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Old 06-15-2018, 10:40 AM
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Crappy audio

Okay so I have the BOSE audio system in my car. The problem is the stock tweeters are simply crap and put out way too much mids which overpowers the highs. All the rest of the speakers are great, and when you crank the volume up to 20 there is thundering bass with no distortion. But there is little highs due to the crap tweeters. Many people on this forum glue small 10mm tweeters inside the stock tweeter pods in-front of the original tweeters to fix this issue.

I'm asking if anyone on here has had experience making this modification:
What tweeter did you use?
What crossover capacitor did you use?

I'm planning on grabbing a after-market head-unit too at some point, probably a pioneer as I had in my last car which has built in crossovers and speaker position and a decent EQ. That will help a fair bit. But before I address the equipment issue I need to fix the underlying problem.

Thanks

Last edited by Surasonac; 06-15-2018 at 10:59 AM.
Old 06-15-2018, 11:30 AM
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https://www.rx8club.com/series-i-int...pgrade-103771/
Old 06-15-2018, 11:37 AM
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Originally Posted by Jedi54
Woah i'm not looking to revamp the entire audio system. Got no money for that although it does look absolutely brilliant. I'll probably just put an active sub in the back if I ever want more bass.
Really just looking for a discreet way to add highs.

You are saying I should drill out two holes in the speaker grille behind the rear seats for tweeter domes? I'd imagine that would sound weird since the sound waves would bounce off the rear glass and hit your ears from behind?
And those kappa 6x9's have built in tweeters? So whats the point in the dome ones?
And did you use the stock bose amp for the 6x9's?

Last edited by Surasonac; 06-15-2018 at 11:45 AM.
Old 06-15-2018, 11:46 AM
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haha, no worries. I just linked the thread to give you an idea of which speakers I used to upgrade.


I used a two sets of those Infinity Kappa highs in my build. You can see part of the box in the picture where the JL sub is on the floor. I'm sure they've updated their models since I did my system but gives you an idea.
One set was used to replace the highs that Bose already had in the rear deck and the 2nd set was used in the doors to replace the highs in there that as you said, aren't really very good.

as for the amp it's only being used to power the two subwoofers.
I kept the stock Bose amps and tapped those for the replacement speakers.

Last edited by Jedi54; 06-15-2018 at 12:54 PM.
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Old 06-15-2018, 12:05 PM
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Originally Posted by Jedi54
haha, no worries. I just linked the thread to give you an idea of which speakers I used to upgrade.


I used a two sets of those Infinity Kappa highs in my build. You can see part of the box in the picture where the JL sub is on the floor. I'm sure they've updated their models since I did my system but gives you an idea.
One set was used to replace the highs that Bose already had in the rear deck and the 2nd set was used in the doors to replace the highs in there that as you said, aren't really very good.

as for the speaker, it's only being used to power the two subwoofers.
I kept the stock Bose amps and tapped those for the replacement speakers.
Oh so you just straight ripped the bose tweeters out the doors and put in the kappa 1" tweeters? That seems to be my solution then. I might put a pair in the back as you did too. You just tapped the feed coming out the bose amp for the rear tweets? What crossover cap did you use or do these tweeters come with one already?

EDIT: Sorry stupid question, just goggled the Kappa 10.7t and I can see the crossovers it comes with and the same ones in your pictures.

So how did you fit those crossovers in the door corner thing for the tweeter?
Unfortunately it seems impossible to find Kappa products. All seems unavailable, or discontinued. Got any other preference?

Last edited by Surasonac; 06-15-2018 at 12:13 PM.
Old 06-15-2018, 08:14 PM
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https://www.rx8club.com/series-ii-in...thread-246297/


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Old 06-16-2018, 02:15 AM
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Originally Posted by Steve Dallas
Good write up. Seems you made a fair few mistakes which you got right in the end. I'll keep your post in mind when I plan to do my audio. For now I plan to just do some tweeters. Might put a JL sub in at some point. But i'm quite happy with the bass put out by the stock system at high volumes.

Did you have to modify the plastic surround much to fit the Alpine S Series SPS-110TW? Since my car is relatively new to me, and in almost mint condition I don't want to damage it too badly if possible.
Old 06-16-2018, 08:56 AM
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No, I didn't modify the plastic at all. I just had to use some washers to aim the tweeters correctly and some glue to hold the crossover in place.
Old 06-16-2018, 10:37 AM
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Originally Posted by Steve Dallas
No, I didn't modify the plastic at all. I just had to use some washers to aim the tweeters correctly and some glue to hold the crossover in place.
Great. Think I have found my fix then. Thanks
Old 06-16-2018, 03:21 PM
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Okay, since infinity kappa speakers are impossible to get and Steve Dallas suggests Alpine tweeters. I think i'll just go alpines all around, I did the same on my old car, alpines all around and it was pretty good.

I'll put Alpine
SPS-110TW SPS-110TW
tweeters in the front to replace the bose tweeters. And i'm going to replace my 6x9's with some Alpine
SPG-69C2 SPG-69C2
units, they are coaxials so should provide some tweeter action from behind too. Total cost should be just over £100 which isn't too bad.
Unless anyone else has suggestions, ill buy these next week some time.

Last edited by Surasonac; 06-16-2018 at 03:24 PM.
Old 06-16-2018, 06:18 PM
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I wish the pics in that thread had been durable. I included all kinds of measurements from the head unit and Bose amp. I found the amp has several filter networks which affect every speaker, in an attempt to make the crappy Bose speakers sound good. The result is that it makes aftermarket rear speakers sound weird. If I were you, I would leave the rears alone. Or, if you really want to make a change back there, use a pair of the same Alpine tweeters and call it good.

BTW, I tried 3 different types of tweeters in my car and found only the Alpines to sound right.

Last edited by Steve Dallas; 06-16-2018 at 06:20 PM.
Old 06-16-2018, 07:30 PM
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Originally Posted by Steve Dallas
I wish the pics in that thread had been durable. I included all kinds of measurements from the head unit and Bose amp. I found the amp has several filter networks which affect every speaker, in an attempt to make the crappy Bose speakers sound good. The result is that it makes aftermarket rear speakers sound weird. If I were you, I would leave the rears alone. Or, if you really want to make a change back there, use a pair of the same Alpine tweeters and call it good.

BTW, I tried 3 different types of tweeters in my car and found only the Alpines to sound right.
I thought the amp in the back was just for the rear speakers? Surely its just signal, power and remote. Could I not just replace it?
Old 06-16-2018, 08:25 PM
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It's trickier than that. It has differential inputs, which means few amps are decoupled to handle the signals. (Alpine is your friend here again.) It also filters and pre-amplifies the fronts. If you replace the amp, you have to replace the front speakers and run speaker wire.
Old 12-15-2019, 04:55 AM
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How did this work out for you?
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