Paging bigdaddylee82: teach me the ways of cheap, quality speaker purchasing

The speakers in the back of the $50 Saab don't sound very good...Probably because they look like this:

I would like to replace them with something a little better than stock, but without spending more than about half what I paid for the car.

Quick ebay browsing turned up these candidates

http://m.ebay.com/itm/281696458903?nav=SEARCH

http://m.ebay.com/itm/321680570447?nav=SEARCH

http://m.ebay.com/itm/151716662968?nav=SEARCH

Thoughts, suggestions etc?

Thank you!

I too would like to know this.

Go for the Kenwoods. Used good stuff is always better than the stuff they can sell for $25 shipped.

As an aside, I never understood the obsession with so many tiny tweeters in car speakers. A good 3/4" or 1" dome tweeter is cheap to make and sounds better. Personally, cars sound better with no tweeters in the rear at all anyway. Something like a pair of these powered by an amp would satisfy most people's desire for a subwoofer.

Out of the three the Kenwood would sound the best.

I usually get high end speakers from the junkyard. Memphis belle for 12 bucks, etc.

I also don't think you actually need rear speakers.put all the sound to the front and let your ears get used to it. You won't like rear fill after a while.

Well, I didn't know I was known for cheap speakers, but I wouldn't use Pyle or Boss in anything I intended to listen to regularly.

When looking for speakers for Muffin, I used a couple saved searches on eBay, and made a bunch of low ball bids on stuff until I finally won something.

I don't have those searches saved anymore, but I still occasionally search for 5x7 speakers for the rear deck lid of my 850, and this is what it looks like:

Car Speakers & Speaker Systems, Size:5" x 7", Brand:Alpine, Boston Acoustics, DB Drive, Focal, Infinity, JBL, JL Audio, MB Quart, Memphis, Polk Audio, Sort by:Time: ending soonest

Substituted 5x7 for whatever size you're looking for. There's probably a lot more brands to choose from for the more common sizes too.

Almost all the name brand stuff has various quality/price point options in the common sizes, find something you like and do a little research. Crutchfield has pretty good info on speakers, and user reviews, even on discontinued stuff they no longer sell.

My tip would be to find some speakers with a "plus one" woofer cone. I know Infinity and JBL offer it on their speakers; basically the cone is pushed to the very edge of the mounting plate for an extra 1/2" or so of woofer size, which really helps for bass response.

My typical speakers of choice are Infinity, FWIW.

Good stuff Bigdaddy. During the summer, at least here in Cincy, it seems like theres one of those electronics liquidations nearly every weekend somewhere nearby. Most of that stuff is rebranded junk, but youd be surprised the nuggets you can find hidden in with the garbage.

SF1 is also a great resource for audio insights, though mostly of the home variety.

I don't really know much about funky non-round speakers.

If you can fit normal speakers in there, these are ridiculously good for the price. The XS line is the return of the old GOOD Sony stuff.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Sony-XS-GS1720-320W-6-1-2-2-Way-Coaxial-Car-Speaker-Pair-New-XSGS1720-/221351167082?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item33898ec46a

Check your local pick n pull, too. I found some nice JBLs and Pioneers on different trips. Also found an a/d/s amp under the seat of a parts car. I still use that amp in my daily today.

Check out Crutchfield.com They have a huge selection of speakers from mild to wild. It's ok to buy nice things, especially when you only need to buy them occasionally.

In reply to Mr_Clutch42:

The problem with Crutchfield is that they often carry a $40 premium over the exact same item purchased from other vendors...I usually window-shop there before buying elsewhere.

SlickDizzy wrote: In reply to Mr_Clutch42: The problem with Crutchfield is that they often carry a $40 premium over the exact same item purchased from other vendors...I usually window-shop there before buying elsewhere.

This. I'm not entirely sure how they stay in business anymore, to be honest.

Yes, their customer service is awesome. No, they don't offer anything over that over any other companies, and sometimes it's not to their clear cut advantage.

I just did the same thing with Crutchfield for a stereo for my Delica. I found what I wanted on their site, and then checked eBay. I found the same stereo for maybe $60 less with free shipping.

Now I want to upgrade the factory speakers in the van. Do I have to worry about ohm ratings of speakers with a modern stereo?

Mazdax605 wrote: I just did the same thing with Crutchfield for a stereo for my Delica. I found what I wanted on their site, and then checked eBay. I found the same stereo for maybe $60 less with free shipping. Now I want to upgrade the factory speakers in the van. Do I have to worry about ohm ratings of speakers with a modern stereo?

Pretty much everything is 4ohm unless you actively look for stuff that isn't. Your modern headunit will do a 4ohm load just fine.

I still use crutcfield. Typically for head units because they include all the installation gear for free, and I trust them to stand behind what they sell. Worth a few extra bucks to me.

If the coils aren't fried: re-cone kits are usually less than $15. I'm not sure if anybody makes them for oval car speakers, but they might.

Thanks everybody! I went with these for $32: