Bose vs Kicker which sounds better?

Sierra Jon · December 1, 2017

I have (for two decades) always put a JL set-up in my trucks. I have a '14 with factory Bose and subwoofer and haven't added a JL set-up to this truck. Maybe I'm getting old - but the factory Bose is pretty impressive. If I had nothing to do and an unlimited budget then yeah I would put a 12" TW3 under my back seat but... with the quality of sound you get from the factory Bose, it just hasn't become a priority.

No Tyme · December 1, 2017

2 hours ago, Sierra Jon said:

Maybe I'm getting old - but the factory Bose is pretty impressive.

I don't have the factory Bose system but have drove a truck with such... pretty good for sure. But I needed some more "thump" so I did a pair of Sound Ordinance 8" powered subs on the back wall of the cab and I got the thump... and I am retired, LOL.

Loco-diablo · December 2, 2017

My 2017 has Bose, but because of the jump seat it doesn’t have a subwoofer. GM offers a kicker you can add, but I’d rather not give up the space under the back seat. The door speakers have enough bass for my taste.

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Knotsure · December 3, 2017

If I didn’t go with a custom ported enclosure and 12” I would still have gladly given up space under the back seat for something that bangs. In my double cab the space under there is NOT all the plentiful. Plus I have a bedcover so I roll with a toolbag, tool bins, my ice chest and straps back there.

Closer to the subject, I don’t think that bose can stand up next to the kicker in low end, but without a doubt the bose has better midbass. From my experience getting the midbass to sound strong is the hardest part of a good system. I vote Kicker with Bose, lol.

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Sierra Jon · December 3, 2017

If I didn’t go with a custom ported enclosure and 12” I would still have gladly given up space under the back seat for something that bangs. In my double cab the space under there is NOT all the plentiful. Plus I have a bedcover so I roll with a toolbag, tool bins, my ice chest and straps back there.

Closer to the subject, I don’t think that bose can stand up next to the kicker in low end, but without a doubt the bose has better midbass. From my experience getting the midbass to sound strong is the hardest part of a good system. I vote Kicker with Bose, lol.

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I agree with your midbass comment. That was already the hardest part and what I always looked for in a quality system. My GMT and NBS before that were factory Bose with a JL amp and sub.

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Knotsure · December 3, 2017

I agree with your midbass comment. That was already the hardest part and what I always looked for in a quality system. My GMT and NBS before that were factory Bose with a JL amp and sub.

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I was hanging out with an old friend this summer and he was telling me he added a couple of JL 10s in his 14 Silverado. So I hopped in and he cranked up regulators by Nate dog and warren G. He turned it up and it sounded great. He has the factory bose system with those JLs. So I hop in my truck and crank it to compare and my 1-12” JL tw3 had enough low end to compete with his 2-10s but his midbass absolutely destroyed my factory non bose speakers. I used to not like mids but nowadays I need more midbass in my life, lol.

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Sierra Jon · December 3, 2017

I was hanging out with an old friend this summer and he was telling me he added a couple of JL 10s in his 14 Silverado. So I hopped in and he cranked up regulators by Nate dog and warren G. He turned it up and it sounded great. He has the factory bose system with those JLs. So I hop in my truck and crank it to compare and my 1-12” JL tw3 had enough low end to compete with his 2-10s but his midbass absolutely destroyed my factory non bose speakers. I used to not like mids but nowadays I need more midbass in my life, lol.

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I want to do a 12" TW3 in my truck so bad with my factory Bose and all this talk is not helping hahaha.

The midbass just makes everything sound more full and realistic. But bad midbass - from a sub struggling to hit low frequencies - is terrible and more likely what you and I hated about midbass as kids lol

I know I couldn't afford JL until I was older

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Swimmarz · December 7, 2017

Interesting find guys.... I have yet to dig into the stereo stuff but i do have a pile of JL audio gear sitting in my home office collecting dust

long story endless i installed C2 6x9, c2 6.5 and a microsub in my 2017 F150, that was lemon lawed so i ripped it all out... new truck has bose but my reading on it is the ohm is differnt ( bose is 2 and JL is 4) so not entirely compatable

looking at the post with the added sub and tapping the sub line makes me think maybe I could reuse the microsub and then get beat to hell on trying to sell 6 month old JL audio speakers( 1 pair of 6x9 and 1 pair of 6.5's)
if you do find that write up of tapping the back wall amp... share it... very new to the GMC truck, and still figuring stuff out at the moment

ewiski · December 7, 2017

bose.... better sound through marketing or sueing consumer reports for slander.

