My Kappas sound AWFUL

[WhoSayWho? 5,000+ posts]

Just for clarification, when you say "upper highs" do you mean the highest frequencies of the mids? I thought that was what you meant because you said just before the crossover.

 

[endofdays89 5,000+ posts]

like i said, mess with your mids and lows and see if you can balance it somehow.

 

[williambrea 10+ year member]

I have a pair of Kappa 6.5s running off of a sundown 100.4. To me they sound good and can be loud but htye do lack the midbass like others have said. But I didn't want them for the midbass. i wanted them for how clear and loud they can get. On the other hand I do have a set of cdt cl-62s and they sound great off of the sundown amp. SO maybe play around with your setting or something.

X2 they are great for playing vocals and everything, they can cut through my DD bass and allow me to hear vocals. But the midbass is a little weak, but i only have 4inch kappas. But midbass dosent matter when your slammin gucci //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/biggrin.gif.d71a5d36fcbab170f2364c9f2e3946cb.gif

 

[Yourgrandma 10+ year member]

Just for clarification, when you say "upper highs" do you mean the highest frequencies of the mids? I thought that was what you meant because you said just before the crossover.

I meant upper mids, just before the tweeters take over. They just aren't articulate. I suppose a little reading would have been good prior to taking the time to put these things in. I'm still going to try to shore up the door panels and get the filters set better, but from what I'm hearing, Kappas arent a very good sounding model. Too bad Ultimate sucks, I would like to keep my $250 credit towards speakers rather than trying to sell the kappas for $6.50 on craigs list.

 

[WhoSayWho? 5,000+ posts]

Still, I can't imagine them typically sounding as bad as your's sound. Most of the critisicism I hear is about the tweets being harsh.

I just wonder if this does not have more to do with the way they are mounted, which you indicated was less than ideal.

 

[BigMoneyTT 10+ year member]

I have a set of Kappa 6x8's and I actually think they sound great... but I only paid $55 for the pair so I guess my frame of reference is a little different. I have used them in a number of different configurations, from just head unit power, to a cheap Volfenhag amp, and 300 watts a piece off a big Kicker stereo amp, and now I'm running them active off a 4 channel putting out 200 watts rms to each tweeter and each mid. They have taken the power great, and I tend to keep them cranked. I will agree that there is definitely room for improvement on the midbass.

 

[eykang 10+ year member]

post some pics of how the frontstage is installed.

what speakers have you used in the past before? maybe you are just used to better sounding speakers. i've heard these and did not like them as well.

 

[LaserRed38 10+ year member]

Honestly, I'm impressed that you are trying to stick with the set-up you have and see if you can get them to sound better, even IF they are Infinity speakers. I've never been a fan of any of their speaker lines, that I have heard...

But I have to hand it to you for trying out different things, rather than just swapping out equipment right off the bat.

 

[eykang 10+ year member]

After reading your first post again I think the main problem is how the mids are mounted. having the mid mounted to the inner door panel is probably making things sound terrible. is there no way you can just create an mdf spacer and bolt it into the steel in the door? if not try adding lots of clay and trying to make the door panel heavier. i'm sure that thing is vibrating like crazy and making all sorts of strange things happen.

 

[jmanpc 5,000+ posts]

Your Kappas sound horrible? Maybe because that's just what they do. Sound horrible. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/fyi.gif.9f1f679348da7204ce960cfc74bca8e0.gif

 

[Yourgrandma 10+ year member]

post some pics of how the frontstage is installed.
what speakers have you used in the past before? maybe you are just used to better sounding speakers. i've heard these and did not like them as well.

Yes, I am spoiled. However my biggest philosophy with audoio has always been that if the speakers are surrounded by a crappy sounding environment (in this case in a far less than ideal enclosure), they'll never perform up to their potential. My home system may not be the most expensive, but I think I make the most of my Definitive PT400s wit proper placement, room treatments and attention to setup. I also enjoy listening to rather high end setups. B&W Nautalis 802d is my favorite speaker to listen to in case you're interested. I've also auditioned Wilson MAXX ans WATT/PUPPY's, and most of the top models of the more well known brands (Martin Logan Summits, Klipchorns, ect)

So perhaps I am jaded, so what should the next step be? Should I rip them out and give them to charity or should I try to make the most of them for the time being. At least if I get these to sound decent, when I get respectable speakers they'll sound much better.

Are there any threads about people solving door panel problems? I dont think I'll be able to actually mount them to the doors, but I can at least move the drivers closer to the grill, eliminating the horn effect of the recess. That would also give me room to isolate the driver with a fiberglass rear baffle. This would also stiffen and add weight to the door panel. The last resort would be kick panels. I doubt theres enough room for them to fit nicely, but it's probably doable.

Basically, I want to give these piles as best a chance as theyre ever going to get.

I'm not sure if any of my ideas have been tried, but I'd like to see what others have done.

Thanks for the input...

 

[Mynameismcgyver 10+ year member]

Just going to throw this out there....Are the speakers in correct phase? I had a set of Inifinity Reference's along time ago. Mixed up the wiring when I set up the tweeters and IIRC having the same problem you were.

Check then double check! Best principle invented!

 

[cichlid_baby 10+ year member]

I meant upper mids, just before the tweeters take over. They just aren't articulate. I suppose a little reading would have been good prior to taking the time to put these things in. I'm still going to try to shore up the door panels and get the filters set better, but from what I'm hearing, Kappas arent a very good sounding model. Too bad Ultimate sucks, I would like to keep my $250 credit towards speakers rather than trying to sell the kappas for $6.50 on craigs list.

Man.. I was just eyeing a complete front and rear set of Kappas for my Tahoe from Ultimate Electronics myself. I noticed the larger tweets sounded very bright, almost harsh in the soundroom but I thought that was normal and expected in a high end set of tweeters.

I did notice the lack of midrange punch from the mid bass drivers but thought that it could be compensated with using three 10s in a sealed box.

Am I off on this kind of thinking?

Should I stay away from these Kappas, and go for the Type R's in all corners??

 

[Yourgrandma 10+ year member]

I listened to the r's at ultimate. They were hooked up out of phase, but after I had them fix that, they still sounded pretty lame. I think most of the big name car audio stuff is geared towards today's ever increasing crop of deaf iPod kids that couldnt tell an accurate speaker from a car alarm siren.

Bright? Yes, very. Sensitive? Yep, hook them up to your 1000wpc amp and enjoy the blood stains on your shoulders.

I get the impression that one must stay far away from the national brands if they want anything that resembles good sound. I havent shopped much for car speakers, but you can bet I havent been impressed.

So when my efforts to make these krappas sound good fail, what should I be looking at? Are ther any brands that are well known in mobile audio as being accurate?

 

[Yourgrandma 10+ year member]

Just going to throw this out there....Are the speakers in correct phase? I had a set of Inifinity Reference's along time ago. Mixed up the wiring when I set up the tweeters and IIRC having the same problem you were.
Check then double check! Best principle invented!

Theyre right. Out of phase is an easy one to hear, this isn't so simple. They also sound like crap individually, phase issues would only be present with both running.