looking for new speakers

[racrowe]

hey guys, i am looking for two new speakers in my boat and two new tower speakers. i am looking to spend no more than 500 dollars. i am looking at the cheaper wetsounds for 159 a pair, or the exile for 180 a pair. what are your suggestions? also can i buy in boat speakers and put them in my existing tower cans, or do i have to buy special tower speakers? open to other suggestions for speakers also.

[east tx skier]

bump for you. I have Polk DB speakers in the cabin and love them. If you want wetsounds, it may be best to spend the money on those in the tower cans and go a little more reasonable in the cabin.

[Rossterman]

Echo Texas skiers Reccomendation! I updated my clarions to polkDb651s this week and they rock! Unbelievable how much more bass and no distortion even at levels that will make your ears bleed. These are hands down the best deal around and only $60/ pair to boot.

[JRW160]

The exiles sound really good. You may be able to get them a little cheaper if you are ordering more than one pair. You really can't go wrong with wetounds either.

[Hogwild]

I too would like to upgrade my speakers. Are the Polk's TT's consensus favorite for cabin replacements? Also, what amp would you suggest to power these? Lastly, are the slim mounted ones the only way to go for a marine install? Thanks

[etduc]

I too would like to upgrade my speakers. Are the Polk's TT's consensus favorite for cabin replacements? Also, what amp would you suggest to power these? Lastly, are the slim mounted ones the only way to go for a marine install? Thanks

I wouldn't say, consensus. (Kinda like, blondes or brunettes.)

The DB651s (coaxial) offer probably, biggest bang for the buck. You can get them for under $100.00, quite easily. If you have the room, go standard chassis. Slim mounts make trade-offs, especially with coaxials. This is were a good quality clean amp, would help.

I installed Polk MM651um, picked them up on sale.(Would not call these slim, but not super deep.) These have separate voice coils. i.e.- two speakers in one chassis. Extremely clean response, even with a modest amp. I'm still using my Clarion head unit amp, on mine. Groups like: Yes, EmersonLakePalmer, SteeleyDan,Blues/Jazz, classic rock, accoustical are amazing. Absolutely night-day, difference to oem marine speakers.

What are you going to use, the system for. As you can see, mind are used mainly for chillin' in a cove. I'm not the guy going down the lake, with stereo blasting. I have friends, for that.

[mzimme]

Another +1 for the polk DB series. Pricepoint, sound, quality, and aesthetics are all great. Hard speaker to beat when it comes to bang for buck. I used a pair of the 6.5" component's, and a pair of the 5.25" coaxials in my boat.

[Granite_33]

I went with the Infinity Reference 612M's. Installing them this weekend, so I cannot comment on the sound, however I don't think you can go wrong with Polk or Infinity in the cabin. For the Amp I have a JL 6 channel powering both the cabin and the tower. Kenwood Mono for the sub.

[EarmarkMarine]

Certainly the Polk Audio dBs are a major player in the sub-$100 a pair coaxial category. But there is another level above that grade of speaker that makes a huge audible difference, especially when you add an external amplifier. Here is what you get with a Wetsounds or JL Audio marine coaxial as compared to most speaker products in the $100 range:
Rather than an interrupted midbass cone from a tweeter supporting pole piece you get a bridge/grill mounted tweeter and a continuous midbass cone. This results in more surface area and much better midbass performance. 50 percent of all musical fundamentals fall between 200 and 600 Hz and this is the sole domain of the midbass driver.
You might find a 'W'-dome tweeter in a less expensive coaxial with a much higher resonance and a more erratic response. A better speaker will transition to a true dome tweeter that has a much larger VC, lower resonance, is better damped and has a profoundly smoother response that impacts vocals, particularly female vocals.
From a stamped steel basket to a polymer basket.
Oftentimes going from a single pole highpass crossover to a two pole crossover. Steeper slope. More tweeter protection. less overlap. Smoother response.
A synthetic spider versus a linen spider. A linen spider will degrade in several seasons in a marine environment.
Your coaxials reproduce 7 of 8.5 octaves that are easily audible in a boat. This is where all the contrast and clarity comes from. These speakers determine the bass tonal construction and the bass pitch accuracy.
It escapes me why many choose this as the area to compromise. To my ears these are the most important audio components in the boat worthy of the largest investment.

