Good -listening- speakers

[Beck]

Hello, I am new here, as you can probably tell.

I'm looking at getting some new speakers for my car ('89 Accord - LX) as the stock ones just aren't doing it. I have a Kenwood receiver, 200 watts total. I have no amps or subs.

Ok, heres what I'm looking for. I need 4 6 1/2 speakers. I'm desiring ones that sound GREAT, but I am NOT looking for overly bassy, all though it would be nice. I'm not thinking about adding in subs or amps later. So...I just want speakers that have an exquisite sound.

I'm not looking to spend much over 100-150 dollars getting them off ebay.


Any thoughts?

TIA,
Beck

[Vanilla Sky]

infinity reference coaxial speakers for the rear and infinity reference component speakers for the front... those are the best speakers on the market for that price, hands down...

the component set will run you about $100, the coaxial speakers should run you about $60...

[Sabz5150]

Infinities are good. Clarions are good. The Pyles I have for my rears are good. They shouldn't cost too much on eBay.

As for construction, get some poly/rubber speakers. They sound much better and are a superior quality IMHO.

Components are choice if you can afford them. Great sound quality, and you don't have this hole in the middle of your woofer like with coaxials. Unless you buy Lanzars...

You'll notice a great improvement in sound quality when you run your systems with external amps. Ya don't have to buy the most powerful, most expensive amp to get good sound quality, but in general running external amps improves quality all around.

[MIK3]

infinity reference coaxial speakers for the rear and infinity reference component speakers for the front... those are the best speakers on the market for that price, hands down...

the component set will run you about $100, the coaxial speakers should run you about $60...

Listen to this man, he definitely knows what he is talking about.

You might even want to look into the Kappa series if you are looking for overall high end balance of bass and treb. But hands down, infinity is the choice you want to go with, you won't regret it.

[Beck]

Okok, awesome

Now, another quick question...does are 3-way and 4-way better than 2-ways?

[Vanilla Sky]

yeah, the biggest bang for the buck is a set built with carefully selected drivers and custom crossovers...

the infinity reference line is a good starting point for anybody that wants good sound, low cost, and a great value...

if anybody has questions to ask me about what i think is a good setup in our cars, PM me or IM me anytime... just here to help

[edit]personally, i'd get infinity 2-way for the rear... you don't really need the extension 3 or 4-way speakers can allow for rear fill...[/edit]

[Beck]

Ah, you guys are awesome, THANKS

[Moodybluesr]

Actually if you are running off the deck I would advise away from the Infinity line as they have a pretty low sensitivity (they are meant to be driven by an amp) and recommend the some JBL GT (or GTO) series drivers. They will be cheaper, louder, and are made by the same company so you know the quality is there. Maybe something like this all around; components up front would be cool if you can find them.

[Vanilla Sky]

actually, they have a quite high sensitivity rating...

the component speakers i suggested have a sensitivity rating of 92dB, 1 watt at one meter

the 2-way speakers also have a sensitivity rating of 92dB, 1 watt at one meter...

that's relatively high for full range drivers...

the highest sensitivity rating i found in ANY JBL comp set was 90 dB, 1 watt at one meter

same with the highest rated two way... 90 dB, 1 watt at one meter

the infinity speakers have a 92dB 1W/1m rating, whereas the JBL speaker sets have a 90dB 1W/1m

[Ludi Mali]

all the ones listed so far are top notch unless you wanna spend 1k+ on a set of speakers. The only other ones I'd look into are Kenwood Excelon and Beyma. but beyma is a tad pricey

[Moodybluesr]

actually, they have a quite high sensitivity rating...

Well what the hay? They must have swapped places since the last time I was really into car audio...

Good looking out for the man. JBL/Infinity is definately one of the best "bang for the buck" drivers you can get in car audio.

[Blaaz]

I was looking at swapping out the stock speakers ('89 Lxi 4 door) with Infinity reference 6002si. It looks like they can drop right in after trimming the back off the speaker enclosure. What is involved with mounting the Infinity component speakers?
Do you put the tweeters on the inside of the mirror bracket? Crossovers inside the doors?

