Speakers 6.5"

[Deutscher]

Hi guys,

I'm after some opinions on which speakers everyone has or has experience with. I am looking for some speakers to replace the Alpine Type R components (old model). It is for my girlfriends car and was looking at 6.5" components.

I was looking at some speakers which can be pretty loud, I was looking at the ~125RMS+. The budget is <$500 including shipping. I am willing to buy off ebay worldwide (most likely will) therefore I can't test before buy. That's why I'm asking for opinions before I buy.

I was thinking something like - CDT AUDIO EF-61FG/TW25 PRO EuroFrame 6.5" Component Set?? or MTX Thunder TXC 6.1 6.5" component?

[Luke0011]

well everyone has there own opinions on speakers and how they sound. Speakers that are rated at 125wrms will play loud but wont sound very good. Speakers that are rated at 50wrms to 100 can be loud and sound good as well. I would recommend Focal 165 VR for around 400 to 450.

[acarmody]

well everyone has there own opinions on speakers and how they sound. Speakers that are rated at 125wrms will play loud but wont sound very good. Speakers that are rated at 50wrms to 100 can be loud and sound good as well. I would recommend Focal 165 VR for around 400 to 450.

I have a set of Polk Audio MMC6500 that are rated too 125WRMS and they sound very good.

[commsirac]

well everyone has there own opinions on speakers and how they sound. Speakers that are rated at 125wrms will play loud but wont sound very good. .

While you may have only heard bad speakers with ratings of 125wrms,there is no intrinsic reason why a speaker rated at 125wrms can not sound good. Unless one is trying to achieve ear splitting vol levels inside the car, the power rating of the speakers should be of little interest to those seeking good sound.

[Stressball]

well everyone has there own opinions on speakers and how they sound. Speakers that are rated at 125wrms will play loud but wont sound very good. Speakers that are rated at 50wrms to 100 can be loud and sound good as well. I would recommend Focal 165 VR for around 400 to 450.

Claiming that speakers rated to 125WRMS are shit and lower rated ones sound better is complete bollocks.

It's in the build quality, the materials used, the amplifier used on the speakers has to be adequate or else you will get clipping, the enclosure has to be suitable, there are so many variables.

What 125WRMS speakers did you hear, where, what were they powered off, and how hard were they being pushed? Because without knowing that, you're spouting absolute rubbish.

[StoneX]

...you're spouting absolute rubbish.

Agreed



Anyway, what sort of music does she listen to? Each brands/model suits different styles of music. I've gone through several brands/models trying to find what suited my preference of music.

[2LOUD2OLD]

Maybe look at brands such as Boston, Focal, Hertz, Rainbow, DD, DLS

i would also stay away from eBay when buying audio gear as you have no way to tell they are the genuine article. too many fake products floating around eBay, plus there is no warranty.

[v8_stato]

go for either focal or soundstream,i have soundstream and they are great,u can get my set on ebay for like 200 now but i would get the newer ones they would sound mint.

[Mike S]

I find it interesting that it took 4 replies before anyone mentioned an amp. I don't think Luke meant that all 125wrms speakers will sound bad, he could have said it better I guess. Keep in mind that you need to match your amp and speakers to get the best results, (probably heaps of posts on that subject here).

The other thing here is whether Deutscher is going to do the install himself, cos the Type R's will be a true 6" speaker and fit a Commodore without any mods, and a lot of 6.5" speakers are quite large and require some extensive modifications to install, so if her car is a commodore and you havnt had too much experience I'd stick to a true 6" speaker.

Of course if she drives a Lancer, and it seems everyones girlfriends do, then 6.5 " will be perfect.

[Luke0011]

Yeah well i never said a 125wrms speaker would sound shit. what im trying to say is that 125wrms is a lot of power for set of splits. Ive run 50wrms into speakers and can get very loud sound. You dont need all that extra power into the speakers and generally if a speaker is designed for a higher amount of current then really it just means you can throw a lot of power into them.. Most people dont realise that only 1 to 3 percent of power sent to a speaker actually gets converted into acoustic energy that we can hear. The rest is dissipated as heat through the voice coil

[Deutscher]

Hi,
thanx for your replies.
My GF's car is a 06 Toyota Camry Altise.
Reason I was looking for 125wrms was because the type R's are rated for 70 or 75wrms and wasn't loud enough for me (I'm trying to get my gf to upgrade her stock system because the stupid speakers have too much 'bass' and sounds crap (Ive already turned the bass all the way down)).

