Just wondering how good is this MUSICGATE sound system? Is it worth the $900 price tag for it? I hope I don't end up pulling the factory radio for a better one. I pretty much have to do it with every factory radio in all new vehicles I've ever owned in the past. This will be a first for me to stick nearly $900 for a factory equipped sound system in a new vehicle. Man, I hope its worth it...:eek:

I have that ordered with my Caliber. Its actually a $495 option, not $900. It does NOT require you to use any other radio or anything like that. I'm waiting myself to see how well it really sounds. FTI: it also includes a leather wrapped steering wheel (for non R/T models, or models without leather), and steering wheel mounted audio controls. Call me crazy, but those 2 things are part of what prompted me to buy the musicgate sound system with my Caliber. I absolutely love the steering wheel audio controls on my Stratus R/T Coupe. I also wanted a stereo system that sounded a little bit better than the standard one.

Hey mahal3680…
First of all Congrat’s on your new purchase [sm=smiley20.gif]
Regarding the Musicgate feature, I have only heard awesome things about it! Many consumers who have chosen that feature enjoy it immensely.
Keep us posted with your thoughts [sm=smiley1.gif]

Kelly S

I guess I should rephrase, the $900 price tag includes the radio as well. For $900, I can pick up a nice sound system at my local audio center at that price...I hope its worth it!

I'm generally pretty happy with the Chrysler stereos, especially when they're the Infinty systems. My parents/I have had DCX vehicles with those systems in them a couple of times. Will they bump like crazy? No, but they're darn good. Same can be said for the Caliber I test drove last week with the Boston Acoustics/Musicgate speakers. I was overall impressed, when I got back to the lot I decided to see just how well the drop-down speakers worked....

So I dropped 'em and turned the stereo up. I'll put it to you this way- it sounded good enough/loud enough that I got a couple of interesting stares from salesfolk/other customers :) So yeah..it's pretty good ;)

How much BOOM is in the MusicGate Sound System? I could care less if it can rattle the windows, but I would like a nice clear, crisp boom to it and have the ability to turn it up without distortion/crackling.

I'd say its at least on par with the Infiniti systems that other DCX vehicles use. If not a little better because it was designed especially for the Caliber (to my knowledge at least). So yeah, you can definately turn that sucker up and let it hit good without distortion. Is it as dynamic as a custom ported box/amp combo?- well no. But like you said, you don't want to wake up the neighbours with the thing!

For what is still a "factory" stereo it bumps!

Take a CD that is representative of the music you like to listen to with the stereo up (and the windows down!) to you with the dealership or something. Then when you do a test drive you can pop that in. Unless you have a really stodgy or nervous salesperson, I doubt they'll mind. Its a great feature and they should want to show it off (that said, don't TRY to blow out the speakers or anything..that's probably not a good idea!).

I have yet to see a Caliber with it in it around here.

It can rattle the mirrors, both inside and outside on the car. It sounds very good. It is loud enough that I cannot turn it all the way up and sit comfortably in the car. It has very little distortion at the extreme volume levels. Well worth the extra $!!

Can't wait to hear mine! I just want something thats a little better than the standard speakers. I don't really care to turn it up so loud you can't think while driving, but I do like it loud sometimes.

I ordered my caliber with the Musicgate audio system as well as the 6-disc in dash cd changer.

When I purchased my Stratus in October 2002 I found one that had the Infiniti Gold system (w/ cd changer) and it sounds really nice. I am expecting Musicgate to blow that out of the water though.

I'm like you though, I spend so much time in the car I need a nice radio to listen to, but I usually add speakers as well. I've owned two pontiacs (1993 Sunfire, 1998 Grand Am GT) and replaced all speakrs and stereos in both cars.

Well, that's what I like most about the DCX systems and the Musicgate system that I tried out as well. It really didn't warrent replacing the speakers with components/aftermarkets. They really do a good job of making their presence known (both the Infinity and Boston Acoustics systems)..

