1993 850 Glt Stock Sound System

[VraiDiouf]

Hello, I just wanted to know if anyone knew how good the 850 volvo's system of 93-95 was in comparison to the Infiniti J-30's BOSE premium system and Mercedes C-class 94-98 models system. I don't have a stock system in my volvo at the moment, because the deck is missing. How deep is the bass of the Volvo 850 systems, is the system clean? will adding an aftermarket headunit (like one from clarion improve sound quality?) Has anyone ever heard those other cars sound systems?

How does it compare to present day sound systems? I listen to all sorts of music (Techno, Bass music, Rap, Reggae, African, classical, alternative)

[CAPT_BLOTTO]

bose is a lot clearer.

but bose IMO is overpriced. They're hard to work with, not very loud, and i just dont like bose that much.

Adding and aftermarket deck can give you a lot more control over sound quality like mroe eq. Some will make it sound "better" if you dont go cheap and they use high quality circuitry like MOSFET. I have to say the 850's sound system is pretty decent for a factory system. It needs sub though, and sound dampening becuase theres a lot of rattle with the bass.

[VraiDiouf]

bose is a lot clearer.

but bose IMO is overpriced. They're hard to work with, not very loud, and i just dont like bose that much.

Adding and aftermarket deck can give you a lot more control over sound quality like mroe eq. Some will make it sound "better" if you dont go cheap and they use high quality circuitry like MOSFET. I have to say the 850's sound system is pretty decent for a factory system. It needs sub though, and sound dampening becuase theres a lot of rattle with the bass.

Thanks for input, have you heard other luxury cars sound systems for around that year? I heard an Infiniti J30s and was impressed, then a 94 C220 with a stock sound system and was also impressed, they sounded like they had subwoofers, but they didn't lol. I just wanted to know if the factory GLT system sounds bassy enough. I'm adding my clarion MP3/WMA CD player in it next week. I'm hoping it will make my sound system sound liively.

[Owned]

You're shooting for SQ similar to a Bose system? Bose is a bit of a joke in the audio world. Common things said at the mention of Bose are; "No highs, no lows? Must be Bose" and "Better sound through advertising."

I think you could set your sights higher than OEM Bose sound, unless you're on a tight budget.

[PharmD]

I can't really comment on the other vehicles' sound systems because I haven't heard them. What I can tell you is that the stock audio system in the 850's is pretty dang good. No, it won't vibrate the handles off the doors, but it can definitely be cranked up. If you're wanting to rattle the car beside you, it won't do it. If you want good, clear audio with reasonably good fidelity, it's an awfully nice system for being stock.

[the underlørd]

check the pinned thread in audio for how to get good sound from an 850.

[Guest Guest]

The stock speaker system in 93-95 850s aren't too bad for factory speakers, but it's totally subjective regarding the overall "sound quality". You should get decent quality sound once you get your head unit installed unless speakers are blown and/or you have wiring issues.

If you don't like what you're hearing with the clairon installed, check out what others have done to improve on their systems and use that to figure out what you want to do.

[AkitaWagon]

^^^

oops, that was me.

As the Underlord suggested, check out all the pinned threads.

[CAPT_BLOTTO]

another tip

good speakers are only as good as the installation

[VraiDiouf]

I can't really comment on the other vehicles' sound systems because I haven't heard them. What I can tell you is that the stock audio system in the 850's is pretty dang good. No, it won't vibrate the handles off the doors, but it can definitely be cranked up. If you're wanting to rattle the car beside you, it won't do it. If you want good, clear audio with reasonably good fidelity, it's an awfully nice system for being stock.

Well all I want is something that sounds good, I'm not looking to rattle the car next to me, that was so 6 years ago (I'm 22 a bit too old for that now). What I'm looking for is a system that can play all sorts of music and not miss that many notes. I wanna hear bass!!! lol. I don't want a system that is all treble, or a system that is all Bass. I listen to rap, techno, reggae, african, alternative, rock, u name it. I love music from everywhere. But I wanna hear beats. If you guys can peep out other cars. Thanks for the info so far I appreciate it.

I can't really comment on the other vehicles' sound systems because I haven't heard them. What I can tell you is that the stock audio system in the 850's is pretty dang good. No, it won't vibrate the handles off the doors, but it can definitely be cranked up. If you're wanting to rattle the car beside you, it won't do it. If you want good, clear audio with reasonably good fidelity, it's an awfully nice system for being stock.