I'm aware these been heaps of fakes going around ebay, but I always buy from shops which have 1000+ sales and 90%+ postive feedback. Never where it's like a single sale. Haven't been let down yet, brought my Hifonic Olympus 2412 and sounds great. Also brought my DJ gear which costed in rrp value $5000+ working fine.

I'm leaning to 6.5" because their generally the standard size for components (I'll prob need to mod the door but eh..). As long as I get the best sound with a good volume.

The music she listens to is mainly stuff like pussycat dolls, timberlake, bit of hip hop like flo rida, t-pain. then stuff like fergie ... comeon u guys ... chick music :P i dont know. But when I get in there I try to get the drum n bass, sum rap and RAMMSTEIN happening.

I havent found a liking to soundstream, I did work experience at Alberts and never found soundstream to be good, thats why I had full alpine setup in my car previously (got discount). Reason I buy from ebay is because its like half the price, everything in australia costs twice as much because they are resellers and jack the price up (to earn a profit themselves obviously .. but still). Also the brands we usually find in Australia aren't top grade.. rarely you find Focal, Boston, Herz and if you do it's got a huge price tag on it. Alberts stock the DD's but they cost an arm and leg!

Sorry bout the long story.

[StoneX]

I've always found Boston speakers pretty good for a wide range of music... If you like tweeters a little brighter and less midbass than Bostons, then Focal are nice and crisp.

I use the previous top model Bostons (Z6) and they sound great for everything, as you'd expect for $1,999 RRP speakers. I got one of my ex-girlfriends the mid range Focals (165K Polykevlars - $600 RRP) and they sounded great for all her top 40 type music and electronic stuff.

I've used Morel (Dotechs) and Dynaudio (Sys240) which both sound great for softer rock and things as they were so smooth, but weren't great for heavier type music like hard rock or metal as the midrange wasn't that strong.

My first set were old Pioneer top models (TS-C1620) and they sounded good for first time splits but just don't cut it against the brands mentioned above and the models that have replaced them sound worse.

You should be able to audition Focal and Boston speakers somewhere in WA... It's definitely worth doing it and taking a CD of the music she likes and let her pick as females have better hearing than males and she's likely to prefer something different to you. I did this with my ex with the Boston Rallys (RC620, I think) and Focal Polykevlars (165K) and I preferred the Bostons and she preferred the Focals...

[Stressball]

Yeah well i never said a 125wrms speaker would sound shit

Speakers that are rated at 125wrms will play loud but wont sound very good.

I only replied to what was given.

Your latest post has valid points, however, it seems to suggest that it is ok to underpower a speaker quite substantially. What you will find with speakers is that overpowering them is nearly never an issue, and will cause very little damage, if any. Underpowering, however, results in some serious damage.

You mention voicecoil heat. This is where underpowering comes into it; Say you have a set of 6" speakers rated at 35wRMS each, and you're running them directly off the headunit (Less than 12wRMS/channel in a claimed 50x4 headunit). If you push the volume high enough (Which is not difficult when you have less than half the power output of the speakers being supplied) then your speakers will clip, and the end result will be a burnt out voicecoil.

To the OP;
You don't need a whole lot of power to get loud. However, whatever speakers you do decide on installing, if you want to use their full potential you will really need to run them off an amplifier. Otherwise you can get them loud, but your sound quality will suffer terribly, and they will get damaged quickly at any high volumes.

It also depends on the type of music you listen to, of course. If you listen to music that does not require quick, long movements of the speaker cones then less power is required. If you listen to something with deep bass however, you will tend to get more excursion of the cone, and it will draw more power to do it.

Ultimately it will be up to your personal choice what you want done in the installation, but do not overlook the benefits of running speakers off an amp instead of the headunit alone. You will regret running them from the headunit when you realise how little you can achieve. Do not run 125wRMS speakers off the headunit.

