speakers suggestions (noob alert)
 

Hi all


So yesterday I installed the full system offered by wickd sounds

http://www.the370z.com/parts-sale-pr...-w-jl-sub.html

I'm pretty happy with it but I was told I need more high end sounds. Like putting speakers at the front, right under the windshield. I am a complete noob when it comes to audio, so could you guys have me pick something to be put there?

Thanks
Alex

Where did you install the tweeters that comes with the system?

Also, make sure you don't have your high pass filter on the channels you're using for the components.

the tweeters were installed on the door panel, above the door speakers

Ouch. You are gaining no benefit and doing your soundstage no favors by having the tweeters where they're at...if possible you should relocate your tweeters to the dash. Did you modify your door panel in order to mount the tweeters? i.e. is there going to be unsightly holes in your door panels if you relocate the tweeters?

The stock locations are the plastic grills in the corners of your dash. They can be easily removed by prying them up...if you don't have a clip removing tool you can use a small flathead screwdriver but try to be gentle to avoid chewing up your plastics. Personally I wrap the tips of screwdrivers in electrical tape if I need to do this when I'm not at home with my tools. Underneath the grills you will find your stock tweeters. They are secured to a small square plate held by 4 screws. You should be able to reuse the plates to mount your new tweeters by removing the factory tweeters, though you might want to make your own or have someone else fab you a pair in case you ever want to revert to stock. Don't try to utilize the existing factory speaker wires....run fresh speaker wires to wherever you installed your crossovers.

Hope this helps a bit. Good luck!

thank you so much for your reply, the door panel was modified for the tweeters, meaning the shop drilled holes on it, i trusted them for what they do, i guess they still failed. now the question is, is there something else i can do? like putting something on the dash grills? smaller speakers than the mid?

That kinda sucks. Whoever mounted them in your doors is an idiot. Don't go back to them whatever you do.

If the door panels are cut, I'd suggest just leaving the tweeters where they are and picking up another set to go in the dash. Something similar to this would work. It doesn't have to be that model but I'd stick with JL Audio to keep everything at least close to acoustically matched.

They should of been installed in the factory locations at LEAST. Tweeters in the location they placed show very little benefit with the leg room you have in the Z.

No problem. I wish I had better answers for you.

You could go this route. It generally breaks down to 3 realistic options here, none of which is what I would consider ideal.

1. Purchase new tweeters and leave the existing ones where they are. The existing ones won't be hooked up so they won't be hurting anything where they are. I'm guessing that you're not running an active setup so going with replacement JL tweeters is probably the safest bet.

2. Relocate the tweeters from your doors and source new door panels. I don't think I need to stress the expense that this would incur.

3. Leave everything as is and live with it. When you listen to your stereo are you satisfied with the sound? Despite what myself or anyone else tells you at the end of the day you paid for it so your happiness is the only thing that matters here. If you're satisfied with the way it sounds then does it really matter otherwise?

No matter what you do, I wouldn't let anyone else from that shop anywhere near your car under any circumstances. No serious professional would have done this. To call it amateurish is being exceptionally polite.

Calling the install guy an idiot is a little harsh, I think. Unless the OP specifically asked to have them mounted farther than recommended from the mids. Without a processor, mounting them closer to the mids eliminates the chances of phasing issues, and frequency cancellation problems. I would have mounted them there as well, unless asked to do otherwise. For the average joe, its a perfectly acceptable location. For a serious audiophile, not so much, but an audiophile would also have some sort of processing as well to raise the soundstage........So, that being said, noone asked the OP the question......Are you underpowering your components, and overpowering your sub? (in relation to each other) in essence drowning out your high end? I say this because he stated that he needs more high end, not a higher soundstage.

I would recommend you set the gain on your amp on your components with the sub off, then adjust the subs level to match your mids. I think you'll be satisfied.

With all due respect, car stereo 101 is, get the tweeters as close to the ears as you can. If you had, without even asking, cut a hole in my door panel and completely ignored the fact that there is a stock location for tweeters in the car already, you'd be buying me a new door panel.

When you purchase a set of components that comes with a crossover, you're not going run into phasing issues. That's a pretty lame excuse to start cutting holes in somebody's car.

Again, I'm not trying to start anything here but... if you had actually read OPs first post, there's a link to the EXACT system he has in the car. He's powering the whole thing with a 3 channel amp. He's not under powering the components or over powering the sub.

Someones been reading the wrong book.
Frequency cancellation and phase issues are a product of moving the tweeter too far from the mid. That is a proven fact. Running them on a passive crossover (like the one that comes with the component set) Does Nothing to correct that. Reversing the phase on your tweeters may, to an extent, but nowhere near what can be done with a processor.
I have been installing for over 25 years, and competing in SQ competitions for almost as long. I have seen Literally thousands of competition cars, and many, many, many of them with tweeters below dash level. Some of those were world class competitors. Nowhere in the book you speak of does it say to "put the tweeters as close to your ears as possible". It does, however say to find a location as close to equal distance from your ears as possible. It just so happens that the farther you go down the doors, the closer you come to that point. As an example, look at some of the cars that compete in Iasca or Meca 2 seat.(arguably the toughest class to compete in) Alot of those competitors have the mids and the tweets in the kick panels. (as far away from your ears as you can get in a car) These are guys that know a little about imaging and staging.
Secondly, I asked if the OP was overpowering the sub IN RELATION to the mids, not overpowering it altogether. HUGE difference.
Lastly, I myself have taken my 370 to 4 competitions this year. All 4 of those shows were prior to me adding tweeters to my a pillars (which I only did because I DO run a processor, and can cross them extremely high)
My tweeters were directly above the mids in my doors as well.
2 first place finishes, and 2 second place finishes tells me the Judges didn't think it mattered that the tweets were not "as close to my ears as possible"
..............I'm just sayin'.:tiphat:

Someone hasn't been reading at all.

You obvious don't even know what speaker phasing is. I've been building car stereos since 1985 and still making my living as a engineer for a group of radio stations. Audio has been my life for going on 30 years.

I don't care if you compete or not. Any idiot can pay an entry fee. When I competed, I won. Admittedly, I don't compete any more but basics like speaker placement haven't changed. Having tweeters closer to the ear is ALWAYS going to sound better from inside the car. That's why the stock locations are always near the top of the door or in the dash.

To support my point from above, here's the definition of phasing. Distance between tweeters and woofers has nothing to do with it (unless you have them across a football field from each other).

Re-Read the bottom paragraph of what you just posted.
Phase issues related to the crossover point
"when 2 components are reproducing the same frequencies"
:tup:

I'm out. I have better things to do.