Boat sound systems

[Socalx09]

This is pretty exciting for me… finally going to put some new speakers on the boat. For the last two years, the speakers have been going out and it doesn’t sound too great at a higher volume. We have been using the hyperboom Bluetooth speaker on occasion. It’s never on when we are at a beach, but I love listening to music while cruising.

The boat is here in Chino and we are going to take it to our guy at SC Motorsports in about a month. He recommended the new 6x9 kickers back in September when we first mentioned the issues to him. He did say he would like to see what exactly is the issue before upgrading the system. The boat has 4 6x9 speakers and I believe a sub or two. @SW_GLASS probably knows exactly what’s in the boat as I believe he did it when it was his boat.

Well, I just looked up the price of those speakers and they are about $650 a pair. I’m not sure what I was expecting, but it wasn’t that. And, that’s without anything else needing replacement. I have been getting the price wrong on a lot of things lately so I might just be out of the loop.

What are you guys putting in your boats with 6x9 sizes? We prefer a white grill so a marine speaker may be needed.

 

[SW_GLASS]

Your boat has 4 - 6x9 EFX coaxial speakers and 2 - 10 inch EFX subs. I dont remember what amps exactly but there is one EFX amp for the highs and 1 EFX amp for the subs.

I was a little leary about that brand when I bought it all but I had heard good things about them. Seeing that the stereo has been in the boat for over 12 years I will say they were a pretty good buy. Just a heads up the speakers and subs in that boat are not marine grade speakers at all. Standard car audio components from 2011ish. Personally I dont see the need to spend the extra mark up on marine audio components over standard car audio components but that is just me. If you do decide to replace with standard car audio equipment again make sure they use stainless steel mounting hardware.

 

[Nanu/Nanu]

I have kickers and i am pleased with the sound for the price. They have also weathered a lot of storms from lake Powell as well so there is that factor.

I personally haven't looked into 6x9 prices but if its anything like the 6" marine speaker prices they will probably be pretty fair. Also if you dont need the led light up stuff sometimes you can save money there.

I have used this website for purchases. They seem to be fairly competitive with pricing.

Marine & Powersports - Speakers - 6x9 Inch Speakers - Page 1 - Creative Audio

creativeaudio.net

Not sure exactly what you need but you may find it here

 

[BHC Vic]

Boat systems get expensive very quick. When we built our boat I want to say it was around 10g into the stereo. I have a very clean sounding system that gets plenty loud. It’s all alpine. I want to say there’s 10 6x9’s and 2 subs.

 

[NicPaus]

I need to replace my 6x9s also. I talked to Kicker about the new 6x9 they were supposed to be released soon that was a few years ago. Price $800 a pair is what I was told. Said to buy them from Elite in Havasu. I forget how many I need.

 

[pkrrvr619]

Who is everyone trusting these days in havasu to install a system?

Putting a new interior in and don’t want someone to fuck it up.

 

[TomD]

Never had one, always loved the sound of the motor singing.

 

[NicPaus]

Who is everyone trusting these days in havasu to install a system?

Putting a new interior in and don’t want someone to fuck it up.

Michael at Speed of Sound if you can get on the schedule from what I read is the best.

Kicker recommended Elite audio.

I have not dealt with either.

 

[Singleton]

It is not cheap.
I had Speed of Sound redo the system and the wife approved the budget and paid

 

[DB / HAV]

Who is everyone trusting these days in havasu to install a system?

Putting a new interior in and don’t want someone to fuck it up.

I’ve always used Ron’s in havasu

 

[Socalx09]

Your boat has 4 - 6x9 EFX coaxial speakers and 2 - 10 inch EFX subs. I dont remember what amps exactly but there is one EFX amp for the highs and 1 EFX amp for the subs.

I was a little leary about that brand when I bought it all but I had heard good things about them. Seeing that the stereo has been in the boat for over 12 years I will say they were a pretty good buy. Just a heads up the speakers and subs in that boat are not marine grade speakers at all. Standard car audio components from 2011ish. Personally I dont see the need to spend the extra mark up on marine audio components over standard car audio components but that is just me. If you do decide to replace with standard car audio equipment again make sure they use stainless steel mounting hardware.