That said, if I had the cash I would love to get a nice installation with some components, amp and generous sound insulation.

04StratusR/T- that's surprising that you haven't seen a Caliber with the Musicgate system yet. When I was at the dealership, the only ones I saw had that in it. Where are you "based" out of? Is it a smaller market? I'm in DC, so that might explain why more Calibers here have that....

I mean, its not an intrusive looking system. That's kinda the good thing about it. It blends in really well with the rest of the car (that factory look) so maybe you've seen it and not realized it? Then again, you're just as knowledgable as everyone else around here, so maybe you really haven't!

I'm in upstate NY. In the Elmira/Corning Area. Its not a huge market....

Mostly smaller dealerships with only say 50 cars total on the lot. Almost all of the Calibers I've seen are just stock SXT Calibers with no options beyond the 2 liter/CVT. I've seen 1 SXT Sport, silver with blue inserts, but other than that, really no options.

I like our musicgate (came with the 6 disc in ours). Will probably never use it for what it's intended, but having more speakers never hurts http://www.teamtundra.net/forum/images/smiles/icon_speaker1.gif

04StratusR/T- that might do it then!

That's close to PA..and yeah, that's pretty "out" there if I remember. I'm sure its a nice place to be though.
I'm personally not the biggest fan of DC anyways, I'm a country boy at heart!

Sounds like you could be the first person on "the block" with the Caliber Musicgate system then too. Nothing like having a car good and kitted out to show off to your friends.

Are you thinking about putting any mods on your Caliber when you finally get it? I know you said you weren't looking for something super aggressive for the speaker system, but some tints on the front would look good if you got some nice alloys on there already...

Hi all! my dad just bought me my first car for my 16th b-day. I got a marine blue SXT with the musicgate. Since I'm not 16 yet, 4 more days, can't wait. anyway, he put in these old cd's, styx's and ealges. Never heard of them. He turned up the music so loud, looked over at me and said, now that's music. "no rapper can touch hotel california", what's that all about.

don't like the music, but WOW on the sound!

Hmmmmm......Hotel California. That could be considered cruel and usual punishment ;)

ORIGINAL: wildbill

04StratusR/T- that might do it then!

That's close to PA..and yeah, that's pretty "out" there if I remember. I'm sure its a nice place to be though.
I'm personally not the biggest fan of DC anyways, I'm a country boy at heart!

Sounds like you could be the first person on "the block" with the Caliber Musicgate system then too. Nothing like having a car good and kitted out to show off to your friends.

Are you thinking about putting any mods on your Caliber when you finally get it? I know you said you weren't looking for something super aggressive for the speaker system, but some tints on the front would look good if you got some nice alloys on there already...




I'm not going to mod my car. I'm the kind of person who likes to keep the car as I ordered it. So no body kits or anything like that. I will however be adding some Dodge Accessories and I will have the rear side/hatch windows tinted. I already have the Caliber Door Entry Guards, Caliber Slush Mats, and Caliber Bright Pedal Kit for it. Oh, when available, I will put a K&N Air Filter in there and if they have it, possibly a SunBurst Orange SRT-4 Hood Cover (where the air inlets are). Other than that, it will most likely stay the way it is.

I don't want to tint the front side windows because its illegal to tint the windows in anything but an SUV in NYS so I'll just stick to the rear windows like an SUV would be tinted off the truck. I figure it looks enough like an SUV that nobody will both with it. I'd hate to pay $150 to get the windows tinted and then be made the New York State Trooper to take it off and believe me they WILL make you take it off! You'll even have to have an officer sign a paper verifying that you took it off or else you get fined continuously until you do so.

Oh BTW...I'm 23 and Hotel California is a freakin' awesome song! Gotta love the classic rock! Kicks @$$!!! :D

ORIGINAL: sweet16

Hi all! my dad just bought me my first car for my 16th b-day. I got a marine blue SXT with the musicgate. Since I'm not 16 yet, 4 more days, can't wait. anyway, he put in these old cd's, styx's and ealges. Never heard of them. He turned up the music so loud, looked over at me and said, now that's music. "no rapper can touch hotel california", what's that all about.

don't like the music, but WOW on the sound!



