Audio upgrade ideas?

[Mikey Swift]

Has anyone had luck adding a stealth box or similar under the back seats while maintaining ANC? From the first time I heard the HK system it felt weak on bass. My 2014 Laramie Alpine system had much better bass.

Hoping to not totally tear apart the electronics to add a subwoofer but haven’t been able to find anything online so far.

Any recommendations?

I added the Kicker Hideaway 10. Just enough punch to fill out the system...sounds great. Lost the ANC though, did notice much of a difference other than a minor bit of wind and road noise. Don't hear it with music playing though.

 

[Adub]

I added the Kicker Hideaway 10. Just enough punch to fill out the system...sounds great. Lost the ANC though, did notice much of a difference other than a minor bit of wind and road noise. Don't hear it with music playing though.

Where did you place the hideaway unit? Could it squeeze on to the rear wall?

 

[Mikey Swift]

Where did you place the hideaway unit? Could it squeeze on to the rear wall?

Same side as the stock sub, lays at a 45° in the tray under the seat...wire harness facing door.

 

[Adub]

I may go ahead and get a MTI enclosure. I’ve had one in each truck so far, so might as well try the half length version with one of these 12in TW3s I have laying around.

Also, netaudio has a plug and play converter and anc bypass available.

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[rpr]

I’m expecting to pickup a 2026 RHO within the next 10 days or so and there’s no doubt that I will not be happy with the stock HK19 system, but I’m a bit lost on the big picture after reading through this thread.

On my ‘14 Limited the best option for the cleanest source signal to the aftermarket amps and DSP was to find a 1 or 2V full signal output from the head unit. It wasn’t easy, and I would prefer not to do surgery on the factory harnesses again, but the result was amazing because I completely bypassed the factory amp and used a very good aftermarket DSP and amps.

When you guys talk about a PAC harness I could be wrong but I believe that’s added in line with the factory amp, so you’re working off a boosted signal from a low quality amp that’s not clean with a high noise floor. I tried a PAC harness on the Limited and the SQ was terrible. The DSP helped, but it was still terrible.

So is this PAC harness you guys are expecting likely to also be an inline device or is PAC now producing harnesses that completely bypass the factory amp?

Also, can you help me understand the ANC? Counteracting sound waves played through the speakers to minimize road noise? Wouldn’t that adversely affect the SQ?

 

[Silver RHO]

I’m expecting to pickup a 2026 RHO within the next 10 days or so and there’s no doubt that I will not be happy with the stock HK19 system, but I’m a bit lost on the big picture after reading through this thread.

On my ‘14 Limited the best option for the cleanest source signal to the aftermarket amps and DSP was to find a 1 or 2V full signal output from the head unit. It wasn’t easy, and I would prefer not to do surgery on the factory harnesses again, but the result was amazing. Why? Because I completely bypassed the factory amp.

When you guys talk about a PAC harness I could be wrong but I believe that’s added in line with the factory amp, so you’re working off a boosted signal from a low quality amp that’s not clean with a high noise floor. I tried a PAC harness on the Limited and the SQ was terrible. The DSP helped, but it was still terrible.

So is this PAC harness you guys are expecting likely to also be an inline device or is PAC now producing harnesses that completely bypass the factory amp?

Also, can you help me understand the ANC? Counteracting sound waves played through the speakers to minimize road noise? Wouldn’t that adversely affect the SQ?

The PAC AmpPro is what we are specifically talking about. Last I checked they still haven’t cracked the new electrical architecture so SOL on full aftermarket systems without a ton of work. It undoes all the shitty EQ from the factory amp and provides a clean flat signal to send to your dsp/amp. You have to keep the factory amp or you will lose all the other controls that are handled through that amp (turn signal sounds, parking sensors, etc). And in order to keep the factory amp you have to use the AmpPro to trick the amp into thinking that it still has all its speakers in place (resistance on factory channels) or your system will basically stop working or go crazy.

ANC is basically exactly what you described. They do a whole lot to make it not interfere (or atleast not much) with the factory sound system quality. If you change speakers it will throw this completely out of whack. Any upgrade to audio requires a bypass harness that gets rid of ANC. More road noise and wind noise will be apparent in cabin.

If you want SQ the very first thing to do is put sound deadening and sound absorption mat in atleast all 4 doors. Pain in the ass but it made a big difference cleaning up the muddiness of the factory alpine system I have. As of now I’m just waiting on PAC to develop a new AmpPro for our trucks.

