 | Boston Acoustics speakers. I installed the FX line from Boston Acoustics. The FX7 are 4"x6" coax for the front dash and the FX5 are 5 1/4" coax for the soundbar. I found out a few things while trying to install these. First, you WILL need some kind of bracket for the front speakers. It sounds as if on some earlier (than 2001) TJs, there was a vertical brace running along the opening where the speaker mounts. A couple of people stated that they just drilled a couple of holes in this brace and mounted one side of the speaker to it. Ours was not set up this way and I had to pick up some brackets to mount the FX7s. While this will require an extra purchase if you want to use 4x6s, it appears that if you are willing to fabricate a bracket, then 5 1/4's might be an option. I test fit the FX5's for clearance in the front area before I installed them in the soundbar. The 5 1/4 is the largest you could install in the front opening due to clearance issues with the glovebox. The second thing I determined when fitting the speakers is that the Boston FX6 (6 1/2" coax) will not fit without some cutting on the soundbar openings. The speaker basket was hitting the stock opening and left the speaker sitting about 1/2" off of the soundbar. This left 3 choices... 1.) cut the stock opening to allow the speaker to flush up against the soundbar, 2.) fabricate a 1/2" spacer for the speaker, or 3.) move down to a 5 1/4" speaker as came stock. I was hoping to use a 6 1/2" to get a bit more response from the soundbar speakers, but I wasn't wild about the prospect of significant cutting in an awkward position, so option #1 is out the door. I want the speakers to remain close to the soundbar so they aren't as noticeable or likely to get bumped. I also didn't want to have to fabricate a spacer, so there goes option #2. I returned the FX6's in exchange for FX5's plus the brackets for the FX7's. The good news in my exploration is that the wiring chart I found for Jeep radios appears to be accurate for my use. Thanks to the Install Doctor for the wiring chart PDF. I've summarized the speaker wire colors for our Jeep in the following chart (the only variance to installdr.com was with the right front (-)): |
| Item | Color |
| Left Front (+) | Green |
| Left Front (-) | Brown w/ Red stripe |
| Right Front (+) | Purple |
| Right Front (-) | Blue (variance from installdr.com) |
| Left Rear (+) | Brown w/ Yellow stripe |
| Left Rear (-) | Brown w/ Blue stripe |
| Right Rear (+) | Blue w/ White stripe |
| Right Rear (-) | Blue w/ Orange stripe |
| 12v always hot | Pink |
| 12v ignition | Light Purple w/ White stripe |
| ground | connect to strap |
Front speakers:
Remove the 2 small phillips head screws on the side of the speaker grille (fig. 1). It may be easier to get to the screws if you unhook the door strap and swing the door open. This will allow you to get a full size screwdriver on the screws. Next, pull the grill panel firmly at the top and bottom. There are two pressure clips (fig. 2) that will pull loose, allowing the panel to come free. Remove the speaker by removing the 4 large phillips head screws at the top and bottom of the speaker (fig. 3). The speaker will now be free, but connected to the speaker wire. The wiring connecter going into the back of the speaker will have a small tab on one side. Lift this tab and pull the wiring from the speaker. Install the speakers into the brackets (fig. 4), splice the factory wires to the new wire ends, plug the wires in and reattach the speaker assembly into the opening (fig. 5). Finish by reinstalling the grill plate. The comparison of the factory speaker and the FX7 is shown (fig. 6).
fig. 1
fig. 2
fig. 3
fig. 4
fig. 5
fig. 6
Rear Speakers:
Remove the 4 screws holding the grilles and speakers to the soundbar (fig. 7). Remove the grille and set to the side. Unhook the speaker connector from the back of the speaker by lifting up on the plastic tab. The FX5's went in using the exact same mounting holes that the factory speakers were fastened to. Splice the factory wires to the new wire ends, plug the wires in and reattach the speaker assembly and grill frame. I found it helpful to use an awl to make sure the holes were lined up before I spent a lot of time fishing for the holes for the mounting screws to attach to. Tighten all 4 screws (fig. 8), being careful not to overtighten and deform the grille frame. Finish by installing the grille (fig. 9). The comparison of the factory speaker and the FX5 is shown (fig. 10).
fig. 7
fig. 8
fig. 9
fig. 10
Overall, I'm pleased with the change. My only complaint with the Boston's is that the speaker wire they provided is super cheap and of very thin gauge. I was expecting the factory wiring to be of low quality, but to my surprise, it was very good with a decent gauge and insulation. I will eventually swap the cheap Boston-supplied leads for something equal to the factory wiring. Although I have only had the stereo on for a short trip to test them out, they sound a fuller than the factory ones, the treble is not as edgy; vocals are more more natural sounding. Aside from the improvement in sound quality, the FX speakers are made with poly cones (vs. paper), and rubber surrounds (vs. foam) so they will hold up much better in the Jeep environment (heat, dust, and possibly water) for many years to come. While I noticed a discernable difference in the speaker swap, the difference may not be as worthwhile unless you're into audio or are looking for a more musical sounding system.
