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Efficient speakers

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Audio and Electronics' started by Jmad1138, Nov 14, 2006.

  1. Jmad1138

    Jmad1138 New Member

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    any suggestions on upgrade speakers that can run off HU. I have the 2006 regular sound system. trying to avoid putting in an amp. Has anyone run the Focal entry level speakers off the HU. Would like to get a step up from the infinity's, although many here say they are great.
    Thank you
     
  2. keydiver

    keydiver New Member

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    The one main reason I got the Infinitys was because of their efficiency rating. The stock unit has no problem driving them. I'm sure any speaker system you install would work just as well, as long as you compare the efficiency/sensitivity/SPL.
     
  3. GeoGeek

    GeoGeek Member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(keydiver @ Nov 14 2006, 02:17 PM) [snapback]348882[/snapback]</div>
    From personal experience I can recommend:
    1.) Diamond Audio
    2.) MB Quart
    3.) Boston Accoustics
    4.) Oz Audio
    5.) Image Dynamics

    From favorable reviews by others:
    1.) CDT
    2.) SEAS (Lotus)
    3.) JL Audio
    4.) Dyne Audio

    I did 5.25" components up front, which are a little more efficient than the 6.5's, but I'm also using an amp.
    If the sound is important enough to you to spend "Focal" kind of $$$, then you might want to keep an open
    mind about adding an amp....it doesn't have to be an elaborate deal.
    Good Luck
     
  4. priusenvy

    priusenvy Senior Member

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    In the Infinity line, the Kappa component speakers (60.7cs) are more efficient than the Reference component speakers (6010cs). They are low-impedence though, so they might be a difficult load for the stock stereo.

    Personally, I'd rather spend $150 on speakers and $150 on an amp, rather than $300 on speakers and have no amp.
     
  5. Presto

    Presto Has his homepage set to PC

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    +1 for the Kappas.

    They are a definite improvement over stock, and they work decent without an amp. Get an amp, though. You cannot/will not regret it!
     
  6. silentak1

    silentak1 Since 2005

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    Another for the Kappas eventhough they could use a little bit of more base (they still offer far more than the cheap plastic speakers).

    I have the Infinity Kappa 62.7i all-around with stock tweaters, no amp though...
     
  7. Jmad1138

    Jmad1138 New Member

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    Thanks for the input everyone.
     
  8. MarkRoberts

    MarkRoberts New Member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(priusenvy @ Nov 14 2006, 07:51 PM) [snapback]349199[/snapback]</div>
    I just bought a pair of the Infinity 60.7cs component speakers. I'll be installing them on Friday (I hope).
    Finding a place for the crossover may be interesting. Fortunately the crossover consists only of a filter for the tweeter - they let the mid-bass run full range. (I opened up the case and diagrammed the circuit.) It's pretty simple; just a 12 dB per octave high pass filter with a switch that bypasses one of the resistors to give a hotter treble response and a small component (MOV, perhaps) that's supposed to protect the tweeter from being overdriven.

    I'm going to try removing the crossover components from the circuit board and soldering them together into a smaller unit.
     
  9. MarkRoberts

    MarkRoberts New Member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Mark Roberts @ Nov 29 2006, 08:37 PM) [snapback]355490[/snapback]</div>
    Got the speakers installed today. It wasn't too bad at all. I ended up removing all the components from the crossover circuit board and soldering them together in a bundle which I installed in the pillars, right behind the tweeters. Very easy to do once I decided to do it that way.

    I also put a pair of Infinity 6012i Reference Series speakers in the rear doors.

    The 60.7cs Kappas in the front are definitely much more efficient than the stock speakers and naturally sound vastly better. The 6012i's are just about as big an improvement in sound quality (though it's difficult to tell from the front seat... which is why I got cheaper speakers for the rear doors!). They seem to be about the same efficiency as the stock speakers.
     
  10. Manny07

    Manny07 New Member

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    I had 2 sets of kappas in my last car and I powered them at first with a 25x4 @2 ohm amp and they sounded sad, after i purchased an infinity amp and put 80w rms and they came alive. How much power does the stock hu put out? I am considering these speakers for the front doors but I dont want to run into the same problem because they're underpowered.

    Any experience with Alpine 6.5" type S components? Lots of positive reviews and low rms.

    Thanks
     
  11. a911driver

    a911driver New Member

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    I just put in Infinity Reference 6.5" in all four doors. I had Kappas on order, however, they were to be shipped late (post-install date) and I hastily changed to References from Best Buy. They should good enough, but a significant improvement over non-JBL stock. I suppose an AMP will help. I also had dynamat extreme installed in each of the doors which is quite expensive - more so than I imagined. It seems to lower road noise.