To almost anybody over the age of 35, rap is random and irritating noise something best suited for torturing mutants and farm animals you don't like. It's mysoginistic, violent, and exploitive, and quite frankly, I'm tired of hearing it from 4 blocks away. "Hotel California" is classic music, you're just not old enough to understand that yet.

ORIGINAL: wildbill

04StratusR/T- that might do it then!

That's close to PA..and yeah, that's pretty "out" there if I remember. I'm sure its a nice place to be though.
I'm personally not the biggest fan of DC anyways, I'm a country boy at heart!

Sounds like you could be the first person on "the block" with the Caliber Musicgate system then too. Nothing like having a car good and kitted out to show off to your friends.

Are you thinking about putting any mods on your Caliber when you finally get it? I know you said you weren't looking for something super aggressive for the speaker system, but some tints on the front would look good if you got some nice alloys on there already...




I will actually be the ONLY person with a Caliber SXT Sport in the area. I have seen a total of 2 Calibers. One was a Steel Blue Caliber SE and the other was a Marine Blue SXT with no options except maybe fog lamps. Other than that, no Calibers in this area. I'm sure by this time next year, everyone will have one that wants one. Of course, since I got Sunburst Orange, everyone will have to have SunBurst Orange too! Never fails! :eek:

I currently have a Deep Red Stratus R/T Coupe and nobody had any Stratus Coupe's at all, let alone a Deep Red one. Now there is 3 in the area the same color as mine and I see at least 6 or 7 Dodge Stratus Coupes around the area all the time of different colors and models.

MusicGate--Sweet! and MEAN as HELL when you want it to be!!! Even sweeter when you get the steering wheel controls for it! Nothing to see, but fits like a glove.

ORIGINAL: fitz7

MusicGate--Sweet! and MEAN as HELL when you want it to be!!! Even sweeter when you get the steering wheel controls for it! Nothing to see, but fits like a glove.


MusicGate comes with Leather wrapped Steering Wheel and Steering wheel mounted audio controls.

Can't wait until mine comes in so I can actually hear it! :D

I got the SXT with the musicgate system, the sound is incredible. It comes with a little 8" sub in the back of the hatch. Pretty nice. My Sirius came with the car and it came with 1 year free subscription. One thing I'm curious about is..... Where is my jack for my MP3 player. I think I was screwed on that.

Koolklown,

You only get the jack for your MP3 player on the base model stereo, Kinda strange you loose a feature with an upgrade to the stereo.

Later

Mike

Thanks for that Tid Bit, I was starting to think I was over looking it. Well..... at least I have the MP3 Player, and I've never owned a 6 disc changer in any of my cars. WOW

If you have an iPod, an iPod integration kit will be available soon if its not already out. It will require the upgraded radio which it sounds like you already have.

Hi i'm new to this forum and recently just purchased a black SXT sport however in order to get the color I wanted without having to wait I had to purchase it without the musicgate option. I was just curious if i could have it installed at the dealership in the future, thanks in advance.

Adam.

In all reality, not a very practical idea. Cost would be the problem, all the parts involved would be very expensive, and that doesn't even include the labor involved.

ORIGINAL: Adamsi

Hi i'm new to this forum and recently just purchased a black SXT sport however in order to get the color I wanted without having to wait I had to purchase it without the musicgate option. I was just curious if i could have it installed at the dealership in the future, thanks in advance.

Adam.


Prepare to give both arms and both legs for that to happen...:D

Hi Adamsi...Welcome, and Congrat's on your new Dodge Caliber SXT Sport [sm=smiley20.gif] Sounds awesome!!!

Regarding the Musicgate option, I suggest to speak with your local DCX dealership. Speak with the Parts Department, they will inform you if that is available for an aftermarket purchase.
At the same time, you can always check out www.mopar.com. Under Dodge Caliber, it lists all the accessories available.

