Hey guys,

Just wondering if replacing the 6x9's in the rear parcel shelf with better speakers without amping them will make any difference? I'm pretty happy with the standard sound system as it is although I would like just a touch more bass and clarity from the rear 6x9's

Cheers!

Mikey

Rear speakers generally vent into the boot space and sound waves from the two are free to interfere with each other. Unless you box them in individually somehow you won't get any improvement in clarity and bass no matter what speakers you put in there.

just my 2c worth. I could be wrong though . . . . .

Rear speakers generally vent into the boot space and sound waves from the two are free to interfere with each other. Unless you box them in individually somehow you won't get any improvement in clarity and bass no matter what speakers you put in there.

just my 2c worth. I could be wrong though . . . . .

What a load of BS

I have on many occasions replaced the standard cheap OEM speakers with good quality aftermarket speakers and ahve great improvements even when using a std head unit. Replace the HU as well then you will make massive differences. Not as good as amped system but none the less you WILL notice the difference

380 do have a reasonable set up out of the box but however given that I have an audio installer sitting next to me right now and he has not stopped laughing since reading this I think I am on the right track lol

I repeat:

"just my 2c worth. I could be wrong though . . . . ." lol

Haha, thanks for the input guys. I don't really want to spend a fortune on speakers.....what are some good bang for your buck brands?

pioneer and alpine are very good from my experience,i have a complete pioneer system in my TL VRX and cant fault it.

Mikey have you upgraded the front speakers at all?

If you can find some cheap Digital Design speakers, or I've had good results with Fusion before, but at the end of the day in entry level they all do a similar job.

The factory speakers in the rear of the 380 are a dual cone 6x9. This means they are a full range speaker (one speaker to do highs, lows and mid range). Replace these with anything with a tweeter and you will already be miles in front :-) Installing them is very easy and there should be more info if you search it.

The front speakers in the upgraded stereo (with the LCD in the dash and 6 stacker) are very very good for factory speakers. They are a dual cone in the door, 3 inch mid range in the dash with a tweeter on top. They provide a very balanced sound stage and can be connected to an amp up to 50 watts RMS in high pass.

I would replace the rear speakers with a 2 way 6x9 from pioneer or what ever sounds good to you.

I have upgraded my stereo and would be happy to answer any questions :-)

Just take a bit of caution replacing the rear speakers, not every 6*9 speaker will fit without making the hole a little bigger ( done by rolling out the edges with some tape covered pliers). So, if you go speaker shopping, pull out your 6x9 as an example in size... Even the entry pioneer does not fit easily..

The alternative and cheapest way to improve bass would be to sound deaden the parcel shelf using the original speakers
And, if you upgraded that, with the sound deadening in place, the bass will improve once again...

While the top end 380's got a mid and a tweeter in the dash, others got just a tweet and a driver in the door.... I'm not sure which got the premium speakers.. GT and LS did, not sure on the VRX and SX.. DB and ES did not...

One thing you do need to be careful of if not using an amp is making sure you get speakers that are of the right power. Head unit RMS is typically 22.5 for most - some even lower. Pioneer usually make some decent 6x9's that run well of factory head units. I would stay away from Sony - they're products are pretty poor. You can pick up a cheap amp from jaycar that will do the trick (around $100) for a 2x80w rms amp.

HOWEVER if you listen to low volume music, almost any speaker will be fine but if you pump it up, a cheap amp will do the trick!

One thing you do need to be careful of if not using an amp is making sure you get speakers that are of the right power. Head unit RMS is typically 22.5 for most - some even lower. Pioneer usually make some decent 6x9's that run well of factory head units. I would stay away from Sony - they're products are pretty poor. You can pick up a cheap amp from jaycar that will do the trick (around $100) for a 2x80w rms amp.

HOWEVER if you listen to low volume music, almost any speaker will be fine but if you pump it up, a cheap amp will do the trick!

If not runnin them through an amp, sensitivity is far more important than outright power.

You want a sensitivity rating of at least 92db

If not runnin them through an amp, sensitivity is far more important than outright power.

You want a sensitivity rating of at least 92db

Totally agree. I found Pioneer 2 ways really bright and lively off the OEM deck but too bright and squawky when ran off an amp. I now run some Alpines.

I dont rate pioneer at all. I found them to be worse than the stock speakers so i dumped them for some JBL's