Found 6.5 speakers that fit door without mods - Page 2 - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

jeeper31 · 08-07-2014, 12:11 PM

Could be. Really haven 't looked into it yet. Do you get a lot if sound out if your doors or is it minimal?

Burg Boxster · 08-07-2014, 12:52 PM

door drivers are "woofers" only in a special "tuned port". There is a crossover (do not know what the cut-off is, sorry) built into factory amp.

In any event, doors are driven by amp combining the low level signals of front and rear channel inputs from head unit. Fade should be set in middle (even if no rear speakers) to get "most" out of them.

You'll understand all the " " when you replace them along w/ the dash speakers w/ something a bit more substantial, responsive, and w/ better range.

Good luck

jeeper31 · 08-07-2014, 12:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Burg Boxster

door drivers are "woofers" only in a special "tuned port". There is a crossover (do not know what the cut-off is, sorry) built into factory amp.

In any event, doors are driven by amp combining the low level signals of front and rear channel inputs from head unit. Fade should be set in middle (even if no rear speakers) to get "most" out of them.

You'll understand all the " " when you replace them along w/ the dash speakers w/ something a bit more substantial, responsive, and w/ better range.

Good luck

Thanks for the respond.

So if I change just the door speakers for now will I notice a difference? I thinking of the pioneers that bolt right in. Also what difference will I hear if I change the head unit as well?

Thanks again

epapp · 08-07-2014, 01:29 PM

The pioneers DO mount to the bass reflex port with the 5 1/4 holes.

However the sound on a stock setup will suffer. The 6.5 speakers with the tuned bass reflex housing completely drops out the low end (the enclosure is no longer sealed/tuned), and because it doesnt seal perfectly to the enclosure like the 5.25 speakers, you get all sorts of weird air sounds when playing music. I also tried sealing the lip of the 6.5 to the 5.25 opening and the air no longer escaped, but the enclosure still completely screws up the sound(no low end, hardly any mid). I don't know how the OP had good results, unless he didnt have bass reflex housings and also paired the speakers with a 4ohm HU.

All of this is in addition to halved output power if you stick with stock amp and HU. Plus, the linked pioneers are coax, which if you want higher range in the doors is great, but if you want mid/sub woofers in the doors, dont get them.

jeeper31 · 08-07-2014, 01:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by epapp

The pioneers DO mount to the bass reflex port with the 5 1/4 holes.

However the sound on a stock setup will suffer. The 6.5 speakers with the tuned bass reflex housing completely drops out the low end (the enclosure is no longer sealed/tuned), and because it doesnt seal perfectly to the enclosure like the 5.25 speakers, you get all sorts of weird air sounds when playing music. I also tried sealing the lip of the 6.5 to the 5.25 opening and the air no longer escaped, but the enclosure still completely screws up the sound(no low end, hardly any mid). I don't know how the OP had good results, unless he didnt have bass reflex housings and also paired the speakers with a 4ohm HU.

All of this is in addition to halved output power if you stick with stock amp and HU. Plus, the linked pioneers are coax, which if you want higher range in the doors is great, but if you want mid/sub woofers in the doors, dont get them.

Great advice. Thanks

So if I leave the speakers and amp and just get a head unit will my sound improve?

Also you're saying if I change the speakers in the door, even after the head unit the sound will lack mid and bass unless I find a better way to mount/seal them?

Burg Boxster · 08-07-2014, 01:49 PM

Yes and no...

If you change them out, you will notice a nice difference if you go w/ the right set-up / drivers to optimize the 40W peak power they get.

Simply put though... you really don't want anything that will bolt right into the tuned ports. Why? Simple physics. The tuned ports drivers are 5.25". Good luck finding any driver w/ a decent low freq range (let alone one that doesn't require gobs of power) in that size. Instead, you need to move up to 6.5-6.75 or 6x9" drivers and make a baffle to replace the tuned port.

So, change the drivers (all of them) and leave room for expansion later if desired (in amp and head unit). There are lots of DIYs here and the Boxster wiki (including a baffle template). Just do a search and you will find plenty.

Good luck

jeeper31 · 08-07-2014, 02:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Burg Boxster

Yes and no...

If you change them out, you will notice a nice difference if you go w/ the right set-up / drivers to optimize the 40W peak power they get.

Simply put though... you really don't want anything that will bolt right into the tuned ports. Why? Simple physics. The tuned ports drivers are 5.25". Good luck finding any driver w/ a decent low freq range (let alone one that doesn't require gobs of power) in that size. Instead, you need to move up to 6.5-6.75 or 6x9" drivers and make a baffle to replace the tuned port.

So, change the drivers (all of them) and leave room for expansion later if desired (in amp and head unit). There are lots of DIYs here and the Boxster wiki (including a baffle template). Just do a search and you will find plenty.

Good luck

Changing the drivers is probably the right way to go initially but the more expensive way. Just got the car and needed up do some suspension work and some other repairs. Was thinking of just doing head unit now. Would that be of any benefit?

chipmunk · 08-07-2014, 03:02 PM

In my experience, once you start you need to do the lot. I tried just replacing the HU and it sounded terrible - worse than std. Ended up replacing the HU and all speakers - also added a small sub behind the passenger seat. Sound is pretty good now with good base. All the info you need is contained in forum postings.

jeeper31 · 08-07-2014, 03:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chipmunk

In my experience, once you start you need to do the lot. I tried just replacing the HU and it sounded terrible - worse than std. Ended up replacing the HU and all speakers - also added a small sub behind the passenger seat. Sound is pretty good now with good base. All the info you need is contained in forum postings.

I know what I have to do but trying to avoid it. Lol. I m afraid to mess with the dash speakers. I can install the HU myself and can probably change the Amp but I am hesitant to start messing with the dash speakers. I am not that creative/artistic/handy.

epapp · 08-07-2014, 03:17 PM

It seems hard to compete with a properly tuned enclosure even at 5.25".

A 7" proper mid range woofer with no enclosure in the door will sound like poopoo, not to mention half of your sound will go backwards into the door...

Pdwight · 08-07-2014, 07:03 PM

The dash speakers are a breeze

chipmunk · 08-07-2014, 11:49 PM

Dash speakers are easy. There is a post on how to use your old speakers as the mount for the new speakers. It works really well and you get a good sound improvement with better quality speakers. Speakers behind your head also help to provide better distribution of sound although I found that with a std 4 channel head units that you have to couple them to either the door or dash speakers and their volume then becomes too low to be really effective. I'm still looking for a control I can put in to balance the volume.