# 2022 WRX Premium Build



## THX0849 (Sep 24, 2019)

Hello everyone! As a few of you know I had a 2019 WRX before and now have the 2022 model. The new model is more "solid" in many ways and is noticeably more refined and solid. So this is the beginning of my audio trip on this car. My initial plans are to go with a 2-way wideband setup in this car. I will likely be re-using my Audio Frog GS-25's, although I do have a set of CDT Unity 8.0's itching to go in. The 2022 model employs a 6x9 front door speaker. At least that's what the assembly is, its actually a (barely) 6" driver in a 6x9 plate. The rears are the same 6.5" speakers (different mounting tabs) as before. The dash is a new speaker (pictures to come) seems like an actual tweeter not a "twiddler". As per a recommendation from @SkizeR it seems an 8" will easily fit with an adapter. Working on that portion currently. I am uploading pics of the front door for reference for anyone interested in the future as well. 

On removal of the pass front door panel it remains similar to the previous generation with a couple screws and clips holding the panel on. There is an opening for an additional clip under a small cover near the front edge of the panel that in my case has nothing ,maybe for something else, maybe missing. Otherwise, unplug window and lock switches, remove door handle cables from the handle and its off. All clips except for one came off with the panel. I made an 8" cutout as a template to check feasibility of the 8" and as you can see, it clears with not obvious hiccups. 

That's it for this post, more will come as I'm able as I've got family from out of town staying at the house for a couple weeks, so time will be limited. Thanks for viewing!!!

Wish me luck!


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## THX0849 (Sep 24, 2019)

A couple more pics as I reached the 10 image limit


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## Nakamooch (Jan 8, 2021)

I used Soundsgoodstereo 6x9 to 8 plastic adapter in my 2020 Crosstrek. They were under Toyota. $85. Heavy solid. Highly recommended for your Subaru.
May need to add spacer depending on speaker.


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## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

It’s a beautiful color that you have going on there.


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## THX0849 (Sep 24, 2019)

Nakamooch said:


> I used Soundsgoodstereo 6x9 to 8 plastic adapter in my 2020 Crosstrek. They were under Toyota. $85. Heavy solid. Highly recommended for your Subaru.
> May need to add spacer depending on speaker.


Thanks for the heads up! How'd they work for you, did you have to modify anything? 

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## THX0849 (Sep 24, 2019)

Coppertone said:


> It’s a beautiful color that you have going on there.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


Thank you! I haven't had a blue car since my first car in 86! LOL. Really drives nice i must say. 

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## Nakamooch (Jan 8, 2021)

no mods. love them


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## Bobby_Jones (Apr 9, 2020)

That's exciting.


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## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

Yes when deciding on the color for my AUDI I wanted as dark of a blue paired with black accents as I could get. 


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## THX0849 (Sep 24, 2019)

Ordered speakers for the front doors and deadener on it's way. Looking at the trunk I've got a chance to use the spare tire as a sub enclosure. The current gen doesn't have an actual spare just an inflator. From a couple pics I've seen i see it's about 8 or so inches deep. I've got an Alpine R-W10D2 and i think that'll be plenty of airspace for that sub. In fact I "might" be able to make that a dual 10" enclosure by splitting it down the middle for my other 10" which is a Rockford P3-10D2. Need to pull the foam out and measure before I get ahead of myself. 

I download most, if not all of the service manual for this car. Pm me of you want something. Following the instructions to disassemble the interior the radio is more involved to pull out than the previous one but having that info helps immensely. Will have to integrate with my V Eight which i hope to put under the passenger seat. 

Will follow up and update as i progress with this. 

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## THX0849 (Sep 24, 2019)

Small update today. I removed the trunk carpet and removed the foam filler panel from the "spare" tire well. Funny, why would you include a jack and related tools and not have a spare tire? Any way based on very rough measurements and calculations I end up with just about 2.2 cu.ft. of volume. That's plenty for the 2 subs in separate enclosures ( as long as the RF P3 passes muster ) If the RF is actually bad, I could re-use my 10" and have room left over to have an amp rack in the well. I'm still trying to determine where I'm gonna end up putting my amps, under the seat or in the trunk again.


