Topic: Some great speakers you never heard of.

[lil goat]

I have been bored at work lately so I have been reading a ton on car audio. I have discovered some great speakers I had never heard of. Most people have heard of JL Audio and Alpine, really great stuff if you can afford it, both make low end stuff and it is just that low end stuff, there high end equipment is some of the best you can get if you can afford it. There are some very good alternatives, I joined the DIY audio forum and have learned a lot about some little known smaller companies that don't have the big bucks to do big ads but make some great equipment, most also make some low end stuff some good some not so good. These below are all 4 ohm componebt systems but have very high sensitivity rating so can work with the stock amp, but will really come to life with more power.

Cadence, there CVL 6KN is a top rated speaker and comparable to almost anything out there up to $1000, they are about $300 if you shop around, last years model the CVL 6K can be had for around $200 and has a 3" voice coil in a 6.5" speaker that is just nuts, and a very good thing, this is quite common in the very elite stuff in the over $800 range but not so common in a relatively inexpensive speaker. Check out this speaker basket, that is not pressed steel like almost all of the others, that is a real cast basket like you would see on an expensive sub.

They sell some very highly rated speakers in the $140 range as well


The Soundstream RF-60C Reference 6.5"  seems to be a very similar if not the same speaker and are rated very well also they are in the same range as the CVL's about $200 have the 3" voice coil and cast basket too.

There low end stuff is not rated as well as the Cadence.

Both of the systems above are very similar to the well known DynAudio that sell for $899 a set

The R6A - DLS 6.5" 2-Way is another highly rated system around $200


S600a - Diamond Audio HEX 6.5" is a another one that gets great reviews and I had never heard of any of these, the reviews on all of them beat the big name guys for less money, JBL, Polk, Infinity and even the low end JL Audio and Alpine.


The places to find some really good deals are onlinecarstereo and woffersetc as well as hookedontronics. I have bought stuff from online and it was perfect and they shipped fast.

I tried really hard to find an easy 8" upgrade for the sub in our car, something that would just drop in with out to much effort. Needs to be 2 ohm dual voice coil, there are almost no options, there is the Kicker and there is a Rockford Fosgate Punch that might fit, both will require at a least a little modification of the box, the Kicker might require a lot of modification. May seem odd but a 10" may actually be the easiest to fit, it is super shallow and fits in an just over 8" hole it's an Earthquake Sound SWS-10, the options are very limited.


I hope this saves some people some leg work, I just looked at this stuff cause I was bored at work. I will be buying the Cadence system listed up top for my doors and be able to give a real world review pretty soon.

[TomatoSoup]

Good leg-work Goat (ahem).  Looking forward to the next great installment!

Do you know if you can make these tweeters fit in the stock locations (seems doubtful)?  If not, what are you proposing to do to mount them & where?

[BLK GXP]

Thanks for the info Jim. This car is the first one that I've owned that has not gotten an aftermarket audio system. The stock Monsoon system is the best stock system I've had in a car, but sooner or later my history with car audio is bound to catch up. I currently have a Tahoe loaded with JL, MB quart, Alpine and PPI ( the old american good stuff, not the newer korean crap). It's good to know that there are some good options available. Most of the brands you mentioned are familiar to me from my days in IASCA and USAC competition. I don't know if those organizations are even around anymore, but it was fun going to the National finals for a few years in the early-mid 90s.

[Sly Bob]

Nice post Goat and one that'll surely help some of the forum members here in the future. Good information!

[Morfious]

I can vouch for Cadence, I still have a Cadence amp in my Jeep.  75w x4 and it's still pumping strong.



As for sticking the tweeters in the stock location, a heat gun. metal strapping and some hot glue can make for a very good installation method.  Epoxy or hot glue around the tweeters will hold them in place with no ill effects.

[lil goat]

A very long time ago, I am not saying how many years, God am I really that old I was an IASCA judge, did Pro division mostly, the sound was so good at that level it was about the install more than anything else, we took off points for bad crimp connections.

