VE Commodore Stereo Upgrade
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- Опубликовано: 6 мар 2017
- I show you a couple of easy hacks to improve the sound of the factory stereo system in a VE Holden Commodore for free that will take about 10 minutes. The factory stereo in the VE Commodores are lacking a lot of the frequencies, especially the lower bass frequencies. The mid to high frequencies in the centre speaker in the dash overwhelm the lower frequencies and it's hard to get rid of this with the equaliser alone.
By disconnecting the centre speaker it immediately removes a lot of the excess mid-high frequencies.
You can also increase the gain of the amplifier that powers the sub. It's set at 50% from the factory, so you can dial it up to increase the low frequencies. Full tutorial on how to do this is here: • HIDDEN AMP Holden VE S...
Later I also installed 4 new door speakers and this amplifier to power the new speakers: ebay.us/ZDt9nH
I will upload a new video with more details soon.
Music: R&W - Lost Signal - • R&W - Lost Signal [Roy...
My car is a 2011 VE Commodore SSV with the 6.0L LS2 V8. In the US these sold as the Pontiac G8 and were also the base for the Vauxhall VXR8. It's also the predecessor to the VF Commodore which is based on the same chassis and was basically just restyled and upgraded which is sold as the Chevy SS in the US.
My SSV has been mildly modified with a Cat-back X-Force 3" exhaust with Varex mufflers, VCM OTR cold-air intake and custom tune by OzTrack Penrith. I also frequently run this on E85. 
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Mate you are a legend I knew about that shitty little centre speaker but that amp I turned it up yesterday and daaaamn that’s a good difference thanks mate your a champ
My stereo cranks, dunno if prior owner installed other speakers but best sound system
does the 2006 Ve Commodore sv6 have an amp?
Will an Omega have the Amp standard ?
Is there an amp on the wagons
Thank you! Have alpine 6x9’s door speakers and subs but that little piece of shit centre speaker been ruining the sound making a nasty buzzing sound
Thanks heaps for that info! I’ve got a 2010 VE SSV Special Addition. (Pontiac G8) Do you know how to get my iPad to display on radio screen so I can also control the iPad from the head unit?
Clemmo you need a vim cable they sell them on like eBay pre-made you can make your own there is a great write up on g8 board forum.
ADDITION lmfao. EDITION!!! You tool
Hi do all VE's have an amp? I have VE series 2
Kyee71 I think it's just the premium sound system. If you have subs in the parcel shelf, you'll have an amp too.
My G8 amp was already maxed by the factory
G`day , just changed the battery in the wm and noticed the sterio sound is shit. The manual says theres a "LOUD" option but i cant find it. Any advise greatly welcome.....
Same. WM II here, and many options described in the manual DO NOT EXIST. Loudness, EQ, DDL.
What steering wheel is that!? Doesn't look stock.
It's stock. It's the Series II SSV, so not sure if it's different to other models.
I'm no sound expert but I actually like the way my factory stereo sounds in my Calais (non-premium system). I have been contemplating doing the much mentioned centre speaker delete as well as switching the polarity of the speaker wiring though to see if there's a difference
I usually depends on what style of music you listen to. I found that any sort or Hip Hop or electronic music sounded decent but a lot of rock styles don't because they don't make much use of the sub and you get a lot of mid to high frequencies screaming at you. The woofers in the doors also don't pack much punch.
If you like the sound of your stereo now, you love it even more by doing these 2 things. I was a bit sceptical about the polarity switch but it did actually work. The main thing is that it seems to lose some of the really deep frequencies that are usually muffled by the back seat, but it pumps stronger and louder.
JoVi Driven late reply lol. RUclips doesn't notify me of anything anymore. I listen to more electronic style music but also listen to some older stuff too and don't really have much complaints about the quality. I have disconnected the centre dash speaker though and it does sort of make a difference in a good way but hardly noticeable. Still been too busy to get around to the speaker wiring switch but hopefully it sounds even better. Some day I will get around to just upgrading the lot anyway and getting the parcel shelf speakers in too. Thanks for your reply!
