Car speakers...which ones do you like... ??

[Curiosity]

Hey, Just bought a new head unit (Clarion) for my van..

Still using the factory speakers, and thinking that I should replace them with something else...

Pioneer , Kenwood, JBL, Infinity, Rockford Fosgate, Sony, Exile, MTC...

These are some of the brands carried by F/S and B/B...

Any feedback is appreciated...

[MkmBandit]

I have low-end CDT's in my car

[lumlum1013]

no mark levinson or bose?

i like inifinity btw....

[onecoolloser]

Alpine all the way! Might be expensive, but worth it. Alpine makes great components and subs.

[BeaverLiquor]

when i get around to doing my setup i'll probably get some jl's or alpine's.

[ElvaSoShexai]

image dynamics (http://www.imagedynamicsusa.com/index.php)
and
elemental designs (http://www.edesignaudio.com/edv2/index.php)
ftw

[masterballer]

image dynamics (http://www.imagedynamicsusa.com/index.php)
and
elemental designs (http://www.edesignaudio.com/edv2/index.php)
ftw

+1 also CDT...A/D/S arent bad either if your on a budget...all the names you listed are **** when it comes to comps.

[MkmBandit]

+1 also CDT...A/D/S arent bad either if your on a budget...all the names you listed are **** when it comes to comps.

Hey now, the Reference series are pretty solid and the pioneers are the best bang for buck in terms of low end components. I'll agree though that they dont hold a candle to a/d/s, cdt, focal, hertz, etc..

[ViperZ]

Stock 11-speaker 360 Watts Infinity system (Infinity II Spatial Imaging) (Chrysler 300M Special).

Will add a small 10-inch Infinity Kappa sub soon.

[Evil Techie]

Alpines are crap nowadays
these 2 years they have reduced their customer service support and quality has been almost all flash and no good substance

in my fatty lexus, i have Lexus Premium Audio (not the upgraded one) by Pioneer and ive added an A/D/S 10" sealed sub in the trunk running off an old alpine amp

I have heard of my friends' Mark Levinson systems in LS430 and GS430 and i have to say that they sound better than the new Bang and Olufson in the audi A8 and any Bose out there
that is subjective though
ML and B&O are almost equally good

If i was upgrading speakers and tweeters, i would personally go with Hertz instead of Focal

[galanz]

I've got Dynaudio components and a Focal Sub.
I've never been that impressed by Japanese speakers, Europe seems to make the best car speakers.

Edit, the car came stock with a bose system and it was crap, I couldn't replace that system fast enough.

[loudsubz]

AVI

and anything custom made, some nice combos can be made with raw drivers

[masterballer]

Hey now, the Reference series are pretty solid and the pioneers are the best bang for buck in terms of low end components. I'll agree though that they dont hold a candle to a/d/s, cdt, focal, hertz, etc..


not my cup of tea...too harsh...i and most people like smooth silk tweets...but it is subjective...

Anywho for the same money you can get WAY better than Reference or JBL or all the other walmart/FS/BB brands...

[bembol]

No love for Alpine's but Sony made the list. LOL I have Alpine Type S (SPS-171) Component Fronts & Rear Coax running on Pioneer DEH-P80MP Receiver.


I compared them to Infiniti, polk audio and Boston Acoustic.

BA was the best IMO but way too expensive for me. The other two was pretty much close with Alpine...I got a sick deal that I couldn't pass it up.

[masterballer]

OP it dosent matter whats in my car or joe blows...speakers produce sound and sound is subjective...what sounds good to me may sound like **** to you...i suggest you close this thread and go out and actually test some different brands with YOUR fav songs and see which one you like most.

[masterballer]

Oh and stock is for loosers ;) :P

[rc51]

I've always preferred Boston Acousitcs separates up front...and currently using BA subs in the back and BA mids and USD wave guides up front.

Previously have used, Infinity, Polk Audio, Vifa, MB Quart. Bostons sound the smoothest/sweetest to my ears.

[Curiosity]

OP it dosent matter whats in my car or joe blows...speakers produce sound and sound is subjective...what sounds good to me may sound like **** to you...i suggest you close this thread and go out and actually test some different brands with YOUR fav songs and see which one you like most.


