Speakers everywhere! Has anyone installed a legitimate aftermarket system at this point? If so, are there any learning curves or gotchas vs. ICE cars? Is it even possible to find good speakers to replace every single type in the model 3?
aftermarket sound system info thread
Drizzle
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No, it’s not overboard, and no I don’t think you’d have any problems running that setup.
A 1000W amp is very rarely going to be pulling a full 100A, and certainly isn’t going to do so for sustained periods of time.
Unless you’re planning to compete in SPL competitions with your Model3, I think you'll be fine.
A 1000W amp is very rarely going to be pulling a full 100A, and certainly isn’t going to do so for sustained periods of time.
Unless you’re planning to compete in SPL competitions with your Model3, I think you'll be fine.
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Sorry for not just taking your word as gospel @Defjukie. I really just wanted to at least get a second opinion before tapping into the Penthouse. I got that validation today.
Matt Schaeffer from sound-fx.net actually gave me a call today. What an incredibly nice guy. We talked for well over an hour about his amazing Model S build and about putting a system in the Model 3. In short, Matt agreed that it's probably safe to pull up to 200A from the Penthouse with some caveats:
Ultimately, Matt said he'd be very confident running a 1000 watt amp directly off the Penthouse. If you want to start adding multiple amps or much higher amperage than that, he recommends figuring out how to add a rear battery.
Finally, Matt was really passionate about making sure people are aware of things like stock tuning and DSPs. Vehicle manufacturers actually tune their stereos (in hardware) to the speakers they go with. As mentioned above, this can mean things like no bass below 40 Hz. It can also mean things like "notched" (missing) or amplified frequencies in the signal specifically for the speakers they've chosen. When that happens, replacing a speaker may not result in the sound you expect because you'll still be missing (or in some cases overwhelmed by) the frequencies the manufacturer tuned. The only way to completely get around this is to use a professional DSP.
Matt shows a full system DSP in his video I linked to above in case you're interested in re-tuning the whole system. Even if you're only adding an aftermarket sub, Mike highly recommends adding at least a 2-channel DSP to get back more of the bass frequencies that Tesla took out. Mike is also a big fan of the AudioControl LC2i 2 which @Defjukie already mentioned. You can buy one on Amazon for only $70 bucks. This device works like a high-level to line-level converter. You would hook it up to the speaker wires of the existing Tesla sub and tune from there. It even supplies a remote 12V trigger for you whenever it receives a high-level signal, negating the need to hunt for a switched 12v source.
I'm pinching the pennies a bit right now since I just took delivery of my 3, but I now have everything I need to get my system up and running soon.
HUGE THANKS to Matt Schaeffer for all the info. If you happen to live in Delaware, I highly recommend you at least have a chat with him if you're thinking about doing a system.
Cheers!
Matt Schaeffer from sound-fx.net actually gave me a call today. What an incredibly nice guy. We talked for well over an hour about his amazing Model S build and about putting a system in the Model 3. In short, Matt agreed that it's probably safe to pull up to 200A from the Penthouse with some caveats:
- This assumes "normal" use and not constant hard hitting draw at that level.
- If you are going to draw anywhere near that amount of power for an extended period of time, he recommends having one ore more Lithium batteries installed back by the amplifier. This reduces the load on the charging wires going to the front of the vehicle. The problem is that Lithium batteries do not have the same charging profile as the Lead Acid battery the car comes with and putting a Lithium battery in the car could cause serious damage. Matt expects that Tesla will eventually offer an option to change the charging profile, but he's unaware of such an option right now. I you're thinking about going this route, I recommend you keep on eye on the Braille Lithium Battery Thread to see how that all pans out.
- Matt says that drawing significant power from the Penthouse can cause enough of a voltage drop that the Penthouse may think the battery needs to be charged. This can cause it to "cycle". And of course the more cycles you have the shorter the life of the battery. This, again, could be helped with an extra battery and Lithium batteries can handle more cycles. But again, we don't seem to have an option for that right now.
Ultimately, Matt said he'd be very confident running a 1000 watt amp directly off the Penthouse. If you want to start adding multiple amps or much higher amperage than that, he recommends figuring out how to add a rear battery.
Finally, Matt was really passionate about making sure people are aware of things like stock tuning and DSPs. Vehicle manufacturers actually tune their stereos (in hardware) to the speakers they go with. As mentioned above, this can mean things like no bass below 40 Hz. It can also mean things like "notched" (missing) or amplified frequencies in the signal specifically for the speakers they've chosen. When that happens, replacing a speaker may not result in the sound you expect because you'll still be missing (or in some cases overwhelmed by) the frequencies the manufacturer tuned. The only way to completely get around this is to use a professional DSP.
Matt shows a full system DSP in his video I linked to above in case you're interested in re-tuning the whole system. Even if you're only adding an aftermarket sub, Mike highly recommends adding at least a 2-channel DSP to get back more of the bass frequencies that Tesla took out. Mike is also a big fan of the AudioControl LC2i 2 which @Defjukie already mentioned. You can buy one on Amazon for only $70 bucks. This device works like a high-level to line-level converter. You would hook it up to the speaker wires of the existing Tesla sub and tune from there. It even supplies a remote 12V trigger for you whenever it receives a high-level signal, negating the need to hunt for a switched 12v source.
I'm pinching the pennies a bit right now since I just took delivery of my 3, but I now have everything I need to get my system up and running soon.
HUGE THANKS to Matt Schaeffer for all the info. If you happen to live in Delaware, I highly recommend you at least have a chat with him if you're thinking about doing a system.
Cheers!
