Simple Speaker Recommendation for Base...
 

Okay, I've gone through most of the threads here, but still can't find what I'm looking for. I want simple!!!! I would like to replace the speakers in my base stereoed Z. I don't want to drill, move anything, or have to modify anything. No amps, no nothing. Just a nice-sounding set of door speakers and dash speakers that will work well with the base head unit. Any recommendations? No sound deadening material. Simple. If you should have any ideas, how tough is the wiring?

Wiring is going to be very easy for you. 1. Take all speakers out. 2. Cut OEM connection plug (make sure to leave enough wire on the plug in case you ever need to re-connect) 3. Put connectors on individual wires 4. Hook up new speakers and install with plate (if needed) and screws that come with the speakers.

Speakers are pretty easy too. OEM H/U is a 4ohm set up. Make sure to find 4ohm speakers.

Side note - you will probably be under powering the speakers if they are say over 30w RMS. Could lead to damage if you are trying to pound your sytem.

Anyone else got anything they want to add?

Wow! Thanks, Rreign! So, that's now my problem.... Finding a speaker that fits perfectly. I'm really good with mechanical stuff, but all of my Nissan/Infiniti products had the Bose. I've not had a chance to play with this kind of stuff. I get afraid of mounting the speakers as well. What about brackets and stuff? What speakers will fit? Anyone? Is this going to be a complete pain? Thanks for the wiring tips. That scares me too. I just don't want to drill. I just want to wire them in, hook them up, and go. Oh, of course I want a much better sound. I don't need super-bumping bass, just something that sounds better.

Now I'm scared about the RMS thing. I can get over 30, but shouldn't have my stereo just sitting at full volume, right? Do you mean it's just overloading the stock amp and I wouldn't be able to tell because the speakers wouldn't distort? What's with the 4 ohm thing? Rookie here, sorry. These are all great things to tell guys like me...

OH, what do we do about the speakers on the dash? Those tweeters? What size and power? They seem awfully large up there. What Ohm?

Well the stock set up has 6.5"s in the doors and 2.5"s in the dash. If yyou buy a different setup, you will most likely end up with the 6.5"s and 1" to 1.5" tweets. The tweets will have to be mounted with a bracket that will fit over the existing hole. Any car audio shop should be able to set you up with those. Don't be scared of the wiring. All you have to do is connect small + and - terminals to the end of the wires that you cut and plug them onto the + and - on the speakers. That's the easiest way I can explain it. Super simple bro! Now, let's see. Aftermarket component speaker set with tweets with about 25 - 30w RMS.... HMMM... Here's a few ideas

Alpine SPS-600C Type-S 6-3/4" component speaker system — fits in 6-1/2" or 6-3/4" openings at Crutchfield.com
Focal Access 165 A1 6-1/2" component speaker system at Crutchfield.com
Focal K2 Power 100KRS 4" component speaker system at Crutchfield.com

All of these have ratings from 2 - 80W RMS I'm sure that they will work. Just a matter of taking a look and seeing what impedence they are (2ohm,4ohm,8ohm etc.)

Rreign, thank you so, sooo much. I really like hearing this from someone who knows instead of just guessing on my own. I'm afraid of how these 6.5's will fit in the stock openings, but I'll see. Again, if you have more info, I really appreciate it. It's not often that people just help people anymore. Thanks again.

Hey man... looks like reign took care of ya on this one. I don't really have much to add. I would say look at jeffs thread titled something like his second 370z. He does use the deadening material on this install but you wouldn't have to. I feel ya on not wanting to replace the head unit but i would strongly suggest it so you can put an amp in but completely understandable. I would say component speakers would be your best bet like reign suggested above. In Jeff's thread he uses a pair of hertz two way components. I believe he has said that they are sensitive enough that a stock unit would power them well. They also come with the mounting bracket needed for the 2.5" speakers in the dash. I would say those speakers would be a major upgrade and would be no hassle installing them. As for the 6.5's fitting in the door. You won't have much of a problem here. The way the door panel is there is a bracket that comes out of the door to give you the clearance you need. If you look on the threads some of the guys tell you just how much clearance you have. But in other words you won't need an additional bracket.