I agree totally...just wasn't sure if the mainline (i.e. F/S and B/B) speakers are worth the money...

Maybe I will go to a car AUDIO place and see what they have..

Appreciate the input...

[eelfliw]

I have Infinity speakers.

I bought it mainly for the cheap price and durability. Not sound quality. In a car, it's impossible to enjoy high fidelity music as you drive because there are so many noises around you. And, you can't crank it up to drown out the noises because you will go deaf and it's dangerous. Plus, the windows around you reflect sound waves (esp mid & highs) which distort imaging and stage. So, all the extra money you've spent goes to waste. I'm not disputing that better speakers sound better than cheap ones. But the point of diminishing returns comes at a relatively low price point.

There's no way to enjoy high fidelity in a car unless you're parked in a quiet area. But if you're parked, why bother with fancy car audio? Might as well listen @ home.

[Capt.]

I put Infinitys in my Jeep. Got a much better price from G&G Electronics in Scarborough than futureshop or bestbuy

[Rsquad911]

Most mid to high end speakers need a AMP to drive them. Your Clarion unit may not have enough punch to get them going. It would be a lateral move to get speakers without getting an amp to power them.

[turtletrax]

. I'll agree though that they dont hold a candle to a/d/s, cdt, focal, hertz, etc..


Focal FTW!!! :D

Crossfire is a good performer for the money. But one you hear a JL W-7 13" sub the rest are just crap. Only problem is affording the amps to power them :lol:

[rc51]

Oh and stock is for loosers ;) :P

Nothing wrong with some stock drivers out there...some of them are made by Vifa, Dynaudio, Infinity..just not badged.

The only thing you have to do is get the proper crossover in their...rip out the usually garbage 6db/octave crossover they usually have and put in a well designed x-over (12db or more) with better quality coils and caps.

[ES_Revenge]

Pioneer , Kenwood, JBL, Infinity, Rockford Fosgate, Sony, Exile, MTC...

These are some of the brands carried by F/S and B/B...

Ewww FS/BB... Most of what they carry is pretty bad, and it's all definitely overpriced as well. Didn't FS used to carry MB Quart (at ridiculously high prices)? Don't know if they still do but MB has gone downhill now anyway since they've been bought out.

The fact that there is no "other" choice in the poll, nor any other brands really worth voting for, means I didn't vote at all.

The only half-decent speakers Pioneer makes are the REV and ODR, the latter will definitely not be carried at FS but they might have the REV line, I'm not sure. REV isn't bad, not great but not terrible. Standard Pio speakers are not worth spending anything on.

Other than that Infinity, Rockford and JBL have decent lines but not sure if FS carries the better stuff and even if they do it's guaranteed to be overpriced.

Don't know what else to say that others haven't already, except to say don't buy from FS/BB, lol.

Oh and LMAO at the mention of Bose at all in here. Considering the stuff you get from the flea market is around the same as Bose quality and 1/10th the price, I would definitely not put Bose in here at all. Aside from that I've never seen Bose car audio for sale separately, it's usually just forced on you with so-called "premium" sound systems from auto manufacturers.

[ES_Revenge]

But the point of diminishing returns comes at a relatively low price point.
Completely disagree there.



There's no way to enjoy high fidelity in a car unless you're parked in a quiet area. But if you're parked, why bother with fancy car audio? Might as well listen @ home.
Again completely disagree there as well. Plus you have to consider the possiblity that some people listen to music in their cars far more than they ever do at home, therefore for some people it is a worthwhile investment to buy better car audio gear.

[KawaiiTentacleBeast]

Just bought a pair of 5 1/4 Kicker KS525 on recommendation, and also a JVC KDAVX11 (http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?sku_id=0665000FS10085021&catid=12038&logon=&langid=EN) for $525. Good deal? I don't really want to play movies in my car but the ability to play MP3s and stuff off DVD is nice.

