I have read a lot of the postings here regarding the factory car speakers. I replaced my speakers recently and the highs are way too bright.

I used the great advice in making an aux-in setup through the CD player (I have the Premium Sound package). I am using a 4th generation iPod touch and it unfortunately doesn't give me fine control over equalization (it has "small speakers", "rock", and similar presets only). I know I can download some equalizer apps, but I think there are issues beyond what source equalization can achieve, and I want the factory radio to still sound good.

So I am considering getting a digital sound processor, such as AudioControl's DXDQ. These DSP units can sum all the post-amp sound channels coming from the Jag amp and then break them all apart again into separate pre-amp channels that you then feed into an amp.

So, here is what I'm wondering:
1: Does anyone have an easy way for me to determine which wire color in the truck's speaker harness goes to which speaker? (Or is there some sort of a trick for identifying those wires beyond removing panels and tracing wire colors [which I imagine can change if there are connecting harnesses at some point])?

2: Did anyone here wire-up a similar DSP unit in their car and was it worth it (audio-wise)?

I'm not as interested in specific speaker recommendations because I'm already committed to the high-end Focal set I purchased, but I am interested in any current-model recommendations for DSP's and amps.

3: Has anyone figured out a good replacement for the Jaguar 6x9 dual voice coil subwoofer that's in the rear dash???

Thanks,
Allen

 

You can find the wiring diagrams here: JagRepair.com - Jaguar Repair Information Resource

More information would be helpful. What speakers did you replace, and with what?
Are you still running active from the factory amp, or have you put in a passive crossover?

 

Thank you for the link. I still can't figure out the wiring colors. Is there any guide that tells me what OY, BO, WU would mean (used in wiring diagram for XJR 2000 Figure 16.1)?

Also the AudioControl unit sums the post-amp signal. So I would be using the factory amp to feed into the AudioControl DSP unit, then I would feed its pre-amp output to an amp/amps, then I would attach the output from those amps to the speakers in the car. Crossovers would be done by the AudioControl unit and I would use the crossover at the front left/right that was supplied with the Focal mid/tweeter pair.

Allan

 

From upper right corner of page 16.

 

I missed that, and you, sir, are my new hero. Thank you so much!

 

What are you running at the moment though? Have you simply replaced the factory speakers with the Focals? (Nice speaker choice by the way!)

If you're not using the passive crossover then you're probably giving too much power to the mids. You could try turning the treble down at the headunit. Other than that you're probably a bit stuck until you add either the DSP or find another way to amp the speakers.

Also, what year is your car? Some premium units are easier to hack than others... if yours is Ai-Net then you'll need to run something post amp, but if it's not you might be able to simply replace the amp, rewire the car and use the Focal crossover

 

Thanks for complimenting the Focals. I really like them even though I'm sure they're not currently performing optimally. I did simply replace all of the speakers (not the sub) with Focals.

Turning the treble down at the headunit doesn't cut it: It trims too many valuable frequencies so that a broad spectrum of music gets affected; in other words, it's way too coarse and adjustment for my taste/needs.

I have a 2000 XJR with the Premium Sound package. I do have Ai-Net, unfortunately...

What do you think?

 

I'd look at getting more out of your mids. Sound deadening the door skins is a great start, but if you want to go a bit further, you could do what I did and get pods made up to mount the speakers directly to the door, rather than the door card. You will notice a huge difference from the mids, which should help them 'keep up' with the tweeters.
You could also investigate whether the Focal crossovers can be bi-wired, which means you can use the factory wiring but still pass the separate mid and tweeter frequencies through the passive crossover. Really though, the tweeters will always be quite bright, it's just the nature of Focal tweeters. You could look at replacing them with something else, if you really don't like them too. All of this is a lot easier than going down the route of a DSP. Plus, a DSP is still kind of a bandaid solution to your problem, so make sure you get the most out of your speakers first, then look into turning options.

Also, look into aiming the tweeters. If they're pointing straight across they should be ok, but if they're pointing towards you they will be harsher. If you can, you could also aim them towards the centre of the windscreen, this will help tone them down as they reflect of the windscreen

Have a look through here, it should give you some ideas

Glens XJR by Nath Wilson | Photobucket

The door pods are on pages 3 and 4

 

Thank you for all the information and photos! It looks like you have a really great setup!

I have been through many autos and acoustically, my XJR 2000's sound system just isn't up to par. I don't think it's the mids or the tweeters per se; I think that perhaps the amp just isn't providing a quality signal. The amp already crosses over the tweeter and the mid, so adding a passive crossover to the existing tweeter doesn't seem to make a lot of sense. I had tried it anyway, but wasn't happy with the results.

I think the nature of the Jag-amp crossovers and the use of Focals (versus factory) speakers has created a real problem for me. The mids and the tweeters are very likely overlapping in their frequency ranges, causing amplitude summation in the mid-high range. To correct that, I could try crossing over the mids and the tweeters, but I don't like the idea of crossing over and already crossed-over source signal. Without knowing the quality of the crossover and the precise frequencies, it seems likely that I would exclude a range of music and that just doesn't sit well with me.

I do agree with you about the Focal tweeters, though: They are too bright and I don't want to just angle them to reduce that. I don't think they should generate sibilance whether angled or not. So I very well might replace them with the factory tweeters just to see if that solves most of my audio-quality concerns.

I'm still wondering what I could do it I want to keep the factory amp yet have a higher-quality subwoofer than the rather bad 6x9 dual-voicecoil factory speaker that's mounted in the rear dash...

Thanks again,
Allan