I have JBL tweeters in the factory location and just used a dremel to open the holes a bit. It really helps to get the tweeters out of those holes where you can hear them, I put some dynmat behind them and they are fine and easy to remove if need be. Superglue works too, just keep the hole tight  .

Back when the good stuff was US made and Hifonics was the sound of the Gods (Zeus, Apollo, Titan) the amps were actually designed by Stephen Mantz, he is the owner of Zed Audio and makes the next amp I will buy. Check out his site he is a true audio engineer and not just a salesman, he invented a lot of the technology that ALL the big companies use today many years ago, thanks Don Sambrook (Rudeboy) for clueing me in on this. I have been a Hifonics fan for a very long time, there stuff still works well but is made overseas and now very inexpensive, I got a 2X200 watt amp running my sub for $100 and it kicks.

There are so many options out there now, I just hate to see people go to Crutchfield and spend a LOT of money on mediocre stuff, Crutchfield is great and carry good stuff but there is much better stuff out there and much better prices too. I am still reading and learning, and right now with still the stock headunit and $500 and some hard work have a much better than stock system.

I was reading Skyjack eval of his new Eclipse headunit and just did a quick search for the best price, found the KENWOOD KFC-P708 6-1/2" COMPONENT SPEAKERS for $89, if you are on a budget these would be a really nice upgrade to the door speakers, they are 3 ohm and a 91 db sensitivity, should work really well with the stock headunit. Here is the website http://www.topcaraudio.com/products/KENWOOD-KFC%252dP708-6%252d1%7B47%7D2%22-COMPONENT-SPEAKERS.html

[lil goat]

A Sub update, I installed a MB Quart 10" in my car, it was a lot of work to make it fit, and initially I was pleased but not thrilled. I have read from several manufacturer's that new subs need a break in period, it is true. It just sounds better and better everyday, as it breaks in is is getting much deeper and cleaner just like they said it would. It sounds really good now and I have been able to boost the input to the amp quite a bit. I had never heard of speaker "break in" before but have read some high end speakers can take as much as 6 months to fully break in. I am now quite thrilled with the MB Quart RSH 252  and yes it looks just like a soda can stick out the front, the motor (magnet) is on the front instead of the back. This enabled me to get a lot more woofer in a small space.

[Uranium-238]

I thought that all speakers require a break-in period? I know it's the norm guitar speakers. One of my amps sounded like crap for about a month till the speakers had some high-volume hours on them.

[TomatoSoup]

I thought that all speakers require a break-in period? I know it's the norm guitar speakers. One of my amps sounded like crap for about a month till the speakers had some high-volume hours on them.

Yeah, back from my mis-spent youth, when I was a Hi-Fi aficionado, one recommendation for new (home) speakers was to place them face to face as close as possible, wire them out of phase, and play a mono white noise (or semi-white) signal through them at reasonably high volume for 24 to 48 hours.  Gives the cones a good excursion work-out, but because they were out of phase, the audible radiated sound wasn't too objectionable.

Obviously a bit difficult to do this with car speakers, though I guess you could try it with them before mounting (in free air).

[Uranium-238]

I know of one person who used to do that with guitar speakers, before mounting them in a cab. He swore by it, but most of us preferred just letting them break in on their own.

[lil goat]

Some of us are old enough to remember the days before almost all speakers were suspended on butyl rubber and you didn't have to break them in. The suspension is much stiffer than in years gone by, and most companies recommend NOT turning them up all the way until they are broken in. The MB Quart whil it was a bear to mount and looks realy weird just sounds better and better. This weekend I got a chance to push it fairly hard for 2 1/2 hours each way it sounded very good on the way to work.

Do you Pandora?

[Uranium-238]

Do you Pandora?

What, the internet music site? No, as the sound quality when streamed on my blackberry isn't that great.

[lil goat]

Pandora sounds great on my HTC Hero, I run it through the system in my car, Jonymac does too he told me about it.

