The sound on my 2000 XJ8 stereo system has gone very weak and "tinny." It happened very suddenly, without warning, and affects the radio, CDs and cassettes.

Any suggestions? Thanks,

4jagspeter

 

Do you have a subwoofer on the parcel shelf (Premium System)?

If so that may have failed, usually the foam cone supports fail, you can turn it off on the head unit and more bass will be picked up by the door woofers.

 

On the amplifier in the trunk the 2 wires for the subwoofer are X and Y and you can put a meter on it to see if the speaker coil is open ( broken coil ) or closed ( shorted coil ) . Looks like both left and right channels so I need help on this as I don't want to make any assumptions on what is going on inside the speaker unit according to the print .

 

Yes, there is a speaker-cover thingie on the rear parcel shelf, so I guess that's it. How do I turn it off? I've already been to "Mode" on the stereo and set "Sub-woofer level 0," but that didn't make any difference.

Where are these "plastic support cones" that might have failed?

If the sub-woofer in the back is the problem, can it be replaced? Does one remove the speaker cover and work on it from inside the car, or somehow get at it from inside the trunk?

Thanks for any continuing advice,

4jagspeter

 

You want to go subwoofer high . You have to remover the rear seat to remove the shelf as the tank is in the way . They can be repaired as they are shorter then most made . More troubleshooting before then . Have you reset the master bass control ?

 

I set the subwoofer anywhere from 0 to +7, it doesn't make any difference. Bass and treble are both at +3. By the way, it's not just that the sound quality is weak and tinny - which does sound like some form of speaker problem - but the volume has also become very low. It has to be set to about Level 20 to hear anything at all.

Thanks for any further ideas,

4jagspeter

 

You could have a disconnection or blown channel on the unit, as your car is equipped with the premium system it runs an amplifier to power the speakers - lh side in the trunk, I would be looking at the connections on it there first.

 

Thanks; I'll check that out when some of the snow has gone off the boot lid!

4jagspeter

 

Before I open up the amplifier: other enthusiasts have told me that the cassette player doesn't run off the amplifier, but directly through the radio. But since this problem affects the cassette also, maybe it isn't an amp. problem after all.

Any ideas, anybody? I'm reluctant to remove he console etc. and take out the radio until I'm sure that's where the problem lies.

Thanks, anybody,

4jagspeter

 

All sound will run through the amplifier.

Since you have the Alpine premium system (MY 00 on, the 99/earlier HK systems don't have sub level selection) the sound signal going between the amp and head unit is digital if I remember right. In that case, it would most likely be an amp issue - probably either inadequate power/ground, or an internal failure, since those could cause a common failure across all channels. The easiest thing to do is check connections, it's easy to get to. Just peel away the trunk carpeting around the amp/CDC, and unplug and plug back in every connection to the amp. Maybe some water got there and corroded the connections.

 

Hello! I’m back in the jag game after a hiatus. I have a 2000 xj8 and just inexperienced the effect below. Radio has been working great for months, went to a dinner, got back in the car, and suddenly the volume is 1/10th of what it used to be, and the sound quality is very tinny. Happens on radio, cd, tape. Think the amp going bad could do this? Does the amp in the trunk power all the speakers? Thanks in advance ✌🏻


QUOTE=4jagspeter;1835572]The sound on my 2000 XJ8 stereo system has gone very weak and "tinny." It happened very suddenly, without warning, and affects the radio, CDs and cassettes.

Any suggestions? Thanks,

4jagspeter[/QUOTE]

 

If you have the amp in the trunk then yes

not all the X308 factory stereo options has this separate final power amplifier

otherwise the speakers are driven by the same control head with a final power amplifier inside the head

The premium setup bypass the inside final amplifiers and sent a weak signal to the trunk mounted final amplifier with the speaker wires from it

do you have the CD changer in the trunk ?

does the amp get warm after a while indicating it is getting a power source ?

 

And I have not dug into the depths of the trunk you had to look for an amp. But I will do so.

Yes, I do have the CD changer in the trunk.

Thanks

 

With a CD player you probably have the separate power amp on the left side but they did mix things up

There is a separate fuse ..................

 

# 12 / 30 amp trunk fuse box

 

Thanks, I checked the 30 amp fuse, was good but replaced it just in case, still feeble stereo performance. I didn’t see the amp in the battery compartment or spare tire area, think it’s behind the cd changer?

 

Mine does not have one but I think it is in the trunk left side behind the side panel

If the fuse is good but the amp is cold after some time then the amp is suspect but will move forward to cover some bases

 

I have been using my car a lot lately, and still stumped on the stereo issue I’m having. I bought another amp on eBay and installed it, no difference!
all stereo functions work but the sound is very tinny and not loud, possible all the speakers are blown?!
Happy new year!

 

Hi All, getting back on the horse here
After replacing the amplifier and not solving the tinny sound situation, I'm going back to ebay and will try purchasing a new/used head unit. I will need the code from the head unit I'm purchasing, or the vin number from the donor car...is that correct?

Thanks guys

 

Hi All, after replacing the amp, then the head unit - it was the woofers in the doors that were toast! I replaced them and the problem is solved. Hit me up if you want a working head unit, I missed the ebay return window - have the code!