So, my stock stereo system on my 06 monte is pretty pathetic.

That said, I want to upgrade it, but I really don't want to replace the control unit inside the car, i really like the way it looks.

Is there a way I can get that good sound without changing it out?

 

How much do you want to spend? What all do you want done (i.e. aftermarket speakers, amps, subs, etc)? Are you looking to just be really loud, or going for more of a sound quality install?

 

I'd probably do speakers at least. I'm not sure about amps and probably no on the subs.

I want a real quality sound that can get loud, but I'm not looking to rattle the spoiler off of my trunk.

 

Get a whole setup and dynamat your trunk ;]

 

If you want to keep your factory radio you'll need something like this:
http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_...EM-GM1416.html
to integrate an aftermarket amplifier which you'll need if you're going to replace the stock speaker (unless you have the bose option, and if you do have the bose option you'll need a different adapter) since the regular amp that the non bose system has won't sound as good with aftermarket speakers.

 

My personal favorite unit for those that want to keep their factory deck but want better cleaner more powerful sound, The JL Audio Clean Sweep.http://mobile.jlaudio.com/products_c...hp?prod_id=369

 

your speakers in your car have to move a whole lot in order to make bass. stock speakers really cant do that. id say your best bet is to simply get 1 ten inch sub and amplifier. your probably not happy with your sound right now cause when you turn it up with bass on the speakers distorts and sounds poopy. if you get a ten inch sub which is not obnoxious you can take the stress of playing bass off of your stock speakers and let the sub take over. your speakers can be cranked alot louder before they distort and even someone whos not into bass would be very happy with a single 10. I have put plenty of subs into "stubburn" peoples cars and they were so thrilled with the result. Subs are branded as a rap blasting, rattling, over the top obnoxious, annoy the whole world thing but they really dont have to be. you can allso put a sub in the car without removing your stock deck. the sound quality would better if you did but you dont sound like your willing to spend 1000 dollars on a system.

Try turning your bass on your car to 1/8 of the max and crank it. thats how clean your speakers would sound if you got a sub and you would allso have much much cleaner bass.

Allso if you just decided to throw new speakers in your car without doing anything else they would end up quieter than before. your stock stereo puts out X amount of power so if you get new speakers there going to recieve the same X amount of power. and aftermarket speakers tend to handle more power than stock ones so you would be underpowering your speakers and the result turn out less than impressive.

 

Thanks everyone for the advice.

RosDaddy - I like the Sub idea. All I want is a decent sound with some decent non-obnoxious bass. Didn't know I could do that.

Nikayarieiera;jdk - What is the difference between that and what MontySS posted? Rather, what is the difference I'd see in sound quality?

 

yo if u want a cheep and effective way to upgrade sound change the stock speakers out with 3 or 4 way speakers and if u want to add an amp go to walmart and buy a high-low converter 4 wirs u hook up to any speaker and the converter only cost like 10 bucks and u can keep the stock headunit and stock amp and the sound will be better

 

1. Buying 3 or 4 way speakers isn't a good idea. You're better off with stock IMO.

2. High-low converter? Are you talking about a line-output converter? If so, yeah he could do that. But there's definitely better ways to add an aftermarket amp with these cars. If you're buying an aftermarket amp for the interior speakers, you don't want to keep the factory amp either.

You can definitely add a sub without being obnoxious. Look for a single 10" or 12" that fits into your budget and pair it with an appropriate amp. Keep in mind the cost of adding an aftermarket amp to the system though if you're on a tight budget. You'll need a amp wiring kit and adapters to hook it up to your factory head unit. That, or you could replace the factory head unit, which requires interfaces that aren't very cheap either unless you find them used on eBay.