I'm getting ready to have mine installed where the Bose sub resides behind the driver seat. Finding a Bose Subwoofer panel on ebay should not be too terribly difficult if you are worried about the amp overheating. I would skip mounting any amp under a seat anyways. But that's because I hate drilling into the floorpan too.

 

As promised, I got my new equipment installed and will now post an honest, unbiased review. Here's the equipment list:

-JVC KW NT1 navigation HU
-Focal 165A1 6.5" front components
-Focal 165CA1 6.5" rear coaxials
-MB Quart Discus 450 4 channel amplifier (50 watts x 4 RMS at 4 ohms)

You guys were 100% right, the MB Quart amp makes a HUGE difference in sound quality (and conveniently, it fits perfectly into the small space below the board in the glove box behind the passenger sear). I've turned the HU up to almost intolerable volumes and the Focals handle the sound just fine without distortion or clipping. The mids, highs, and mid bass are a lot more defined and cleaner than stock (not a shock) and I can only imagine that it is also a big improvement over the Focals being run by the JVC's internal amp.

After setting the JVC's EQ to taste, the bass is booming and again, with no noticeable distortion or clipping. Even with quieter less bassy pieces like "Peril" from Halo 2 or "The Farthest Land" from Shadow of the Colossus, the vast improvement in sound quality is more than noticeable. My only regret is that the front woofers are rattling a bit and I should have installed a small piece of Dynamat or other sound deadening material in both holes. Maybe next time.

Do the rear speakers make a difference? Not much for music but I can hear distinct surround effects while playing DVDs and I couldn't imagine enjoying movies without them. For those who unhooked the rear speakers, you guys are missing out whenever a bullet whizzes by or a Star Destroyer flies overhead.

Overall, for those who are in doubt, get an outboard amp if you are also upgrading the speakers. You won't regret it.

 

I would like to offer some comments… But, the first thing: Thanks for taking time to post your review and comments. That helps the members here.

Your equipment list is impressive and certainly provides great sound. For sure those Focals require an external amp for best sound.
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RE> “My only regret is that the front woofers are rattling a bit and I should have installed a small piece of Dynamat or other sound deadening material in both holes.”

I have Focals in my fronts doors (mounted in the stock location) along with some sound deadening, and I also get the rattling you describe. Since the sound deadening I installed doesn’t fix this (the “woofer rattle”) my guess is that the stock mount and the stock grill capture the woofer’s movement, and deliver this vibration as rattle. The solutions might include:

(1) Cutting away the stock door grill and replacing this with a custom grill not integrated into the door panel.

(2) Using door pods that you isolate with a soft attachment to the door panel.

(3) Adding a SubW so that you can tone down the low bass to the Focal and send this to the SubW (I am aware that you do not want a SubW).
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RE> “Do the rear speakers make a difference? Not much for music but I can hear distinct surround effects while playing DVDs and I couldn't imagine enjoying movies without them. For those who unhooked the rear speakers, you guys are missing out whenever a bullet whizzes by or a Star Destroyer flies overhead.”

I see your point. But consider this: If you like the sound from your rear speakers listening to 5.1 Surround-Sound, imagine what you are missing without a front center speaker and a SubW.


--Spike

 

^Thanks for the suggestions but re: custom door pods, I want to keep a close to stock look as much as possible. Also, most custom pods I've seen in the 350 are fugly, IMO. And again, I imagine that custom pods would results in putting more weight onto the car.

Re: a center speaker and sub, I'm sure they will provide a more enjoyable 5.1 experience but dialog is more than intelligible from the fronts and tweeters (dialog being the center speaker's biggest purpose) and the bass is more than adequate from the woofers (the sub's biggest purpose) so again, I'm not willing to sacrifice more weight for sound quality that's already there.

 

16psibrick made pods for me and they looks great. most ppl don't even notice that its not stock. the stock speaker locations are in bad locations so you won't get the best listening experience from where you are sitting. with weight, its a give and take. depends how important sound is to you.

 

I went the FOCAL/KENWOOD route - DDX514 head unit, 8404 AMP,mounted under glove box, passenger side. Focal full range/coaxial in the rear, components in the front, tweeters mounted in stock sail fin location. No sub, and I don't miss one. Plenty of bass for my tastes with the Focal's.

 

Hope the MB Quart Discus works for you - mine did not like the heat in the summer and kept shutting down - switched to Alpine and never had any more issues. . .

+1 on the Focals - love mine

 

I'm surprised that the MB Quart amp hasn't gotten hot once. I ran the stereo pretty loud for a bit and then checked the amp in the glove box and it wasn't even warm. My installer says amps that don't drive subs tend to stay cooler and I hope he's right.

Also, the more I've heard the Focals, the less I need a sub. Bass is more than adequate without distortion and clipping and except for the slightly annoying rattle.

 

Good components in kick pods with a good amp sounds better than the stock by a good bit. I'm pretty satisfied with how mine sounds considering I don't have a sub yet.

 

^^ Good point… and you are correct.

The stock door mount is prone to excessive vibration. You can reduce this by adding sound deadening, but the result is a muffled sound (as if it’s playing “under water”).

Stuffing a quality speaker into the stock door position along with some sound deadening does not match the better sound you get with correctly installed door pods or kicks.

--Spike

 

QFT.

I've been through that route and it is an absolute night and day difference between the two.