Of those of you have replaced their stock speakers on the base stereo, which speaker brand did you use. Please include the brand, model number and comments on the ease of installation and overall sound quality. Thanks!

 

Infinity Kappa 693.7i 6"x9" 3-way car speakers
Has two sets of connectors for use with external crossover that comes with speaker. Didn't use crossover. Connected MINI 6x9 woofer lead to woofer side of speaker, and MINI tweeter leads to other speaker connections.

Infinity Kappa 60.7cs 6-1/2" component speaker system
Put separate tweeter in A pillar. Did not use crossover.

Infinity Kappa 42.7i 4" 2-way car speakers
Has two sets of connectors for use with external crossover that comes with speaker. Didn't use crossover. Connected MINI lead to woofer side of speaker. Left built-in tweeter disconnected.

Sound much clearer than stock. Perhaps a bit on the "bright" side.

Installation: All speakers fit easily. One location in the door required a new screw hole be drilled into plastic because of the odd screw location in the stock speaker. Any normal speaker will require this.

Another thought: I just remembered an issue with one of the door speakers. Don't recall whether it was the 4" or 6.5". The foam seal on the speaker cover hits the rubber rim of the speaker and would inhibit speaker movement. To solve this I used the clear plastic packing rim that protects the speaker in transit. By snapping that over the speaker, the foam makes its seal against the plastic rim and the speaker cone can move freely.

 

http://mobile.jlaudio.com/products_c...hp?comp_id=122
Easy install. Just takes time. Followed basil49's instructions in "R56 Speaker Replacement" thread.
http://mobile.jlaudio.com/products_c...php?comp_id=59
Ditto.
http://www.polkaudio.com/caraudio/products/db691/
Followed various posters' instructions on how to remove everything in back to get to these. Not as hard as feared. Speaker work here especially easy as no holes to drill. But being 6'4" in a MINI back half still presents a few weird angles in which to work. Added baffles to keep speakers dry & hopefully improve bass.

Planning to add at some point:
http://www.bossaudio.com/main/649

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My main considerations were to put in speakers which, #1 - are known to fit well without much work, #2 - are known to make others happy, #3 - were fairly large, efficient, and with good dynamic range.
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Thoughts: Worlds better than stock. Perhaps a bit bright but they're still settling in. Wish I could muster more mid-range from them, but that's me being picky. The channel swap made a huge difference in getting bass response from the rears.

Remember: All brands of speakers are essentially equally easy to install, provided they are not too deep (thus requiring some sort of adapter.) The work is in getting off the door panels, speaker covers, not screwing up your mirror control, and removing all the stuff in back for the 6x9s.

 

polk db 6501 up front, and polk db 651 in rear with brackets to make em work

 

Just remembered an issue and edited my post above.

 

penta,

How did you adapt the tweeters?
Where did you mount the crossovers?
And, safe assumption that the front/lower 6.5s had no interference issues?

Thanks.

 

used 1/4 mdf to make a mount traced old speaker then cut the whole for tweeter. imo this is the way to go that way u are all set to add an amp later which was the whole idea. the crossover is under armrest

the lower 6.5 had no issue

6.5 in rear IMO sounds better, less bass then 6x9 but thats what sub is for

 

Rear 6x9: Focal 690CA1
Sub: Roadster Sound Enclosure with Earthquake SWS12 with Alpine MRP-500

Love the Focals, absolutely blew me away, add the sub for truly awesome audio experience. Fronts to do after New Years.

 

Polk db651s in the front, polk db691 in the rear, and the boss audio bass600 in the boot. Oh, I did the channel swap as well. Didn't touch the 4 inch speakers.

Installation (by myself and by others) has been detailed on other threads.

Yes, it can look intimidating. But you only need to do it once. Read through things, make your battle plan, take your time, and have fun.

 

08 Clubman w/ standard audio, front/rear channels swapped at the 9331 connector;

Speaker transplant to Polk db6501 component pair up front (fabbed a small panel to hold the tweeter up top, drilled new mounting holes for the 6.5" mid in the lower spot, crossover in the armrest cavity, a la pentavolvo);

Polk db691 6x9 3-way in the rear, as many others here have done.

Hardware - $201.67 all-in for brand new from eBay; my labor - priceless.

 

any pics, i take it, no issues with the install

 

No issues, penta. I am still playing with the tweeter gain (fronts) at the crossover: switch-selectable +3/0/-3db (it is VERY easy to access in the armrest cavity, thank you). With +3, I seem to get some hiss; then again, that's off of FM broadcast, not a known reference CD.

 

i usually end up runnign them at -3 but thats also on an amplifier getting 60+watts rms

 

I used Focal KPS speakers up front, abandoned in place the 6x9s and installed a Focal Access 10 inch sub in the boot. I am, however, seriously considering upgrading the Focals in the front for a 2 or 3 way set of Dynaudio speakers. If I go with the 3 ways, most likely, I will have custom enclosures made for the tweeters and midrange so they sit at the corners of the dash, at ear level. More to follow.
Regards,

 

I've ordered my Polk components (MM6501) from Ebay.

Do you have any pictures of the crossover mounting? Is it behind the panel i.e. hidden when the door panel is back on? In the armrest cavity itself? I'm having trouble visualizing your description.

Did you have any trouble with the driver side mirror control? Any tips?

Thanks for any reply in advance.

 

I'll try to remember to take the armrest cover off and take a pic or two tonight. The cover just snaps off (and back on): grasp the top, back edge with finger-tips, thumbs down under the bottom, and sort of lift and roll the top edge back toward you. You'll discover one wire in there already. Also need to take the grab-handle apart, one screw at each end (the forward one is accessible when the speaker cover is off); the wire channel in there is not large enough to contain the three paired wires to the crossover, so I Dremeled-out a bit of plastic to enlarge the channel. I used double-sided-adhesive foam tape to adhere the crossover to the lower edge of the cavity.

The mirror switch popped apart on disassembly, and I had to refit 2 of the 4 little actuation paddles (easy enough, as long as you don't lose any), but snapping it all back together as I reinstalled the speaker cover seemed to take forever, multiple tries, and the proper words of encouragement: *&#$09w%# (you'll need to repeat that encantation verbatim ).

 

Thanks for planning to get some pictures. The bottom line is that you truely did put the crossover inside the armrest. That sounds like a great place for it provided it fits.

If you do take a picture (though I'm not sure I need it now), what might be useful for me is a measurement of the size of your crossover box to see if it's the same size as the one with the MM6501 speakers. Although since it sounds like the armrest comes off easy enough I will be able to check for fit when I get my speakers -- still waiting for a tracking number from the seller.

I think I know the words to the incantation to get the mirror switch back on. I've had the occasion to use them on other projects.

Again, thanks for your help.

 

momo crossovers are bigger but none the less i think will fit

 

aafflyer,

Pics in my Gallery. The Polk db6501 crossover measures 3"x5"x1"; the cavity looks like it could take close to 3.5"x7"x2".

 

Thanks. Great pictures. It's going to be very close as to whether they will fit or not -- I don't think I will know for sure until I actually get the speakers and give it a go.

FYI, from the Crutchfield site, MM6501 crossover measures 4.265" x 3.635" x 1.175".