Thank you! There are so many things in the way of getting to the boat right now. I didn’t want to figure out how to get into it. I’m sure you can imagine how the garage looks.

It’s definitely lasted a long time. And, sounded great until one day, anything above a certain level sounded distorted. Robert said he wanted to go with marine because he wasn’t sure car speakers came in white. But, we will see what we can afford. These prices are definitely a bit of a shock, at least to me!

 

[Socalx09]

I need to replace my 6x9s also. I talked to Kicker about the new 6x9 they were supposed to be released soon that was a few years ago. Price $800 a pair is what I was told. Said to buy them from Elite in Havasu. I forget how many I need.

Yep, I think those are the same kickers I was checking out because it said previously $799 and now they are $649. Thankfully, we just have 4 we go that route. I’m guessing you may have more.

 

[Socalx09]

It is not cheap.
I had Speed of Sound redo the system and the wife approved the budget and paid

Funny story- years back I had no idea the reputation of speed of sound. I just walked in and asked if he could make a ski locker into an ice chest cooler and install some cheap Sony speakers. He said it would take a few months, but he will put me on the schedule. The ski locker still holds ice for 2 days. Then, I found out on RDP that he is one of the best in the business and I handed him over some Walmart special speakers for my dad’s boat. He treated me very nicely and it wasn’t expensive.

 

[SW_GLASS]

Thank you! There are so many things in the way of getting to the boat right now. I didn’t want to figure out how to get into it. I’m sure you can imagine how the garage looks.

It’s definitely lasted a long time. And, sounded great until one day, anything above a certain level sounded distorted. Robert said he wanted to go with marine because he wasn’t sure car speakers came in white. But, we will see what we can afford. These prices are definitely a bit of a shock, at least to me!

Your welcome. Best of luck in your search for white speakers. The black speakers never bothered me since they aren't directly in my line of sight but if you want white i can understand why.

 

[DarkHorseRacing]

Never had one, always loved the sound of the motor singing.

We have two boats with crazy sound systems. I’ve never turned either of them on willingly. I prefer the quiet other than the motor.

If I want tunes I’ll sit in the car.

 

[Havasu Surfer]

Wired 4 Sound in Havasu. They reinstalled our amps that had broken free from the bulkhead and a couple of speakers were working intermittently. I also requested to have them tune the existing system that was set up at Howard when we had the boat built and we couldn't believe the difference in the quality of sound after. Sounds like a completely new system now. Couldn't be happier and the turnaround time was quick.

 

[Ace in the Hole]

Who is everyone trusting these days in havasu to install a system?

Putting a new interior in and don’t want someone to fuck it up.

Elite is kicker’s people in Havasu. I was on Jeff’s new demo boat last weekend. The new kicker horns are unreal.

I’ve had work done by both Elite and Ron‘s you can’t go wrong with either one.

Elite’s work is exactly what they promise every time, and Ron Did exactly what he promised me to do for a lot less than expected. He could’ve easily taken advantage of me in the situation and didn’t, which showed the kind of person he is. I will continue to be a customer of both.

 

[sczagurs]

I just installed these and they sound excellent. Found them new on eBay for 150 a pair. Have to ball on a budget after the top end rebuild.

MM692 6" x 9" 3 Way Speakers, Car & Marine | Polk Audio

The MM692 6" x 9" 3-way speakers are marine certified and made from non-resonant Dynamic Balance materials for crystal clear highs, mids and lows.

www.polkaudio.com

 

[02HoWaRd26]

Hard to compete between Speed of Sound and Ron’s. If you can I’d look into replacing any of the 6x9’s that you can with a round speaker either the JL 8.8 or Rockford m2-8h depending upon location.

