I have to honestly say that the stock system sound is not the best, and maybe satisfactory. But the head unit (controls) are pretty good, and a simple swap to new/better speaker makes a WORLD OF DIFFERENCE!

I put in some older Blaupunkt's that my brother had, not really the BEST speakers out there but in place of the stock speakers it sounds noticably better. Even my installer said so immediately.

So go to your local sound shop and get what ever speaker installed you can afford, it's worth it.

 

nice.
i think i'm gonna do this soon!
i'm waiting for the proper adapters for the MFSW controlls, then i'll buy a new headunit!
i don't want to splice any wires that i don't have to!

 

I was going to change my speakers, went out and bought top of the MBQuarts, took my door panels off and... Not only the speakers don't fit, but the stock speakers are in a OEM adapter that is an actual part of the speaker, so, really, no speaker will fit unless you make some serious adapters, etc. I looked at how to's, and even though I'm not lazy or have poor manual dexterity, I decided that my stock system doesn't sound THAT bad

If someone has an easy way out though, let me know!

PS. BTW, anyone wants those MBQs? Never installed, opened once..LOL I paid $230 for them i think. Will settle for less, obviously.


_________________
Cooper works, cooper works, cooper works... can't wait.

 

Phobol,
Post the specs of the MB Quarts - at least the exact part number.

 

Will do after 6pm. At work, don't have the box in front of me :smile:

 

OK, so the MBQ speakers I have are Reference Line RSC-216

I got them here:

http://www.6ave.com/product.jsp?x=RSC216

but in the actual store, not online, and paid $230. (I think, will look for receipt)

 

Man, that website sux... at least on a Mac it does. Most pages opened blank in the main frame and the search engine came back with nothing searching for 'MB', 'MB Quart' and 'RSC216'... Eventually I clicked through manually and got a screen that wanted a zip code. Once I'd put that in, voila... the main frames filled in. I hate sites like that....

Anyway, rant over... ian, shall we get into a bidding war here..?? Is this the model you used to have in the MC..? Is it part of your new strategy..?

Phobol - how much are you looking for..?

 

Well, they sell them for $399 on SALE! , but since I got them for $230, and the box is opened, I'm thinking $200? what do you guys think?

 

Gavin,
I can't remember which MB Quarts I had in the MC any more.
Who bought my old black MC from MINI Peabody with upgraded rear speakers? I left the original packing in the car!?

I have listened to a lot of speakers recently and I still like the MB Quarts best, although some Pioneers at half the price were very good too!

I have read that 6.5" can be fitted in the front doors ... I hope so because I just bought two pairs of 6.5" to get matching sound all round :smile:
I will find out in a few weeks whether they fit ...


Phobol,
Thanks but I am set for new speakers now.

 

If you are interested in adding MB Quarts to your stock audio system then you should read the other tread on this topic about "MB Quart Speakers". The original question had to do with adding MB Quarts to an HK system but we discussed at length what happened when I added MB Quart DSD 213 (3/4" tweeters/5.25" mids) and DKC 169 (6x9 coaxial) speakers to my MCS with keeping the stock radio.

RSC 216 are Reference line of MB Quart which are good, better than the basic discus line speakers that I installed (wanted to match them with the radio's power) But reference line is not as good as the Premium Line or the Q Line.
Overall without a great clean high powered amp I would not even try to do much with the stock radio and adding on more than basic quality speakers. Something that gives enough base, has reasonably good speaker construction, is efficient and if possible stay with component speakers in the front with a quality crossover. That's why I choose the MB Quarts. The rear 6x9 does not need to be that good and could be more for some additional bass and to fill in. The DKC sounds reasonably good overall with much more bass than the DSD 213.

I did not install the speakers myself. I took it to a shop that has done cooper installs in the past. they said that the front door installs take time to do correctly and you replace everything. They did a good job- see the other thread if you want details.

I have listened to the stock system, the HK and my upgraded MB Quart system. I would not spend too much upgrading the stock system, Maybe if you can get some good prices and get a friend to install them or help and you can get a good deal on the speakers I selected - say maybe $99 for the rears and $140 for the fronts then that would be good. Otherwise if you pay retail then it can be expensive especially with installation ($110 for the fronts alone).

So how does it sound- I think it is better than stock. Highs are clearer and crisp with good separation. The fronts lack bass but with the rears to balance it is ok not great. I find the stock system to be OK superficially but not clear and the quality of the materials is pretty poor. In a short time the speaker material will deteriorate and so will the sound. If you need more bass then get the Infinity Basslink and stick it in the boot. My system has enough bass for me.
I can turn it up a fair amount and the sound is tolerable- without undue distortion. All forms of music sound good. I tried out a big variety- it's OK.