I know this is a really old comment, but putting your speakers out of phase is just hurting your sound quality, loosing low end and your speakers aren't designed to work that way. They effectively end up sucking in instead of pushing air out.
Most people probably aren't fussed about low end frequencies, and in my Calais V I have no problems with the audio quality. Have you got a Series 1 or 2? I've heard S2 isn't as good sounding, whereas the Blaupunkt are quite good in my opinion.
TheOnlyJarrod it's a series 2. It mainly depends on what style of music as to how bad or good it sounds. It handles hip hop and dance tracks well, but lacks a lot when it comes to most rock styles, which I mainly listen to. After making this video I reversed the polarity of the subs, which definitely made another improvement. I then also replaced the door speakers with Pioneer 6.5 inch 2 ways with I picked up on sale for $29 a pair. I also disconnected the dash tweeters, seeing as I now had them in the doors. I think I've got it to the best I can without looking at adding an amp. I wouldn't mind getting a high input amp in the future so I can get just a little more volume out of the 2 ways. I think the head unit is only like about 10w RMS per channel or something like that.
Yeah would be nice with some aftermarket speakers indeed, I want to look at Pioneer too, they seem to make some really decent ones for the price they offer.
What about Utes where is the amp .?
I couldn't find anything online regarding amps in the utes. If the SSV's have subs, then most likely would have an amp to power them. If they don't have subs, then most likely wouldn't have an amp. You could always try poking around a little in the cabin near the battery to see if you can spot anything.
Great video would my ve ssv Ute have the amp and would it be near my battery?
Quick question if i upgraded my door speakers to pioneer 6.5s with the front doors having tweeters etc... if i leave the stock tweeters and that centre speaker in, does this reduce sound quality on the good speakers?
When I installed new Pioneer 2-way door speakers, I unplugged the factory tweeters.
I just put in a nvx coaxial speaker but still have my tweeters in... ive got no sound with centre and my door speakees are fine... i will remove the tweeters 2m and see if centre and doors work? Very strange!
Would it be on a ve ss ute?
Sorry, not sure about the ute's.
Will this work for a 2009 VE commodore international
I'm not sure if it has the amp in the back. You can always remove the battery cover and shine a torch inside to see if the amp is there or not. Bit if you don't have speakers on the parcel shelf, most likely you won't have the amp either
Can you tell me hot to upgrade my iq nav system
Sorry, I have no idea. I've never done it before. I always use the maps in my phone to get around haha
I've got a 2011 SV6 Wagon. The stereo sounds like utter rubbish compared to my old school stereo builds on previous cars.
Before I go pulling my car apart, has the wagon even got an amp?
Any tips for the wagon would be appreciated..
I wouldn't be sure with the wagons. If you have the premium sound system, you should have an amp. If you have the standard system, you probably won't. If you have an amp, it should be located near the battery in the rear. I'm assuming the wagons have the battery located in the same place as the sedans? If you can pull off the cover to get to the battery, you should be able to see the amp if you have one.
JoVi Driven cool mate. I'll have a poke around. I will let you know what I find.
Awesome. Cheers!
We’re abouts is it in the wagons
Sonny Rae I’m not 100% sure but I’m assuming it’s near the battery too. If you find it, let me know as I’ve had this asked before. Cheers.
It's in the passenger side muffler
Same spot
@@campcreekhill8933 I had a look couldn’t see one mate
i had a VE omega 08 and a VE Sv6 ute 07 and both of em i got rid of that center speaker it was shit as hahaha
I realise you are well meaning however turning up the gain is what you are talking about anyway , you really need to rip out the whole system , put in quality AMP, Replace the 8inch subs with better 8 inch subs you can find 250 rms subs on eBay at about $140 each , the ones in Calais etc are about 50 watt it says on them and I doubt that is even RMS , also replace head unit , replace front and rear door speakers tweeters etc with quality , cost you about $1300 however everything about these Calais ,SS systems etc need to be chucked if you want good quality SPEND THE DOLLARS you only live once it’s about $1300 for a complete swap to get a decent sound
Ok but the point of this was free solutions that’s what he said
i can confirm that this is NOT applicable for a VE SV6. No amp installed, although the dealer seemed to be under the impression it would be there. So basically, if you have a VE without rear speakers installed on the rear parcel shelf, you have NO AMP.
