GR86 and BRZ DSP Amp: 6 Speaker or 8 Speaker Kit

Choosing a GR86 DSP amp comes down to one question that almost nobody asks first, and getting it wrong costs you a return shipment. Your 2022 to 2026 Toyota GR86 or Subaru BRZ left the factory with either a six speaker system or an eight speaker system, and the plug and play kit for one will not work on the other. Everything else, the tuning, the install time, the sound you end up with, is downstream of that single answer.

Count your speakers before you buy. The Beat-Sonic ENX-T110 is the Encore X DSP kit for 2022 to 2026 GR86 and BRZ models equipped with 6 speakers. The ENX-T106 is the kit for the same years equipped with 8 speakers. Both plug into the factory harness and keep the stock head unit, so the decision is about which system your car actually has, not which one sounds better on paper.

If your car has the six speaker system, the part you want is the Beat-Sonic ENX-T110 plug and play DSP amplifier kit. Eight speaker cars take the Beat-Sonic ENX-T106 plug and play DSP amplifier kit instead, and both sit alongside the rest of our amplifiers.

The 2026 refresh changed a lot, and none of it was the stereo

On August 6, 2026, Toyota's GAZOO Racing division announced an updated GR86. Japanese order books opened on August 28. The only shipment date Toyota named is December 2026, and that one is for the automatic transmission GR86 Cup Car Basic model, not the range. The car will also be shown at the FUJI 86 and BRZ STYLE 2026 event at Fuji Speedway on September 12.

The list of changes is more interesting than the usual mid cycle shuffle. GR revised the throttle mapping, the electric power steering, the manual shifter gate, interior quality and the EyeSight driver assist system. The FA24 2.4 liter naturally aspirated boxer four was left alone. The exterior color Solid Gray returns, and the RZ trim picks up interior updates.

Notice what is not on that list. The factory audio system was not part of the update. GR spent its engineering budget on the way the car steers, shifts and responds, which is exactly right for this platform, and the stereo stayed where it has been since 2022. If you were waiting for the factory to fix the sound in the next model year, that is not what happened.

That leaves the same two paths owners have had all along. Rip out the head unit and start over, which costs you the factory look and often the steering wheel controls, or leave the head unit alone and fix the part that is actually weak. We build for the second path. If throttle feel is what you were really chasing, that lives in our ShiftPower throttle response controllers, which is a separate conversation from audio.

Six speakers or eight: how to tell which system you have

Do this before you open a cart, not after.

1. Look at the dash corners. The eight speaker system adds dash tweeters that the six speaker system does not have. Stand outside the car and look at the top corners of the dash near the windshield.
2. Check the doors. Look for a separate tweeter in the sail panel or door card rather than a single full range driver.
3. Check the rear. Count what is behind the seats.
4. Check the window sticker or build sheet if you still have it, or the trim and options list for your specific car.

As a rule the eight speaker system shows up on GR86 Premium and BRZ Limited cars, but audio packages move around by model year and market, so treat the badge as a hint and the count as the answer. Counting takes two minutes and settles it.

If you get to the end of that and you are still not certain, send us photos of the dash and a door card. We would rather look at your car than guess at it.

What the DSP does that a plain amplifier does not

A regular plug and play amp gives your factory speakers clean power. That alone fixes the most common complaint in these cars, which is audio that falls apart above about seventy miles an hour with the exhaust drone underneath it.

A DSP amp adds processing on top of the power. It lets the system correct for the fact that you are sitting much closer to one door than the other, tame the peaks and dips that a small hard surfaced cabin creates, and split frequencies to the right drivers instead of sending everything everywhere. In a GR86 or BRZ, with a low roof, a lot of glass and very little soft material, that processing matters more than it would in a large sedan.

We wrote the longer version of this in what is DSP in car audio, and the practical side in how to tune a DSP amplifier. Read the second one before your first tuning session, not after.

ENX-T110 or ENX-T106: the real difference

The two kits exist for the two factory systems. That is the whole story, and we say it plainly because the temptation is to read a bigger part number as a better part.

The ENX-T110 is built for 2022 to 2026 GR86 and BRZ vehicles equipped with 6 speakers. The ENX-T106 is built for 2022 to 2026 GR86 and BRZ vehicles equipped with 8 speakers. Ordering the eight speaker kit for a six speaker car does not upgrade the car. It leaves you with outputs that have nothing to drive and a harness that does not match.

Full specifications for each kit live on the individual product pages, and we keep those current rather than repeating numbers here that could drift out of date. New releases show up in new products first.

What these kits will not do

They will not replace your speakers. A DSP amp drives the speakers you have, and worn or low quality drivers stay worn and low quality with better power behind them.

They will not add bass you do not have a driver for. If you want real low end in a GR86 or BRZ, a subwoofer is the honest answer, and that is a different kit.

They will not quiet the car down. Road and exhaust noise in these cars is real, and turning the volume up is not the same as lowering the noise floor. Owners chasing that usually end up in sound deadening first, then the amp, and they are happier for doing it in that order.

They also will not change your factory screen, your CarPlay behavior or your steering wheel controls. Those stay exactly as they are, which for most owners is the point.

Install notes

This is a plug and play kit, which means no cutting into the factory harness. It does not mean no work. You are removing interior panels on a small car with tight tolerances, and the fasteners in a GR86 interior are easy to strip if you rush them or use the wrong driver.

Set your gains conservatively on the first pass and listen for a few days of normal driving before you touch them again. The mistake we see most often is a system tuned aggressively in a parked car in a quiet garage, which sounds harsh the moment the car is moving. Our writeup on the Encore Alpha ENA-2S1 install on a GR86 and BRZ covers the panel work in detail and applies here too.

Frequently asked questions

How do I know if my GR86 has six or eight speakers?

Look for dash tweeters at the top corners of the dash near the windshield and separate tweeters in the doors. Eight speaker cars have them, six speaker cars do not. Count what is in the doors and behind the seats rather than going by trim name.

Can I use the ENX-T106 on a six speaker car?

No. The ENX-T106 is built for 2022 to 2026 GR86 and BRZ vehicles equipped with 8 speakers, and the ENX-T110 is built for the same years equipped with 6 speakers. The kits are not interchangeable.

Does the 2026 GR86 refresh change the audio system?

The announced updates cover throttle mapping, electric power steering, the manual shifter gate, interior quality and the EyeSight driver assist system. The factory audio system was not part of the announcement.

Do I keep my factory head unit and steering wheel controls?

Yes. These kits sit behind the factory head unit rather than replacing it, so the screen, the controls and the factory look all stay.

Should I install a DSP amp or new speakers first?

If your speakers are original and undamaged, the amp usually gives you the larger change, because the factory system is power limited before it is driver limited. If a speaker is already blown, replace it first.

Counted your speakers and still want a second opinion? Send us a photo of your dash and a door card. We are a small team in La Mirada, California, we build these kits ourselves, and we would rather spend a minute confirming your fitment than ship you the wrong box.