Upgrading the Linn audio in a DB9

Upgrading the Linn audio in a DB9

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vinnie83

Original Poster:

3,367 posts

192 months

Sunday 22nd March 2015
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Hi guys... so after some googling, I've discovered that I'm not the only one who thinks this system is ste.

It's the 280 watt option (how poor was the standard??) and sounds absolutely pathetic for a £100k+ car.

My 911 has a Bose system and it's bloody good, as did my older SL - a 2003 car, which sounded pretty good too. With both of these cars, I never even thought for a second that anything requires upgrading.

Google search reveals many people unhappy, but few who have actually done anything about it. Those who have seem to have spend an enormous amount of money having a full custom system installed.

So in short, has anyone here upgraded theirs in any way?

Are there any easy upgrades that make a worthy difference?

The sub is an obvious weak point, and the rest of the speakers are hardly mind blowing. It wouldn't be very costly to change these - but is the standard amplifier an equal weak point?

Upgrading the amp is where things get costly...

Any advice appreciated.


divetheworld

2,565 posts

134 months

Sunday 22nd March 2015
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Standard front speakers are 4" 2 way components. Not a lot you can do to make them better.
Equaliser options in the OEM are non existent, so even if you could get better drivers, you cant tune it.
In my V8, I changed the drivers to high end units, created custom sealed enclosures for the drivers and used a Real Time Analyser to get it near. Good speakers like Clif or Morel work well enough, but the V8 has a fairly good foundation with the Alpine Premium audio.
All easy to do in a weekend.

The DBS had the B&O system. Fitting an Audison Bit one to the output of the source gives tunable line level out to new amps. JL amps feed a set of Morel Elate 3 ways in the front doors and a much better sub in the back shelf. The three ways in the doors meant fitting the larger or the three way in the bottom of the door with custom builds. It also meant disconnecting the B&O speakers.
Works well, but requires an extraordinary amount of setting up.

My advise? Fit new speakers and seal them to the inner door skins. Change the sub driver to a better one and leave the rest standard unless you want the hassle and expense of an Audison processor.

vinnie83

Original Poster:

3,367 posts

192 months

Wednesday 25th March 2015
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Yeah I don't want the expense or the hassle of fitting a whole new system.

I was hoping someone here may have changed the components and sub and could offer an opinion on how much difference it made.

Also, I was hoping someone may have an idea of which components and sub would fit in the existing spaces too.

craig e

33 posts

159 months

Thursday 26th March 2015
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hello vinnie
this is on my "to do" list, i want to keep my 05 Db9 as standard as possible so the idea of major refit does not appeal plus i dont have the in depth knowledge in these systems.
i googled "aston martin db9 stereo upgrade" and found a 9 owner on 6speedonline decided to replace the front and rear speakers with Rainbow DL-C4.2 components.
They are only £150 a a pair and according to the OP there not too hard to fit and there is a substantial improvement over the standard speakers.
My plan is to get a a pair to replace the door speakers and see what they are like ( might do one door then do a comparison test using mk1 lughole).
If i feel like its a good improvement will change rears and sub.
dont know when im going to do this yet but will report findings

regards

craig elam

8Tech

2,136 posts

197 months

Friday 27th March 2015
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I replaced the original Linn sub with a Soundstream Tatantula R3.8 dual voice coil unit as I found the original Linn would "cough" when any power was put through it. I bought the better of the 2 available at the time but had to make a small spacer ring to mount it in the Volante enclosure as the magnet on the voice coil fouled on the rear of the box. It still clears the grille with room to spare.

The specialist speaker is far superior and a fraction of the cost of the Linn. I am looking to investigate replacing the door and rear 1/4 speakers this year. The FM reception on the head unit is dire, so using CD's all the time is demanding on the speakers.

I would imagine the sublime engineers at Linn would have a fit if they witnessed how poorly their components were performing in the car audio.

Edited by 8Tech on Monday 30th March 17:05

Sump

5,484 posts

166 months

Sunday 29th March 2015
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8tech, have you code a product code for that Sub?