Let me know if there is anything I can do.
Thanks...and Enjoy!

Kelly S

Not to sound bad or anything, thats a form letter answer. You should know that the MusicGate option can't be a Mopar.com option, plus it would be an extremely expensive aftermarket option, installation of all the speakers, amp, subwoofer compartment in the rear with new side panel, new rear door panel and swing down speakers, would be very very expensive.

Yeah Kelly, whats up with that reply? You of all people, should know thats not a mopar option...[sm=nono.gif]

Sorry guys...my bad [sm=smiley9.gif] ... wrong choice of words.
The musicgate option is not an accessory through Mopar. I did post www.mopar.com for other ideas that may be useful to Adamsi.

In regards to speaking with your local DCX dealership, they may also have other options (aftermarket) and may have ideas to help as well, that I may not be aware of.

Once again my apologies...

Kelly S

No need to apologize ;)

The base stereo comes with the jack because it won't play MP3's on CD.
The high end stereo's will play MP3 CD'S . Thats the trade off.

I'd rather get the base stereo which has the Aux Input on it so I can plug my iPod Mini into it WITHOUT having to spend more money on an iPod Integration Kit.

thanks for the info Kelly S i appreciate it. I called the dealership and they tried to send me to some guy that isntall's steroe's locally just to put a sub in that little compartment and that isnt' what i'm looking for i'm looking to get the fold down speakers. cost and labour are not a factor to me a good friend of mine does car audio for a living.

thanks again.

Adam.


ORIGINAL: DodgeInfoCenter

Sorry guys...my bad [sm=smiley9.gif] ... wrong choice of words.
The musicgate option is not an accessory through Mopar. I did post www.mopar.com for other ideas that may be useful to Adamsi.

In regards to speaking with your local DCX dealership, they may also have other options (aftermarket) and may have ideas to help as well, that I may not be aware of.

Once again my apologies...

Kelly S

Adamsi,

Give this person a call. I get all my parts from him, and it looks like this is not an option to purchase as a kit, but I'll bet he can get the replacement parts for you like the rear hatch folding speakers and all the interior pieces you need. He is real good with this kind of stuff. Maybe even just buy the interior parts like the fold down speakers which you probably have to purchase the whole interior piece on the hatch and then use your own amp or something like that. Art is awesome, and willing to research this for you.

Art Kendrick
Henson Motor Sports
800-530-5337 and ask for Art in Parts Dept. ( they are a Dodge Dealer)
e-mail: artk@hensonmotors.com

Tell him Mike with DTW sent you. He has the best prices I have ever found.

Later

Mike

thanks Mike i appreciated the info i will be giving him a call in the next few days


ORIGINAL: FtK Shadow

Adamsi,

Give this person a call. I get all my parts from him, and it looks like this is not an option to purchase as a kit, but I'll bet he can get the replacement parts for you like the rear hatch folding speakers and all the interior pieces you need. He is real good with this kind of stuff. Maybe even just buy the interior parts like the fold down speakers which you probably have to purchase the whole interior piece on the hatch and then use your own amp or something like that. Art is awesome, and willing to research this for you.

Art Kendrick
Henson Motor Sports
800-530-5337 and ask for Art in Parts Dept. ( they are a Dodge Dealer)
e-mail: artk@hensonmotors.com

Tell him Mike with DTW sent you. He has the best prices I have ever found.

Later

Mike

I have a inferno red SXT with the sports and music gate package with the sunroof. I LOVE this car you can not go wrong with the sound system. My husband is upgrading his sound system in his truck and he brought my car to the audio shop so they can hear this sound system and they can't find a single reason to change a thing to it. It just kills my husband that my car HITS harder than his. The 6 disk changer is great to operate with the steering wheel controls. We have also used my car as the sound system at a party.

Just bought a Caliber SXT this week. Black with the standard interior... Fog lights... Cruise. The stock stereo is quite good for an entry level system. However, since I am a music lover, I would like to upgrade my stereo. Anyone know if it's possible to upgrade to the Musicgate System?

