Which to upgrade first: head unit, amplifier, or speakers

M

mrsrobinson

Well-Known Member
Mar 9, 2006
7,704
Virginia
Boat Info
2001 380DA
Engines
Caterpillar 3126
Boat has two factory amps and a Clarion CMD6 head. One two channel amp powers the cabin speakers and a four-channel amp powers the subwoofer and four speakers in the cockpit.

I'm back to wanting to upgrade some of the steto components. I've been looking at amps again and then I thought to myself maybe I should upgrade the head unit first. All else equal, and I mean all else equal, which would you upgrade first and why? I'm looking for more clarity from the speakers and less distortion at higher volumes.

Another way to approach this is I have $500 to spend, what should I spend it on, an amp or a head unit? I don't need the latest and greatest or features I'll never use in either.
 
Assuming the amp is good, I would do head unit first, then speakers.
 
Like @Shaps said if the amp is good and sufficient I would come back to that later. As far as the head vs speakers goes the head will give you more features but will limited by speaker quality and if speakers are toast then it will do nothing for your experience. If that case I would do the speakers first. Also speakers might just be a plug and play for now.

-Kevin
 
And I was thinking, if speakers are ok, then he would want bluetooth/sat radio etc...
 
That depends, if the speakers are damaged and sound bad, then speakers. Otherwise, the head unit will give some new features like bluetooth, bigger display for easier use etc.
 
Cockpit speakers are recent upgrades, Kickers, so I think they're good. I upgraded the sub and the 6.5s came from the previous owner.

PO added a Bluetooth adapter that works good.
 
Regarding head unit features, that's not important to me. I don't need bells and whistles and things I'll probably never use. Looking for clarity and quality of sound overall. That said would you still start with the head or focus on the amp knowing what I've got?
 
Didn't you ask all of this already? I actually thought this was already done ...

I am going to say this, you want to upgrade something but you don't know what. You've added/upgraded speakers, I think. You just said you don't need or want the features of a new head unit and in previous threads you said you didn't want to run new wire for a new higher powered amp.

So I am going to ask this, what exactly do you want? No offense meant by that.
What is it about your existing stereo that you want to change?

.
 
SKybolt said:
Didn't you ask all of this already? I actually thought this was already done ...

I am going to say this, you want to upgrade something but you don't know what. You've added/upgraded speakers, I think. You just said you don't need or want the features of a new head unit and in previous threads you said you didn't want to run new wire for a new higher powered amp.

So I am going to ask this, what exactly do you want? No offense meant by that.
What is it about your existing stereo that you want to change?

.
Click to expand...
He wants it all. :)
 
What amps do you have? For sound I would probably start there.
 
I never asked about a head unit, I was always focused on amps and subwoofer. My goal is quality and clarity. System sounds ok, IMO it could sound better. Before I buy an amp I'm now wondering if that's the best place to start.

Will a newer head improve the quality and clarity more than a newer amp?
 
like everything else, the answer is...it depends
Ultimately, the power and class of the amp, the quality of the speakers,the output of the headunit and all the associated interconnects all contribute to the perceived sound quality.
Doing it piecemeal simply exposes the next weakest link in the chain.
That is the good and the bad of doing an upgrade this way.
 
mrsrobinson said:
I never asked about a head unit, I was always focused on amps and subwoofer. My goal is quality and clarity. System sounds ok, IMO it could sound better. Before I buy an amp I'm now wondering if that's the best place to start.

Will a newer head improve the quality and clarity more than a newer amp?
Click to expand...

Actually you did, and I answered Fusion. You said you didn't need all of that and then asked about car stereos and said they were more in line price wise and mentioned something about Kenwood.
 
SKybolt said:
Actually you did, and I answered Fusion. You said you didn't need all of that and then asked about car stereos and said they were more in line price wise and mentioned something about Kenwood.
Click to expand...
Noted :)

Minus the features I do not need, will a new head unit make a difference? More so than a new amp? Which will get the best sound out of the newer speakers? My research suggests an amp.
 
mrsrobinson said:
Noted :)

Minus the features I do not need, will a new head unit make a difference? More so than a new amp? Which will get the best sound out of the newer speakers? My research suggests an amp.
Click to expand...

It all depends on which head unit you buy. If you get a higher end Fusion with DSP, then yes. An amp can make things sound better, but again, depends on what/which amp you get.
 
mrsrobinson said:
Boat has two factory amps and a Clarion CMD6 head. One two channel amp powers the cabin speakers and a four-channel amp powers the subwoofer and four speakers in the cockpit.

I'm back to wanting to upgrade some of the steto components. I've been looking at amps again and then I thought to myself maybe I should upgrade the head unit first. All else equal, and I mean all else equal, which would you upgrade first and why? I'm looking for more clarity from the speakers and less distortion at higher volumes.

Another way to approach this is I have $500 to spend, what should I spend it on, an amp or a head unit? I don't need the latest and greatest or features I'll never use in either.
Click to expand...
I always advocate for power first, then speakers, then the head unit(assuming it isn’t missing vital features/functions)
 
SKybolt said:
It all depends on which head unit you buy. If you get a higher end Fusion with DSP, then yes. An amp can make things sound better, but again, depends on what/which amp you get.
Click to expand...
I'm looking at a Kicker 5 channel or the JBL you have, or this pioneer

https://www.crutchfield.com/p_130GMDX975/Pioneer-GM-DX975.html

https://www.crutchfield.com/p_20648KXM95/Kicker-48KXMA900-5.html

https://www.crutchfield.com/p_20646CX66T/Kicker-46CXA660-5T.html

JBL Stadium Class D / 75w X 4 /350w X 1 w/Remote Level Control https://a.co/d/1dfobvM

Before I spend the money I started asking myself if I should start with a newer head unit first.
 
mrsrobinson said:
I'm looking at a Kicker 5 channel or the JBL you have
Click to expand...

The JBL I have has better specs then the JL audio everyone is touting. And sounds amazing with the Fusion RA770. Part of why that is the case is the DSP that Fusion supports.

EDIT: And BTW, that JBL amp needs to have 4ga wire ran for it.
 
SKybolt said:
Part of why that is the case is the DSP that Fusion supports.

EDIT: And BTW, that JBL amp needs to have 4ga wire ran for it.
Click to expand...
Now we are getting somewhere! ;-) this is what I need to hear. "New head units use ABC technology compared to your Clarion CMD6 that uses XYZ..."

Agreed, if I commit to an amp I will run new wires.
 
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