I'm not overly pleased with the sound system, has anyone done anything to improve the sound? I was think of new speakers.

I agree, the factory sound is lame. The Honda Store offers a bass speaker upgrade here:
http://automobiles.honda.com/civic-h...ory=CIVIC08522

But, it's too expensive in my opinion. Take your car to a reputable car audio shop (not Best Buy or CC) and I bet they can add an amp and new speakers for under $500.

2008 Honda Civic Hybrid w/Navi, Magnetic Pearl
1996 Acura NSX-T Red\Tan
2002 Dodge Ram 1500 Quad Cab

Go to www.crutchfield.com, they have a great tool that will tell you what car audio parts will fit in your car. They even give you installation instructions, if you are a DIYer.

I don't know how the OEM speakers are in the HCH2, but when I replaced the ones in my HCH they were pieces of crap. No, I take that back, crap would have weighed more and sounded better. I think a pair of Styrofoam cups with strings attached would have sounded better. With the new Kenwood head unit I put in, had I not replaced those speakers I would have surely blown them.

~H~
Don't Click Here!

The factory headunit is actually halfway decent...the problem is moreso the quality and location of the speakers.

At first I did not like the sound coming from the system either but after going to Myer Emco and Crutcthfield for a replacement system cost estimate, I decided against it.

The head unit Honda uses is made by Alpine, of course that doesn't mean much since it is made for Honda so none of the Alpine kits will work directly with it.

I decided on installing the BASS kit. The sound is now comparable to a low end Acura system.

I knew going into the Civic it wasn't a premium based car and I didn't expect the audio to be mind blowing. As with previous comments, the speaker placement is questionable and most likely the reason why the system doesn't sound better than it should.

If you want to see how the BASS kit is installed, I did a complete write up on it on my website http://www.abittans.com

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1987 Chevy Spectrum - 200,000+ Miles -Junk Yard
1994 Honda Civic DX Coupe - Truck Hit it
1998 Acura 2.3 CL - End of Lease
2002 Acura TL 3.2 - End of Lease
2004 Acura MDX - End of Lease
2007 Mercedes ML350 -Lemon
2007 Honda Civic Hybrid w/Navi - Active

I used the Crutchfield web tool, but it said they didn't have anything that matched any of the speaker sizes, and for the head unit, I'm not sure how it would work, given that the radio controls and display are all spread out on a piece of console that includes other stuff like vents.



Sounds more involved than a quick swap...

My opinion has changed over 11 months of ownership. Now I believe the factory 6-speaker sound is above-average. It's better than the typical consumer-grade sound system, particularly the kits for home computers. I'm hearing details in my music that I wouldn't hear at home unless I ran it through my NAD stereo receiver and/or Grado headphones. The bass is sufficient for honest reproduction and it's tight. However, I have had to adjust the bass and treble to get it to where I think it should be.

Where are the six speakers? I see two speakers in the front doors and two on the rear shelf, are two of them duel cone and counted as four?

There is one brand of Alpine speakers (at bestbuy) that is designed to fit into the Civic. If you want to use different speakers you are suppose to break the plastic ring around the current factory speakers and place it on the new one. As for the head unit, you will need to purchase a replacement radio cover, the same one used in the DX model Civic and Nav based Civics.

I would first replace your head unit before the speakers. That way if you still think the sound lacks, you can then get speakers matched to your unit (wattage/etc).

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1987 Chevy Spectrum - 200,000+ Miles -Junk Yard
1994 Honda Civic DX Coupe - Truck Hit it
1998 Acura 2.3 CL - End of Lease
2002 Acura TL 3.2 - End of Lease
2004 Acura MDX - End of Lease
2007 Mercedes ML350 -Lemon
2007 Honda Civic Hybrid w/Navi - Active