 

[DLC]

wired for sound did my system

12-kicker 6.5’s - 3 zones For control
subs
and a few amps - I forgot how many
2 controllers bow & stern w/ head unit

LED lighting

The best part is the relationship with the guys and the shop! They are top notch and take the time to address anything…. issues, questions or BS’ing

Wife likes the system, sounds great - not way overkill - Don’t need to crank it to hear it

 

[Dirtbag]

im partial to JL audio have 2 12s 10 7.7in mediamaster on helm 2 remotes at front and back..2 7.7s on the swim step..gets super loud but its super clean...also have 4 zones so i can turn my moms off so she doesnt have ears ringin! done by shockwave

 

[NicPaus]

Is Daniel still doing the installs at Wired for Sound?
Forget the other guys name that is running since Adam passed.

 

[Good Stuff]

I replaced my tired old Alpine speakers with Memphis last year on the recommendation of my buddy who owns a stereo shop. They sound really well and can take a good amount of power. They have 6x9 on their website for about $250 per pair and you should be able to get them at or below from a stereo shop. Speakers come with white and gunmetal grey grills in the box and RGB lights. I have 6 8” Memphis and 4 7.7” JL in the cubbies where the Memphis wouldn’t fit. Interesting difference between brands is the 7.7’s are entire speaker housing and 8’s are cone size.

 

[Good Stuff]

Is Daniel still doing the installs at Wired for Sound?
Forget the other guys name that is running since Adam passed.

Yes he is. Davey/Davie is the name of the other guy you’re thinking of.

 

[throttle]

Another happy “Wired 4 Sound” customer!

I like the Kicker systems but I have been buying Rockford Fosgate systems lately, they bump LOUD!

 

[GreenEnergy28]

I just upgraded my transom speakers to the new Kicker KMXL's. I would not hesitate to put the Kicker 6x9's in your boat. I am very pleased with my system.
(8) 6.5's
(8) 8's
(2) 12's
Kicker amps, head unit & 3 remotes

Old 6.5 on the right, new KMXL 6.5 horn on the left

 

[SFV2RVR]

I have some super high end Focal audio for sale in the classifieds. All brand new in the box never used. 25% off retail.

 

[Socalx09]

Got the appointment scheduled. He’s going to diagnose what’s going on and if it’s the speakers, we will do the kickers 6x9. He thinks the kickers should be enough with what we have unless he finds something else wrong since we didn’t give him a huge budget to with.

 

[Rbcconst]

Got the appointment scheduled. He’s going to diagnose what’s going on and if it’s the speakers, we will do the kickers 6x9. He thinks the kickers should be enough with what we have unless he finds something else wrong since we didn’t give him a huge budget to with.

You wont find to many marine options for 6x9's. If kicker has a pair you like that's probably your best option. The other manufactures have them but not in marine.

 

[fishing fool]

You wont find to many marine options for 6x9's. If kicker has a pair you like that's probably your best option. The other manufactures have them but not in marine.

Really???
https://www.crutchfield.com/fg_228350_FFBrand|Memphis Audio/Memphis-Audio-Marine-Speakers.html

 

[traquer]

I have some super high end Focal audio for sale in the classifieds. All brand new in the box never used. 25% off retail.

Sick, Focal is pretty much the best there is I've heard.

 

[Rbcconst]

Really???
https://www.crutchfield.com/fg_228350_FFBrand|Memphis Audio/Memphis-Audio-Marine-Speakers.html

I am not a memphis guy. It all depends on your expectations out of a system, mine are pretty high.

 

[fishing fool]

I am not a memphis guy. It all depends on your expectations out of a system, mine are pretty high.

I too am not a Memphis guy but I know what is out there. Memphis is good quality..

 

[MPHSystems]

The vast majority of boat sound systems I’ve seen, the installation was shit, and I mean fire hazard shit. professionally installed Fire hazard.

 

[Rbcconst]

I too am not a Memphis guy but I know what is out there. Memphis is good quality..

a friend of mine installs a lot of it and claims its good...I only use JL audio for amps and mids/highs, and prefer the kicker L7 for subs.

 

[Ace in the Hole]

I too am not a Memphis guy but I know what is out there. Memphis is good quality..

I had Memphis in my old tacoma...was very very happy with it. Would buy again.

 

[Nanu/Nanu]

The vast majority of boat sound systems I’ve seen, the installation was shit, and I mean fire hazard shit. professionally installed Fire hazard.