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eXntrc asked me to add some expertise here. If you are just installing a normal system for listening and not some kind of competition rig, you will be fine with tapping at the penthouse. I recommend Class-D amps, at least for the subs, just so you increase efficiency. Be sure the amp turn-on signal is derived from an line that's only on when the accessory 12v is enabled. Due to the way the fuseless body controllers work in the 3, you do not want to try drawing power when the car is "off". (Contactors are open)
Regardless of the wattage of the amps you choose, for a "listening" system, the average power should be reasonable, so I'd say it's fine to draw a sustained 500W (assuming other stuff in the car is on), and have peaks of 2kW. 500W is a LOT of sound! If for some reason you want to build a competition-class system, I would recommend installing commercial class-D rack-mount amps and power them directly off the HV system with a carefully engineered tap. Skip the inefficiencies of 12v all-together! (I am available for consulting if you'd like to safely tap the HV)
![Image]()
Here is the view of the penthouse taken from the passenger side once the rear seat cushion is removed. The big red (+) cover is the PCS DC-DC output. There is also a ground shown right above it. Be sure to add circuit protection in the form of a fast-acting fuse. The seat cushion easily lifts right out with no tools, simply release the 2 black latches toward the front of the cushion and lift up then out. You can see one of the latches in the picture above, it's part of the oval white plastic assembly.
If you need accessory power, I have 2 youtube videos showing the best place to tap:
Regardless of the wattage of the amps you choose, for a "listening" system, the average power should be reasonable, so I'd say it's fine to draw a sustained 500W (assuming other stuff in the car is on), and have peaks of 2kW. 500W is a LOT of sound! If for some reason you want to build a competition-class system, I would recommend installing commercial class-D rack-mount amps and power them directly off the HV system with a carefully engineered tap. Skip the inefficiencies of 12v all-together! (I am available for consulting if you'd like to safely tap the HV)
Here is the view of the penthouse taken from the passenger side once the rear seat cushion is removed. The big red (+) cover is the PCS DC-DC output. There is also a ground shown right above it. Be sure to add circuit protection in the form of a fast-acting fuse. The seat cushion easily lifts right out with no tools, simply release the 2 black latches toward the front of the cushion and lift up then out. You can see one of the latches in the picture above, it's part of the oval white plastic assembly.
If you need accessory power, I have 2 youtube videos showing the best place to tap:
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Thank you so much @Ingineer for taking the time to write that up and post pictures. That was incredibly helpful.
I was hoping you could clarify a bit more about this:
For my switched 12v, I was thinking about using the trigger output of the LC2i. From the reviews I've read: "The LC2i has GTO Signal Sensing, which will turn the unit on when it detects signal at the input from your factory amp/powered head unit, it has an output that will go from the unit to the amp which acts as the remote on/off."
I'm assuming that will work rather than needing to tap switched 12v from elsewhere. Would that be an OK approach?
Finally,
Thank you again for all your help!!!
I was hoping you could clarify a bit more about this:
What do you mean by "Contactors are open"?
For my switched 12v, I was thinking about using the trigger output of the LC2i. From the reviews I've read: "The LC2i has GTO Signal Sensing, which will turn the unit on when it detects signal at the input from your factory amp/powered head unit, it has an output that will go from the unit to the amp which acts as the remote on/off."
I'm assuming that will work rather than needing to tap switched 12v from elsewhere. Would that be an OK approach?
Finally,
Can you elaborate on what you mean by a "carefully engineered tap"? It looks like 2 large bolts coming out of the Penthouse. What would your considerations be in tapping that area, other than the fast-acting fuse? Oh! And instead of a fast-acting fuse, would a 12v breaker like this one be OK?
Thank you again for all your help!!!
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FWIW, my LC2i stays active even when my aftermarket amp (which is triggered by the the 12V accessory port) turns off.
It's possible that it turns off on it's own after a while (haven't checked too closely), but I personally wouldn't trust triggering an amp off of the LC2i's GTO signal.
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Interesting. Have you then wired your LC2i to be triggered off the accessory? It looks like it has remote in as well as a remote out.
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Haven't yet, but probably should. Figured the lc2i itself is probably not pulling much of anything, especially if it's idle.
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Many monster subwoofer installs use giant capacitors to even out the power drain.
Does the power steering run off of 12V ? Many EVs and hybrids have higher voltage accessories (for instance AC compressor).
I could imagine that the power steering might run from a different circuit than the main 12v.
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Kicker 44CWCD84
I made the mounting plate by tearing apart a sub-box and cutting the end piece to fit.
Hey,
Thanks for the info you've posted. I have a few questions and comments.
- You might have different hardware than I do, since it's Tesla, but the A-pillar speakers in my car are labeled as 25W, 4Ω. Are your speakers actually labeled 2W?
- Concerning the front dash speakers, the center channel is difficult to remove, I had to cut a bit in half in order to remove the mounting screws, but the center speaker actually has more room underneath it than the outer two do. I made some templates for a few 3.5in speakers I'm considering buying, and all of them fit in the outer and center locations, no problems. I don't plan on actually using the center location, but I wanted to put that info here for anyone who wants it in the future.
- Have you started mounting speakers yet? Have you had any unexpected problems?
Thanks
That's what the vents underneath the subwoofer are for? Okay. That makes sense now.
- From HVAC
- through the trunk ceiling grille
- out the flap vents to environment
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It's possible I got the a-pillar ratings wrong. 25W would make a lot more sense than 2W.
Interesting tidbit about the center dash, mine definitely has a lot less room than the left/right (May 2018 build). I was able to fit infinity 4" speakers in the left/right, but not in the center.
I also replaced the door tweeters, and added an amp & 10" sealed sub. I'm working on designing spaced brackets to replace the front door 8" woofers.
I'd like to replace the 4"s in the trunk shelf. Has anyone been able to get to those?
Are the speakers in the pictures of the dash tweeters and not A-pillar speakers?
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