[ES_Revenge]

Just bought a pair of 5 1/4 Kicker KS525 on recommendation, and also a JVC KDAVX11 (http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?sku_id=0665000FS10085021&catid=12038&logon=&langid=EN) for $525. Good deal? I don't really want to play movies in my car but the ability to play MP3s and stuff off DVD is nice.

Seems kind a pricey, or was that both the speakers and the deck for $525. AVX11 is worth no more than $400 CDN tops, IMO. So I really wouldn't say it's a good deal if that was just for the AVX11.

The AVX11 is pretty much just an AVX1 with DivX I believe, so it has no DD/DTS decoding, which would be optimal for a car environment. The AVX2 on the other hand has full DD/DTS decoding but lacks DivX since it's older. Perhaps the AVX2 would be alright at that price but I'd have to say no on the AVX11.

Kicker KS525 coaxials are nothing special but I'm sure they are better than stock. I'd rather go with something else as I'll bet they sell for around $100 CDN or so (?) but as someone else mentioned if it sounds good to you, that's what matters--speakers are, afterall, very subjective.

[KawaiiTentacleBeast]

Yeah it was for both, tax in. $380 for the deck and $100 for the speakers.

I bought it more for the multi-format than sound quality, as I'm not an audiophile and I don't think I can tell the difference anyway, but I like the convenience of the big screen and the DVD/DivX capability (I don't even have any CD-Rs at home :lol: ) over just a CD-only deck. I looked at the AVX2 but decided it wasn't worth the extra $$. Thanks, I didn't know about the DD/DTS, I don't think my current setup is even good enough to make a difference?

for the speakers I was going to buy Alpine but My doors have no space for anything and the installer recommended the Kickers because they were the thinnest. My car came with a small amp and sub enclosure in the back (if it makes any difference).

[ES_Revenge]

Yeah it was for both, tax in. $380 for the deck and $100 for the speakers.
Ah okay then, not such a bad deal. If it was from a Canadian retailer then that's probably as good as you could have done :)


I bought it more for the multi-format than sound quality, as I'm not an audiophile and I don't think I can tell the difference anyway, but I like the convenience of the big screen and the DVD/DivX capability (I don't even have any CD-Rs at home :lol: ) over just a CD-only deck. I looked at the AVX2 but decided it wasn't worth the extra $$. Thanks, I didn't know about the DD/DTS, I don't think my current setup is even good enough to make a difference?
Well if you aren't going to be using it much for movies (or DivX that features a 5.1 soundtrack) then it won't make that much of a difference. Unless you like to listen to music in DPL-II Music (which the AVX2 can do), then the AVX11 is probably better for you.


for the speakers I was going to buy Alpine but My doors have no space for anything and the installer recommended the Kickers because they were the thinnest. My car came with a small amp and sub enclosure in the back (if it makes any difference).
Yeah install clearances can be a pain when it comes to getting the speakers you want. There's no way a spacer would have fit and given you more depth? The Kickers do look thin so he's probably right in saying they were among your only options. There are higher end speakers made in shallow mount depths but those are probably beyond what you wanted to spend.

Seems like you did well, particularly if you like the end result--how it sounds and works for you :)

[KawaiiTentacleBeast]

There's no way a spacer would have fit and given you more depth?

I am already getting custom fab MDF for the speakers to make them fit. Here's what my door looks like.

http://www.astro-nut.com/mb12.jpg

http://www.astro-nut.com/mb16.jpg

[masterballer]

I have Infinity speakers.

I bought it mainly for the cheap price and durability. Not sound quality. In a car, it's impossible to enjoy high fidelity music as you drive because there are so many noises around you. And, you can't crank it up to drown out the noises because you will go deaf and it's dangerous. Plus, the windows around you reflect sound waves (esp mid & highs) which distort imaging and stage. So, all the extra money you've spent goes to waste. I'm not disputing that better speakers sound better than cheap ones. But the point of diminishing returns comes at a relatively low price point.

There's no way to enjoy high fidelity in a car unless you're parked in a quiet area. But if you're parked, why bother with fancy car audio? Might as well listen @ home.

Yes a stock car you will get alot of noise from the outside...sit in a car done up with deadener and you will see why people spend more on higher end comps ;)