Thanks

8Tech

2,136 posts

197 months

Monday 30th March 2015
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Yes. Having dug out the paperwork, it is a Soundstream Tarantula R3.8 Reference Series.

divetheworld

2,565 posts

134 months

Monday 30th March 2015
quotequote all
The front speakers are 2-way 4" mid + Tweeter. There are a lot of component speakers in this size and their sound varies hugely. Be sure of what you want, even some expensive ones (IMHO) sound crap. I don't rate those particular Rainbows at all. You've also got MB Quart, Focal, Hertz etc to choose from.
Almost all 4" drivers will be a straight swap. The tweeters may require some creative fitting as the OEM has a moulded mount. You should only need rudimentary fitting skills to cut/file/fit the new tweeters. The speakers are mounted on a pressed steel plate that is not sealed to the door in any way. Free air drivers never sound as good, dynamic or punchy as sealed can.
Quick and dirty.... Duck tape to make a seal, cover in clingfilm and then paint over with fibreglass resin to harden. When its set, remove the tape and film and reassemble with the fibreglass reinforced parts you just made. Use duck tape to seal it to the door. Now you have small speaker enclosures.
Put a few strips/panels of dynamat on the door skin while its in front of you.
Same for the back components but I can't imagine why anyone would want to spend money on listening to back speakers.
The subwoofer is an 8" driver. Your choices are limited.

8Tech

2,136 posts

197 months

Tuesday 31st March 2015
quotequote all
divetheworld said:
The front speakers are 2-way 4" mid + Tweeter. There are a lot of component speakers in this size and their sound varies hugely. Be sure of what you want, even some expensive ones (IMHO) sound crap. I don't rate those particular Rainbows at all. You've also got MB Quart, Focal, Hertz etc to choose from.
Almost all 4" drivers will be a straight swap. The tweeters may require some creative fitting as the OEM has a moulded mount. You should only need rudimentary fitting skills to cut/file/fit the new tweeters. The speakers are mounted on a pressed steel plate that is not sealed to the door in any way. Free air drivers never sound as good, dynamic or punchy as sealed can.
Quick and dirty.... Duck tape to make a seal, cover in clingfilm and then paint over with fibreglass resin to harden. When its set, remove the tape and film and reassemble with the fibreglass reinforced parts you just made. Use duck tape to seal it to the door. Now you have small speaker enclosures.
Put a few strips/panels of dynamat on the door skin while its in front of you.
Same for the back components but I can't imagine why anyone would want to spend money on listening to back speakers.
The subwoofer is an 8" driver. Your choices are limited.
Thats great info, thanks. I will now be able to shop for components before stripping the doors down to see what I need. I like the MB Quart and the Focals, but every install can sound different even using the same drivers, so there will still be some gamble here anyway.

I agree that there is little to be gained spending money on the rear "fill" speakers. There are e few 8" subs around but you will need a dual voice coil one as I mentioned earlier because both sub channels from the amp go to the same single speaker.

I am still stunned that the original audio from a top line manufacturer like Linn is so average.

Sump

5,484 posts

166 months

Tuesday 31st March 2015
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8tech, there is a guy on 6speedonline who replaced the front speakers with these :

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Focal-100CA1-ACCESS-CA1-...

You can see it in this thread. - http://www.6speedonline.com/forums/aston-martin/28...

I am thinking about buying that listing as £69 for a pair is a bargain if it improves the sound alot!

I for the life of my can't find your sub anywhere :S

vinnie83

Original Poster:

3,367 posts

192 months

Tuesday 31st March 2015
quotequote all
The infinity sub appears to not be in production anymore - they only list a limited number of items on their website suggesting that they're just clearing out old stock.

Their old 'Perfect' series speakers were amazing going back 10 years when I was into all this stuff, but I think the introduction of decent manufacturer systems and integrated systems has killed the market.

They do have a reference series sub listed with the correct size and impedance, however I recall their reference series being rather poor at the time.



vinnie83

Original Poster:

3,367 posts

192 months

Tuesday 31st March 2015
quotequote all
Sump said:
8tech, there is a guy on 6speedonline who replaced the front speakers with these :

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Focal-100CA1-ACCESS-CA1-...

You can see it in this thread. - http://www.6speedonline.com/forums/aston-martin/28...

I am thinking about buying that listing as £69 for a pair is a bargain if it improves the sound alot!

I for the life of my can't find your sub anywhere :S
Sump, that chap has a Vantage so the dimensions may be different? If you do buy, please let us know how you get on!

ETA:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.50873716...

Just found this with details of the components and subs used - UK company and installed about a year and half ago so the kit shouldn't be difficult to source.



Edited by vinnie83 on Tuesday 31st March 14:14

vinnie83

Original Poster:

3,367 posts

192 months

Tuesday 31st March 2015
quotequote all
For anyone that is interested, I've spoken to the company I linked the FB post to above and they seem to have done a number of DB9 audio upgrades.

Costings he gave were approx, but based on replacing 4 x 4" components (with 4") ~£400, replacing the sub with the JL audio sub ~200 and an amp with sound processor ~£900.

He's getting back to me with prices for bluetooth and aux input but he said approx £400.