 

[rpr]

Thanks, good info that builds on my escapades with the ‘14 Limited. On that truck I was able to retain the functionality of everything except the park sense chimes. I could have retired that by simply placing a cheap speaker somewhere just for that but for me it wasn’t worth the effort, I just watch the dash sensors.

I’m sure it would be even more difficult to do on this truck so I’ll just hope for a PAC harness in the near future like the rest of you guys, but based on my experience there’s just no way it’ll restore the signal as well as by bypassing the factory amp.

But I’m too old and I don’t have enough patience to be hacking into factory harnesses on a brand new truck anymore, to say it was a pain in the a** is an understatement. It was a labor of love and it served me very well for 12 years.

Back then the noise floor (hiss with volume all the way down, most noticeable from the tweeters) was very high when I tried a PAC harness. How’s the noise floor on the newer PAC harnesses you’re speaking of?

Many thanks for the feedback.

 

[Silver RHO]

Thanks, good info that builds on my escapades with the ‘14 Limited. On that truck I was able to retain the functionality of everything except the park sense chimes. I could have retired that by simply placing a cheap speaker somewhere just for that but for me it wasn’t worth the effort, I just watch the dash sensors.

I’m sure it would be even more difficult to do on this truck so I’ll just hope for a PAC harness in the near future like the rest of you guys, but based on my experience there’s just no way it’ll restore the signal as well as by bypassing the factory amp.

But I’m too old and I don’t have enough patience to be hacking into factory harnesses on a brand new truck anymore, to say it was a pain in the a** is an understatement. It was a labor of love and it served me very well for 12 years.

Back then the noise floor (hiss with volume all the way down, most noticeable from the tweeters) was very high when I tried a PAC harness. How’s the noise floor on the newer PAC harnesses you’re speaking of?

Many thanks for the feedback.

I don’t know what the noise floor is on the new pac pros, as I haven’t used one. Last full build I did was a 2007 Nissan titan and that’s back when it was easy, none of this technical mess to deal with. I know that all the big car Audio YouTubers use the pac amp pro to get the signal back and then can further mess with it on dsp if needed. From everything I’ve heard they are great. Net Audio specializes in ram trucks / dodge etc and they will build all harnesses you need as a package which is nice when you go to do new build.

 

[Silver RHO]

Thanks, good info that builds on my escapades with the ‘14 Limited. On that truck I was able to retain the functionality of everything except the park sense chimes. I could have retired that by simply placing a cheap speaker somewhere just for that but for me it wasn’t worth the effort, I just watch the dash sensors.

I’m sure it would be even more difficult to do on this truck so I’ll just hope for a PAC harness in the near future like the rest of you guys, but based on my experience there’s just no way it’ll restore the signal as well as by bypassing the factory amp.

But I’m too old and I don’t have enough patience to be hacking into factory harnesses on a brand new truck anymore, to say it was a pain in the a** is an understatement. It was a labor of love and it served me very well for 12 years.

Back then the noise floor (hiss with volume all the way down, most noticeable from the tweeters) was very high when I tried a PAC harness. How’s the noise floor on the newer PAC harnesses you’re speaking of?

Many thanks for the feedback.

You can read the info in this link on how it works. Makes more sense than what I’m saying haha.

NET Audio » Shop » Dodge Ram Alpine Harman Kardon System Amp Interface - AmpPRO 4 AP4-CH41

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netaudio.com

 

[rpr]

If it’s good enough for the car audiophile YouTubers it should be good enough for me, many thanks.

 

[rtfd333]

The PAC AmpPro is what we are specifically talking about. Last I checked they still haven’t cracked the new electrical architecture so SOL on full aftermarket systems without a ton of work. It undoes all the shitty EQ from the factory amp and provides a clean flat signal to send to your dsp/amp. You have to keep the factory amp or you will lose all the other controls that are handled through that amp (turn signal sounds, parking sensors, etc). And in order to keep the factory amp you have to use the AmpPro to trick the amp into thinking that it still has all its speakers in place (resistance on factory channels) or your system will basically stop working or go crazy.

ANC is basically exactly what you described. They do a whole lot to make it not interfere (or atleast not much) with the factory sound system quality. If you change speakers it will throw this completely out of whack. Any upgrade to audio requires a bypass harness that gets rid of ANC. More road noise and wind noise will be apparent in cabin.

