I have the non-Bose sound system in my LT and have discovered that. 1 - AM/FM radio sounds muddy. 2 - XM-Radio sounds better than AM/FM but still lacking. 3 - iPods sound great! The quality of the sound signal going in dictates the quality of the sound coming out. I was ready to spend money on a system upgrade but will wait and continue to listen to my iPod for a while. Anyone else experience this?

 

Did you set the equalizer for each source. You go to FM and set it then go to AM and set it again etc...

 

Yep, I did do that with the manual EQ and it was better but still not as good as with the same EQ and iPod as the input source. The iPod makes it sound like a totally different system. By the way the iPod (30G Video) has it's own EQ as well.

 

The old adage "garbage in garbage out" applies in his case.

And also in reality the AM/FM tuner should yield the worst sound quality followed by XM then the integrated input (iPod as some call it) and a CD should give the best sound. You may be real surprised what swapping out the stock speakers with a decent quality after market does to wake up these systems, even just the two front door speakers makes a very big improvement so long as you choose the replacements wisely.

 

Thanks ZX! I seem to recall that you had mentioned that before. Any suggestions for starters? I tend to hesitate jumping into something like that because of the multitude of speakers out there and also over zealous sales people are a turn off. A point of reference would be a huge help.

 

Try searching on this forum as ZX posted the speakers he used in his Tahoe. It was about a year ago.

 

Thanks 73Shark!

 

I used a pair of Hertz Audio Energy ECX 165 in the front doors http://www.hertzaudiovideo.com/default_en.htm
They sold for around $100 a pair, and I would for sure recommend them for replacements.
I mounted (actually remounted a year later) them using these adapters purchased off Ebay and they work extremely well. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/6-Spe...spagenameZWD1V

 

ZX1100F1,

Thanks for the info. I have a couple of further questions.
1 - Did you disconnect the A-Pillar tweeters when you installed the ECX-165's?
2 - Do you have the Bose system or does it matter?
3 - Are you still using only the factory head unit or some other upgrade.

I know what you mean when you suggested to choose carefully. I went to a couple of places and noticed that going from the limited selection of the place where I got my alarm installed to a place called Ultimate Electronics and a wider selection and price ranges that it can be a bit overwhelming. But I did get to hear some great speakers in the $90 to $120 range. At those prices and quality sound, I may replace the front and rear door speakers.

 

I did not at first disconnect the a-pillar tweeters but later I replaced them with a pair of Polk db1000, they sound a tiny bit better but not worth it the end in my opinion.

I installed these speakers in my 07 NBS Silverado it has the same head unit and a similar speaker arrangement as the Tahoe.

It is not the Bose system and I use just the factory head unit power.

The Hertz speakers or so efficient that they work real well for this type of application and if later decide to add an amp they can handle the extra power.