Oops!...Sorry, I just noticed that my question was answered a few posts up. Musicgate is NOT an after-purchase option...I will consider other ways to upgrade, starting with the speakers.

Now another question...those of you with the Musicgate system...does it include speakers in the dash? Just wondering because if I'm going to do my own upgrade I would like to put tweeters in the dash. I know there's none there now, but was curious if there's cut-outs already there for them.

Tim

ORIGINAL: CaliberTim

Oops!...Sorry, I just noticed that my question was answered a few posts up. Musicgate is NOT an after-purchase option...I will consider other ways to upgrade, starting with the speakers.

Now another question...those of you with the Musicgate system...does it include speakers in the dash? Just wondering because if I'm going to do my own upgrade I would like to put tweeters in the dash. I know there's none there now, but was curious if there's cut-outs already there for them.

Tim


Yes, there are two speakers in the dash, uper left and right hand corners. As for the dash piece, there no cut outs. I'm pretty sure you can buy the dash piece with the speaker openings from your nearest D/C dealer. Hope this gives you a little more insight!

ORIGINAL: CaliberTim

Just bought a Caliber SXT this week. Black with the standard interior... Fog lights... Cruise. The stock stereo is quite good for an entry level system. However, since I am a music lover, I would like to upgrade my stereo. Anyone know if it's possible to upgrade to the Musicgate System?


Those are questions you should ask your dealer BEFORE buying! Really, none of the paid options (such as MusicGate, Colored dash/seats, etc.) are available AFTER you purchase. Honestly, if I was a dealer, I wouldn't order ANY Caliber for stock on the lot without the MusicGate. It seems as if nearly everyone wants it and is an option available for any model Caliber.

I'm most likely going to get a Caliber SXT in a few months so I've started looking around at stuff now. I'm into aftermarket stereos and the first thing I would do is replace the stock deck with my new Pioneer DEH-P6800MP but I don't know if this is doable with the Premium Sound System and Soundgate.

If you go to Crutchfield.com and pick your vehicle it will show you what they sell that is compatible with the car. If you choose the stock speaker package they will show a wire harness they sell that will adapt your aftermarket stereo to the car, but if you choose the premium speaker package the wire harness is not displayed. I wonder if it's just not compatible at all because of some wierd proprietary setup or if the wire harness to adapt that sound system just isn't available yet.

I really just want the soundgate :P but the extra speakers and the 8" subwoofer would go well with the dual 10" subs I would put in the car when I got it.

Does anyone know what's going on with the premium setup and aftermarket decks? would really appreciate any info.

Sorry, wish I could help. I was going to put a Kenwood DDX-6019 7" touch screen navigational radio in, but opted for the Mopar navigational radio instead. Price wasn't an issue, but didn't want that after-market look, so I went with the Mopar. I paid just as much for the Mopar radio, which doesn't even play DVD's or have touch screen capabilty. Oh well, I guess you have to sacrifice one thong for another...

Still waiting on mine ........ will let you know when I finally get it here

Oh well, I guess you have to sacrifice one thong for another...


I hate having to sacrifice thongs.

ORIGINAL: jongunz

Oh well, I guess you have to sacrifice one thong for another...


I hate having to sacrifice thongs.



[sm=yikesomg.gif]

I dont have the music gate in my caliber. I plan in the future to get it. The basic model pounds a bit too. it distorts after about volume 30 of the 38. I tested the music gate sound system in the dealership on one of the cars and its pretty good.

When I ordered my car from the factory it was already in queue to be built so I was told they couldn't access the system to tell the factory the changes. I would have been nice to get when I got the car. I was told that if I purchased it right now from dodge it would cost like $1500 or something. But they said if you wait till there is a "kit" than it would be like $300. I'm not really an expert with car stereos and such so when the time comes I will go with the Boston Acoustics Music Gate system. In the future besides the musicgate I would like to get a sunroof put in and maybe a body kit for the car and that would be it for mods.