If you want SQ the very first thing to do is put sound deadening and sound absorption mat in atleast all 4 doors. Pain in the ass but it made a big difference cleaning up the muddiness of the factory alpine system I have. As of now I’m just waiting on PAC to develop a new AmpPro for our trucks.

Would ANC be lost by just adding subs? I’m debating adding two 10’s in a stealth box but the shop I talked to never mentioned how we’re handling the ANC and if it can be maintained.

 

[Silver RHO]

Would ANC be lost by just adding subs? I’m debating adding two 10’s in a stealth box but the shop I talked to never mentioned how we’re handling the ANC and if it can be maintained.

Yes you will need to get the anc bypass harness or you will get noise when putting subs in. You will need a subwoofer converter like the wavtech one net audio sells and then the like $10 or $15 anc bypass harness.

*Edit* The converter that net audio sells comes with the bypass harness. Also I remember speaking with them on this, since this doesn’t bypass the amplifiers crossover tune, I believe you are stuck with the frequency range that the factory system has in place. 30-80 hz. Only way to get your own frequencies is when pac figures it out and releases a new AmpPro. This is a temp fix to get subs in there imo.

 

[rtfd333]

Yes you will need to get the anc bypass harness or you will get noise when putting subs in. You will need a subwoofer converter like the wavtech one net audio sells and then the like $10 or $15 anc bypass harness.

Got it. Sorry, some of this is like Chinese to me but, with all that stuff ANC is maintained or it’s lost? Is the harness and converter needed just for the subs to work with the factory system but ANC is lost?

 

[Silver RHO]

Got it. Sorry, some of this is like Chinese to me but, with all that stuff ANC is maintained or it’s lost? Is the harness and converter needed just for the subs to work with the factory system but ANC is lost?

That is correct, you will lose ANC with any Audio change to your truck. Even just doing drop in speakers you would need to lose it.

 

[rtfd333]

That kinda sucks but, I dont really know how much the ANC actually helps with road noise. Has anyone changed out their speakers and noticed a difference?

 

[rpr]

I saw one post saying that it was noticeable but he actually liked the increased cab and exhaust noise. That’s a very subjective thing though. I for one don’t like the way the RHO sounds. It doesn’t sound like a truck to me after driving a Hemi for 12 years. So I’m hoping bypassing the ANC doesn’t bother me.

 

[Silver RHO]

That kinda sucks but, I dont really know how much the ANC actually helps with road noise. Has anyone changed out their speakers and noticed a difference?

I know a TRX owner on their forum reverted their system back to stock because they couldn’t deal with the noise, but that’s a noisy engine to start with compared to ours. I believe there are a couple of people on here who have added subs who could comment on this.

 

[rtfd333]

I saw one post saying that it was noticeable but he actually liked the increased cab and exhaust noise. That’s a very subjective thing though. I for one don’t like the way the RHO sounds. It doesn’t sound like a truck to me after driving a Hemi for 12 years. So I’m hoping bypassing the ANC doesn’t bother me.

I wouldn’t be opposed to more turbo sound though! My biggest concern is the RHO is our road trip rig and with three kids under 5, droning on the highway would be less than ideal.

 

[rpr]

I just spoke to Net Audio and they said this device below will allow you to add a sub to the RHO. They said they haven’t given up on a larger solution that would allow you to change the speakers out and add amps and a DSP for them but they said the factory speakers are pretty good, it’s primarily bass that’s lacking. This will be my first project when I take delivery of the new RHO.

Now I’m curious if there’s any way I can possibly get the JL Audio Stealth sub box that’s under the passenger seat in my ‘14 Limited to fit in the RHO?

Apologies if this has already been posted.

Dodge Ram Subwoofer Install Subwoofer Harness Converter

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[Bananarocket]

Anyone have a good source to point me in the right direction?

The Harmon Kardon system sounds like crap. I’m hearing distortion even at very moderate volumes. I’m not sure if it’s the amp or speakers but something needs to change. Also only having a 3 band eq is ridiculous for a so called high end audio system. I’d rather have 4 good speakers and nice amp than the dozens of crappy ones that come stock. Must be marketing bs!

Anyway, I’m not even sure where to start other than bringing the truck to an audio shop. Would rather do some research first though.

I think there is probably something wrong with your sound system.

Mine sounds pretty damn good. I mean I’m sure an aftermarket would be better but I have no desire to mess with mine. It slaps.

But anyways… if you use Spotify try messing with app’s equalizer. Especially if you’re after more bass.