Speaker Upgrade

ForceMajeure · Postby **ForceMajeure** » Tue Jan 11, 2011 11:07 pm

Today i picked up a bargain Kenwood car CD player 50wx4 with MP3 input, detachable face etc about 2 years old from the wreckers to replace my old one which ceased to work around 2 months ago.

After finding it works great i decided to pull out my door speakers to see if they were also Kenwoods, no such luck, they look like the original Jap models that came with the car back in 1998. :frown:

Keep in mind i know bugger all about stereos other than i like some "doof doof", but if i replace the two large door speakers for some Kenwoods should i also replace the tweeters as well or are these too small to make any real difference anyway?

It also looks to me like you get 3x, 4x or 5x way speakers these days that have all the tweeters etc in the one speeker, not sure if the original ones are anything like this, certainly not 5x way thats for sure.

Basically i dont want to add any further speakers adding weight but want the best type of door speakers with some grunt, and im gathering they are the 6x9" size im looking for.

My other question is (assuming i have stock speakers) the speakers look like they are glued on to a plastic mold that screws onto the doors, is this easy to get off or am i in for a bugger of a time trying to get these apart given the glue looks pretty hard to me.

ForceMajeure · Postby **ForceMajeure** » Wed Jan 12, 2011 6:25 pm

Well i just found out the hard way a 6x9" is not the default size speaker in the NB doors! :shock:

After viewing the default speakers yesterday i assumed the oval shaped speakers came in the same size as the kenwoods i just bought, how wrong was I, LOL.

They look like they will fit though with a bit of fabrication.

Do others put 6x9" in the door panels? Or if not what size do you use?

Basically my default door speakers are stuffed so either way they need to go.

Dweezle · Postby **Dweezle** » Wed Jan 12, 2011 6:37 pm

I believe they are a 6.5".

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bigdog · Postby **bigdog** » Wed Jan 12, 2011 7:06 pm

Doors will fit an 8" round speaker (I have Phillips/Dayton 3 way 8" in mine, bolted straight in where the OEM plastic speaker mount bolts in to take the smaller OEM speakers). 6.5 inch is a popular size that will also fit. I'll leave to the car audio buffs to recommend brands, but I am really happy with my 8s - bought from Repco on sale for $20!!

ForceMajeure · Postby **ForceMajeure** » Wed Jan 12, 2011 8:23 pm

Total stuff up by me, i grabbed the last set of Kenwoods on sale at super cheap auto.

I know some people have put speakers behind their seats so im thinking that might be a goer and get some 8" for the doors, or i can take them back and get a refund, but i buggered the box up pretty bad getting the foam in and out of the box.

I see i can get the 6 1/2" round so i may have to go with that.

Needs some further thought.

hethro87 · Postby **hethro87** » Wed Jan 12, 2011 9:50 pm

Hey mate,

What model 5 do you have?

If its an NbA the direct replacement size is a 5x7!

Weird speaker size and not popular but Fusion, Kicker and other brands still make them.

Hethro

ForceMajeure · Postby **ForceMajeure** » Wed Jan 12, 2011 10:29 pm

Yeah, NB8A, 5x7" I know that now LOL, i see JB hifi sells some Orion in that size but im not sure about the quality of those.

I'm going to try the Kenwood 6 1/2"'s as its been mentioned they bolt straight in, cant see any 8" advertised anywhere. I'm probably going to replace the tweeters as well, just hope they not some strange size as well!

Entice · Postby **Entice** » Wed Jan 12, 2011 10:31 pm

I use to have 8" Orion MB8 in my NB.. and some soundstream exact tweeters and soundstream exact crossover..

The issue with these and others of the size may be mounting depth. I needed spacers for mine to clear the window mechanism, and also that meant that the factory water shield had to be ditched due to change in speaker size...

ForceMajeure · Postby **ForceMajeure** » Wed Jan 12, 2011 10:34 pm

Maybe i should just strip the door trim out before i go to buy them and get the sales people to a have a look before i lay down anymore cash. :idea:

NMX516 · Postby **NMX516** » Thu Jan 13, 2011 7:51 am

6.5's won't bolt straight in, you'll need to make a mounting piece for them to attach to. Most people would probably use round speakers, of which 6.5's are the most common. The hole size is closer to 8 inch...

ForceMajeure · Postby **ForceMajeure** » Thu Jan 13, 2011 8:13 am

I also notice they stick on the plastic bracket to the default speaker with cement, doesn't even look like coming off IMO, but if 6 1/2" dont just screw in on the bracket then im not using the bracket anyway.

I cant see anyone who sells 8" speakers, so ill have to make do with 6 1/2"s and make some brackets.

Jeo · Postby **Jeo** » Thu Jan 13, 2011 9:45 am

Just go with a 6.5" speaker. It's the most common size available so you'll get the best sound for your money. Try to listen to them in store before you buy, and take a good quality CD that your familiar with to test them out. Don't get drawn into numbers, features or brands; pick what sounds good.

Make a bracket out of MDF and paint it for water resistance. It's great for this purpose because it will give a little when the speaker moves, meaning you won't get a hard plastic on metal vibration.

ForceMajeure · Postby **ForceMajeure** » Thu Jan 13, 2011 2:20 pm

Well i ended up going to Strathfield car radio, but instead found the JB Hifi store where i thought Strathy was, so after seeing i could get spacers that screw right onto the OEM plastic bracket I ended up with Pioneer 6" speakers that fit the spacers, hence fit the original bracket, hence makes the job easier and looks good too.

Basically i know jack about split system wiring so i ruled that out and went with a simple fix that sounds better than before but still keeping the original tweeters. I'm not prepared to add amps and woofers behind my seats, so its a trade off of "doof doof" for weight.

Anyway much swearing was done and several nuts and screws were being complete bastards, but i won out in the end, i even found a rock in my door which must have been rattling like a bugger for ages, not sure how that got in there BTW.

I always put saving weight as my first priority.

davidpartay · Postby **davidpartay** » Fri Jan 21, 2011 6:30 pm

Just for the record, Jaycar sell some fantastic 8" woofers for about $40 each (or a bit less if you buy four or more). They also sell some 25mm silk dome tweeters which come with a crossover so you can wire it all up without having to do too much tinkering

.

I just got a pair of their 6.5" woofers and the car sounds fantastic now. Still loses a bit of bass while driving, but the 8" woofers will go in the parcel shelf via a 4x100w amp when I have the money to spend

bear2230 · Postby **bear2230** » Sun Jan 23, 2011 9:27 pm

If you are looking for good base forget 6 or 6 1/2 inch. Spend the money and buy a pair of Focal 8" inch co-axial 210CA1 $325 (AUS) and some Dynamat sound deadening. Power them with a Alpine 300 watt amp Alpine MRP-F300 4/3/2 Channel Amplifier $279.00 and the sound from these speakers is incredible. Deep base and crystal clear mid and high range.
IMHO