Sierra706 · December 8, 2017

So my setup is a cerwin Vega flat 12 powered enclosure from amazon and a cheap 8 gauge wiring kit. The built in amp has both high and low level inputs. I utilized the factory bose amp on the back wall of the truck and spliced into the factory subwoofer signal using simple wire taps from radio shack. Blue wire with grey stripe is positive and gray with black stripe is negative. I combined left and right + and - together since it’s a single lead and not individual left and right door speakers. Ran my power wire around the drivers side and thru the top nipple on that big rubber cap on the firewall. Use a metal clothes hanger and tape a guide line to it to pull the power cord through. It will be frustrating and take a while to fish it through. Attached the power lead to the empty stud in the little box next to the battery. Had to buy a nut for it at Home Depot. Don’t remember the size. I also cut my underwear storage bin slightly to fit the sub and banished my jack and lug wrench kit to my toolbox. Install doesn’t require removal of carpet or rear seats if your somewhat flexible.

Tuning is straight forward, turn the crossover all the way up, as the the bose amp only sends low signals to the factory sub so you don't have to worry about the mids interfering with base. Turn your bass down to what you want coming out of the front door speakers at the radio, turn the volume up to 3/4, subwoofer remote control (if you use it) to 100%, then slowly turn the gain on the sub until you start hearing distortion. Back off a little bit until it sounds good again and your good. I didn't use the Vega (bass) boost function at all. And I have my remote set at 2/3 most of the time.

I laid out dynamat on my back wall and floor. It helped a little bit with sound deadening, but truthfully I expected more results. Got too lazy to do the front floor, doors, or ceiling. It mostly helps with my exhaust and tire drone at highway speeds. Our trucks have good factory insulation.

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cdh027 · February 20, 2018

On 12/7/2017 at 10:22 PM, Bushleaguechew said:

So my setup is a cerwin Vega flat 12 powered enclosure from amazon and a cheap 8 gauge wiring kit. The built in amp has both high and low level inputs. I utilized the factory bose amp on the back wall of the truck and spliced into the factory subwoofer signal using simple wire taps from radio shack. Blue wire with grey stripe is positive and gray with black stripe is negative. I combined left and right + and - together since it’s a single lead and not individual left and right door speakers. Ran my power wire around the drivers side and thru the top nipple on that big rubber cap on the firewall. Use a metal clothes hanger and tape a guide line to it to pull the power cord through. It will be frustrating and take a while to fish it through. Attached the power lead to the empty stud in the little box next to the battery. Had to buy a nut for it at Home Depot. Don’t remember the size. I also cut my underwear storage bin slightly to fit the sub and banished my jack and lug wrench kit to my toolbox. Install doesn’t require removal of carpet or rear seats if your somewhat flexible.

Tuning is straight forward, turn the crossover all the way up, as the the bose amp only sends low signals to the factory sub so you don't have to worry about the mids interfering with base. Turn your bass down to what you want coming out of the front door speakers at the radio, turn the volume up to 3/4, subwoofer remote control (if you use it) to 100%, then slowly turn the gain on the sub until you start hearing distortion. Back off a little bit until it sounds good again and your good. I didn't use the Vega (bass) boost function at all. And I have my remote set at 2/3 most of the time.

I laid out dynamat on my back wall and floor. It helped a little bit with sound deadening, but truthfully I expected more results. Got too lazy to do the front floor, doors, or ceiling. It mostly helps with my exhaust and tire drone at highway speeds. Our trucks have good factory insulation.

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What did you use for your remote amp turn on +12V ?

Sierra706 · February 20, 2018

What did you use for your remote amp turn on +12V ?

My sub is wired with high level inputs from the sub and it has an auto turn on feature when signal is detected.

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dman1458 · February 20, 2018

I had a Titan with a 10 speaker RF complete with the factory sub mounted under my seat. I now have an LTZ with the 7 speaker Bose. The only thing I sort of miss is feeling the base from under my seat. That said the sound from the Bose is miles ahead of the RF setup Nissan used. The sub only really thumps when you put the volume to it. <--I am more than OK with it as I felt I would have to turn the sound down to hear people talk to me in the Titan where as now I do not. I prefer the GM setup, and the sound it clear and clean.

Yondu · November 18, 2018

Bumped for future reference.

Jimmyc! · November 18, 2018

On 11/17/2017 at 10:26 AM, Nickel7 said:

Here’s the the Bose sub. It’s all of about 6 inches. This was under my center console until I removed the console and replaced it with a jump seat. Now it sits under the back seat. I tried it without the sub for a while but it sounds like crap without it, so I had to find a new home for it. I don’t care about the underseat storage because there’s always a car seat buckled back there and I can left the seat up. I’d rather have a better one back there but my wife says that I would just be acting like a kid if I did that and I just don’t care enough to have that battle.