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## THX0849 (Sep 24, 2019)

Progress has unfortunately been very slow in coming but i started on the passenger door at least. I've applied deadener to the outer skin and will be also adding butyl rope to the door crash bar. Has anyone applied deadener to the "inside" of the inner door skin before? What i mean is the inner surface of the metal the water barrier is attached to. Just a random thought, LOL. I have mocked up and verified correct fitment of the 8"speaker adapters. Had to chamfer the inner circle cut out just a touch to perfectly fit the beautiful Blam 8". Waiting on fasteners to secure the plastic filler panels in the door to seal up the door cavity best I can. I'd originally planned on using ABS to make the panels but turns out the factory (at least 1 of them) piece is a nice and sturdy piece of plastic with ridges for structure already. I'm going to reuse the factory panel but apply deadener to it to beef it up a bit. The other 2 openings I'll seal up as well. Thankfully Subaru is still hanging in to old school door harnesses and not the Molex type so that'll make running a wire to the midbass much easier. I'll add pictures when i take them of the rest but here area few for now. As you can see in the picture near the door handle mechanism the factory has a harness and plastic retainer rubbing on the outer skin that's just bound to rattle later. The deadener saves the day here. Also notice that Subaru is using Tessa tape (or similar) to wrap their harness, kudos to them!


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## vietjdmboi (Jan 3, 2015)

what 8'' speakers did you end up going with? any reason not going for the AF gs690?


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## THX0849 (Sep 24, 2019)

Blam Live L200P 8" as recommended by @SkizeR


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## THX0849 (Sep 24, 2019)

Anything little update today, i ran the wire into the door via the door loom. Subaru changed it a little bit from before but in my option it's actually better. The loom end that goes into the door has the wiring inside a rubber "sleeve" that goes into the door umbilical and the other side to to various connectors etc. However the side that goes into the car itself is a little different than before. It's got a locking connector that plugs into the dash harness in the kick panel but the rubber end that goes into the body is easily removable allowing you to run wire pretty darn easily. Process is simple, pull off the rubber boot at the body and it'll leave behind a plastic sleeve that clips into the sheet metal. That plastic is held by 3 clips that you simply push with a small flathead and it comes out. Allowing you to remove the entire loom from the car if needed. In my case simply releasing the plastic sleeve and running the wire through was fine without full removal. That sleeve does have 3 locating sections that align with the rubber seal to place it correctly and then it simply clicks back into the sheet metal easy peasy. Anyway back to running the wire, you'll have to start from the bottom seal and run it up into the top that goes into the door. The wire runs straight up the loom with very little effort and starts within the rubber sleeve i mentioned earlier, you'll simply have to make a slit to allow the wire to pop out and you're done. Sounds more complicated that it is believe me. So now I've got my wire run into the door. Now to install terminals and actually connect the speaker! But first have to wait for my fasteners to come in to secure the factory filler panel on the door sheet metal using the nutserts I riveted in yesterday. Hopefully I'll have this door complete this weekend. Been driving around without a for panel far too long!


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## THX0849 (Sep 24, 2019)

I should have posted this over a week ago but took the wife on a road trip for vacation and got some much needed R&R! I finally got the door back together and speaker installed with the adapter. I deadened the door panel really well including taping and securing the door panel clips to keep them from rattling, Shaking the door panel in the air to find anything to make noise helped to be sure it's quiet once I installed it. I also applied a thin piece of cc foam to the door panel edge that meets up to the door metal to keep that from making nose as well. Got my stainless steel screws to attached the filler panel and secured it using rivnuts, It a nice tight seal with all the openings sealed up! With the factory speaker installed and playing some bass heavy music the only air escaping (other than the top gap where the door panel slides in) is the from the door panel clip holes in the door skin! Happy with that result I moved on to the mating surface for the 8: speaker. As the door panel has a 6x9 opening I used foam from an unused fast ring cut to the shape of the opening edges to provide a mating surface for the speaker ring to seal up to, I think that will work nicely. Installed the speaker to the adapter after making the wire connections and made a test fit of the door panel, its a tight fit but nothing interferes or rubs at all. Before final install of the speaker I used the remainder of the fast ring kit as a form of rain guard to keep water from dripping on the speaker. I tested it before by slowly pouring water on it and it just beads off without absorbing much if anything at all. When looking through the grill with a flashlight I can see the full diameter of the speaker through the opening, perfect!! Now that I've got this down its time to do the other doors and get the ball rolling on this very delayed project. Thanks for viewing!!


