by "DAWRX - The Herb Strikes Back" (karsonkinja)
Published 10/05/2017 at 09:08
by "DAWRX - The Herb Strikes Back" (karsonkinja)
Published 10/05/2017 at 09:08
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STARS: 0
Good morning oppo! I hope everyone’s morning is going well, and if not, well the rest of the day is still ahead! Old picture of my parent’s cat Louie for your time.
So, as many may guess from my obnoxious screen name, I drive a 2015 WRX. And, as it is a WRX, the stock door and dash speakers suuuuuuuck. I am looking to replace just the door speakers for now, but I know nothing about car audio or what brands are good to buy. I plan on buying from crutchfield and installing myself with their equipment. I want to do this right so if that means spending more money I’m up for it.
For instance, there is a $25 dollar price difference between this kenwood set and this kicker set . But is the kicker really $25 better? Or are there other options I should be looking at? What should I be looking for in the features/specs to know I’m getting a good set? Thanks in advance. I know you guys will set me straight.
"OpposResidentLexusGuy - USE20, XF20, XU30 and Press Cars" (jakeauern)
10/05/2017 at 09:24, STARS: 1
Since this is the first mod I plan with my future WRX I would like to subscribe to this thread.
"nermal" (nermal)
10/05/2017 at 09:41, STARS: 1
Car audio is similar to home audio and liquor. The cheapest stuff is mostly crap, and it’s worth spending a bit more to get something that is vastly better. You reach a point of diminishing returns where it starts to get much more expensive for little more quality, however.
How far into this are you willing to go? Do you just want new speakers, or new everything?
If it’s just new speakers, either of those listed will work and probably be a yuuuuge improvement. If it were me I’d spend the extra $25 just to feel better about it.
"DAWRX - The Herb Strikes Back" (karsonkinja)
10/05/2017 at 09:52, STARS: 0
Just the door speakers for now. The dash speakers don’t seem worth replacing as crutchfield shows just one option. I’ll upgrade the head unit down the line to a carplay unit as long as it plays nice with my steering wheel controls.
I don’t mind spending a lot now to have a quality component that I won’t regret. I just don’t really know what qualities to look for in the speakers.
"merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc" (merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc)
10/05/2017 at 09:58, STARS: 1
As nermal said you mostly get what you pay for, but if you can go to a stereo shop to listen to the speakers, that’s always best. But yeah anything from kicker, is good, I can’t speak for Ken wood. I’ve got kicker components in my truck, and they’ve been good for the past 10+years. I’m looking to replace all my speakers though, so might go with something different, but that’s not high on my list right now as the kickers are good. 70mph windows down, and I can still hear the tunes, albeit with a 400watt amp behind it. And get as big a woofer as you can fit in the opening. If you end up with components, you can mount the crossover right inside the door as well so you don’t need to run wires out of the door.
"XJDano" (xjdano)
10/05/2017 at 09:59, STARS: 1
I bought some Polk ones I think for the $50 or so to replace what I thought was a blown speaker, turned out the speaker wire in the door was almost cut through and was barely connected by the rubber casing, so it would jiggle in and out of connection.
Crutchfield is great for what you’re doing. My equinox requires an adapter because for some reason the stock speaker is not standard.
I did have to rewire the speaker, but just cut out stock harness as I’d never replace speakers again.
I will assume you won’t have that issue and they will include the wire harness to plug right in.
Of the few speakers I’ve replaced the hard part is removing door cards and keeping pins intact. Take your time.
"TorqueToYield" (torquetoyield)
10/05/2017 at 10:05, STARS: 3
The kicker set is more expensive because it can handle more power (60 vs 30 RMS W). But looking at the specs if you don’t care about just raw noise level (MOAR POWER) the Kenwoods are actually a bit better in frequency response and sensitivity, so are actually (probably, without hearing anything) a slightly better quality speaker.
Generally if you’re not looking to blow your ears out or have the loudest system on the block the max power is irrelevant since you won’t be blasting them at max volume anyway.
BUT you don’t want a huge mismatch between your speaker’s max power and your headunit (or amplifiers) max power because if you do crank it you risk blowing your speaker if the headunit is way overpowering it or (supposedly but less intuitively) damaging a headunit/amplifier/speaker by trying to power a way too big speaker at power levels the amp can’t match.
This article goes over some basics: https://www.crutchfield.com/Learn/learningcenter/car/speakers.html
Also, I would highly recommend replacing your stock head unit if you’re getting speakers. I’d even recommend doing that first before getting speakers if your budget is limited. IMHO it makes the single biggest difference if you have a bottom shelf stock unit. Also also, do it right and get a harness adapter, for the love of god don’t just hack up the stock wiring harness.
"DAWRX - The Herb Strikes Back" (karsonkinja)
10/05/2017 at 10:12, STARS: 0
THIS is what I was looking for. Thank you!
"Mid Engine" (jdlogan2006)
10/05/2017 at 11:49, STARS: 0
Audiophile here, if money is no object buy Focal speakers as they are hands down one of the best speaker companies in the world. For a fraction of the price you can buy Infinity speakers that sound quite good too, but as pointed out your head unit will likely make the biggest difference. Garbage in, garbage out.
"NojustNo" (front24200)
10/05/2017 at 12:32, STARS: 0
Bravo. Good advice all round. I’ve been replacing car stereos in my vehicles for years and even if the speakers arent amazing you can make the most of it with a decent deck . I like Sony alpine and Kenwood best. The ones with a 7 band or more eq and built in high and low pass filters really let you micromanage each set of speakers even without a separate amp.
Something like this sony
https://www.crutchfield.com/S-juCfR4Wj4Dx/learn/reviews/20030623/tune_your_system.html
"Lumpy44, Proprietor Of Fine Gif" (lumpy44)
10/05/2017 at 12:36, STARS: 0
Was always told Kicker wasn’t great and was just for “whomp whomp hey look at me” systems.
Not sure if that is true or not though