My winter non-beater (a pristine 97 tercel) needs some speakers that will play some good quality music through an aftermarket deck and in unison with a subwoofer.. Can anyone give suggestions of which cars in the junkyard have great quality speakers from the factory?
"None" is a pretty good guess.
I'd find a car audio forum and hang out on their FS board. That's how I scored a couple of nice speaker sets for not a lot of cash.
None of them are that great honestly. Some top line Chryslers have used Infinity speakers, some Mitsubishis have used Rockford Fosgate, I know the Lexus Mark Levinson stuff is really highly regarded... however all of the good factory systems are pretty integrated with the car, amp separate from the head unit, all tuned/sized for the specific vehicle so I don't see the result of cramming it in another car being worth the effort.
Maybe a different grassroots way- you could put something together with parts from PartsExpress. Or if you can find a pair of Boston Acoustics A40s that need new foam, you could probably get them cheap and use the drivers. They're great little speakers.
Dunno what size speakers your car uses, but something like this:
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=295-302
And something like this:
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=275-025
Design a nice crossover and boom. There are cheaper drivers too, some of them a lot cheaper. Those were just close at hand.
For a more budget build, I bet this would sound pretty decent if you're going to use a sub.
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=299-087
Smokin' deal on a 10" sub too. Shoot, I might have to get one of these.
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=299-085
I've always been able to score good used speakers from the JR for $5-6 each. Infinity, Pioneer, Kenwood, etc. That's the way I've been doing it. The trick is to get the correct size that you need. I usually just buy them whenever I see them and make sure they work when I get home.
fast_eddie_72 wrote: For a more budget build, I bet this would sound pretty decent if you're going to use a sub. http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=299-087 Smokin' deal on a 10" sub too. Shoot, I might have to get one of these. http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=299-085
Not really an option. PE is one of those companies not interested in doing business with Canadians. $52 shipping for 4 of those 5" bazookas. It should be a third of that.
In reply to Zomby woof:
Jeez! That sure is a budget buster! Wonder why they do that?!
watch and learn ;-) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHiOt4hmmS4
in reality some cheap speakers from walmart will prob be better then the best oem
HAha sweet!! I love mighty car mods.. never saw that episode though.
Apparently GM products have awesome sound quality, but anyhow, i'll probably just scavenge all the raced, er, riced out hondas at the yard for some components.
the best factory sound system i've ever heard was the Infinity system that was in my 94 Chrysler LHS. it had a 500 watt or so amp in the trunk and 7 separate speakers scattered throughout the car. the 6X9's in the rear deck lid had separate plugs for the highs and lows that each had their own channel in the amp.
it didn't have a really super strong bass hit, but it was clear and distortion free even at full volume. it even had the speakers set up for surround sound, which made even songs that you've heard a thousand times sound fresh.
those cars were top of the line luxury in their day, but i've seen them in junkyards. the New Yorker is the slightly less luxurious version and i think that same sound system came in that model, too.
Having owned two Tercels, I can say this... they are very poor on the acoustics front. I spent some good money on my wife's 97; JVC head unit, Kenwood amps that gave 75wrms to each one, 6x9 JBL 2-ways in the back deck, and 6.5"/1" components in the front doors.
The steel is just so flimsy and the trim panels offer no damping. I think you might be disappointed however you upgrade - not because of the speakers, because of the car. Spend some labor and use some cull MDF from Home Depot to make a panel for the back deck and some 1/4" panels to mount the door speakers. Back them with a butyl or silicone adhesive to firm up the whole thing. Then use some reclaimed insulation to shut out some of the road noise.
Thanks for the tips! I'm not looking for anything crazy but I'll look into those tips anyhow, the car is getting sold in spring I hope. I HATE driving this newer one, it's weird.
'90-'93 Celicas with the "System 10" factory option had probably the best OEM stereo I've ever heard (way way WAY better than certain same-era Porsches I've owned.) Look for the 10" subs in the doors, tweeters on the A-pillars, amp under the passenger seat, etc. I think they had a "System 10" plaque mounted somewhere too. (If you find a JDM one it'll be "SuperLive! sound" - same system.)
However, I'd bet good money that after being exposed to the elements in a junkyard anything you could scavenge out of one would be pretty trashed, and once retrofitting it into something else the acoustics would be screwed up. It would never sound nearly as good as it was in the original car.
You're really better off going to the aftermarket. I've tried retrofitting speakers and whatever out of parts cars and it never really worked out well.
Jay wrote: However, I'd bet good money that after being exposed to the elements in a junkyard anything you could scavenge out of one would be pretty trashed, and once retrofitting it into something else the acoustics would be screwed up. It would never sound nearly as good as it was in the original car.
It's kinda hit or miss. Some of it holds up surprisingly well. I have an Alpine I got out of a junk yard. It was really dirty, so I ran it under the faucet and scrubbed. Once it dried, it was dandy! Surrounds will fail on speakers that have foam, but they're easy to replace.
I read this opic last time it came up but this time I am going to try and add some value. I have been "into" car audio longer than ti have been into cars.
as long as your stock speakers arenot broken.... oyur best bet it so simply add a real amp. not the aftermarket deck to power your speakers. i have has 1k watt 5 way tri amped systems fornt speakers sets blah blah blah. my jeep 99 cherokee has soemthing like this ebay amp or this noither one
stock speakers and a small sub. it's a much better spoet $25 - 50 than new speakers.
i did the same thing in my wifes 89 camry and it was worlds better than stock.
Jay wrote: '90-'93 Celicas with the "System 10" factory option had probably the best OEM stereo I've ever heard (way way WAY better than certain same-era Porsches I've owned.) Look for the 10" subs in the doors, tweeters on the A-pillars, amp under the passenger seat, etc. I think they had a "System 10" plaque mounted somewhere too. (If you find a JDM one it'll be "SuperLive! sound" - same system.) However, I'd bet good money that after being exposed to the elements in a junkyard anything you could scavenge out of one would be pretty trashed, and once retrofitting it into something else the acoustics would be screwed up. It would never sound nearly as good as it was in the original car. You're really better off going to the aftermarket. I've tried retrofitting speakers and whatever out of parts cars and it never really worked out well.
8" woofers in doors. 
But yes, it IS one of the better factory stereo systems, ever. 
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