BTW, one other thing what year is your 850, mine is only a 93 but it has 8 speakers. Did the speaker stock system for the 850 change anytime from 93-97?

I can't really comment on the other vehicles' sound systems because I haven't heard them. What I can tell you is that the stock audio system in the 850's is pretty dang good. No, it won't vibrate the handles off the doors, but it can definitely be cranked up. If you're wanting to rattle the car beside you, it won't do it. If you want good, clear audio with reasonably good fidelity, it's an awfully nice system for being stock.

BTW, one other thing what year is your 850, mine is only a 93 but it has 8 speakers. Did the speaker stock system for the 850 change anytime from 93-97?

[VraiDiouf]

Well all I want is something that sounds good, I'm not looking to rattle the car next to me, that was so 6 years ago (I'm 22 a bit too old for that now). What I'm looking for is a system that can play all sorts of music and not miss that many notes. I wanna hear bass!!! lol. I don't want a system that is all treble, or a system that is all Bass. I listen to rap, techno, reggae, african, alternative, rock, u name it. I love music from everywhere. But I wanna hear beats. If you guys can peep out other cars. Thanks for the info so far I appreciate it.

BTW, one other thing what year is your 850, mine is only a 93 but it has 8 speakers. Did the speaker stock system for the 850 change anytime from 93-97?

BTW, one other thing what year is your 850, mine is only a 93 but it has 8 speakers. Did the speaker stock system for the 850 change anytime from 93-97?

One other thing I forgot to ask is what company and brand are the speakers of the Volvo 850 GLT sound system from 93.

[paulr]

Awfully nice for being stock? I'm sorry but our stock system is pretty damn shitty. S70's and newer models - eh, now you have some quality. But the 850's just SUCK. How our cars compare to other companies ? While I haven't heard the cars you talk about, I can say there are definetly many better stock systems out there, as well as many systems which are a lot easier to work with. I'm not saying there isn't worse out there (My jag is living hell, for example), but we're by no means "awesome" from the factory.

All 850 sedans have "8 speakers", some crappy tweets on the dash, 5.25" in the front doors, some crazy speaker in the rear door that's not even totally round and somewhere between 5.25" and 6.5", and some more weird ones in the rear deck. The stock locations and sizes suck for many reasons, and will never have much bass due to the location and size. The speakers are 8 ohms each so the HU sees 4 ohms for front and rear. The wagons only have two speakers in the back (the doors).

On a budget you can throw in a HU, replace the stock components with decent ones (Infinity reference are a popular choice for drop-in fit, good sound, and low cost), and be pretty happy. There are other ones that fit stock but I can't remember them - however many of your deeper speakers are a no-go. Throw in a sub in the back at some time in the future, and you'll have done what 85% of people on VS have done, and are happy with.

From there on out it gets tricky.

You can add an amp to the stock locations and get slightly better peformance, but it won't sound incredible for a variety of reasons. You're prettymuch limited to kickpods and/or modding the door panels. I've done the former and will soon be doing the latter. For me, it's worth it - but many people will disagree. You're now getting into serious time and money - we're talking low to middle four figures. (You'd be hard-pressed to get even a basic kickpod and amp setup for $700, and that doesn't even include what you allready have into stock locations, HU, and sub)

Lastly - I don't know who made the crap that came with the 850's, and I don't see how it's relevant. Even $25 speakers off Ebay can do better.

Good luck!

[VraiDiouf]

Awfully nice for being stock? I'm sorry but our stock system is pretty damn shitty. S70's and newer models - eh, now you have some quality. But the 850's just SUCK. How our cars compare to other companies ? While I haven't heard the cars you talk about, I can say there are definetly many better stock systems out there, as well as many systems which are a lot easier to work with. I'm not saying there isn't worse out there (My jag is living hell, for example), but we're by no means "awesome" from the factory.

All 850 sedans have "8 speakers", some crappy tweets on the dash, 5.25" in the front doors, some crazy speaker in the rear door that's not even totally round and somewhere between 5.25" and 6.5", and some more weird ones in the rear deck. The stock locations and sizes suck for many reasons, and will never have much bass due to the location and size. The speakers are 8 ohms each so the HU sees 4 ohms for front and rear. The wagons only have two speakers in the back (the doors).