[Uranium-238]

Eh, it's only a matter of time before it starts playing the same old songs over and over again.

Bought the PAL last week, hoping to get it in and installed this week. Then I need to upgrade all my music to iTunes plus, 128 kbps sucks.

[lil goat]

Eh, it's only a matter of time before it starts playing the same old songs over and over again.

Bought the PAL last week, hoping to get it in and installed this week. Then I need to upgrade all my music to iTunes plus, 128 kbps sucks.

Actually that may not be true, as you control the music, it is not controlled by a bunch of lame as consultants paid by the radio station to "program" what you hear. It is just based on your input and a computer does the picking. All the stations have been using these "consultants" for years, DJ's have no free will despite what they make you think, I got fired from an on air job for throwing the playlist out the window during a snow storm where I was stuck on the air for 13 hours, now one get in to relieve me. I just played what the heck I wanted. It was worth it, the job only paid minimum wage.

[Uranium-238]

Oh it's way beyond normal radio, I'll give it that. But after a few weeks it always starts playing the same old songs. Maybe it's just my taste in music that confuses it.

[lil goat]

You have to use the thumps up and down buttons a lot, and be open to new music it picks, some of which really really sucks. I like new music a lot so it works for me. Most of the stuff I hear I have never heard before.

[Uranium-238]

I know, and I do. Still, it starts playing the same old stuff, or things that aren't even remotely related to my pics. If you thumbs down the odd the wall songs, you get stuck with the same old songs over and over.

[lil goat]

I have joined the http://www.diymobileaudio.comforum lots of good stuff on there if you want to do some upgrades to your car, as the name says it is mostly about DIY no professional installs. Our own Rudeboy, Don is a member that is how I found it. Some of these guys are SPL (loud) some are SQ sound quality, I will eventually fall into the latter.

[dwdgraysol]

lil-goat
I was thinking of installing the Soundstream RF-60C , do you know if these should fit without any mods to
the openings. I was just going to replace the stock front speakers on my non-monsoon head unit. I have already
added and aftermarket amp and sub in the rear.

[Deep-GXP]

Pandora sounds great on my HTC Hero, I run it through the system in my car, Jonymac does too he told me about it.

Omg, i just got a palm pre and i've been using Pandora all the time and it works perfect.  I never thought about using it in the sol...what a great idea !  Hmm, maybe I didnt think of it cuz my car has no engine right now and I havn't seen it in 15 days lol.  Getting it back is gonna be so much better now lol.  Nirvana Radio baby!

[dwdgraysol]

Another question when replacing the door speakers, where do you mount the crossover for the speakers?

[lil goat]

I don't know how easily they will fit, I would expect you will have to take a dremel to the stand off for the speaker, someone also told me the non Monsoon system uses 5 1/2" speakers instead of 6 1/2", the bigger will fit but you might have to get the other stand off form a Monsoon system.

[TomatoSoup]

someone also told me the non Monsoon system uses 5 1/2" speakers instead of 6 1/2", the bigger will fit but you might have to get the other stand off form a Monsoon system.

I wish I'd know they might be different, I could've measured mine at the ModMeet when I had the door panels off.

However, I looked at the parts catalog on GMPartsDirect.  The Monsoon vs. non-monsoon speaker mounts are certainly different part numbers.  The Monsoons cost $26 each (plus their 20% S/H "fee") or $50 ea MSRP.  This is compared to the $14+ ($27 MSRP) each for the non-Monsoon part.

[NOTE: It's difficult to tell, but those prices probably include the speakers themselves.  Certainly looks that way from the illustration: http://www.trademotion.com/partlocator/index.cfm?action=getJointLocator&siteid=214858&chapter=&Sectionids=0,2610&groupid=2644&subgroupid=5201&componentid=70162&make=28&model=Solstice&year=2008&graphicID=FG06270&callout=3&catalogid=2&displayCatalogid=0 ]