FelixIlka

I did a search but couldn't find anything...

I was checking out my RPO codes and coping them, well I accidentally copied the LT1 codes down instead of the LS1.... I noticed W55 was a 10 speaker system in LT1's but in LS1's it's only an 8 speaker now. Why was it changed? Where were the other speakers?

I also thought that the Camaro didn't have as nice a stock monsoon stereo as the TA, is that true?

Hopefully I can get this off my mind!

WhiteBird00

iTrader: (4)

The LS1 Camaros have coaxial-style speakers in the doors while the Firebirds have separate mids and tweeters there. So the Firebird is considered a 10 speaker system while the Camaro is 8.

There are some differences between Camaro and Firebird Monsoon systems but they aren't really significant. Aside from appearance (the Firebird has gray *****, charcoal face, and red illumination while the Camaro has black face and ***** with blue-green illumination), the Firebird has a graphic equalizer in the head unit but the Camaro has speed sensitive automatic volume control. The Firebird comes with a power antenna and is rumored to have slightly better quality speakers although there will be a lot of people here that would disagree with that.

FelixIlka

So where do 10 speakers come into play though? Component in front ( 4 speakers, 2 "subs" and then the two in the very back. )

I'm just not sure as to why the LT1 RPO showed 10 speakers but the LS1 said 8 ( maybe as a general thing? )

I'm just wondering because one of the guys I work with was saying that the Camaro and Firebird have the exact same stereos in them and I disagreed and he was like, dude, I have a camaro, I know. ( Most of this being talked about because people I work with can't understand why I'm not going to put a pimped out stereo in the car and waste my money on go-fast mods ).

WhiteBird00

iTrader: (4)

The difference in speakers is only in the way they're counted. On the Firebird you have two tweeters and two mids in the doors, two subs in the sail panels, and two tweeters and two mids in the hatch area for a total of ten speakers. The Camaro has coaxial door speakers reducing the total count to eight. It still has tweeters and mids in the doors - they're just mounted on the same axis instead of being separate.

The difference in your RPO listing may also just be a different version of the list. I have two different RPO files - one lists W55 as a 10-speaker AM/FM/CD system with amplifier while the other just says "Entertainment System Option E (Monsoon)".

Both you and your friend are correct. The Camaro and Firebird Monsoon systems are different (speaker configuration as well as what I described above) but the differences are fairly minor and both are functionally the same.

FelixIlka

Ahh thanks for that bit of information!

BJM

iTrader: (1)

Can someone comment on the 200W (Camaro) vs 500W (TA) systems? Were the amps really much different? I have a Camaro and was wondering if replacing the amp or the head unit would make the single biggest improvement in sound quality. i.e. where is the weakest link?

WhiteBird00

iTrader: (4)

The difference between the 200W and 500W wasn't related to Camaro vs Firebird. Earlier years had 200W systems and later models had 500W systems. Nobody has ever found out for sure but most of us suspect that the systems are actually the same and it was just the rating system that changed (RMS vs peak wattage) as a marketing gimmick.

Certainly changing your amp to the "500W" version will not give you any improvement in sound. The Monsoon amps are notorious for their distortion. This is partly because they are what we used to call "boosters" - they use speaker level input rather than pre-amp input so they amplify the distortion coming from the head unit speaker output.

BJM

iTrader: (1)

So a better head unit would make things sound much better then. Is the amp itself decent? I want clarity at moderate volumes, I never crank the sound up very loud. Would the stock amp be pretty decent if I upgraded the head unit? The reason I ask is I have a really nice head unit I can put in but I do not have a 4 channel amp.

WhiteBird00

iTrader: (4)

Well, I did just that. I installed an aftermarket head unit but left all the original amp and speaker setup. I found the sound greatly improved as long as I don't crank the volume up too high. The Monsoon headunit has very muddled highs and way too much bass in proportion to the other bands. The new head unit really cleaned up the sound. Just get yourself a Metra mounting kit which comes with the wiring adapter and it will plug right in to the original radio harness.

BJM

iTrader: (1)

You're exactly right about the excess bass. You can almost hear the amp give up on the hard bass notes and make a very rumbly/rattly bass sound when the sound is turned up. I just need to get one of those steering wheel control adapters, I really love my steering wheel buttons.