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## BerettaBoom (6 mo ago)

THX0849 said:


> I should have posted this over a week ago but took the wife on a road trip for vacation and got some much needed R&R! I finally got the door back together and speaker installed with the adapter. I deadened the door panel really well including taping and securing the door panel clips to keep them from rattling, Shaking the door panel in the air to find anything to make noise helped to be sure it's quiet once I installed it. I also applied a thin piece of cc foam to the door panel edge that meets up to the door metal to keep that from making nose as well. Got my stainless steel screws to attached the filler panel and secured it using rivnuts, It a nice tight seal with all the openings sealed up! With the factory speaker installed and playing some bass heavy music the only air escaping (other than the top gap where the door panel slides in) is the from the door panel clip holes in the door skin! Happy with that result I moved on to the mating surface for the 8: speaker. As the door panel has a 6x9 opening I used foam from an unused fast ring cut to the shape of the opening edges to provide a mating surface for the speaker ring to seal up to, I think that will work nicely. Installed the speaker to the adapter after making the wire connections and made a test fit of the door panel, its a tight fit but nothing interferes or rubs at all. Before final install of the speaker I used the remainder of the fast ring kit as a form of rain guard to keep water from dripping on the speaker. I tested it before by slowly pouring water on it and it just beads off without absorbing much if anything at all. When looking through the grill with a flashlight I can see the full diameter of the speaker through the opening, perfect!! Now that I've got this down its time to do the other doors and get the ball rolling on this very delayed project. Thanks for viewing!!


So not sure if your base model if thats what u got came with a subwoofer hole pre-drilled, but wondering if you can help confirm the subwoofer size? reason being looking to mount a DAMN good subwoofer in place of the oe sub, cause Subwoofer to frame to me sounds and feels best AND i want it looking untouched not modified in any way as i'll be running an amplifier thru the nav. units amplifier, im dumping $5,000 into this car thats it and the soundsystem is $3,000


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## THX0849 (Sep 24, 2019)

BerettaBoom said:


> So not sure if your base model if thats what u got came with a subwoofer hole pre-drilled, but wondering if you can help confirm the subwoofer size? reason being looking to mount a DAMN good subwoofer in place of the oe sub, cause Subwoofer to frame to me sounds and feels best AND i want it looking untouched not modified in any way as i'll be running an amplifier thru the nav. units amplifier, im dumping $5,000 into this car thats it and the soundsystem is $3,000


Hi! I took a quick pick of the rear deck for you. My car is a Premium without the HK system, not a base like my 2019 WRX. In my current and last vehicle neither had a cutout for the factory sub location on the deck. According to the manual the rear deck woofer would be a 10" sub. However I would strongly suggest not using that location for an actual sub of any power, the rear deck isn't the strongest place to mount anything past the factory sub TBH. If you absolutely HAVE to mount it there you'll need to significantly sound deaden that panel top and bottom. And even deaden the plastic panel itself. I would maybe look into an under seat sub if you don't need tons of power so you keep the factory look etc. Otherwise a nice 10" in a sealed box will take up negligible room in the trunk. By the way if you've got a 15-21 WRX I have a fiberglass enclosure up for sale for a 10" it takes up almost no room at all and looks like factory.









