MichaelRex

I just purchased my RX300 two days ago (and I love it!!) It has the standard audio system, with the CD changer. It sounds great, but I know it would benefit greatly by installing new speakers. I read the audio Q&A on this site, but I still have some questions.

1. What size are the mids on the doors and the tweeters on the dash?

2. Where is the sub located, and what is it powered by?

3. Does the existing head unit have the amp built-in, or is it seperate? If it is built-in, does the head unit have pre-outs?

4. What should I replace the mids and the tweeters with? Sound quality is my major concern. I'm not planning on replacing the sub just yet. I only want to replace the mids and the tweeters.

Thanks in advance!

-Michael

sleepybobcat

I was told the front door speakers are 6.5-inch.

The subwoofer is under the front passenger seat.
Look under it and you'll see a black plastic enclosure.

The system is powered by a single amplifier. According
to the Lexus diagram, it is located in the trunk area
near the DC socket.

No, there are no pre-outs.

Congratulations on the purchase of your RX300!
Is it a FWD or 4WD?

Bob

MichaelRex

I got the 2WD = ) Do you know how big the tweeters are? They look to be about 1" to me. Right now I am looking at:

(4) MB Quart QWC 160 6.5" Midrange Drivers
(2) QTC 25 1" Tweeters

How do you think that will sound with the stock amp?

Also, do I need to buy crossovers, or does the system already have that taken care of?

Thanks again!

-Michael

sleepybobcat

I've listened to those MB Quart 6.5" speakers
at my local shop. They come with crossovers in
a package.. They offered to put in the speakers
and if I don't like 'em, they'll put the original speakers
back in. All I'll be responsible is the one-hour labor
@ $70. They sound pretty decent in the showroom.

The factory tweeter location probably won't be enogh
for the new tweeters. Some kind of new mount will
have to be fabricated.

Most members here recommend DynaAudio speakers.
Unfortunatelly they have no dealer near me. However,
I'm going to the NY Autoshow next week. There are a
few installers there with DynaAudio speakers. If they
sound as good as what I've been told, I may end up
getting them.

By the way, what kind of fuel mileage are you getting
with your 2WD model? My '01 RX300 is a 4WD and I've
been getting 17mph(highway only) and 11(city)...

Bob

MichaelRex

I average about 20.7 MPG I think. I use premium gas by the way.

Do you know the specs on the stock amp? How many channels is it? How many watts does it output per channel?

I think I asked this in my previous post, but is there any kind of crossover in the system already?

I think the MB Quart tweeters will fit in the stock tweeter locations. An earlier message thread said that the DynAudio's wouldn't fit, but that is because they are 28mm where the MB Quart's are exactly 25mm (which is 1").

Thanks again!

-Michael

LexRX

I have a FWD RX and am getting a steady 20.5 mpg with mixed highway and city driving.

Percy

Michael,

You'll lose LOTS of midbass with the MBQ setup. I should know since I've had LOTS of them. (HX25 1", 130.03, 100.03, 218.03 (2 sets), 160.03) They're a PAIN to tune out and in small enclosures (RX3's included) they'll have too much 1khz which will make everything sound nasal. 30 band graphic eq's will help, but only so much. I had a dual 6 band parametric setup (what the recording studios use...only the one that I have is digitally controlled with analog filters...better headroom) and they took up all 12 bands. For the dyns, only 4 bands were needed, and at much milder settings. Dynaudio did it right when they designed the speakers for the car. Plenty of midbass, mids are neutral, highs are also neutral with no harshness that MBQ's will have. MBQ will tend to advertise "13 years of IASCA winners" or "Grade 1 titanium...best available". Truth of the matter is that titanium is poor at damping resonances, thus the peak at 17khz, even at a -6db setting. Can't tune it out either without effecting other parts of the spectrum.

Distortion for their Q series will range from 7 to 10 percent. 7 percent at around 60hz (midbass) while the 10 percent is at around 17khz. Dynaudio will only be 2 to 3 percent at most. 1 percent is audible to the attentive ear. (actually, it's .1 percent that's audible to a sharp ear) I have the sheets for their Q series (from Obreigheim, Germany) and they're not publically released for obvious reasons. MBQ tends to brag about soundstage and "perfectness" of their sound. Truth of the matter, and speaking from experience, MBQ has a fairly narrow soundstage and poor spectral balance when compared head to head with Dynaudio.

Don't believe their hype or advertisements. If you only were to do the speaker swapout ONCE, go for the Dyns. Or at the very least, audition them from a reputable dealer who will let you try them out. Peter Lufrano will help out in this matter. He's at http://www.theautophile.com and so will Brad at http://www.woodyselectronics.com

With the stock amp, Dyns will sound VERY good. With an aftermarket amp and enough power, they will sound awesome. MBQ's will sound lean due to the lack of midbass and more than likely you'll have an annoying 1khz peak where everything will sound more nasal.

Parametric settings for MBQ... at 1khz needed 2 bands. One at -15db, other at -10db. That's just for 1k.
Dyns at 1khz... -4db. That's it. Sure is better than -25db! Got rid of one parametric eq because of the Dyns.

As for the crossover, buy them unless you're running a high end setup. By that time you'll be running active crossovers which are fully adjustable, but most people won't do that due to cost.

For more info... http://www.dynaudiona.com

Percy
Sound Quality Supercarrier
Krell McIntosh Dynaudio Velodyne Monster M Series Sony ES Optima Deflex/Cascade audio engineering
GS400