New speakers in an 83 SC

[83_Silberpfeil]

Just completed install of new speakers in my 83 SC.

What was in the car....

Fronts were 5.25" Blaupunkts --- ~ 8 to 10 W avg rating ops
Rears were 4 X 6 Balupunkt DL 1525 1A --- sticker on magnet indicated 8 W avg rating.
I believe both to be original stock that came with the car.

Issue: poor sound quality, could not handle any bass, and could not be played loud. Sounded like a "mono" alarm clock radio.

New speakers:

Front: Infinity 5022 i (5.25")--- rated at 40 W avg and 2 Ohms
Rears: Infinity 6432 cfs (4 X6s) --- rated at ~ 40 W avg and 2 Ohms

Install:

Fronts: I did not remove any panel, door pocket, etc. Just removed original speakers. It was a bit difficult to secure the bottom two screws, but after some perseverence and patience, I got it done. Was not able to use original grills, which blends in with the black leather interior and door lining much better. New grills are silver colored plastic

Rears: Removed the originals fairly easily and dropped in the new ones. I had to use/place the included spacer (~ 1/4" high) on top of the new speaker. This spacer creates a separation between the original stock grills and the new speaker's rubber lining (perimieter). So, I was able to re-install the original grills. However, they are ~ 1/8" above the rear deck --- not very noticeable.

Sound:
Much cleaner/clearer sound. Night and day compare to old speakers. Can play music much louder. Handles more, but not enough bass. I can live with that.
However, for some reason, perhaps its due to the small cabin or cabin shape, the acoustics are just not that great in the coupe.

Next up ---- looking to replace existing head unit (after market Jensen with tape deck) with a new Blaupunkt or Alpine with.

[daniel911T]

I'm really glad to hear it worked well for you!

You will get another pretty big jump in performance with a new head unit. The power in them has been going up steadily, and even an affordable one now can be expected to do 45W+ into 4 speakers. That will definitely give you more low end. If you're feeling really ambitious, you might want to try larger wires also, they can really help out considering how small the stock ones are. You don't need monster cable or anything like that, just some good quality mid-level stuff. Radio Shack or any car audio store should be able to hook you up. Don't spend too much, a wire that is a whole lot larger than what comes out of the back of the deck won't do much good for you.

For bass, I just saw a really trick installation that also looked pretty simple. Send a PM to theassphaltgambler . He has a custom (but quite simple) enclosure with a 10"(?) sub in the passenger side footwell, right where the piece of wood for the footrest sits. With carpet you'll never know it's there, and with bass you can't discern well where it's coming from, so the location shouldn't bother anyone. He has a massive amp running it, you could probably get away with a much smaller/simpler/lighter amp, just for sub driving.

If you just want to KISS, get the new head unit, turn the treble down a notch or two, turn the bass up a notch or two.

I look forward to updates!

Dan

[Bob Kontak]

I really liked the Infinities when Captain Slow posted them a few weeks back.

The Becker (e.g., CDR-210) is a nice looking radio and may be an option for you as well. I don't know if Becker has a "new" Porsche logo radio now as the CDR I think is 10 or so years old.

[Por_sha911]

Sounds like you did good. Here's a couple thoughts:
-Adding an 8" sub with its own 100W monoblock amp (I put my sub in a custom made cabinet on the floor behind the driver's seat and the amp in the front boot). It adds a ton of sound and gives you a bunch more volume with putting stress on the smaller speakers.
-Bolt the rear speakers to the underside of the rear deck. Pulling the rear deck is easy. That should give you the clearance to put the grills flush with the topside.

[83_Silberpfeil]

Great idea on bolting the rears to the underside of rear deck --- essentially a 'bottom mount'.
I will look into that.

Sounds like you did good. Here's a couple thoughts:

-Adding an 8" sub with its own 100W monoblock amp (I put my sub in a custom made cabinet on the floor behind the driver's seat and the amp in the front boot). It adds a ton of sound and gives you a bunch more volume with putting stress on the smaller speakers.

-Bolt the rear speakers to the underside of the rear deck. Pulling the rear deck is easy. That should give you the clearance to put the grills flush with the topside.

[wildcat077]

Just a suggestion ... Pioneer makes a nice CD player on which you can turn off the display.
It's really nice for driving at night as all you have is a very discreet tiny blue light indicating it's on ...
I installed one in my 89 Coupe and along with four new JBL speakers it's a world of difference !

Cheers !
Phil

[AlexJ]

Hello,

Can you please post pictures of the rear grills on place?

Thank you

[jac1976]

Why not spray paint the speaker grilles black?

[83_Silberpfeil]

Spray paint grills black --- not a bad idea. I'll look into that.

But still not a "flush mount" look as with the stock speakers. That's a trade off for better sounding tunes, I guess

[nineball]

Originally Posted by daniel911T

You will get another pretty big jump in performance with a new head unit. The power in them has been going up steadily, and even an affordable one now can be expected to do 45W+ into 4 speakers.

there is no headunit on the market that puts out 4x45rms. most are in the 14-22rms per channel output range. the numbers you are seeing, and quoting, are the max output which roughly translates into never happening (in theory it is the maximum output possible for any one instance in time, not a sustained period). the only way you will get a true 4 x 45rms is with the powerpack addon from alpine, but even then you are technically adding an amp.

Alpine KTP-445 Power Pack Upgrade your Alpine receiver to 45 watts RMS x 4 at Crutchfield.com

[DG624]

Bob the CDR 210 looks nice will that fit into an 86 Carrera dash?

[Bob Kontak]

Originally Posted by DG624

Bob the CDR 210 looks nice will that fit into an 86 Carrera dash?

Yes - Sent you a PM regarding 210 vs 220.

[orac69]

Ive put an Infinity Basslink 2 in the trunk of mine - its quite a small 10" sub + if you want to, you can slot in a card which turns it into an amplifier to power all the speakers also.

It doesnt kick out 000's of watts of power (like separate amps do) - but its way louder, cleaner, and gives more bass than my old ears can withstand..

Also theres the benefit of not having to mess about fabricating inside the cabin.

Infinity BassLink II 10" powered subwoofer with passive radiator at Crutchfield.com