Speaker Upgrade

[Parthiban]

Is it possible to gain a substantial increase in sound quality from just replacing the speakers (I don't want to replace the headunit or amp) - the emphasis is on pure quality, not too fussed about power (the standard system is perfectly adequate in that department)

If possible, what sort of speakers should I be looking at and what sort of cost will be necessary?

This is purely speculative at the mo, just want to start thinking about it and maybe get it done in the summer if it appears cost effective :)

[redz_UK]

good mdf baffles and a bit of dynamat behind the speaker and on the panel will make a as much diff as the spkr

these mb quart should do you nicely..

[Parthiban]

good mdf baffles and a bit of dynamat behind the speaker and on the panel will make a as much diff as the spkr

these mb quart should do you nicely..

Cheers for that mate, so the dynamat makes that much of a difference? Definitely something to do then if I get around to replacing the speakers. What are baffles and what to they do (sorry for my ignorance)?

Those speakers seem very well priced (a lot less than I was expecting to need to spend), the pics are conflicting though, is it for all the fronts or just one side (i.e. 2 or 4 speakers)?

Never heard of MB Quart before, are they the sort of speaker that's good for the price, or just good full stop? And is installation pretty straightforward or does it require a bit of work?

[redz_UK]

good mdf baffles and a bit of dynamat behind the speaker and on the panel will make a as much diff as the spkr

these mb quart should do you nicely..

Cheers for that mate, so the dynamat makes that much of a difference? Definitely something to do then if I get around to replacing the speakers. What are baffles and what to they do (sorry for my ignorance)?

Those speakers seem very well priced (a lot less than I was expecting to need to spend), the pics are conflicting though, is it for all the fronts or just one side (i.e. 2 or 4 speakers)?

Never heard of MB Quart before, are they the sort of speaker that's good for the price, or just good full stop? And is installation pretty straightforward or does it require a bit of work?

MB Quart have been around for a long time and make some of the best speakers around! the Q series are teh top range stuff but can fur into 4 figures for them!

These are obviously a cheaper variant and runing of the stock system will be fine. With any speaker though its the install that makes the difference. You could spend more and go up in the range if you are thinking of adding an aftermarket amp in the future but if budget is tight, then go for a cheaper speaker and spend the money on a quality install for them..

you get 2 sets of speakers, 6.5" and a tweeter.

a baffle is what the speaker fits to. you can ,make your own out of 18mm MDF using the oem mounts as a template.

[Parthiban]

MB Quart have been around for a long time and make some of the best speakers around! the Q series are teh top range stuff but can fur into 4 figures for them!

These are obviously a cheaper variant and runing of the stock system will be fine. With any speaker though its the install that makes the difference. You could spend more and go up in the range if you are thinking of adding an aftermarket amp in the future but if budget is tight, then go for a cheaper speaker and spend the money on a quality install for them..

you get 2 sets of speakers, 6.5" and a tweeter.

a baffle is what the speaker fits to. you can ,make your own out of 18mm MDF using the oem mounts as a template.

Ahh, ok cool sounds good then. £90 for all the fronts is a lot cheaper than I was thinking I'd need to pay, would that give me a significant improvement in sound quality? (the benchmark is the Merc HK system, that's the reason the Lexus sounds inadequate now) If that doesn't, how much do I need to spend to get that sort of quality?

Don't really have a budget yet, that's partly what this thread is for as I don't really have a clue when it comes to car audio - I know what sounds good and what doesn't, but I'm totally lost when it comes to actually creating that sound!

When you say quality install, does that mean I shouldn't do it myself? Or did you mean things like baffles and dynamat, etc.? And is the baffle something you replace or add on? If added on won't an extra 18mm mean the door card won't fit anymore?

Sorry if these questions are dumb, I am on a relatively steep learning curve right now :)

[redz_UK]

MB Quart have been around for a long time and make some of the best speakers around! the Q series are teh top range stuff but can fur into 4 figures for them!

These are obviously a cheaper variant and runing of the stock system will be fine. With any speaker though its the install that makes the difference. You could spend more and go up in the range if you are thinking of adding an aftermarket amp in the future but if budget is tight, then go for a cheaper speaker and spend the money on a quality install for them..

you get 2 sets of speakers, 6.5" and a tweeter.

a baffle is what the speaker fits to. you can ,make your own out of 18mm MDF using the oem mounts as a template.

Ahh, ok cool sounds good then. £90 for all the fronts is a lot cheaper than I was thinking I'd need to pay, would that give me a significant improvement in sound quality? (the benchmark is the Merc HK system, that's the reason the Lexus sounds inadequate now) If that doesn't, how much do I need to spend to get that sort of quality?

Don't really have a budget yet, that's partly what this thread is for as I don't really have a clue when it comes to car audio - I know what sounds good and what doesn't, but I'm totally lost when it comes to actually creating that sound!

When you say quality install, does that mean I shouldn't do it myself? Or did you mean things like baffles and dynamat, etc.? And is the baffle something you replace or add on? If added on won't an extra 18mm mean the door card won't fit anymore?