On a budget you can throw in a HU, replace the stock components with decent ones (Infinity reference are a popular choice for drop-in fit, good sound, and low cost), and be pretty happy. There are other ones that fit stock but I can't remember them - however many of your deeper speakers are a no-go. Throw in a sub in the back at some time in the future, and you'll have done what 85% of people on VS have done, and are happy with.

From there on out it gets tricky.

You can add an amp to the stock locations and get slightly better peformance, but it won't sound incredible for a variety of reasons. You're prettymuch limited to kickpods and/or modding the door panels. I've done the former and will soon be doing the latter. For me, it's worth it - but many people will disagree. You're now getting into serious time and money - we're talking low to middle four figures. (You'd be hard-pressed to get even a basic kickpod and amp setup for $700, and that doesn't even include what you allready have into stock locations, HU, and sub)

Lastly - I don't know who made the crap that came with the 850's, and I don't see how it's relevant. Even $25 speakers off Ebay can do better.

Good luck!

So the Volvo stock system has no bass at all???? so If I popped in a CD with bass like a rap CD or techno I wouldn't hear any bass?

[paulr]

Yes, the rear dash drivers will give you a little bit of bass and midbass, however it will be filled with distortion and very anemic. When you're at low volume the music will sound almost normal, with a weak "low end", and when you try to crank it, you'll find yourself listening to an auditory mess. It's not quite unbearable in the sedans, but in the wagons (with no rear deck speakers), it is. It’s definitely not good and definitely in need of an upgrade. I'd give you a better description of the response ranges and the like, but it's been a long time since I've been in a stock 850.

The stock locations in the front doors can't give you a great midbass / low-mid response due to their small size and location, but if you put in good speakers and a sub in the trunk tuned into the low midbass freq's (100-150 Hz), it will sound "all right". People disagree whether putting speakers in the rear doors is good or not, it really depends on how much you like rear fill. But with them being larger size, they can help out with the midbass / low-mids a little bit.

So yes, when you put in your rap / techno / hip-hop CD, you'll be "where the hell is that thumpin' beat I heard in my friend's car ?" if it's low enough, or maybe "damn this sounds crappy / is quiet" if the beat is a little higher. Then when you crank it', you'll be "wow, this sounds like crap" or "my speakers are making funny noises"

[VraiDiouf]

Yes, the rear dash drivers will give you a little bit of bass and midbass, however it will be filled with distortion and very anemic. When you're at low volume the music will sound almost normal, with a weak "low end", and when you try to crank it, you'll find yourself listening to an auditory mess. It's not quite unbearable in the sedans, but in the wagons (with no rear deck speakers), it is. It’s definitely not good and definitely in need of an upgrade. I'd give you a better description of the response ranges and the like, but it's been a long time since I've been in a stock 850.

The stock locations in the front doors can't give you a great midbass / low-mid response due to their small size and location, but if you put in good speakers and a sub in the trunk tuned into the low midbass freq's (100-150 Hz), it will sound "all right". People disagree whether putting speakers in the rear doors is good or not, it really depends on how much you like rear fill. But with them being larger size, they can help out with the midbass / low-mids a little bit.

So yes, when you put in your rap / techno / hip-hop CD, you'll be "where the hell is that thumpin' beat I heard in my friend's car ?" if it's low enough, or maybe "damn this sounds crappy / is quiet" if the beat is a little higher. Then when you crank it', you'll be "wow, this sounds like crap" or "my speakers are making funny noises"

lol gotcha I was pretty impressed with the 93's infiniti J30's Bose sound system, it sounded pretty good, nice clean bass. When I was in a 94 BMW 325i despite it being a 10 speaker system, it was such a bad sound system, it was all highs, no mids or lows. Basically no bass what so ever. In the 94 C220 I was impressed with the sound system as well, then a day later I bought my 850 GLT it was a lot cheaper tho than the other cars. That's why I bought it, got mine for $2300 and u know I live in CA so the car looked nice on the outside, leather interior, heated seats, keyless entry like the other cars but much cheaper. Power everything, only thing it was missing was a headunit, but I knew my previous car had a nice Clarion deck that I got for $300. I assumed that the Volvo factory speakers would be nice since it's a Volvo aka a luxury car. I guess I'm wrong and it will sound like the nokia 10 speaker sound system in the BMW 325i. I hope it doesn't though. Thanks for your input.