adg44
Enthusiast
Well, I saw a thread on here asking about speakers, and then I got the bug to install new speakers myself. 30 minutes and $100 later, I have new speakers! 
Kicker KS600 - $129.99 (Crutchfield). I picked these up locally from Circuit City for $106.99.
Specs on the Kicker KS600's:
2-way 6-1/2" speakers (pair)
polypropylene woofer cone with Santoprene™ surround
3/4" Kaladex dome tweeter
power range: 6-65 watts RMS (195 watts peak power)
frequency response: 43-21,000 Hz
sensitivity: 90 dB
top-mount depth: 2"
warranty: 1 year
What is great about these is that they have a very good low frequency response, so they should produce bass very well. All things considered, a 6.5" speaker doesn't produce great bass, but a little is better than none.
I had originally picked up a set of Boston Acoustics SX65's for $150 from my local car audio store, but unfortunately they didn't fit. They are 3 hole mount speakers, but they are too big to fit in the door panel, and the grille doesn't fit either. That's too bad as Boston Acoustics makes some of the best speakers you can buy.
Since I had already removed the factory speakers, I went to Best Buy to see if they had any speakers that fit. I brought the grille inside with me and I tested it on all their 6.5" speakers. They only had one set, Sony GT25A - $69.99 speakers, and those didn't seem any better than the factory speakers. Then I went too circuit city, which had the Polk DB651, but only the Polk DB651s - $99.99 has a three hole mount, which Circuit City doesn't carry. I looked at the Kicker's, tested my grille and it fit, and I purchased them and went home. Also, there is plenty of room in the door panel for a deep speaker, so there is no reason to use a "shallow mount" speaker.
The whole install takes about 15 minutes - it's painfully simple. The only thing to remember is that on the wiring harness for the speakers, GREEN is negative, not black. Why this is - I have no clue. Logic doesn't prevail here.
Anyway, the Kicker speakers come with wire and butt connectors, so all you need to do is cut the factory harness off the stock speakers (leave some room to crimp these back on to the stock speakers if you want to use them again), and then use the butt connectors to attach to the wiring provided:
With that out of the way, connect the harness to the connector inside the door panel (when removing and connecting the harness inside the door panel, remember there is a clip in the center of the connector that needs to "click":
Side by side:
Rear of the speaker (look at the huge magnet!):
Test fitting the speaker:
All finished:
The results are great, especially for $100. Theoretically we don't need a coax speaker, but rather a component speaker where we just use the woofer. We have a mid range speakers behind our heads, and tweeters in the dash, so we don't need a two way. However, component 6.5's are double the price, so using this setup makes sense, and it doesn't hurt anything.
When I was driving around from store to store looking for speakers, I was using the stereo with just the sub, mids, and highs, as the 6.5's were removed. None of those speakers get distored, and they sound great at high volumes. Before when I would turn the stereo above "20", it would start to sound a little messy. Near 25 and it was bad. Now when I turn it up to 25 with the Kicker's installed, you get good bass, clear response, and good quality sound. Any higher than that and you start to see where the inferior quality of the factory wiring and amplifier come into play. Remember, it's not volume that blows out speakers, it's distortion.
Without spending more money and going to a full component setup, a standalone amplifier, and a different head unit, you aren't going to get any better sound than these Kicker KS600's.
I highly recommend this to anyone looking to increase the quality of the stereo without spending a lot of money.
- Anthony
Kicker KS600 - $129.99 (Crutchfield). I picked these up locally from Circuit City for $106.99.
Specs on the Kicker KS600's:
2-way 6-1/2" speakers (pair)
polypropylene woofer cone with Santoprene™ surround
3/4" Kaladex dome tweeter
power range: 6-65 watts RMS (195 watts peak power)
frequency response: 43-21,000 Hz
sensitivity: 90 dB
top-mount depth: 2"
warranty: 1 year
What is great about these is that they have a very good low frequency response, so they should produce bass very well. All things considered, a 6.5" speaker doesn't produce great bass, but a little is better than none.
I had originally picked up a set of Boston Acoustics SX65's for $150 from my local car audio store, but unfortunately they didn't fit. They are 3 hole mount speakers, but they are too big to fit in the door panel, and the grille doesn't fit either. That's too bad as Boston Acoustics makes some of the best speakers you can buy.
Since I had already removed the factory speakers, I went to Best Buy to see if they had any speakers that fit. I brought the grille inside with me and I tested it on all their 6.5" speakers. They only had one set, Sony GT25A - $69.99 speakers, and those didn't seem any better than the factory speakers. Then I went too circuit city, which had the Polk DB651, but only the Polk DB651s - $99.99 has a three hole mount, which Circuit City doesn't carry. I looked at the Kicker's, tested my grille and it fit, and I purchased them and went home. Also, there is plenty of room in the door panel for a deep speaker, so there is no reason to use a "shallow mount" speaker.
The whole install takes about 15 minutes - it's painfully simple. The only thing to remember is that on the wiring harness for the speakers, GREEN is negative, not black. Why this is - I have no clue. Logic doesn't prevail here.
Anyway, the Kicker speakers come with wire and butt connectors, so all you need to do is cut the factory harness off the stock speakers (leave some room to crimp these back on to the stock speakers if you want to use them again), and then use the butt connectors to attach to the wiring provided:
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With that out of the way, connect the harness to the connector inside the door panel (when removing and connecting the harness inside the door panel, remember there is a clip in the center of the connector that needs to "click":
You must be registered for see images
Side by side:
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Rear of the speaker (look at the huge magnet!):
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Test fitting the speaker:
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All finished:
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The results are great, especially for $100. Theoretically we don't need a coax speaker, but rather a component speaker where we just use the woofer. We have a mid range speakers behind our heads, and tweeters in the dash, so we don't need a two way. However, component 6.5's are double the price, so using this setup makes sense, and it doesn't hurt anything.
When I was driving around from store to store looking for speakers, I was using the stereo with just the sub, mids, and highs, as the 6.5's were removed. None of those speakers get distored, and they sound great at high volumes. Before when I would turn the stereo above "20", it would start to sound a little messy. Near 25 and it was bad. Now when I turn it up to 25 with the Kicker's installed, you get good bass, clear response, and good quality sound. Any higher than that and you start to see where the inferior quality of the factory wiring and amplifier come into play. Remember, it's not volume that blows out speakers, it's distortion.
Without spending more money and going to a full component setup, a standalone amplifier, and a different head unit, you aren't going to get any better sound than these Kicker KS600's.
I highly recommend this to anyone looking to increase the quality of the stereo without spending a lot of money.
- Anthony
