Upgrading the sound system in your Jeep Grand Cherokee can dramatically enhance your driving experience. This guide provides a comprehensive overview of upgrading the Alpine premium 9-speaker system with a subwoofer, offering a significant improvement over the factory setup. This detailed walkthrough covers speaker and subwoofer selection, installation tips, and wiring instructions.
Choosing the Right Components for Your Jeep Grand Cherokee Alpine System
The factory Jeep Grand Cherokee Alpine system, while decent, often lacks the depth and clarity audiophiles crave. This upgrade focuses on direct replacements, minimizing modifications to your vehicle. Here’s a breakdown of the recommended components:
Speakers:
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Dash and Rear Pillars: Replace the factory 3.5-inch coaxial speakers with Kicker 77KICK42 speakers. These offer a noticeable improvement in high-frequency response and overall clarity. The dash and rear pillar speakers are the easiest to replace, often requiring minimal effort.
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Front Doors: Upgrade the front doors with Kicker 77KICK42 6×9-inch component speakers. Component speakers separate the tweeter from the woofer, allowing for better sound staging and imaging. These speakers significantly enhance the mid-bass and high-frequency clarity in the front stage.
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Rear Doors: Install Kicker 77KICK41 6×9-inch coaxial speakers in the rear doors. While not as critical as the front stage, upgrading these speakers ensures a balanced sound throughout the cabin. These provide a solid upgrade over the factory speakers, improving overall sound quality.
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Rear Pillars: Utilize Kicker 77KICK25AB 3.5-inch coaxial speakers for the rear pillars. These compact speakers deliver surprisingly good sound quality, filling in the rear soundstage.
Subwoofer and Amplifier:
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Subwoofer: A Kicker 43CWRT82 8-inch shallow-mount subwoofer is the perfect fit for the factory enclosure. Its slim design allows for easy installation without modifications. This subwoofer provides deep, powerful bass without requiring a custom enclosure. Wiring this 2-ohm Dual Voice Coil (DVC) subwoofer in series results in a 4-ohm load.
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Amplifier: Power the subwoofer with a Kicker 43CXA3001 mono amplifier. This amplifier delivers ample power for the subwoofer and features high-level inputs, simplifying the wiring process. It fits neatly beneath the trunk floor in the wheel well area.
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Bass Remote: Install a Kicker 43CXARC bass remote control for on-the-fly adjustments. This allows you to fine-tune the bass level to your preference without accessing the amplifier. The remote can be conveniently mounted in the small compartment below and left of the steering wheel.
Installation Tips and Wiring Guide
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Panel Removal Tools: Invest in a set of plastic panel removal tools to avoid damaging your Jeep’s interior.
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Door Panels: Removing door panels can be challenging. Start from the bottom inside corner near the speaker and work your way up, carefully releasing the clips.
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Subwoofer Enclosure Access: Accessing the subwoofer enclosure requires removing the trunk floor, spare tire, and several interior panels. Detailed instructions can be found in online forums and guides.
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Wiring: Run the amplifier’s power wire directly from the positive battery terminal through the firewall. Use the long screw in the wheel well for the ground connection. Conceal all wires beneath the driver’s side paneling.
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Speaker Wire to RCA Adapters: Utilize speaker wire to RCA adapters to connect the factory subwoofer wiring to the amplifier’s high-level inputs.
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Moldable Plastic: If the subwoofer’s screw holes don’t align with the factory enclosure, use moldable plastic to create a custom fit. This ensures a secure and rattle-free installation.
Fine-tuning Your Jeep Grand Cherokee Alpine System
After installation, fine-tune the equalizer settings to your preference. Start with a bass boost of +3, midrange at 0, and treble reduction of -6. Use an oscilloscope to set the amplifier gain properly, avoiding clipping and distortion.
This comprehensive guide provides a clear path to upgrading your Jeep Grand Cherokee Alpine sound system. Enjoy the dramatically improved audio quality and immersive listening experience!
