Will I be happy with 5x7/6x8s?

[Fi-brations 10+ year member]

I just got my new wheels, 03' Explorer. 6x8s front and rear, and obviously I would like to upgrade them. I had a set of pioneer ts-d1320c in my last car with an alpine mrp-f300, still have the alpine btw. Will I be happy with getting a nice set of 6x8s? I liked the sound of just running fronts, so i dont know if i should even run the rears either, which would help my budget. What would yall recommend me doing? Thanks

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[Fi-brations 10+ year member]

Anybody? I didn't think this was such a difficult question. Either I'll be happy with a nice set, that only a few companies seem to offer, or maybe ill try to create an mdf baffle for some 6 1/2" coaxials. I know @keep_hope_alive makes tweeter pods, but that seems a bit overkill for a non sq-competion setup

 

[sbelew 10+ year member]

I have a '99 F-150, with the same speaker setup as you have. I started out with a set of Boston SL80 plate speakers in the front doors. They sound great, and fit perfect. I was happy with these but then decided I wanted to upgrade. I relocated the Bostons to the rear doors (I have them faded out though now) and installed a set of 6.5" 2 way components in the front doors. So bottom line, with a good set of 5x7/6x8 in the doors, you are going to be happy. Later on down the road you can always upgrade if you choose to.

 

[Fi-brations 10+ year member]

That's cool, did you just make some baffles to adapt to the 6 1/2"s? Honestly I'll probably go with that instead since my friend and i can make some. I've just never had oval stock speakers before

 

[sbelew 10+ year member]

Yea, just home made some adapter plates and screwed them to the door then screwed the 6.5" to the adapter. I had to use 1/4" mdf for the adapters though because there was very little clearance between the door and the door panel. Take a look at the Bostons first so you can see what the design is. They are like components mounted into a 6x8 plate. Crutchfield still has some Boston SR80's available, which are the replacement to my SL 80

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

I wouldn't hesitate to put a 6.5" component set in the vehicle. The adapter plate is fairly easy to make. If you use wood it needs to be waterproof. Weatherstripping foams are your friend here. Don't forget to recreate a water channel.

Tweeters can go many places, spheres/pods aren't for competition vehicles, but any vehicle where smooth, accurate highs are desired. In all cases, the time and care put into the installation is what determines the end success of the project.

 

[Fi-brations 10+ year member]

I wouldn't hesitate to put a 6.5" component set in the vehicle. The adapter plate is fairly easy to make. If you use wood it needs to be waterproof. Weatherstripping foams are your friend here. Don't forget to recreate a water channel.
Tweeters can go many places, spheres/pods aren't for competition vehicles, but any vehicle where smooth, accurate highs are desired. In all cases, the time and care put into the installation is what determines the end success of the project.

I will probably try to talk to you about getting some a little while from now, I'm guessing I would have to get the speakers first and maybe do some testing.

Great all of this makes things a lot more simple.

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

Just let me know...

 

[gunz4me2 10+ year member]

I know Image Dynamics used to have some nice sounding 5x7/6x8s that rivaled many 6.5" component sets. I'm not so sure how good they are now under the Powerbass umbrella though.

 

[Louisiana_CRX 5,000+ posts]

I have a set of high end Pioneer REVs that are very awesome 6x8s ...**** Kevlar cones crisp highs and awesome mid bass ....

 

[trumpet 5,000+ posts]

For casual listening I would just get a nice pair of 6x8s and amplify them. Alpine Type R, JBL P8662 coaxials or GTO8608C components, Pioneer TS-D6802R coaxials, etc.

If you have a certain brand in mind that doesn't offer good 6x8s then go with the adapter plate and 6.5" route.

 

[Gary S 10+ year member]

I would recommend making the plates/adapters - then you can go with a component system with a separate midbass and tweet. They typically sound better - the xovers are more sophisticated and you don't get reflections from the back of the tweet in a coax to color the sound.

 

[zako 10+ year member]

This is being asked every other week. There is nothing wrong with the oval design by itself. However, there is a problem with finding good 6x8 component speakers. Most high end vendors simply do not make them. The only supposedly high end 6x8 speakers I have heard about are JL Audio C5-570 and Image Dynamics XS57 (both are actually 5x7, I have no idea if they fit in 6x8 locations). When I needed new speakers for my Ford, both sets were priced around $400. I personally got myself an adapter bracket set from PVC Speaker Adapters - CNC Machined - In Stock or Custom Made and them modded it to fit HAT Imagine i61-2 speakers with 6.5 inch woofers, which I got for $250. These are awesome speakers. For a Ford install, I would get them again or perhaps HAT Claurus.