Stock Speakers Better Than Kicker??

I recently got a full soundsystem intalled in my 2001 Ford Taurus. This includes: a pioneer headunit, a Kickerr 1000-watt amp, two 10" 4-ohm Alpine Type R subs, and (recently) 6x8 coaxial Kicker speakers.

After installing the speakers, I noticed something odd....they seem to sound WORSE than my stock speakers. My stock speakers, pushed by the new headunit, sounded pretty good...but I figured the Kicker would only get better. Sure, they get loud, but there is ZERO bass and the highs are almost harsh. Should I just put the old ones back in? It'd be a pain to do, but it sounded so much better before.

They need to be amped. Your stockies were getting pushed good these are not

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Originally Posted by HazeGrey75

They need to be amped. Your stockies were getting pushed good these are not

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This

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Originally Posted by HazeGrey75

They need to be amped. Your stockies were getting pushed good these are not

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This

I had the same trouble when I ordered my speakers. I threw them in and was powering them off headunit power. They were crackling and popping at levels just above normal listening levels. Got them amped up now I can put em soo loud you cant even stand it but they still sound crystal clear!

yes sir, getting an amp will solve all of your problems.

got a two channel amp for 100 shipped if your interested. pm me

I'm not surprised you like the OEM Ford speakers better than the Kicker stuff. OEM speakers, really, are not that bad and most will sound better than bargain-basement aftermarket co-ax speakers. Your Kicker co-ax's are going to sound rather bright and harsh as the tweeter is a cheap plastic and the mid is reproducing the same frequencies. A paper OEM speaker w/a whizzer cone will have a smoother high end rolloff and that's the immediate difference you're hearing. Just b/c the Kicker speaker is aftermarket and looks like it's made better, that doesn't mean it is better. Factory speakers, like all the equipment in a vehicle, is designed to last as long as the warranty period and be pleasing to most people. Kicker speakers are just whatever they puke out of a Chinese built-house. If you don't like the way they sound now, amplification will just make things louder, not better.

As far as bass goes, make sure all the speakers are in-phase with each other. The clip side is negative in Fords. I'd also RTFM and make sure you unknowingly switched on some x-over or EQ setting.

There's nothing worse than a cheap co-ax speaker...unless it's a cheap 3-way co-ax. I'll take a whizzer coned OEM speaker over a cheapie aftermarket speaker set any day.

You get what you pay for IMO. Throwing in a set of coax speakers by itself isn't going to make much difference. If you want to feel the difference, get nicer components and run lots of power to them. I have replaced factory's with Pioneer A-series in my Taurus a while ago and also wasn't impressed. Later, I switch to Alpine Type-R components with tweeters mounted in sails, sending over 100watts RMS power to each side, and doors were treated with a layer of dynamat and dynaliner. Now, it's night and day difference.

I did this same thing when i initially decided to upgrade my highs. Threw some Kicker DS in the doors and.....they sucked.....amped and they sucked a little less

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Originally Posted by BnGRacing

I'm not surprised you like the OEM Ford speakers better than the Kicker stuff. OEM speakers, really, are not that bad and most will sound better than bargain-basement aftermarket co-ax speakers. Your Kicker co-ax's are going to sound rather bright and harsh as the tweeter is a cheap plastic and the mid is reproducing the same frequencies. A paper OEM speaker w/a whizzer cone will have a smoother high end rolloff and that's the immediate difference you're hearing. Just b/c the Kicker speaker is aftermarket and looks like it's made better, that doesn't mean it is better. Factory speakers, like all the equipment in a vehicle, is designed to last as long as the warranty period and be pleasing to most people. Kicker speakers are just whatever they puke out of a Chinese built-house. If you don't like the way they sound now, amplification will just make things louder, not better.

As far as bass goes, make sure all the speakers are in-phase with each other. The clip side is negative in Fords. I'd also RTFM and make sure you unknowingly switched on some x-over or EQ setting.

There's nothing worse than a cheap co-ax speaker...unless it's a cheap 3-way co-ax. I'll take a whizzer coned OEM speaker over a cheapie aftermarket speaker set any day.

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Agreed on all counts

The lack of bass is installation. You have gaps between your speaker and the door panel, the factory speak did not. Those gaps cancel bass. Bass comes from airtight seals.

HU power just doesn't cut it like the other posters have said.

Boston makes the S-series that are designed to run on 35RMS or less, but that's about the only decent quality speaker I've seen that's designed to run on really low power.

Dbl post fail...

Kicker speakers are harsh.

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Originally Posted by Buck

SOME Kicker speakers are harsh.

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fixed :)