Speaker Upgrade for 05 Renault Megane Dynamique LXR

The problem: Listening to music with a strong bass beat at medium to high volumes causes the front door speakers to distort. Noticeable especially if driving with sunroof open and/or windows down (requiring greater volume). Im using the standard Update list head unit (I believe manufactured by VDO for Renault) Solutions: 1. Turn down the bass on the head unit This affects the sound quality (think AM radio), and also requires constant adjustment of the settings when the external noise level is reduced. 2. Dont turn up the volume in the first place Are you joking? I like my music 3. Replace speakers with higher power models Good alternative, but research indicated that the speaker depth is quite shallow, and that some third party speaker installations resulted in water leaks into the door storage bin. Plus, I was looking for an easy installation, ideally with no wire cutting/interior modifications and easily reversible should I decide to sell the car and want to keep the speakers. Luckily my wish for solution number 3 came true - the good folks at Pioneer have a specific speaker set that fits completely into the Megane with no modifications required. The set comprises front door speakers and matching dashboard tweeters (rear speakers are left alone).The model designation is TSQ131C. Information can be found here: http://www.pioneer-eur.com/eur/product_detail.jsp?product_id=10314&taxonomy_id=25-132 Purchasing: After checking the Pioneer Australia website, and not finding this model, I attempted to contact Pioneer Australia to determine the availability of the TS-Q131C speakers (via the web). No answer was received. I then visited a local car accessory shop and was told that Pioneer do not import any TS-Q series speakers to Australia. I was told that the TS-Q range was designed for European cars only. I guess someone should advise Pioneer Australia that European cars are actually sold in Australia! I then spoke to a contact in the UK, who advised that they were unable to source them there any longer (they were told that the speakers were no longer being made) After some searching on the web, I tried eBay and found a supplier in Germany eXtremeaudio (http://www.extremeaudio.de) who was prepared to ship internationally and would accept payment via PayPal (slight surcharge). I subsequently purchased them and about 2 weeks later received a parcel via Australia Post (required proof of identity and signature to collect)

Installation: Installation was extremely straight forward. A large instruction sheet was supplied (see picture) describing the installation for all the Renault models that these will fit into. This was another revelation for me, these speakers will fit Twingo, Clio, Megane, Laguna, Espace and Vel Satis. In the Espace & Vel Satis, the tweeters are mounted in the rear doors, so you would need two sets (front and rear). For the other models, the set is designed to replace the front speakers/dashboard tweeters only.

Also included in the kit are two strips of pre-cut self-adhesive sealing foam (the foam feels slightly oily, rather than standard sponge seat type foam, I suspect to repel water rather than absorb it!) for the door speakers and a few screws (not required for installation in the Megane) Door speaker trim removal is achieved by levering the leading edge of the trim piece with a screwdriver (as mentioned in the instructions, wrap some tape around the blade to avoid denting the plastic.

Then pop the plastic studs out by gentle outwards pressure, working backwards towards the arm rest. I was pleased to see that the locating studs were quite resilient and not of the older tree style (where the plastic tended to break on removal). Once the studs are pulled out, the panel slides forwards and away from the door.

The speaker is held in to the plastic trim via two torx self tapper screws. Unscrew these and the speaker comes away easily. The electrical connecter is polarised and has a plastic locking tab to keep it secure. The door trim has a water shield moulded into it (top half) to protect the speaker from splash damage (visible in the photograph below). Also visible is the sealing foam strip which has been fitted to the speaker.

Trim replacement is simply a matter of reinserting the guide tab, lining up the mounting holes and pressing the studs back into place. They pop back in easily. Tweeter installation is even simpler. The instruction sheet indicates that a screwdriver is used to pop off the cover trim in practice, I found I could use my thumbnail to lever it up and it easily popped out. Both the tweeter covers and the door speaker cover are made of extremely flexible plastic it doesnt ever feel like the plastic will break during the removal process (unlike past attempts I have had replacing R25 and Fuego trim - nearly always resulting in broken clips!)

The tweeter then is popped out of the dashboard this time I needed a screwdriver to assist as the locating clips are tighter. Once out of the dash it was a simple matter of disconnecting the wiring (same connector style as the door speakers), connecting and inserting the Pioneer tweeter and clipping the cover back in place. Total installation time would be 10 to 15 minutes.

Hardware comparison: Below are some photographs showing the difference between the original speakers and the Pioneer speakers. The original speakers actually werent quite as badly constructed as I thought they would be. The framework on the original speakers is made of plastic, whereas the Pioneers are metal. As expected, the Pioneers were heavier, especially the tweeters which seemed quite a lot more substantial.

As you can see, the Pioneers have yellow coloured cones, photos below show how they look when fully installed. Interestingly the photos really show the yellow through the door speaker covers, but in reality you can hardly see them (They are about as visible as the honeycomb structure behind the grill). The tweeters are essentially invisible (like the originals).

The results: As expected, the speakers fixed the bass problem beautifully. Ive been able to turn up the bass from +4 to +6 (Loudness on) and the sound is clear and fine with the sunroof and windows down. Normal listening levels are enhanced, as the door speakers are able to deliver a little more oomph at lower volumes. The tweeters were also a big improvement, adding a lot more clarity and upper range to the sound. I found I needed to lower the treble setting due to the improvement. At normal listening levels, they deliver a much increased range compared to the originals. I assume the rear speakers may be distorting slightly at the higher volumes, but its not obvious sitting in the front, and Ive set the fader to +1 to bias the front speakers. Recommendations: I would say this is a very worthwhile upgrade for Renault owners who arent interested in changing head units, but would like better sound out of the existing unit and arent interested in performing custom modifications to the car. The original factory speakers arent too bad, but if you do like a little more volume, then these are the ticket.