Sorry if these questions are dumb, I am on a relatively steep learning curve right now :)

if you want a real stepup then you would need to replace the HU and amp! i would say circa £500 would be a good starting point but could easily be £1k +

the baffle replace the plastic mount that the oem speakers are on, so door card fits fine.

[Parthiban]

if you want a real stepup then you would need to replace the HU and amp! i would say circa £500 would be a good starting point but could easily be £1k +

the baffle replace the plastic mount that the oem speakers are on, so door card fits fine.

Right that's what I was trying to figure out, so just a speaker upgrade won't create a massive improvement then? If it needs a new HU and amp that'll require more serious thought :)

[DJ Wozza]

Several members including Yaumeister and Waynejordan02 have kept the stock Head Unit,

and replaced the standard Front Speakers with Alpines exactly the same as I have in mine.

The dynamat will make a big difference to the sound, as will the speaker upgrade.

Whatever component's you buy at a good quality level £70^ (Alpine/Mb Quart/Kenwood etc),

they will normally come with a crossover. This can be attatched with big sticky pads to the door.

As for the baffle, the standard door speaker in the IS200 is part of the baffle/mounting ring.

You can make your own with some 18mm MDF (trace around the speaker you have removed),

or you can buy some plastic vectra door spacers from Hellfrauds, but if you have a jigsaw

then DIY MDF spacers is a more solid solution :)

[aztecbandit1]

I made my own baffles when i did mine and there quite easy to make, i drew round the oem speakers and then cut them out of mdf :)

Just got to go back and do the dynamat now

[Parthiban]

Cheers for the pics guys, that really helps - at least I know what a baffle is now! Is the crossover the box thingy under the speaker? I assume that's what converts the original audio signal to one that the new speaker can understand?

Woz, obviously your system sounds fantastic, but ignoring the sheer power and punch your system has for a sec, would I be able to get near the level of clarity with just a speaker upgrade (and possibly some dynamat-ing)?

I still don't really have a particular budget in mind, don't want to spend a lot of money, but also only really want to upgrade if I will get a decent improvement in sound quality :)

[Steviewevie]

Is the crossover the box thingy under the speaker? I assume that's what converts the original audio signal to one that the new speaker can understand?

Yep, the crossover splits the signal into the high-frequency parts for the tweeter, and the lower frequencies for the woofer.

[DJ Wozza]

Woz, obviously your system sounds fantastic, but ignoring the sheer power and punch your system has for a sec, would I be able to get near the level of clarity with just a speaker upgrade (and possibly some dynamat-ing)?

You are better off asking Yaumeister or Waynejordan02 when they are about, but they seemed quite happy with their

speaker upgrade. You will get a better sound with Dynamat too, but obviously you are limited then by the quality of

the OE system output. I think you will hear cost effective improvements if you keep your budget for the speakers

between £80-£120. Any more would really be a waste mate, in fact £120 may well be a bit OTT too.

I do now have a jigsaw, so can give you a hand if you need it, It is a fairly simple upgrade tho :)

The Dynamat can be tricky, but get hold of a small foam wallpaper seam roller as I found that helped.

[deckie77]

your at the same stage as i am parthiban,

I'm looking to upgrade my front speakers aswell, blew one up testing out my new headunit, I have been hunting around and found these below, looks like a good price, back when i was a youngster infinity was a good name in speakers

http://caraudiosecurity.com/shop/product/p...ts_id/3828.html

These are only 5 1/4", not 6 1/2", so mdf spacer would be required, and i dont have plans to put in amps later so watts is not too important for me.

maybe the guy's on here know something i dont about fitting a different size of speakers, but i think these would do the job.

And i do like a bargain - and not just because i'm a jock!!!!!!!

[Parthiban]

You are better off asking Yaumeister or Waynejordan02 when they are about, but they seemed quite happy with their

speaker upgrade. You will get a better sound with Dynamat too, but obviously you are limited then by the quality of

the OE system output. I think you will hear cost effective improvements if you keep your budget for the speakers

between £80-£120. Any more would really be a waste mate, in fact £120 may well be a bit OTT too.

I do now have a jigsaw, so can give you a hand if you need it, It is a fairly simple upgrade tho :)

The Dynamat can be tricky, but get hold of a small foam wallpaper seam roller as I found that helped.

Cheers mate, spending less on speakers is obviously advice that sounds great! I'll have to speak to one of those guys then when I get a chance. I understand what you mean though, no point in getting speakers that are too good for the rest of the system - have no plans to replace the headunit and amp, unless one of them stops working or something.........

I've got a jigsaw (and in fact most other tools ) but your advice and help is always invaluable so thanks for the offer and I will definitely be in touch when I decide what to do :)

http://caraudiosecurity.com/shop/product/p...ts_id/3828.html

These are only 5 1/4", not 6 1/2", so mdf spacer would be required, and i dont have plans to put in amps later so watts is not too important for me.

Those speakers are great value, but can't see the point in getting a smaller speaker - won't that also limit bass range? I actually don't have any idea, but know that the lower the range of the speaker, generally the larger it is.