Update: While replacing the cheap wire supplied by BA, I installed some XTC foam baffles behind the front speakers.
This made a significant difference in how the front speakers sound. They are now much fuller and sound like real speakers. During this fix, I also installed 150Hz bass blockers, and stuffed a small bit of poly-fil into the baffle before assembling everything. The install of the foam baffles was straightforward. I sandwiched the edge of the baffle between the speaker frame and the mounting plate for the speakers. Once the assembly was put together, I trimmed the excess surround off the baffle so it would all fit back in the speaker location. While this is not airtight, the speakers are more or less in a "cabinet" now and they work much better like this.
If you're looking for an improvement in the sound quality of your stock stereo, the best $15 you can spend is to install baffles behind the front speakers and put poly-fil in the soundbar. Even with the stock speakers, you'll have a fuller and much more musical sound. My suggestion is to only replace the speakers if you're still not satisfied after trying these two cheap fixes.
Cost: $215 ($80 - FX7, $100 - FX5, $15 - adapter brackets, $10 - bass blockers, $10 - XTC foam baffles); time to install: 1 hour and 15 min for initial install, another 45 min to redo the fronts when I installed the baffles, bass blockers and new wires.
UPDATE: I replaced the Boston FX with Boston NX. I went with 6.5" in the soundbar (fit without cutting but requires 3 new holes to be drilled) and 5.25" in the dash using the brackets from 33Engineering. This was a significant improvement in sound. After listening to both speakers side by side, the FX are very recessed in the midrange and don't have as natural of a sound as the NX. The use of 5.25" in the dash also made a nice improvement in overall sound balance. All other mounts and similar baffles were retained although I didn't use a bass blocker on the fronts with the new speakers.
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Painless Wiring Cirkit Boss - click here for details... |
| IPF H4 headlamp inserts and Magic J bulbs - I had recently replaced the stock bulbs in my other vehicles and the factory Jeep lights were now visibly poor in comparison. After some research, it looked like the way to go was with an H4 E Code insert. Hella and IPF both make these kits but the IPF were easier to find. These aren't DOT approved because they don't have the aligning nipples on them, but since GA doesn't have a state inspection, I shouldn't have to worry about it. I sprung for the IPF Magic J bulbs. They use a higher gas concentration to give an effective light output equal to a higher wattage bulb, but without putting any additional strain on the factory wiring harness. Install was straightforward; remove the trim ring, remove the headlamp surround, pop in the IPF units and reassemble. I started by using a T15 L wrench and realized it was going to take forever. If you have a Torx 15 driver, you can do this in about a half an hour. Once I got the right tool, it went quickly. I took before and after shots (before on left, after on right) and stitched them together for comparison. These pictures were taken with auto mode on my digital and the camera corrected for the light output, but even with that, you can see the increased brightness and much better focus of the IPF lights. One potential downside I see is that on HIGH, the IPF directs the light up and out, but leaves the shoulder of the road close to the Jeep much darker than the stock lamps. This is a mixed blessing to me. Better long range lighting is great, but I still like to be able to light the shoulder close to the vehicle. I will be modding the factory fog lights to run in conjunction with the high beams in an effort "fix" this feature... Not sure why, but the IPF Magic J bulbs have an "afterglow" to them. My Jeep now has blue eyes when it's dark and the lights have just been turned off. Cost $100; time to install 45 min. |
low beam comparison
high beam comparison
afterglow once lights are turned off
| Fog light modification to allow them to be used with high beams - best 5 minute mod ever. After the recent IPF H4 headlamp upgrade, I noticed that because the high beams really are designed to throw light up and out, I lost a fair bit of illumination to the shoulders closer to the Jeep (but long range illumination is wonderful!). To compensate for this, I wanted to be able to leave the foglights on since they throw a decent amount of light to the shoulders at close distance. After some searching, I found the solution and boy is it easy. On 2001 and up TJ's with factory fogs, pop the power distribution center cover next to the airbox. Find the fog lamp relay (#35 in my 2001), pull it out and check the bottom of the relay. On earlier TJ's, I think this relay is behind the glovebox and may be marked relay #2. You'll find one of the pins on the relay is marked "1". You want to bend this pin on the relay out of the way, so it doesn't make contact in the PDC. I found the pin and bent it on the surface of my workbench. First step is to bend it 90 degrees flush to the bottom face of the relay. Once you've done that, bend the pin around the body of the relay, so it's wrapped up the side a short distance. Pop the relay back in and try it out. Works great and I got some of my shoulder illumination back when the high beams are on. Cost $free; time to install <5 min. |