Thanks for clarifying Anita. I've just made some upgrades to my system for under $300 and am in the process of putting a video together. It will probably be useful for you, so stay tuned.
it seems as though the wiring loom is there to connect to an amp, but the cost of genuine GM parts is absurd here, so i'm going to look at a full Alpine install 8" unit etc.
It took me a while to figure it out, but the audio inputs from the factory wiring near the battery are actually speaker level outputs directly linked to the rear channels of the factory head unit. So if you can get a 2 channel amp with speaker level inputs, that should work to power 2 subs.
there aren't any subs fitted, only rr door speakers
Sorry, I though you meant you were going to fit subs as well. If you're just after a better sound, replacing the head unit will set you back minimum $1600, because you also need to replace the air conditioning interface, etc. But I've gone for a 4 channel pioneer amp with speaker level inputs and 4 new door speakers and it cost me under $300. To have it professionally installed would have been around $500 all up. This is the amp I used. Pioneer GM-A6604 4 channel amplifier with speaker level inputs: www.pioneerelectronics.com/PUSA/Car/Amplifiers/GM+Series/GM-A6604
I prefer to listen to my V8 sing, not music
Haha yeah I do too. Which is why I'd rather spend $2000 on exhaust mods, than on upgrading to an aftermarket stereo. Although, my V8 is louder than my stereo anyway, so I get to enjoy both haha
The first part in relation to the centre speaker is good advice. The second part is really bad advice.
This is advice by people who don't understand gain.
Simply do some research or talk to someone who understands what it's for and knows how it works. Don't crank "up" your gain. Without getting into a long boring technical explanation, in a nutshell, you risk damaging your amp because you are decreasing resistance, and you'll get a crap sound because you'll have more noise/hiss in the signal too. Gain is NOT a volume control. There's a reason for a Gain setting. It's based on the total resistance of the devices connected to it and how they are wired (series or parallel).
So just leave it alone.
If you want better sound, first get a better amp, then, better head-unit and speakers, maybe a DSP... Do some decent subs and box them properly.
Factory sound is cheap and basic to keep costs down. Even when a car manufacturer uses "brand-name" gear it's the lowest costing most basic OEM gear they can make, and won't even usually come close to the entry level gear that brand will sell off the shelf.
To be honest, I'm not sure whether that control knob is gain or volume. But I've ran it this way for over 2 years with no issue. It's not distorting. Just adds a little more volume to the lower end, which helps balance out the rest of the audio system. And this was meant to be a no cost option, before spending on upgrades. I still ended up upgrading the door speakers and later ran a 4 channel amp to them, but still kept the subs and factory amp in.
This gentleman has no idea what he is talking about. He quotes "Without getting into a long boring technical explanation". That's a tell.
How about a short and interesting explanation.
Gain is simply 'pre-amp' volume. An audio amplifier has 2 stages. Pre-amp and power amp. Pre-amp volume (gain) is used to calibrate the incoming signal to a suitable size for the power amp, ideally about 2.3 volts. The power amp then takes this calibrated signal and amplifies it for the speakers.
By all means crank up your gain. If the result is perceivable distortion, you may want to dial it down a bit. You won't damage your amp. (unless it is being sent an over voltage signal in the first place)
This is, after all, exactly how guitar players get the desired distortion tone. They overdrive the pre-amp. Their amplifiers are not 'damaged' by doing so.
The installers at the holden factory may have been under instruction to keep the subs low volume for whatever reason. (Perhaps disassociation with the aussie bogan image hah)
@@johnnykeys1978 yeah righto mate. A "tell", how insightful you are. I worked in the industry for years. But I don't really give a crap if people believe what I say or not. The info is out there. People should really do some research or speak to a professional before just listening to a RUclips video anyway.
@@wonkothesane8632 You're absolutely right about this one. People really should do some research. RUclips is a source of research, and anyone researching the comment section here could have been given the wrong information, so I did something about it.