If anyone is interested, why don't we see if he is willing to do a discount if we get a few people together?

ETA-

He just called back after doing his research - there's no integrated bluetooth/ipod option available. So either I can use the AUX input in the amp and have a 3.5mm input installed somewhere for the music and have a parrot kit installed, or there's a unit for ~£400 that allows ipod integration with the stereo.

Hope this info is useful to someone!

Edited by vinnie83 on Tuesday 31st March 17:19

divetheworld

2,565 posts

134 months

Tuesday 31st March 2015
quotequote all
JL subs have always been epic in regards to sound quality rather than quantity. I applaud that choice.
The Focal co-axials above, not so much. It's all personal taste, but the tweeters are harsh. The crossovers are capacitor low cut off, not real crossovers. If you're into sound quality, go for a very good set of components with silk dome tweeters if you can.
Realistically, a 4" driver is going to have a hard enough time as it is to produce good mid bass. So go as good as you can get but you're talking £150-250 for a decent set of front speakers.

Do you know if the OEM amp is crap? I'd suggest trying speakers first, amp will only increase the volume unless you have bigger speakers. A 4" speaker has no attack and the sub cant extend high enough to fill the gap. We are missing a 6.5" speaker, anyone who says otherwise requires a rubber room.

A sound processor is a good idea as you can hide a lot of the problems with one. Make sure its a good one like Audison or similar if you can.

Edited by divetheworld on Tuesday 31st March 17:22

Sump

5,484 posts

166 months

Tuesday 31st March 2015
quotequote all
Hmmm, okay the focals are out because you're not the first person to say that either.

I'm under the impression that the AMP isn't crap here it's the speakers themselves tbh.

Call me crazy but on that 5" speaker has he just bolted in only 2 bolts and left the other side alone? confused

I don't think there is any need to pay labour. I've had the door cards off in literally 5 minutes, just 2 allen bolts and some torx along the bottom.

Edited by Sump on Tuesday 31st March 18:16

vinnie83

Original Poster:

3,367 posts

192 months

Tuesday 31st March 2015
quotequote all
The sound processor/amp he recommended is Audison 8.9

He did highlight the trouble with 4" and the gap between their lowest point and the subs highest. He also pointed out the cost due to how time consuming it was to install the 6" components as per the FB pics.

I'm going to go with the speaker upgrade first - I can't imagine the labour is a tremendous amount and with me not having a garage I would prefer to pay someone to get the job done quickly and cleanly.

If the 4x component and sub upgrade isn't good enough, I will then get the amp installed as he said that it's a separate process so getting it done later will not increase the work required.

£1,300 all in + the £100 ish (these are approx figures with no negotiation yet) for the module to allow switching of the AUX input to me seems rather good value if the system is decent - far cheaper than Aston charged for the top Linn upgrade which sounds ste!

I finish Uni in about 5-6 weeks so I'll get the car up to this chap and report back in the summer.

In the meantime, I'll keep doing my research to see what other options are available and report back here.

Sump

5,484 posts

166 months

Tuesday 31st March 2015
quotequote all
Okay, well I am going to do something similar but a DIY version of it.

I don't think an amp is needed but I'll see what happens with my speaker upgrade and sub upgrade.

I'll report back in a couple of weeks as I am itching to get going. Just need to settle on which speakers to get now. I think I'll go towards some 5" ones in that case. I'll do the front 2 and the sub to start off and see if there is a difference at least.

Looks like us three have concluded the linn is crap at the same time.

vinnie83

Original Poster:

3,367 posts

192 months

Wednesday 1st April 2015
quotequote all
Sump said:
Okay, well I am going to do something similar but a DIY version of it.

I don't think an amp is needed but I'll see what happens with my speaker upgrade and sub upgrade.

I'll report back in a couple of weeks as I am itching to get going. Just need to settle on which speakers to get now. I think I'll go towards some 5" ones in that case. I'll do the front 2 and the sub to start off and see if there is a difference at least.

Looks like us three have concluded the linn is crap at the same time.
I think everybody agrees that the Linn is crap!

According to the chap I spoke to yesterday, 5" in the front is a real pain so if you do decide to go that route, please take photos of the steps!


divetheworld

2,565 posts

134 months

Wednesday 1st April 2015
quotequote all
vinnie83 said:
I think everybody agrees that the Linn is crap!

According to the chap I spoke to yesterday, 5" in the front is a real pain so if you do decide to go that route, please take photos of the steps!
Yup. 5" will be a real struggle.

Sump

5,484 posts

166 months

Wednesday 1st April 2015
quotequote all
Scrap that then, I'll stick with 4".

Past experience has taught me to just make life easy for yourself.