I split the difference on my Soob sound system, added the subwoofer and
went for aftermarket main speakers. It already had the tweeters mounted
on the front of the windows. But then again, the speakers were over
seven years old when I bought the car.

The stock subwoofer is a fairly easy install but requires taking the
dashboard apart for access to the radio's connector and removing the
front bolts on the passenger seat to slide the box into place.

Hi Joe,

My $.02:
My experience of my 1999 Forester S with the powered subwoofer and
tweeter option is that I'm pleased with the sound. It has more bottom
than what it would have without the sub and the tweeters do add
definition and sparkle to the high end. The subwoofer has a pair of
fairly-difficult-to-reach pots to tweak the crossover frequency and the
level, if one wants that degree of control.

I don't believe that the system has the power to fracture the windows
with bass or to ultrasonically weld the cupholder shut with treble.
You'd have to go aftermarket for those features. It does sound nice to
my ears at moderate levels. Of course, evaluating audio involves a fair
amount of subjectivity as well as a sense of how good is good enough for
your own satisfaction.

I imagine that you could achieve similar improvements to the sound in
your Subie at competitive prices from the aftermarket sector. I wonder
how the pricing stacks up between Subaru equipment and aftermarket when
the installation cost is considered?

Hi all,
Picking up a new Forester 2.5X Premium. When I took the car out for a test
drive I was impressed with the vehicle except for the 4 speaker audio
system. They offer a subwoofer and tweeter option. Will this help improve
the sound considerably or should a spend the money on better after-market
replacement speakers?

Thanks for ypu response,
Joe