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Purchased the powerbass OE series 6X9(OE 690D). It’s a DVC 4 ohm speaker with a 3.25” profile(wired up to achieve 8ohms). At first I was frustrated, it didn’t quite fit in the factory mount. After some cuss words and a few bourbons I figured it out…. Swap over the top spacer ring from the factory speakers and place it in between the new speaker and factory mount. Worth every penny, it sounds amazing.
I'm glad they worked out for you and really happy to hear that they preform well (my research was not in vain.)
Definitely appreciate your work…. Unfortunately while I was enjoying the awesome sound, I blew the one of the tweeters on the passenger front😂. I found this out right after I placed my order for new rears and a sub…The joys of owning a 20 year old car.
I'm assuming the posts here only are adressing the 6X9 OEM speaker and all else remains stock.
With that caveat: If you know and understand car stereo, you can safely stop reading here (unless bored).
The Mark Levison amp takes two-channel (stereo) info from the radio/disc player and splits it up into seven (7) channels. Each of these channels has a high/low/bandpass filter built into the amplifier as determined by the OEM. The mid/tweeter (squawker/tweeter) pair splits the sound I think using a capacitor as a crossover for the tweeter.
Channel 1: Woofer behind rear seat (FSM calls this a woofer - I think most would call this a sub-woofer in modern terms)
Chanels 2 & 3: Left and right rear seat (FSM calls these rear speakers - I'm assuming full-range speakers)
Channels 4 & 5: Left and right 6X9s in the doors (FSM calls them woofers - I think modern term would be mid-bass)
Channels 6 & 7: Left and right mids & tweeters in doors (FSM calls them squawker & tweeter)
So, at this point I'm guessing you're saying to yourself - when's this guy going to get to the point?
My point is to keep OEM sound quality you will need to match speaker performance with the amplifier's built-in crossover points. This will be almost impossible for a critical listener. And a poor impedance mismatch could damage the amplifier. EDIT: The above statement holds true mostly because the ML amp does not have adjustable crossover points or variable gain. So, matching the sound becomes very difficult/
So before deciding not to fix the OEM speaker cones, and go aftermarket, you have to decide how critical of a listener you are - and how loud you play music. There are other alternatives, but I've written enough to bore most, I think. Only you can determine the sound quality you want - and can afford - in the car.
Last edited by oneround; Nov 12, 2021 at 07:53 PM.
Reason: added an explanatory line
I'm assuming the posts here only are adressing the 6X9 OEM speaker and all else remains stock.
With that caveat: If you know and understand car stereo, you can safely stop reading here (unless bored).
The Mark Levison amp takes two-channel (stereo) info from the radio/disc player and splits it up into seven (7) channels. Ech of these channels has a high/low/bandpass filter built into the amplifier as determined by the OEM. The mid/tweeter (squawker/tweeter) pair splits the sound I think using a capacitor as a crossover for the tweeter.
Channel 1: Woofer behind rear seat (FSM calls this a woofer - I think most would call this a sub-woofer in modern terms)
Chanels 2 & 3: Left end right rear seat (FSM calls these rear speakers - I'm assuming full-range speakers)
Channels 4 & 5: Left and right 6X9s in the doors (FSM calls them woofers - I think modern term would be mid-bass)
Channels 6 & 7: Left and right mids & tweeters in doors (FSM calls them squawker & tweeter)
So, at this point I'm guessing you're saying to yourself - when's this guy going to get to the point?
My point is to keep OEM sound quality you will need to match speaker performance with the amplifier's built-in crossover points. This will be almost impossible for a critical listener. And a poor impedance mismatch could damage the amplifier.
So before deciding not to fix the OEM speaker cones, and go aftermarket, you have to decide how critical of a listener you are - and how loud you play music. There are other alternatives, but I've written enough to bore most, I think. Only you can determine the sound quality you want - and can afford - in the car.
That wasn't boring at all. It was excellent and provided some good specifics of some things that I understood generally, but could use more specifics. I don't tend to crank it loud (although top-down may of course require a bit more volume). The qualities I tend to value the most in sound are clarity and depth.
With regard to the 6x9 front door speakers (mid-bass), do you happen to know what frequency response range should be the target for any potential replacements?
I'm genuinely on the fence about fixing the OEM 6x9s vs trying to replace them. My ML system seems to be functioning properly. I'd just enjoy a modest improvement in sound quality.
That wasn't boring at all. It was excellent and provided some good specifics of some things that I understood generally, but could use more specifics. I don't tend to crank it loud (although top-down may of course require a bit more volume). The qualities I tend to value the most in sound are clarity and depth.
With regard to the 6x9 front door speakers (mid-bass), do you happen to know what frequency response range should be the target for any potential replacements?
I'm genuinely on the fence about fixing the OEM 6x9s vs trying to replace them. My ML system seems to be functioning properly. I'd just enjoy a modest improvement in sound quality.
Sorry, no I don't know much about the OEM speakers parameters. I'm a recent SC430 buyer. And when I got the car, the speaker surrounds for both the 6X9s and the mids had failed. Also, one 6X9 had overextended the voice coil and was beyond my skill at fixing. Also, my amplifier's output section was dead. So, I went for a total system replacement.
I just did my '06 yesterday afternoon. The foam surrounds were pretty bad, especially the driver side. I does sound noticeably better than before. At least I can hold off on any new ones for a while.
If you've never taken off the door panels look up some YT vids to get an idea of the steps. You really want to have a set of plastic trim removal tools. Driver bits needed are Phillips, 8mm and 10mm. The only dicey bit is the window control panel. If you just try to pry it up, it'll probably break. You have to gently work it up just a bit to get to and depress the metal spring clip at the rear before lifting it off.
I just did my '06 yesterday afternoon. The foam surrounds were pretty bad, especially the driver side. I does sound noticeably better than before. At least I can hold off on any new ones for a while.
If you've never taken off the door panels look up some YT vids to get an idea of the steps. You really want to have a set of plastic trim removal tools. Driver bits needed are Phillips, 8mm and 10mm. The only dicey bit is the window control panel. If you just try to pry it up, it'll probably break. You have to gently work it up just a bit to get to and depress the metal spring clip at the rear before lifting it off.
The YouTube videos were a great help. I didn't have any problems, and I'm not a smart man! It all comes apart and goes back together faster than you expect. The videos are slow because they are explaining everything. It sounds so much better! Best $50 I have spent in a long time.
Front Speaker Replacements
