Upgrading the Sprinter sound system

What others have done

The most expensive factory audio in a Sprinter cargo van is just a bit better than the best factory audio in a 1980s sedan.

The folks at Sprinter Van USA have a detailed post about adding a powered subwoofer. The video below goes through adding a separate amp and additional rear speakers:

There are also components like the this one from AudioControl that will take speaker-level audio from the factory head unit and convert it to line-level audio that can be fed into power speakers or other amps. And this post from Points Unknown talks about a separate house system that can be fed from the dash head unit.

What we’re thinking

We want good audio while we’re driving, but we also want good audio while we’re parked without needing to use the van battery or run to the front of the van to change the music. We love using CarPlay while driving, but it won’t make sense while parked.

I think that means we want separate van and house audio systems, with have the option to feed the van audio into the house system while we’re driving, but use other sources on the house system while we’re parked.

While we’ve been doing the build, this Sony speaker has been pumping the audio, and it might make sense to keep using it in the van as our house audio system. If we install an adapter to get line-level audio out of the van system, we can plug it into the Sony with no problem.

Image credit: Daniel Schludi