Is the standard Meridian speaker package (in the 2016=2019 XJ - not sure if it changed before that) any "good"...?

I know that for the Audi A8 (other car I am looking at) the standard Bose system is not that great, including a lack of bass - and if you want good sound you need to upgrade to the Bang and Olufsen system.

Just wondering how the standard Meridian system fairs - or it anyone had a chance to hear/compare both the standard and reference Meridian speaker systems.

 

What sounds good to you, may not sound good to another person. Its all personal taste.

 

That is very true...

Just looking to see what others thought...

 

I have the 325w Meridian in my XE, it's OK from factory... I dynamatted the hell out of the doors and the system came to life, it's punchy and sounds great now.

The system isn't bad, but the doors aren't made for great audio so they let it down. Most cars are like this, and a good dynamat job is usually the best thing you can do for a car's audio

 

Yes, I have heard that Dynamat (or another brand) can really make a difference...

 

Many, many threads on upgrading the speakers?
I replaced all the woofers with the reference system Kevlar drivers. All 4 door woofers plus the two in the rear package tray. Now one word of advice if you plan to do this?
That rear package tray was absolutely terrible to reinstall! If you can avoid it please do!

Here is what I did based on others suggestions.
It's a long thread and not the only one and not the only way to upgrade either. Some have changed the tweeters as well but I did not. What's interesting is I searched under LR part numbers as they were more available than the identical Jaguar part numbers?
Woofer Upgrade

I also installed massive amounts of sound pads and I like to use Noico brand as it has no printing on it as I have zero interest in pumping up Dyna mat or other brands. I also prefer the black over the shiny. Be sure and use the ridged rollers to force the pad into nooks and cranny's. I do see the black is not available but the shiny version is.
I did all 4 doors inside and out plus the behind the rear seat area and a good bit of the trunk. The XJ is already a very quiet car but I think it was a nice improvement with the combination of better woofers and additional sound damping.

I did it because at that time they had some great deals going on and I purchased mine from the UK for a killer price!
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Excellent information; thank you... Have just added much of this, regarding the brands of sound deadening, to my to do list. I almost never use the Audio, so that aspect doesnt apply too much - but did not know anything about alternatives to Dynamat - thank you!

 

Yes Noico is cheaper too and I like the 80mm thickness.
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Research the difference between sound deadening and sound absorption​​​​​​. The first is usually achieved using mass loaded vinyl (MLV), the second using foams and insulation.

Best results are usually seen with a combination of the two, although I used only Dynamat's MLV and it made a HUGE difference. I even managed to capture the difference on the video by switching between the right and left front speakers after doing one door (headphones helps):


"Dynamat" brand or not, they're all basically the same. Buy whatever you can find easiest and cheapest, for me that was Dynamat.

I did also plan to upgrade to the kevlar speakers and the full Meridian Surround package, but after this first step I was happy enough with the audio that those upgrades dropped a bunch of positions on my priority list.

 

OK, i do not know how Dynamat installation works exactly - but in your signature line it says you put on 3 layers of it...?

 

Yes, "three layer sound deadening" when talking about the doors means you cover the inside of the outer door skin, the inner door skin, and the inside of the door card.

There's a ton of guides out there on general sound proofing, but I wrote one up for the XE that I've been meaning to post for a while now, I'll try to get it posted today and link you to it 👍

 

WOW.

Thanks... Liked the lyrics also...!

Loved the line about Sound Deadening vs. Sound Absorption. Very important for me to learn about this.

 

Here's how I did my car: https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...18-xes-274104/

Depending on your skills and whatnot this might be a DIY job or it might be a pro job, either way the results were worth the investment. For me that was about 20 hours of my time and something like 500 aussie dollars, for a pro installation I think you're easily looking at a few grand. The video that inspired me is by a company in the UK called Audiofile Incar.