As for me.... I got a pair of three way components... waiting on the head unit to come in so i can put the amp in. They require 150 watts rms. I could easily play my stock head unit at max volume.... this would actually be a rather comfortable volume for me but probably loud for most. HOwever i don't play that loud for fear of distortion and well damaging the speakers so i play it at about 23 of 31. I can't say how much of a difference the speakers have made. So depending on how loud you like to listen to ur music i would strongly consider upgrades other than just the speakers.

Hope this helps

First off +1 on checking out Jeff's thread on the 2nd install. With that install, I'm pretty sure he only did a H/U and components. Not really a DIY so to speak, but he did explain what speakers and H/U he did.

Also I would suggest doing an aftermarket H/U just for better control of your system and some additional wattage but you would be fine with the stock.

Ok, for the "Tweets" in the dash, I quote them because they aren't really tweets so much as just 2.5" components. It would be really hard to find a manufacturer that would carry 2.5"s. Like I said, I suggest getting a component set-up with the 6.5"s and tweets. Like the ones I posted. They should come with brackets to mount the tweets. Also you shouldn't have any problem with the mounting depth of any of those 6.5"s that I showed you, or any others for that matter. The stock mounting holes have plenty of clearance and are plenty deep enough.

Don't worry too much about the wattage but more about the impedence. Like I said, make sure they are 4ohm or A. They will be too much for the stock system. B. You won't be able to turn them up without distorting them at a very low volume level. Finally, C. You run a risk of actually damaging the speakers due to thewattage and impedence conflict you will have. Oh plus you may actually damage the stock system itself because of the same conflict.

That's as simple as I can put it for someone that doesn't know all that much about systems.

Okay, this is what I just bought, and get on Thursday....


Focal Access 165CA1 6.5"
Focal Access 165CA1 6-1/2" 2-way car speakers at Crutchfield.com

Polk db1001 1" tweeter.
Polk db1001 1" dome tweeters at Crutchfield.com

He recommended this Polk because it's not in your face, but still is nice and clean. He described it as "not making you tired and hurtning your ears."

I am really hoping this works. Crutchfield said they didn't have a bracket for 2.5" to 1". He recommened, like you said Rreign, of making my own out of some metal. We'll see. Do these speakers come with some wire to connect to or do I have to go and buy some? Rreign, I'm still totally scared because I have a feeling I'm going to have to go to the hardware store about ten times for this project. Any more tips? Anything I should be picking up before delivery?

Oh, I'm sure it's on here, but any tips for taking off the door panels? I saw that I need something that's not harsh for taking off the tweeter covers. I really hope this works. Thanks for all of your help though! Maybe I'll take some pics during the process. Man, I've never done anything like this before. I usually let other people make the mistakes first. Then I move in. Not this time!

Definitely good choices. I completely forgot about Polk. Anyway, here's what I recommend for the install. Go to Walmart (seriously) go to the automotive section with all the electrical stuff. Pick up a kit from there. It's like a 72pc. kit for $14. Comes with everything you are going to need for this install. Wire cutters, connectors, etc.

Moving on, yes the speakers and the tweeters are going to come with the extra speaker wire that will be needed. They will probably come with connectors to, but hell I would still buy that kit anyway.

If you want, let me know when you are going to do the install. I will come on here and stick around to walk you through any questions, thoughts, ideas or anything else you might need.