David
Earmark Marine

[racrowe]

Thanks for all the recommendations. I am aware that the Polk DB's are good for the money, but my friend has those in his boat and after one summer of being put in, they have blown already. I am looking for speakers in the tower for surfing mostly

[Hogwild]

Certainly the Polk Audio dBs are a major player in the sub-$100 a pair coaxial category. But there is another level above that grade of speaker that makes a huge audible difference, especially when you add an external amplifier. Here is what you get with a Wetsounds or JL Audio marine coaxial as compared to most speaker products in the $100 range:
Rather than an interrupted midbass cone from a tweeter supporting pole piece you get a bridge/grill mounted tweeter and a continuous midbass cone. This results in more surface area and much better midbass performance. 50 percent of all musical fundamentals fall between 200 and 600 Hz and this is the sole domain of the midbass driver.
You might find a 'W'-dome tweeter in a less expensive coaxial with a much higher resonance and a more erratic response. A better speaker will transition to a true dome tweeter that has a much larger VC, lower resonance, is better damped and has a profoundly smoother response that impacts vocals, particularly female vocals.
From a stamped steel basket to a polymer basket.
Oftentimes going from a single pole highpass crossover to a two pole crossover. Steeper slope. More tweeter protection. less overlap. Smoother response.
A synthetic spider versus a linen spider. A linen spider will degrade in several seasons in a marine environment.
Your coaxials reproduce 7 of 8.5 octaves that are easily audible in a boat. This is where all the contrast and clarity comes from. These speakers determine the bass tonal construction and the bass pitch accuracy.
It escapes me why many choose this as the area to compromise. To my ears these are the most important audio components in the boat worthy of the largest investment.

David
Earmark Marine

So what do you like for cabin speakers Dave? I'm going to be mainly listening to music in a cove like a previous poster does and don't need anything the other side of the lake can hear. However, I do like a crisp, clear sound. My music tastes vary to just about everything but classical.

[EarmarkMarine]

Hogwild,
I like both the JL Audio and Wetsounds coaxials. Both have the best midbass by far.
The JL Audio has a coated silk soft dome tweeter that is very detailed while very smooth. And, a linear response is essential for a good image. Personally, I am a fan of the Euro style tweeters from Vifa, Seas, Audax, etc. and JL Audio absolutely subscribes to this sound. Many like the Wetsounds titanium hard dome tweeter because it is a bit more aggressive and that little extra emphasis makes everything sound a little more distinctive. And, I like the Wetsounds XS-650 too because it is not over-bearing in this respect. But, there are many others coaxials that are soooo bright that they ruin the musical balance and make vocals strident. In fact, I have to wonder if the designers of many coaxials have suffered severe hearing damage because they make their speakers so bright. Or, maybe they just want to stand out as the brightest speakers in the soundboard. While it may get your attention out of gate this type of speaker quickly fatiques me.
That is what I hear. I listen with a more analytical ear than most. Sound is subjective according to the health of your hearing, what you are accustom to and your past influences. Not everyone is going to agree with what sounds best.

David
Earmark Marine

[racrowe]

Also, why to the companies mean when they say the speakers are a component style coaxial speaker?

[mzimme]

Component separates the tweeter from the midbass driver whereas a coaxial will have the tweeter in the middle of the midbass driver (generally).


Component - Separate tweeter and midbass drivers:





Coaxial - "all-in-one" so to speak:

[ddummitt]

I'm replacing the speakers in my 02 xstar and I'm leaning toward the Polk DB's. Is there an appreciable performance difference between the 651 coaxials in the $60 range and the 6501 components in the $120 range. I am generally content with factory car audio so the expense of high performance is normally a waste on me.

Can I get some thoughts on my needs?

I'll be replacing the tower speakers also. I'll probably go with the same speakers in the cabin and the tower. unless there is a compelling reason to go with something else in the same price range. Wetsounds and the like would be under utilized in my boat.