[Vanilla Sky]

the crossovers can go anywhere that they won't get wet... if you can keep them from getting wet insid your doors, then sure, put them in your doors...

as for the tweeters, the "sail panel" (you called it the mirror bracket) is a popular place, and with your speakers, you have a mounting system that allows you to put them there and aim them towards you... that's where i'd probably put them if i weren't looking to start drilling holes out of my car for them...

one thing you may want to do in your case if you're using an amp would be to upgrade your wiring... i know a lot of people don't think it's needed, but you have a 16 year old car, and that old copper is quite oxydized and probably has a higher than deisred resistance... replace it with some 14 guage to the crossovers, and 16 guage from the crossovers to the drivers... use those figures as a minimum...

when you get into speakers such as those infinity speakers backed up with an amp and a high quality deck, you don't want to send your signal across 16 year old 22 guage wire... this really comes into play when you're using the speakers to thier fullest and supplying them with the 90 watts RMS that they are rated to handle... a continuous 90 watts on lossy 22 guage wire is a useless IMO... if you're spending $100 on a set of speakers, $200 on an amp and $250 on a headunit, you can spend another $50 on wiring...

[Acid X]

Is the speaker setup the same for an 88 LXi? I'm looking to get a deck and some speakers as well for a good price..

Anyone want to recomment an awesome deck, too?

EDIT: Are these the right infinity's?

http://www.cbrstereo.com/index.asp?P...ROD&ProdID=222

http://www.cbrstereo.com/index.asp?P...ROD&ProdID=206

If so, thats a little bit more than 150$.. But not too bad.. i guess. :p

[TheWatcher]

Beck,

I also have an 89 Accord LX and a Kenwood HU. I also went w/ 4 6.5" coaxials with no amps or subs. I would suggest going Kenwood all the way and get Excelon speakers all around. I heard the Infinity Reference series, and the Excelons were just as good IMO. I don't think the Kappas will fit w/o modification. The best part about using this setup is that you can use the stock speaker covers. Going stock keeps thieves from wanting to steal you stuff. For the money you want to spend, you should just go with the stock look. Going with component speakers like Vanilla Sky suggest, instantly tips thieves that you probably amps, crossovers, subwoofers, etc.

Crutchfield (yes, I know Crutchfield is usually expensive) has the Kenwood Excelon KFC-X168 on sale for $69.99 right now, which is insane. These drop in to the rear deck with no modification, and they sound great. Under the stock covers, no thief will know you have them installed. The X168's are too deep for the door speakers though (power windows will hit them). Blaupunkt Overdrive speakers are designed to be shallow depth and will fit the door speaker location depth-wise.

Good luck.

The Watcher

[Blaaz]

Beck - I don't know if you bought speakers yet. Fry's stores in the San Francisco area is selling the Infinity Reference 6002i speakers for $49.95. I bought mine from crutchfield for about the same price using a coupon on Techbargains.com. I got the 6002si which are thinner. Not sure if the 6002i will fit in the doors, but they should be fine in the rear deck. I have some adapters to put 6.5" speakers in a 6x9 cutout. PM me if you are interested.
Blaaz

[Vanilla Sky]

the thing is the reference series is a better speaker than the kenwood, plus it's cheaper... i'm more than willing to be that you weren't listening under optimum conditions... those infinity speakers are so much better than anything kenwood produces... i'd put the infinity reference speakers against the top-line kenwood speakers...

[TheWatcher]

Vanilla,

I disagree, I've heard both speakers and its a push. And the KFC-Xr601 clearly kicks the Infinity 6002i's ass. The Infinity 6002i is the bottom line Infinity series, the Kappas are the top line, but they don't fit our cars w/o modification. The Excelons are Kenwoods premium series, and yes the KFC-Xr601 IS better than the Infinity 6002i. I heard both in person, I brought my own CDs, so I heard the same songs on both. So maybe you think the Infinity 6002i is better than the KFC-X168, I don't know, but no way is it better than the KFC-Xr601! So don't go around saying the Infinity's bottom tier speakers are better than "anything kenwood produces". It's not, maybe the Kappa are, I never heard the Kappas, because they don't fit in our cars.

Bottom line is Beck, go out and listen to them yourself, bring your own CDs so you can compare apples with apples. Everyone has different tastes, some like Bostons, some MB Quart (with their harsh high titanium tweeters), some Infinity, etc. Be your own judge, don't take my word or Vanilla Sky's word for it. Lots of times, these people giving advice have never really heard the speakers they are comparing. I bet Vanilla Sky has never ever heard the KFC-X168. Or the KFC-Xr601, before making his broad statement.

Peace.

[Ace]

I PUT MY KAPPA'S IN AND MUST SAY i THINK THEY ARE THE BEST SPEAKER FOR THAT PRICE MINOR MODS BUT KAPPAS ARE THE WAY TO GO