Stereo Upgrades....what to do!?

[gravylegs]

Hi everyone,
This weekend I took delivery of my 2007 RS B package Liftback! Got the lowering springs, door sill protectors, cargo and all season mats, and the power everything. So far I love it!

EXCEPT

The stereo is WEAK. Here are my beefs:

1) The RS comes with an all black interior, even the center console plate. The double din SILVER stereo sticks out like a sore thumb! It looks super cheap as it is just silver painted plastic. The worst part about this is since it is so prominant due to the contrast, it is one of the first things that people look at. Such a shame.

2) There is absolutely no low end to this stereo. To hear any sort of bass at all I need to crank the bass setting up to 3 or 4, and then everything sounds muddy.

3) There isn't much in the way of volume. Driving around with the windows down and the stereo on means I have to crank it up to 50+ which makes it sound like junk.

My questions:

1) Has anyone replaced the stereo with a single din head unit? If so, can I see a picture? Curious to see what you did to fill the space. I'd like to throw my old head unit in this baby. No, it doesn't accomodate 6 cd's, but with mp3 cds, who really cares about a changer?

2) Im thinking to put a subwoofer in this car, but don't want to take up precious cargo space. Ideally I want to build a box with enough airspace to accomodate a 10" that would fit beside the spare tire where there is currently a storage "tray". I used to drive an insight, and a guy had custom made a box to fit specially into an unused area of space. Check it out at http://www.geoff.shepherd.com/xwayland/main.html
Has anyone done anything like this yet?

Thanks for listening to the rant, and for any feedback I end up getting!
gravylegs

[why?]

You can always plop an equalizer below the head unit to fill in the extra space nicely.

[jcove]

Originally Posted by gravylegs

Hi everyone,
This weekend I took delivery of my 2007 RS B package Liftback! Got the lowering springs, door sill protectors, cargo and all season mats, and the power everything. So far I love it!

EXCEPT

The stereo is WEAK. Here are my beefs:

1) The RS comes with an all black interior, even the center console plate. The double din SILVER stereo sticks out like a sore thumb! It looks super cheap as it is just silver painted plastic. The worst part about this is since it is so prominant due to the contrast, it is one of the first things that people look at. Such a shame.

2) There is absolutely no low end to this stereo. To hear any sort of bass at all I need to crank the bass setting up to 3 or 4, and then everything sounds muddy.

3) There isn't much in the way of volume. Driving around with the windows down and the stereo on means I have to crank it up to 50+ which makes it sound like junk.

My questions:

1) Has anyone replaced the stereo with a single din head unit? If so, can I see a picture? Curious to see what you did to fill the space. I'd like to throw my old head unit in this baby. No, it doesn't accomodate 6 cd's, but with mp3 cds, who really cares about a changer?

2) Im thinking to put a subwoofer in this car, but don't want to take up precious cargo space. Ideally I want to build a box with enough airspace to accomodate a 10" that would fit beside the spare tire where there is currently a storage "tray". I used to drive an insight, and a guy had custom made a box to fit specially into an unused area of space. Check it out at http://www.geoff.shepherd.com/xwayland/main.html
Has anyone done anything like this yet?

Thanks for listening to the rant, and for any feedback I end up getting!
gravylegs

I have the MP3 deck and it isn't too bad, but I have an LE, so I don't have the Black/Grey problem. I'd be upset too if I bought the more expensive RS and ended up with that. I think it's kind of cheesy looking, no offense. I bought a sub and amp, Lightening Audio, and the sound is way better. I turn the bass off (-5) on the head unit and just use the stock speakers for upper mid and treble. Then the sub takes all the low end stuff. It's really tight. The only problem is the box takes up space. I'm going to take out the spare and buy the compressor with the liquid seal to save space and weight (I know not much but....) then I'm putting my sub in the spare location.

That being said, in your case I'd buy an aftermarket the way everyone is suggesting and put in a sub in the spare well.

[echo_hrs]

...

[riceboy]

Anyone install a DVD head unit?? I think that it would look amazing!

[gravylegs]

Hey Sp33dy....

Regarding the picture that you posted, that looks nice! Does anyone know if the deck has built in amplifier or if it is separated and powered elsewhere? I would be suprised if this were the case....but thought I would ask before I ripped stuff apart.

Oh, and does anyone know a reputable tinter in the GTA?

gravylegs

[Ron]

as you can see, i have a long slot on either side of the units because the OEM deck is sized wider than regular DIN decks. all the original brackets work however, you just need to find a kit that fills in the gaps like in Sp33dy's picture

i opted for separate units because i dont have that much money to spend on in-car entertainment stuff. the innovatek brand is pretty much generic branded stuff, so if the dvd player ever crapped out, i can replace just that for pretty cheap. the 7" screen is a relabelled panasonic unit, and is pretty good quality. all in one units cost probably 2-3 times what i paid for this deck/screen combo. i did the install at home, and the good news is that this uses the same readily available Toyota harness adapter as probably 50 other vehicles, so piece of cake :)

[riceboy]

Hey gravylegs, I'm going up to f/x auto to get my tint done... http://www.fxauto.com/ I've had countless amount of cars done by them and they are kick ass!

[riceboy]

btw did you get a 3 or 5 door?

[plushDJ]

God, someone better make a kit for this damn deck soon or I'm gonna freak out!!!

[plushDJ]

I thought bigsky2 said they need a kit to fit a deck in the liftback. Is it just standard 1.5 or 2 din?? I don't have my yaris yet but if it is standard, it shouldn't be a problem at all

[plushDJ]

whoops, just read the first thread, double din. man am I dumb
I think I'm going deck and eq

[DJ_SpaRky]

NO Single Din Install kit has been released...YET!

it is in the works, for now you can use the factory ISO Mounts & install it that way, it wom't look pretty but it'll work.

[gravylegs]

If I'm not mistaken, you should be able to go to any stereo shop and get a double-din mounting kit which would allow you to throw two single din devices into it....I dont think that you really need to wait for something specific from Toyota.....

Thanks for the tint link. THink I will head over there soon.

My car is a 3dr if it was me that someone was asking.

[Ron]

i've got an mp3/dvd/screen setup in my car. the upper DIN slot houses a retractable screen, and the lower slot houses the mp3/dvd/radio. you DO need some sort of a mounting kit to make everything look pretty, as the hole in the dash is about 1cm wider on either side of the standard DIN size deck. mine just has a long hole on either side right now, kind of ugly. but its been like that for 4 months, and im getting used to it.

[gravylegs]

How about a picture!?

[plushDJ]

yeah, PIC!!!!

[plushDJ]

NICE!!! I think I could get used to the gaps with a screen like that