From The Driver's Seat
There are really no downfalls to upgrading your sound system. Well, given that all the components are wired and connected correctly-- blown amps and speakers, or drained batteries would certainly qualify as legitimate buzz kills. Quality components also have everything to do with a positive audio experience, so our Suzuki was given the royal treatment with excellent products from Polk Audio and Sony and expert installation from the crew at Audio Innovations.
It's nice to stare at the amazing enclosure, but once the Sony Xplod head unit cycles on, the excitement really begins. The rear- view mirror rattling, the vibrating seats providing a chiropractic-strength massage, and the constant eardrum ringing even after hours of being out of the Equator's cab-- ah, there's nothing like a truly banging audio system. The Polk Audio high, mid, and low frequencies balance each other out and sound awesome, which is honestly an understatement. Sony's touch screen, picture equalizer makes it easy to adjust the settings for different types of music, and we here at Truckin' have a very eclectic palette for tunes, so we have put the entire audio system through the paces. For some strange reason, we can't get feature editor, Brandan Gillogly's Jonas Brothers CD to sound right--there must be an internal anti-teenybopper filter that we don't know about. Bonus!
Your Questions Answered
Time Spent Working: 5 Hours
(not including time spent during the enclosure fabrication)
Degree Of Difficulty: Intermediate
(previous wiring experience is a plus)
Tools Needed:
Metric and standard socket set, cordless drill, phillips and flathead screwdrivers, heat gun, panel-removing tools, wire strippers.
Parts Used:
(3) Polk Audio SR124DVC 12-inch subwoofers: $399.95 (each)
(2) Polk Audio PA250.2 2/1-channel amplifiers: $229.95 (each)
(2) Polk Audio SR6500 6 1/2-inch component set: $799.95 (each)
Polk Audio PA1200.1 mono block amplifier: $599.95
Sony Xplod XAV-C1 7-inch in-dash DVD head unit: $999.00
Total: $4,858.60
(Prices takes taken from polkaudio.com and xplodsony.com and do not include tax, shipping, or installation costs)