Just a quick question, why did you decide to buy them separate? (the speakers and tweeters) I personally don't like to mix and match audio companies but I guess to each his own. Thats why I showed you this....Focal Access 165 A1 6-1/2" component speaker system at Crutchfield.com You actually spent more money than what you needed to. Sorry

Check back in my previous posts

Crap. I suck. I don't know why. I know a ton about cars, and most other things for that matter... but stereos? No. I guess I just got a bit excited. Sorry, but thanks again sooooo much. I'll keep you updated. I feel like I just didn't listen to my dad. "I told you to buy this and you bought this! What were you thinking? Well, I guess you'll deal with your mistake." ;)

By the way, are those crossovers on that Focal tweeter thing? See, now it's getting too complex. I just want to hook up the wires and go. I think the Polks just have those built in, right?

Ok I just saw this thread and I'm going to recommend that you not install these speakers! The reason why is that (4) tweets are going to be over kill! If you dont want to build or modify anything then you will need shallower 6.5" mids also! The only speakers that FOCAL makes that will drop in the doors without any mounting spacers will be the POLYGLASS 165 VRS comps. There are no drop in speakers for the dash! You will need to run wires becasue if your not installation savvy the passive xover will need placed in the kick panel like i did in 370z#2 and you can access the wiring you need behind the radio. I hope I didnt confuse you but it's not a very complicated job for skilled tech but maybe a bit much for a new DIY'er. But I'm here to help if you need it.

Ohhh maaannn! Canceling order.

Damnit, I completely forgot about the crossovers for those speakers! I was going to get up with Jeff about this thread and then when I got home I freakin forgot that too. No real big deal though. Don't stress out Weatherman! You will probably have to use the mounting brackets for the speakers but again, not a big deal. The tweeters as you know, are not going to just drop in. You'll need brackets for those. Otherwise, I'm sure that Jeff and I can talk you through the install.

I would say that's a good idea too. Sorry about not catching that. I don't usually think about those things. I've been doing car audio myself forever so I didn't think much of it. I would say to go with the Alpine's I listed above. NO crossovers, No mounting brackets for 6.5"s ALL wiring included. Much easier install.

Jeff, what do you think? You're the resident professional.

So they're already shipping to me. Just called them back... Okay, so the Focals have crossovers I have to hook up, even with those two ways?

I totally see what you're saying here. Too much tweeterage. The speaker, I guess, doesn't fit...

Should I just do that Alpine component? That sounds way easier. Tweeters meant to go with the speaker. No crossovers. Just mount them, then plug them in. Hopefully they sound good.

WAIT.. hold on here... There are "in-line" crossovers on the Alpines... NOW, what does that mean? I can't just hook these into the wires that are already in the car? Are the wires up on the dash speakers crossed over? Crap.

Yes, there are no crossovers with the Alpine set. Standard 6.5"s for mids and tweets for highs. Nothing to that install but to install them.

Crutchfield said stay with what I have. He said you have to use mounting plates from a 6x9 opening to a 6.5". He said he has all of the Bose dimensions for the 370, and wouldn't see why they'd be different for the base. He looked at the depths and said there's a ton of extra room here. He said I should have 3.3" and the Focals are like 2.4" I don't know what the hell a spacer is, but he said the mounting plate he's sending me should work perfectly. Levi with Crutchfield also was talking about me not having too much high. He said that we purposely got some weaker tweeters just for that. Levi also said the Polks have an "in line" crossover and that I won't have to worry about mounting any boxes anywhere. He said go for it, it will work, sound great, and if I don't like it, can send everything back, no charge. I'm trying it this way. Another one of my options would be to either put tape over the door tweeters to shut them up, or could I just cut the wires to the tweets? He thinks it will sound great, and was a good choice. I was even reading him your posts.

Well, hate to put it in this fashion (but I will) F*** IT LET'S GO FOR IT! Why did he say you had to use 6x9 brackets for a freakin 6.5 that is going into a damned 6.5 hole.

He said that's what his diagram had for the Bose Z. Great. Just great. What the hell's a spacer? Are these just not going to fit at all? Me=Guinea Pig.