I realize this post comes quite a bit late, but I figured I'd throw it out here in case anyone else comes by with the same issue. Keep an eye on eBay. Over the course of the last month or so, I've seen all kinds of components for Calibers on there, including factory stereos and the fold down hatch speakers.

Good Luck!

ORIGINAL: Adamsi

thanks for the info Kelly S i appreciate it. I called the dealership and they tried to send me to some guy that isntall's steroe's locally just to put a sub in that little compartment and that isnt' what i'm looking for i'm looking to get the fold down speakers. cost and labour are not a factor to me a good friend of mine does car audio for a living.

thanks again.

Adam.


ORIGINAL: DodgeInfoCenter

Sorry guys...my bad [sm=smiley9.gif] ... wrong choice of words.
The musicgate option is not an accessory through Mopar. I did post www.mopar.com for other ideas that may be useful to Adamsi.

In regards to speaking with your local DCX dealership, they may also have other options (aftermarket) and may have ideas to help as well, that I may not be aware of.

Once again my apologies...

Kelly S

Lets all hope that in the future Dodge figures out that alot of people are willing to pay for the Musicgate sound system after market and that they come out with a kit at a reasonable price!

I didnt get the musicgate system but i can tell you the stock stereo system is really good.And atleast is has something the musicgate dont,the ability to plug your mp3 player iin and have a 1000 songs on hand,which i think is way better than playing just cds.:D

I still find myself listening to a CD since I most do short trips in my car to and from work. I have only used the MP3 jack when I went on a long trip in the summer.

I have the musicgate sound system in a sxt sport and it has the mp3 jack, and the musicgate sound system is a good stereo system, i always tell my wife to turn it down, she plays hiphop not rock and roll, but when i put one of my cds in i crank it and it has a great surround sound.

my wife just got the sound gate in her sxt let me tell you it's very lound. We are not fliming an ICE CUBE VIDEO any time soonand any louder IMO is just obnoxious.

Just bought Caliber SE. The MusicGate system is great.
For the record, steering wheel audio controls aren't available in SE. This is a huge bummer ... currently looking for a way to retrofit s.w. from SXT package.

There are very few options you can have installed after the fact on the Caliber. About the only thing you can really have installed after the fact is the engine block heater and maybe upgrade the stereo. Everything else has to come from the factory. You're also better off having all options come from the factory since factory installed options are warranted for 36K/3 yrs, dealer installed is warranted for 12K/1 yr.

I took delivery of my 2008 Caliber SXTthis morning. It was ordered with everything except for a stereo system upgrade and the smokers group. I opted for the Musicgate system so I could use the speakers as an outdoorPA system when I'm teaching on an outdoor range or open land where shooting is legal and I can back my vehicle up pretty close to the firing line.

CD changers are more apt to break than single CD players since there are more mechanical parts. I have no need for a CD changerwith myPalm Treo 700p. Any CDs I want to play I just rip to MP3s and copy them to an SD card and play them through theaux jack on the default stereo system via Pocket Tunes or TCPMP. I could also play them from my laptop and output them to the aux jack.

I'm going to play around with the Uconnect this weekend and get it paired with my Treo 700p.

I went through a local auto broker to get exactly what I wanted. The two dealers I started a dialog with on my purchase were doinking me around on options. Dealers try to sell you what they have on the lot.

The second dealer I started a dialog with coughed up a custom order quote a week after I gave my deposit to the broker. It did cost me more to go throughan auto broker but I got exactly what I wanted. I chock up the additional cost as the price of getting exactly what I want without having to call around to Dodge dealers within a day's drive of Vegas. The broker went through a Peoria AZ dealer to get it for me. It was delivered with only 4 miles on it and I left his office after signing the docs and getting the non-resident AZtemp operating permit taped to the rear window playing Howard100 on my 1 yr of free Sirius. :D

Mine sounds great with the 9 speakers w/sub and the REQ radio.
It's only $595 for the 09 cars.