UQS Amp Upgrade

[mikez71]

Ohhh.. maybe this..

 

[Scott in AZ]

I also ordered a new set of 3.2 ohm D pillar speakers from ebay. The speaker connector is keyed. I cut the keyed plastic off the male connector and connected to each new speaker without issue. I kinda don't care for how these speakers are mounted- one corner slips under an ear molded into the D pillar, the opposite corner screws down. Seems like that's a good recipe for speaker rattling, especially with 16 year old plastic.

Slightly off topic- how is the video to the roof-mounted display handled? I'm wondering if the signal can be hijacked somehow to display something different than whatever's on the head unit. Audio in that vein would probably be sourced from bluetooth headphones and not the IR setup.

On those rear pillars, I upgraded 22 year old OEM to Memphis PR275. Installation was easy. I rotated the Memphis 2.75” speaker 90 degrees, then screwed the speaker frames to the base plastic with self tapping sheet metal screws. No bass vibration - I think this will hold fine but if not I’ll go back thru the outside with threaded screws and locknuts. Then I pushed the OEM black plastic plug back in the OEM top hole. The top of the plug captures the corner of the Memphis speaker frame, giving an additional third point of purchase. I used a 150 hz inline capacitor even though the amp sends a high-pass signal to the speaker, I figure this will future proof me. Replacing the two decade old speakers is crucial, in my opinion.

Really appreciate your detailed thread. Knowledge is power, bro’. Thanks.

 

[abrasumente]

On those rear pillars, I upgraded 22 year old OEM to Memphis PR275. Installation was easy. I rotated the Memphis 2.75” speaker 90 degrees, then screwed the speaker frames to the base plastic with self tapping sheet metal screws. No bass vibration - I think this will hold fine but if not I’ll go back thru the outside with threaded screws and locknuts. Then I pushed the OEM black plastic plug back in the OEM top hole. The top of the plug captures the corner of the Memphis speaker frame, giving an additional third point of purchase. I used a 150 hz inline capacitor even though the amp sends a high-pass signal to the speaker, I figure this will future proof me. Replacing the two decade old speakers is crucial, in my opinion.

Really appreciate your detailed thread. Knowledge is power, bro’. Thanks.

You're on the same train of thought as me. The next step will be to find speakers that are as close to factory impedance/sensitivity as possible.

I ran Memphis subs back in the day when I had a big body Cadillac. How do you like their full range offerings?

 

[abrasumente]

In the same vein as above- anyone swap out the factory subwoofer but keep the box?

 

[j1req]

Made the UQA -> UQS swap on my '08 Tahoe LTZ with stock radio several weeks ago. For whoever wants to try this:
- 2007 electric manual from gmupfitter is your best friend. Prepare all the additional harnesses in advance. To make it easier, you can swap input/output connectors on amp harness side to something generic like molex instead of searching for proper Delphi ones. The easiest way to get all the required pins and connectors though is your local salvage yard.
- if you cut your rear speaker wires on the passenger side kick panel right at the connector, you'll barely have enough length to reach center console under the floor. Better bite the bullet and solder some 2-3" extension to rear right door's speaker wires.
- your stock radio will require SPS programming. On "audio" and "equalizer" tabs select calibrations saying "2008 trucks with Y91/H2 with UQS".

 

[mikeyss]

Does your system sound any better with this upgrade?

 

[j1req]

Does your system sound any better with this upgrade?

Yeah, the difference was very easily recognizable on first power up. Mainly the sound system now can do bass, and the processing presets are very nice, especially the "driver" one — it "directs" sound to the driver seat making it sound like you've got headphones on.

The bad part is you get used to it very quickly and start noticing that the noise deadening is non-existent and overall sound is lacking. The very good part is now the amp itself generates all the ticking/chiming so installing some aftermarket system is a lot easier.