HAHA, damn. Don't mean to laugh but look at all the crap we will go through just for some upgrades/mods in our cars. Damn, did you explain to him that you didn't have a Bose system?

Ok, let's just wait a minute here. 6.5"s and tweeters. No crossovers are being used in this install either way we look at it. So all you will need is the damn speakers, tweeters, and spacers that are already going to come in your order with the speakers. Thats it. Let's stop beating a dead horse here. Easy as cake install. Don't worry about it. Just hit me up when you get the stuff from Crutchfield. Take a pic of it so I can see it all, post it, then we'll go from there to the install. Like I said no big deal here.

I love that atittude! I'm in! Bring it! Spacers come with the speakers, or what? OKAY! I'm done. Let's do this.

By the way, you can turn the tweeters on the Focals. See, I'll just aim them away from me. Things look good already!

All the speakers I have ever ordered, came with spacers. MTX, Kenwood, Infinity, Kicker, JL. They have all come with them. Even so, I know Jeff knows his sh*t but if there is a 3.3" depth in the mounting hole, and the 6.5"s are 2 and some change, you shouldn't need the spacers anyway.

You could also just adjust the treble and fade on your stock H/U to get optimal sound out of both

Ok Guys here is the deal on a base model there is what appears to be a 6x9" opening in the door but it's for a very slim 6x9". The base factory space is on an angle also look at this pic.

http://c2.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/i...c9330cd905.jpg

You will need to create a spacer and SEAL THE SPEAKER properly from from to back to make sure there arent any air leaks and etc! Air leaks kill the midbass! I'd recommend that you pay a local shop in your area a visit and just talk with them and let them explain this to you in person. Try these guy they do great work.

Adams Mobile Audio & Design
(262) 781-5600
16825 W Lisbon Rd, Brookfield, WI 53005

Ahhh, I see what you're talking about. I've done similar installs to this. It was just a little confusing from the way that he was talking about it. Not that difficult to explain really.

Okay, Thursday is delivery day. Jeff, I did talk to Adam, from the link you sent me. He laughed to hear how his company's name was brought up. Luckily for you, that shop is in a nice part of the city here! Adam said, give it the good ol' college try, and if there are any problems, come on over. Thanks for your help again guys. We'll see you this goes.... GULP. Jeff, what would the spacer do? Is the sealing necessary for good sound since there's none on there now? Sounds like a lot of extra work to me. Again, me=rookie=making this easy. I may have seriously just gone waaayyy over my head. I read other peoples' reviews... "Oh, I just pulled out my stocks, and wired these in and it sounds so much better!" I guess my review of the speakers are going to require about 10 pages worth of, "I pulled out, measured, couldn't fit, put on new doors, drilled, spaced, spliced, failed, shorted, glued my seats, put in a Kia radio." Ha ha!

I think you'll be fine, just don't over think this man.

Ahhh, ha ha! So, here's what I did... Returned my stuff to Crutchfield without even opening the box. I thought to myself... "Self, you paying a professional to do it is a much better idea. That way, I keep guys like you (Rreign) and Jeff in business. It's an economy thing, right? ;)" I'll still keep you updated. I put it this way... I'd rather people get their weather from me on TV, rather than just going to some po-dunk website that's usually wrong. Let the pros handle this one, otherwise I'm just pissing money away. I was excited until I made the mistake of just flat-out buying the wrong speakers. Thanks again though.

No problem man. Let us know how things turn out for you. I hope the info that Jeff and I provided was, to the very least, informative. I wish you would have tried the install though. It's a lot of fun and trust me, there's not much that could have gone wrong with that small of an installation.