Yep, im dealing with this exact thing. Probably pulled out what seemed like 3 stereo jobs worth of wiring and found lots of connected exposed ends. I hope no one paid a lot of money for the previous work.

 

[MPHSystems]

Yep, im dealing with this exact thing. Probably pulled out what seemed like 3 stereo jobs worth of wiring and found lots of connected exposed ends. I hope no one paid a lot of money for the previous work.

Yea, that’s typical and that’s probably how it happened. Drywall screws into fiber glass, cables not secured or secured to things that shouldn’t be supporting cables. It’s a joke.

i actually was considering going into the boat AV business. I have the skill sets to do first class installations. Problem is I think I’d have a hard time getting the compensation that I am accustomed to with my current successful business.

 

[traquer]

Yea, that’s typical and that’s probably how it happened. Drywall screws into fiber glass, cables not secured or secured to things that shouldn’t be supporting cables. It’s a joke.

i actually was considering going into the boat AV business. I have the skill sets to do first class installations. Problem is I think I’d have a hard time getting the compensation that I am accustomed to with my current successful business.

Might not be a bad idea, I wonder if there's a market for sound systems in bigger boats and yacht type deals down in Newport? Those guys are used to paying 5-6 figures a year for maintenance/dock/fuel/etc, what's another mid 5 figures once every 10 years for a bangin system?

 

[Nanu/Nanu]

Yea, that’s typical and that’s probably how it happened. Drywall screws into fiber glass, cables not secured or secured to things that shouldn’t be supporting cables. It’s a joke.

i actually was considering going into the boat AV business. I have the skill sets to do first class installations. Problem is I think I’d have a hard time getting the compensation that I am accustomed to with my current

High 5s and atta boys?

 

[MPHSystems]

High 5s and atta boys?

Nope.

Job I’m mopping up right now, customer just paid me a 7% early complication bonus, unsolicited. Actually they offered me 15% bonus with different criteria and I negotiated down to 7% and goals I could meet. Truth is that my bonus was mice nuts compared to how much money I made them.


I won’t see that wiring up someone’s bote HiFi.

 

[Badchoices03]

In my opinion, I hope thats ok here on RDP, I don't understand your NEED of $650 a pair 6x9's when you describe your WANTS.....cruising listening to music, not cranking it up for all to hear doesn't necessitate spending that much...now if you just WANT them because you can, then thats a different story...and I really know this is going to blow RDP's mind....but I have and many boats with many different sound systems, mostly all installed by myself...and again, IMO you don't necessarily need "marine grade" unless your boat lives in a slip on a like, runs the ocean very often, or sits outside in the sun with no cover...although I would recommend quality hardware, not drywall screws...

 

[COCA COLA COWBOY]

Will the speakers get wet in their current locations? If so, then I would do marine application speakers. If they won't, I would get some good quality 6x9's that are the best bang for the buck. I personally, do not like Kicker. I am a JL fan for numerous reasons.

I currently have a beater pontoon boat that I didn't want to dump much into the stereo, but I did want to hear it. I did a bunch of research and wanted to try a new company because I like to experiment. I had some other 6.5 speakers from a company called Deaf Bonce which is a Russian company and they are super loud and can take a ton of power. I bought a couple sets of 6x9's and man....they actually sound really really good and for the price I couldn't believe it. I had a neighbor that did CT Sounds and a friend that did DS18. Some of these off brands are really making the mainstream brands look stupid.

Apocalypse AP-X69A | 6x9

Grills - included Specifications Model AP-X69A Size 6.9" Frequency response 80-20000 Hz Package quantity Pair Voice coil size 1.5" Cone Pressed Paper Magnet Ferrite Voice coil wire CCAW Surround Cloth RMS Power 200 W MAX Power 400 W Frame Stamped Steel Impedance 4 Ohm SPL 94 dB Fs 126 Hz Qts...

alphardaudio.us

I will say, I did a friends boat stereo a year ago and we did FI subwoofers and they are just bad ass! I bought some for myself right after that. Clean, smooth and resonate well.

I would recommend digital amps for a boat....size and heat make them really good. The JL HD amps are amazing.