2015-2021 10: Fiberglass Sub Enclosure 2015-2021 WRX


For sale is a passenger side 10" fiberglass enclosure made by Wicked Audio. Its about .9 cu ft. and fits and looks as it came form factory that way. I had applied a bit of damper to the enclosure to prevent any possible buzzes or rattles, though I never heard any. The opening fit my Alpine...




www.diymobileaudio.com





Let me know if you need anything, glad to help where I can.


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## BerettaBoom (6 mo ago)

THX0849 said:


> Hi! I took a quick pick of the rear deck for you. My car is a Premium without the HK system, not a base like my 2019 WRX. In my current and last vehicle neither had a cutout for the factory sub location on the deck. According to the manual the rear deck woofer would be a 10" sub. However I would strongly suggest not using that location for an actual sub of any power, the rear deck isn't the strongest place to mount anything past the factory sub TBH. If you absolutely HAVE to mount it there you'll need to significantly sound deaden that panel top and bottom. And even deaden the plastic panel itself. I would maybe look into an under seat sub if you don't need tons of power so you keep the factory look etc. Otherwise a nice 10" in a sealed box will take up negligible room in the trunk. By the way if you've got a 15-21 WRX I have a fiberglass enclosure up for sale for a 10" it takes up almost no room at all and looks like factory.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


So I’m looking at 
*JBL Arena 10*
*Arena Series 10" component subwoofer with 2- or 4-ohm selectable impedance*
From crutch field, I want something that’ll last 10 years at max bass all the time, not that I’ll be listening to music at max bass, just want to be sure it’s reliable ALSO, where did you find it in the manual? What keyword do you lookup in the index?


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## THX0849 (Sep 24, 2019)

I got the info from a very large pdf I found on the new 2022 WRX. I attached a portion of it for you. BUT that's a lot of sub to go on the shelf FYI.


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## BerettaBoom (6 mo ago)

THX0849 said:


> I got the info from a very large pdf I found on the new 2022 WRX. I attached a portion of it for you. BUT that's a lot of sub to go on the shelf FYI.


Okay, so I found a better sub that goes deeper, but I don’t know how many ohms the stock sub is, I tried looking it up to no avail, maybe you can help? But I’m proud I found this lil sub and very happy that it’s a Sony cause they’re known for their sound quality to be reliable.
I’m hoping to GOD it’s a 4-ohm sub because I want to make use of all the low bass that a 2-ohm sub can’t do as much as a 4-ohm sub because 4-ohm gets lower where as 2-ohm can be heard more. I want to FEEL the bass, because the stock door speakers are loud enough just the sub sux ASS😂

*Sony XS-W104ES*
*Mobile ES Series 10" 4-ohm component subwoofer*


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## rxh0272 (Jul 26, 2020)

Hi everyone.

So, the rear sub is DVC. I believe I saw somewhere in the manual that it is dual 2 Ohm. But I'm not 100% sure. However, here is the link to a shop selling custom enclosures that fit into the left/right trunk corners: https://store.audiodesignscg.com/product/wrx-subwoofer-box/

I did my front door speakers with Kicker 4 Ohm speakers. No problems with Starlink. 

The fnt doors and tweets are in parallel and come out to about 1.3 Ohms (2 Ohm tweet, 4 Ohm door). The fnt outs come from the telematics unit. You will need https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B...om-20&linkId=8b3a872d9910f84768568c0673a9eaa4 between the telematics unit and the high-low converter, if planning on amping the doors. You can also get the harnesses needed from Install a Subwoofer or Amplifier in your Subaru - No need to Cut OEM Wiring! so you don't need to splice any OEM wiring. 

I am doing a complete build on my 22 premium. Amping the doors with high power (130 w+/ch) and 750w RMS amp for the sub(s). The rockford power monoblock can output 1500 dynamic. plan to post pics etc. as I go/once I'm done. I already have most of the equipment. I only bought new speakers for the doors. Kept the front tweets, as they sound pretty good. But, I might replace the tweets with 3" woofers, possibly 2-way versus mid-range. 

Rob


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