Can I Just Add An Aftermarket Amp To My Car?

[kino1161]

To make my speakers sound better and the sound a little louder? How would it sound? Has anyone done this? I am not looking for a "booming" system, I am just tired of one side of the car playing and the other side is not. Is that due to our stock amps being "crap"? OR, can I just replace my radio with something like a 200W radio and that will make a difference? Thanks! I have a 1996 GS3.

[GuyTelefunken]

Replacing your radio will make no difference in the power available to your speakers if you still run it through the factory amp. The Lexus factory amp uses line level inputs by the way.

If the radio is ok, replacing the amp will make some difference. Replacing the amp with a higher power model will most likely put stress on the factory speakers. Factory speakers generally cannot handle much more power than the factory amp can provide.

If you only have sound on one side of the car, chances are the amp is bad or there is a wiring issue. It is also entirely possible that the headunit is not sending signal to the amp on that side.

To improve the quality of the sound as well as the power, the best options would be to repair the stock system, or replace:

A: The amp and speakers

B. The amp, speakers, and the headunit

[kino1161]

Replacing your radio will make no difference in the power available to your speakers if you still run it through the factory amp. The Lexus factory amp uses line level inputs by the way.

If the radio is ok, replacing the amp will make some difference. Replacing the amp with a higher power model will most likely put stress on the factory speakers. Factory speakers generally cannot handle much more power than the factory amp can provide.

If you only have sound on one side of the car, chances are the amp is bad or there is a wiring issue. It is also entirely possible that the headunit is not sending signal to the amp on that side.

To improve the quality of the sound as well as the power, the best options would be to repair the stock system, or replace:

A: The amp and speakers

B. The amp, speakers, and the headunit

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I forgot to say. The radio plays fine (on both sides) when the radio is playing, but when I play CDs, it only plays on one side. It used to play fine with CDs, but lately it has started acting up. I thought I had read on here somewhere that someone said that it was the stock amp getting wet from the trunk.

[TWINTURBO619]

I've replaced my head unit with a Panasonic dvd screen and factory amp with a SONY amp. I left the original nakamichi speakers and sub. Let me tell you, they sound awesome with an aftermarket unit. I have all the speakers hooked up to my head unit and a 400 watt amp to my factory sub... it bumps pretty hard for a stock sub. So yeah, I would definately change out your head unit and factory amp with aftermarket units.

[kino1161]

I've replaced my head unit with a Panasonic dvd screen and factory amp with a SONY amp.  I left the original nakamichi speakers and sub.  Let me tell you, they sound awesome with an aftermarket unit.  I have all the speakers hooked up to my head unit and a 400 watt amp to my factory sub... it bumps pretty hard for a stock sub.  So yeah, I would definately change out your head unit and factory amp with aftermarket units.

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Twin,

That is exactly what I want to do! Is this something I can do myself or do I need a pro to do it? I put in a system before in an old car I had, but I didn't care if I messed something up either. How many watts does your head unit have? Thanks!

[TWINTURBO619]

What's up Kino... well I know my amp is pushing 400 watts easy and it's dedicated to my factory sub... I'll get you the specs on my head unit in a bit and let you know what's up. If you know car stereo systems... you can do it yourself. It's going to be a bit tight when running your wiring on the passenger side but either than that, a couple of hours worth of work.

[kino1161]

What's up Kino... well I know my amp is pushing 400 watts easy and it's dedicated to my factory sub... I'll get you the specs on my head unit in a bit and let you know what's up.  If you know car stereo systems... you can do it yourself.  It's going to be a bit tight when running your wiring on the passenger side but either than that, a couple of hours worth of work.

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Thanks!

[TWINTURBO619]

Hey Kino, my deck is a panasonic cy-vmd9000u.