 

[Blue Oval]

We have two boats with crazy sound systems. I’ve never turned either of them on willingly. I prefer the quiet other than the motor.

If I want tunes I’ll sit in the car.

I bought my Center Console a few years ago from a gentleman in his 70's. I asked Bill if the stereo worked. He said he listened to a baseball game on a AM channel once. Bought the boat and towed it home, then turned the stereo on in the yard. It has a JL system. Not going to win stereo wars, but sounds good. I got a laugh out of that.

 

[Flying_Lavey]

I'm looking to take my stereo out of my boat. With bluetooth speakers now-a-days, I just don't see a need for a complete stereo in the boat for 90% of the boaters. Hanging out floating, anchored, or beached the bluetooth speaker comes out. It can go WAY louder than anyone wants cause we are all there to converse with each other and have a good time.

 

[Socalx09]

In my opinion, I hope thats ok here on RDP, I don't understand your NEED of $650 a pair 6x9's when you describe your WANTS.....cruising listening to music, not cranking it up for all to hear doesn't necessitate spending that much...now if you just WANT them because you can, then thats a different story...and I really know this is going to blow RDP's mind....but I have and many boats with many different sound systems, mostly all installed by myself...and again, IMO you don't necessarily need "marine grade" unless your boat lives in a slip on a like, runs the ocean very often, or sits outside in the sun with no cover...although I would recommend quality hardware, not drywall screws...

I was thinking we would need higher quality speakers since it will be turned up a bit more while we are boating around vs being in a beach when noise isn’t much a factor and the volume doesn’t need to be turned up very much. Right now, we are getting a distorted sound when it’s turned on at a level we can hear while we are under power.

For the marine grade- we definitely don’t need it as the current speakers in the boat have been great and are car speakers. I think it’s more a personal preference of wanting white speakers because the grey/black speakers have always bothered him looks wise.

 

[DWC]

. Hanging out floating, anchored, or beached the bluetooth speaker comes out. It can go WAY louder than anyone wants cause we are all there to converse with each other and have a good time.

Same, Bluetooth speaker comes out as soon as we stop. If there’s someone playing decent music around us I won’t turn anything on.
That being said, one of my subs blew the last trip out. Anyone got a lead on a couple 12” subs? Still like to hear music from the ramp to the beach.

 

[GreenEnergy28]

I was thinking we would need higher quality speakers since it will be turned up a bit more while we are boating around vs being in a beach when noise isn’t much a factor and the volume doesn’t need to be turned up very much. Right now, we are getting a distorted sound when it’s turned on at a level we can hear while we are under power.

For the marine grade- we definitely don’t need it as the current speakers in the boat have been great and are car speakers. I think it’s more a personal preference of wanting white speakers because the grey/black speakers have always bothered him looks wise.

My last boat had (4) 6x9's down low, below the seats, and nothing near the captain's chair. I did what I could with it, but under power, sound quality wasn't all that great.

When I did the speaker layout of our new boat, I put a pair of 6.5's right next to the captain's chair. No lack of sound while under power now. My wife is a huge music lover while on the boat. We will often find an empty cove, drop anchor, and crank her favorite jams while we float.

 

[Blue Oval]

I'm looking to take my stereo out of my boat. With bluetooth speakers now-a-days, I just don't see a need for a complete stereo in the boat for 90% of the boaters. Hanging out floating, anchored, or beached the bluetooth speaker comes out. It can go WAY louder than anyone wants cause we are all there to converse with each other and have a good time.

We spend most of our time in the 14ft RIB with the 50 HP. I was going to put a stereo in it, decided to go with the blue tooth speakers and my phone. Works great. Just have to remember to bring it in and charge it for the next day of fun.

 

[Flying_Lavey]

We spend most of our time in the 14ft RIB with the 50 HP. I was going to put a stereo in it, decided to go with the blue tooth speakers and my phone. Works great. Just have to remember to bring it in and charge it for the next day of fun.

And the great thing with the speakers also is no dead battery if you use the radio for too long.

Pull starting a Merc V6 outboard is not fun.