[Fly Fishing Bob]

I have an '08 King Cab SE.
I will be keeping the factory head unit, I don't want any amps, and I will not be installing any subs. All I want to do is install some new speakers to get a richer, fuller sound.
Here are my questions:
What size do I need? (I think 6 1/2" from what I've found on Crutchfield)
What wattage range should I be looking for?
Will I notice a difference?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Mylt1]

crap signal in(factory radio)=crap signal out(sound from speakers). thats how it works. if you want better sound the first thing to change is the head unit.

 

[Fly Fishing Bob]

Are you suggesting that my ONLY option is to replace the head unit? That seems pretty drastic and, quite frankly, would really suck.
It can't be that bad.

 

[D-mo]

Seriously, the factory radio is garbage. I pulled mine the 3rd month I had the truck and picked up the below listed head and speakers. Like Mylt1 said .. crap in .. crap out ...
My unit may not be the top of the line, but it pretty impressive for what i paid for it, vs. power to all 4 speaks .. with no sub.
Plus .. I can upgrade anytime ....

d-mo

 

[mwnaylor]

most of the Nissan factory radios I've taken out have only pushed 15 Watts max to each channel. Most decent speakers now are 75 Watt and above. If you put 75 Watt speakers (normally with a 35 Watt RMS or best operating wattage) in your truck that only get 15 Watts MAX (the most they will get at any given time) from the head unit, those speakers are
1) not going to produce the clarity of sound you would like, and in some cases could be worse depending on the type and wattage of the speaker
2) have a shorter life span from struggling to get the energy needed to produce the sound,

as a suggestion, if you are not looking to replace the factory head unit, look into getting a small amp, 40 to 50 Watts per channel, and then install the new speakers. This would help, but honestly the BEST option here if you're looking for quality is to get a good head unit and replace the speakers as well. Not to mention getting an amp is almost as expensive as getting a new head unit so you might as well just get a new head unit.

If you're worried about wiring, you can purchase wiring harnesses to adapt to the Nissan factory radio harness then plug directly in to your new head unit to avoid cutting and splicing. If you have any questions let me know.

 

[hyunelan2]

I agree with above. In other vehicles I've owned, just changing the headunit had a noticeable effect on the OEM speakers. Of course, putting more power through the OEM speakers with a better headunit will also point out their deficiencies.

To get really clean sound, you're going to need to change both. One or the other will not have a severely drastic improvement, though the headunit should be step one.

 

[Fly Fishing Bob]

I honestly had no idea it was that bad! I had a stock system in an '02 Cavalier that I was really happy with, so I figured I would just be able to do some minor tweaking to the Frontier.
It seems I find another reason to regret buying this truck about every six months or so.
Thanks for the help anyway.

 

[Mylt1]

radios are cheap. you can get decent decks for less than $130 with WAY more options.

Seriously, the factory radio is garbage. I pulled mine the 3rd month I had the truck and picked up the below listed head and speakers. Like Mylt1 said .. crap in .. crap out ...
My unit may not be the top of the line, but it pretty impressive for what i paid for it, vs. power to all 4 speaks .. with no sub.
Plus .. I can upgrade anytime ....

d-mo

damn, you waited 3 months? LOL. i changed mine out i believe within the first 2 or 3 weeks. i couldnt believe the difference it made even with the stock speakers.

 

[rogzballz]

Buy a new Head Unit!

 

[mwnaylor]

I got a pioneer head unit for right at 100 bucks. and it was a single DIN, not the double DIN like the factory, but I took a bracket out of a '97 Nissan truck with the pocket on it and installed that, fit like a champ in my '05 frontier :-D

 

[mwnaylor]

One side note I forgot to add, the factory speakers in the rear doors of my '05 Frontier were only 2 ohm speakers running on individual 4 ohm circuits... so if you do change out your head unit and your rear speakers sound like crap, just know... their blown...

 

[nisEMTsan]

Decent new headunits are fairly cheap these days. You could probably spend approx $250 on a headunit and front speakers and you will notice a drastic increase. If you buy from Crutchfield, they will give you all the master teardown sheets and all everything you need for the install. PM me if you have more questions, I had a blast putting mine in!

 

[jski701]

Like the others said, you don't have to spend a lot of money on a head unit to get better sound. A majority of the cost is for all of the fancy options, just get a decent CD player without blue tooth, a remote, or satellite etc. and you wont empty your wallet. If you don't want to use an amp, look for something with a little more power, but you might have to spend a little more. You can probably get by with the stock speakers for a little while, if you don't want to part with the cash all at once, but eventually they'll have to go.

Good luck..

 

[mwnaylor]

Do update us on what you wind up doing Bob, definitely interested to hear your shock in how good a whole new system sounds :-D

 

[NismoFrontier08]

I agree with everyone, either get a new Deck or add an amp. If you really dont want to get an amp I'd suggest going with an Alpine Head Unit. I have an old one in my "for fun" weekend car. The reason why I suggest this one is even if you arent a stereo guru you can still tune the system to your liking. Mine, as far as I can remember, is not a very top of the line Head Unit, it cost like 200 from the shop and it was easy to instal. Best part is now I can go through and change all the ranges of the sounds and it saves it into EQ1 or EQ2 depending on which I am tuning. And even if the battery dies it saves the tune so no need to go and reset everything.

 

[toryroyce]

Headunit first, then speakers. Like others have said, the speakers will only play as good as what they are fed.

 

[Darkarmour10]

Head unit

In every other car stereo I have worked with has benifited from a chang in speakers first. However the speakers Nissan put in these truckes are better than most of the OEM speakers I have worked with. This is the first time I have ever suggested starting with the head unit.

 

[mwnaylor]

just make sure the speakers can handle it... like I said before, the rear speakers in my '05 and the factory replacements were 2 ohm speakers and all radios I've ever worked with are 4 ohm circuits to the speakers... if you use the factory speakers at 2 ohms and you push more wattage to them, they will blow...

 

[Fly Fishing Bob]

Basically, I plan on doing nothing. It's just a matter of personal preference, but I do not like the look of aftermarket radios. I did see one Panasonic that fits into the 2DIN opening and looks stock, but I'll probably just stay with what I have.

 

[Mylt1]

just make sure the speakers can handle it... like I said before, the rear speakers in my '05 and the factory replacements were 2 ohm speakers and all radios I've ever worked with are 4 ohm circuits to the speakers... if you use the factory speakers at 2 ohms and you push more wattage to them, they will blow...

actually, you run a better chance of frying the deck than you do blowing the speakers. most decks are not designed to run at 2ohms so your forcing it to work overtime.

In every other car stereo I have worked with has benifited from a chang in speakers first. However the speakers Nissan put in these truckes are better than most of the OEM speakers I have worked with. This is the first time I have ever suggested starting with the head unit.

dont know what you have been working on but in 16 years of doing this i have never had a car benefit from just a speaker replacement UNLESS the speakers were old or damaged some how.