I didn't read any of the above info but I have info relevant to your topic. I have the base audio system and I hate the speakers. I replaced the door speakers with Infinity Kappa 62.9i (6.5" round) and it sounds much better. I will replace the stereo with a Kenwood DNX7140 pretty soon but I wanted to go ahead with the speakers. The Infinity speakers have a lot of highs which I like and the bass is not bad. I personally have no need for a top-of-the-line audio system but the Kappa speakers are a definite improvement and they fit fine. They work with the factory stereo, they have a built in crossover and they will work with the DNX7140 when I get it. I paid ~ $70 for the speakers and it was well worth it.

Robert

Read through the post since I am considering upgrading my audio components in my base model as well. rreign, I gave you +rep for your willingness to offer up help (not just help, but the offer to be online ready to answer any questions and walk him thorugh it was definitely above and beyond) to someone requesting, that's what this forum is all about. :tup:

Weatherman, if you are mechanically inclined, doing speaker installs shouldn't be too hard for you. It just got in your head, which happens, but once you crack everything open it gets pretty easy from there. If you haven't had someone else do it yet, I'm with rreign, get the right speakers shipped to you and attempt it yourself, you just might surprise yourself and will have more pride in the outcome than you would with a professional doing it.

Hi Robert,
I've been considering doing the Infiniti Kappas in my own base model 370z followed a little later with the same Kenwood deck. I'd prefer not installing any other amplification so I think the increased power provided by the DNX7140 might drive the 2 ohm Kappas enough to fill the tiny cockpit. I appreciate hearing from you that the Kappas were a significant improvement in sound over the factory speakers and that they fit easily. Have you heard any warnings about the 2 ohm speakers damaging the amp in the new head unit you'll be installing? A sales kid at a local chain audio store was saying to stear clear of the Kappas for this reason. I am thinking that actually the Kappa's lower impedence will provide more sound volume with the rather low powered amp of the head unit. Any other thoughts or experience is appreciated. It's great when you are doing exactly the same thing someone else has already done (or is doing). Are you also not planning on installing a sub? I don't listen to rap or hip-hop. I'm a classic rock guy; Led Zep, Badlands, Whitesnake, etc.

I'm not a car stereo person so I'm not sure if there will be a problem with a new head unit but I'm not going to worry about it. If the base stereo has no problem I can't see where a $1000 stereo will have a problem. I have had the speakers in for a few weeks now and it didn't REALLY sit down to listen to them until Tuesday night. At lower volumes they sound better than factory no question but it is a medium improvement. They sound GREAT when you turn the volume up though. All of the sounds are very clear and smooth and it is just an enjoyable experience. With the nice door speakers I see no need or improvement from rear speakers or even a sub. The car interior is so small that the door speakers fill the volume of the car to a nice level. Personal taste is that the music is for me and the other occupant to hear not the surrounding neighborhood.

Be very weary of using crossed impedence speakers/HU. You can run into some issues with using a 4ohm deck and 2ohm speakers. If it was the other way around, you'd be ok. I'd stear clear of doing this if you can. You could do some serious damage to the H/U if you're not careful.

Kind of jumping in this late, sorry if I touch upon already asked questions.

Concerning the base Z, is the conclusion that the door speakers are fine and the thing to replace are the rear speakers? And if those are replaced, would you need an additional amp, or is factory sufficient?

well the base z doesn't even have rear speakers. it has 6.5"s up front and some 2.5" tweets in the dash. so the real question for you would be can you put rear speakers in the z and the answer is yes. anything you want really, I suggest a new headunit and amp to power everything.

Heres what I did. depending on what your looking for this should be good enough.
http://www.the370z.com/audio-video/5...-saturday.html

Wow, I actually thought there were rear speakers. Oversight on my part.
I do like your setup tommy.

So, maybe replacing the door speakers (they're 6.5" I believe?) with 6.5" alpine type-S speakers 240w, and 1" alpine tweets? I want to keep the stock dash to keep the stock look going, so I was thinking a 500w alpine amp.

Tell me what you guys think.

Thanks for the props. Speakers are a choice that can only be made by you, as far as the amp is concerned, I think its way to much power. 80watts x 2 is more than enough.