why we recommend particular head unit models.

stock stereos are beyond garbage. You only get 3-5 watts of power per speaker with a stock stereo. Also has ZERO tuning options. What makes or breaks your system is the EQ, time alignment and power. Something stock stereos can never achieve.

Wondering if his vehicle has factory amps....some cars/suvs do.