[Deutscher]

To the OP;
You don't need a whole lot of power to get loud. However, whatever speakers you do decide on installing, if you want to use their full potential you will really need to run them off an amplifier. Otherwise you can get them loud, but your sound quality will suffer terribly, and they will get damaged quickly at any high volumes.

The budget for her whole system is $3000 (including wiring, if installation, subs, amps, speakers, deck (sorry guys I forgot to mention she will be getting a whole system including amps, just not up to that yet). Also, I just gathered the only way loud was to me was RMS and because I couldn't sample the speakers thats the only thing I had going for me .

I use the previous top model Bostons (Z6) and they sound great for everything, as you'd expect for $1,999 RRP speakers. I got one of my ex-girlfriends the mid range Focals (165K Polykevlars - $600 RRP) and they sounded great for all her top 40 type music and electronic stuff.

You should be able to audition Focal and Boston speakers somewhere in WA... It's definitely worth doing it and taking a CD of the music she likes and let her pick as females have better hearing than males and she's likely to prefer something different to you. I did this with my ex with the Boston Rallys (RC620, I think) and Focal Polykevlars (165K) and I preferred the Bostons and she preferred the Focals...

I had a look, I could get a pair of Focal 165KF Poly Kevlar K2 Power Series 6.5" Component for $550 off ebay, bit over the budget but I have heard good reviews.. just cant test them.

Gotta say holy shit!! on those Boston Z6 you brought!!

Pfft girls hear better... my GF likes the stupid 'bass' sound coming out her stock speakers

[Deutscher]

Hmm... I don't know how to change my poll but I wanted to add:

Boston Acoustics PRO60SE 6.5" COMPONENT

The alpine's (in other), I was refering to the ALPINE SPX-17PRO TYPE X 6.5 (don't think alpine stand up to the others tho).

[StoneX]

I had a look, I could get a pair of Focal 165KF Poly Kevlar K2 Power Series 6.5" Component for $550 off ebay, bit over the budget but I have heard good reviews.. just cant test them.

Have you been to all the following stores? They're Focal dealers.

Westside Car Audio  	 1330 Albany Highway Cannington 6107  	ph 08 9458 9960  	 
Westside Car Audio 	366 Scarborough Beach Rd, Osborne Park 	ph 08 9242 1966 	 
Westside Car Audio 	2/144 Russel St Morley 	ph 08 9275 2722 	 
Albany Car Stereo 	42C Sanford Rd, Albany 	ph 08 9841 7857

[2LOUD2OLD]

Hi,
I havent found a liking to soundstream, I did work experience at Alberts and never found soundstream to be good, thats why I had full alpine setup in my car previously (got discount). Reason I buy from ebay is because its like half the price, everything in australia costs twice as much because they are resellers and jack the price up (to earn a profit themselves obviously .. but still). Also the brands we usually find in Australia aren't top grade.. rarely you find Focal, Boston, Herz and if you do it's got a huge price tag on it. Alberts stock the DD's but they cost an arm and leg!

The DDC6.5 retail for $349, thats certainly not an arm and leg to me

As for the higher costs have you taken into consideration warranty and after sales support. if those speakers from ebay die after 2 weeks you have nothing, plus the value of input you can get from a good shop is priceless a lot of the time. Focal, Boston and Hertz are all quite easy to get a hold of, you just need to know where to look. Most car audio brands are available from stores around Australia

The Focal 165KF are a discontinued line and the replacement model the 165KR retails for $729, which you could no doubt get cheaper from a store.

If people keep buying their gear off eBay you will see more brands disappear from Australian stores and those that stay the prices will go up further. support the industry and it will support you.

[commsirac]

If you come across some phillips EN8875(2way) or EN8885(3way) 6.5in, keep them, Belgium made. They are possibly some of the finest 6.5in speakers ever made...they'd be 25+ years old now.
Ive still got mine.

[ryno_vrx]

for about $3000 i got a complete alpline type r sound system from autobarn including installation and a 3yr warrenty (minus headdeck)
was going to go focal or alpine type x but didnt have the cash

[Deutscher]

Hmm..... seems like the MTX's arent going so well.
(They were the ones I was looking at XD)

[cewing]

I have mb quart 6.5" component speakers, and they're great. i think i payed about $350 for them, the box says they're good for 50w-150w, my amp runs them at 50w.
Very happy with them