The HK system has a much stronger amp, it is clearer/cleaner than mine. the bass is much stronger but the balance is not good without a lot of adjusting of the controls. I could see how some people might like the speaker upgrade of the stock system over the HK. If you got a good price on the speakers then the cost would be less than $550 for the HK upgrade.

If you want to you can try to install non standard speakers. 6.25 in the front and non-component speakers (no separate tweeters with crossover) but I don't think it will sound as good. Might be less costly and less complicated to a point. You will need special adapters and maybe do some cutting. In the back you can drop in any standard 6x9 or you can try to add 6.25 or even component speakers but again the install effort and cost would be high.

I would not buy high end speakers better than the discus line in MB Quarts because- one they won't fit the OEM openings the tweeters tend to run 1" not 3/4" in the higher lines and you will have to modify the openings- this takes time. And the speakers are just not matched to the stock radio which is OK for the amp but nothing to write home about.

RSC 216 is a 2 way component speaker. it is a good speaker (it's also pricey) but compared to the DSD 213, it doesn't fit in either the tweeter (too big at 25mm vs 19mm) or in the mid (16cm vs 13cm=5.25&quot openings, it is not as efficient (power handling 60-130 W vs 35-90W), bass is better going down to 38 Hertz vs 55.

I did not want to wait an extra 5 months to order an MCS with HK. I decided to buy one that was in stock and go for the stereo speaker upgrade installed by a professional shop. I paid alot more but I also got a first rate installation and a three year warranty vs a 1 year warranty from any internet source.

It is your choice what you wish to do but if you choose non stock size speakers you will be spending alot of effort to install them. With my baby I did not want to go with an installer that didn't know coopers very well. Good luck

 

Because I am interested in the sound systems of both the stock and HK options, I will be looking at various option on how to do upgrades. I'm collaborating with "tacotim" and we plan to take a close look at both the stock and HK speakers in the future. When we find out more to share with you then we will post info.

But for now, I would suggest that anyone who has HK just leave it alone for now and anyone with stock that is thinking of upgrading- delay it a bit longer. It seems that the MB Quart front speakers that I installed might not be as good as the stock speakers. Maybe only a better crossover and tweeter. The MB Quart lacks the custom speaker housing and has other problems.

If you are going with a high end upgrade and are working with an experienced shop then go for it. For budget upgrades stay tuned.

 

any new info minihune on those of us wanting a budget upgrade...???? I am mainly wanting to get rid of the muddy sound of the stock setup... as of now I am hesitant to mess with the fronts but I am itching to upgrade the rear 6x9 s... but hey I have only had the car a little over a week and I can wait a bit longer for those in the know to show me the light!!!! Suspension I know very very well... audio well I was up to date on it about 8 years ago....LOL

 

Currently tacotim is doing testing on all stock speakers from the mini-
I will ask him to do a short summary on what he finds ASAP- he's working on the rears right now.
The early report on the fronts is that they are not so bad but could have been done a bit better. So
Don't throw them out yet and hang in there. We are looking to see what can be done for better sound and
at a reasonable price. Upgrades can be costly and maybe not that much better than stock- more coming.

 

For all those interested in speaker upgrades see the other audio threads about upgrading speakers-
There is some info already there- check it out.

 

what a good thread to pop up, i was just at tweeter looking at car audio stuff today!
i think i'm pretty sold on the JL audio stealthbox!
i'm gonna wait and see what the findings are with the rest of the stock setup before i get anything else!
thanks, and keep us posted!

 

>>For all those interested in speaker upgrades see the other audio threads about upgrading speakers-
>>There is some info already there- check it out.


Minihune,

Do you happen to know if changing the stereo head unit and the speakers can void the warranty by any chance? I plan on changing the whole audio system and get an aftermarket car alarm...please help.

-Pooky13

:???:

 

While changing the Head unit and speakers doesn't void the entire car warranty since you can swap the old parts back in, doing so does void the audio warranty for whatever gets changed. Unless the dealer does the removal and installation with parts you buy from them.

If you replace everything then your new audio warranty comes from the place that you bought the equiptment from and from the installation shop.

Same with the alarm. There is a factory alarm- buy the part and install yourself, dealer can activate it for about $50 or get an aftermarket alarm but it voids warranty on whatever you touch electronically to install it. Get some electrical problem in your dash and the dealer could blame the alarm install.