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Installed new tweeters...

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Location
Concord
#1
As we all know the stock setup is decent but not really super great. After owning my car almost a year I decided what was really missing was some good high notes and obviously low end punch.

So I ordered some JBL GTO18T Tweeters off of Amazon and installed them in the stock locations.

All I have to say is WOW the Sony tweeters are terrible! ALL music has really come alive and the sound stage even sounds more where its supposed to. If you feel the setup is missing something you would do yourselves a big favor in ordering some of these.

Now im torn on ordering the full JBL 6.5 component kit and installing it, or just buying a sub and calling it a day.

Or maybe both...
 


MKVIIST

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#2
Thanks for the feedback on these, the price is good too.
 


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242
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Location
Los Angeles
#3
As we all know the stock setup is decent but not really super great. After owning my car almost a year I decided what was really missing was some good high notes and obviously low end punch.

So I ordered some JBL GTO18T Tweeters off of Amazon and installed them in the stock locations.

All I have to say is WOW the Sony tweeters are terrible! ALL music has really come alive and the sound stage even sounds more where its supposed to. If you feel the setup is missing something you would do yourselves a big favor in ordering some of these.

Now im torn on ordering the full JBL 6.5 component kit and installing it, or just buying a sub and calling it a day.

Or maybe both...
Plug and play?

Link for speakers?

How to get doors off?

[dunno]
 


OP
O
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Concord
Thread Starter #4
Plug and play?

Link for speakers?

How to get doors off?

[dunno]
The link to the speakers is already included in the text.

To install these all you have to do is remove the interior door latch piece that includes the tweeter. I believe there are instructions out there on the forum already for this procedure.

The speakers are not plug and play and did require cutting and adding in new connectors or soldering the wires and a little hot glueing. Over all a very easy and inexpensive mod that really brings the highs in the sound system.
 


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Location
Harker Heights
#6
Omega112 - have you had any issues with the addition of these tweeters drowning out or overpowering the rest of the system? Also, what specifically did you need to use the hot glue on?

…and in a sort of reply to your initial post, last sentence - I installed this under my passenger front seat = AMAZING! It adds a VERY nice balance to the rest of the system and the base is "tunable" on the fly with the included remote.
http://www.amazon.com/Kenwood-KSC-SW11-Compact-Enclosed-Subwoofer/dp/B00BO8O9XQ
 


OP
O
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Location
Concord
Thread Starter #8
Omega112 - have you had any issues with the addition of these tweeters drowning out or overpowering the rest of the system? Also, what specifically did you need to use the hot glue on?

?and in a sort of reply to your initial post, last sentence - I installed this under my passenger front seat = AMAZING! It adds a VERY nice balance to the rest of the system and the base is "tunable" on the fly with the included remote.
http://www.amazon.com/Kenwood-KSC-SW11-Compact-Enclosed-Subwoofer/dp/B00BO8O9XQ
I would say they blended in rather well with the other speakers in the system. They may be a bit louder than the midbass speakers but it still works well. You really cant hear the tweeters in the back anymore, but its not like they gave much fill anyway. I find you can really turn the volume up quite a bit louder with these without any distortion (at least that I am able to detect.) I turned the treble down a little after I installed them to tone them down a bit, but they are very musical and aren't too bright like some other setups i have heard.

I hot glue'd them into the stock space, but I found out tonight when i removed the door latch for a picture that it did not hold. I might use some electrical tape or something like that, not sure what else to use, either way they don't seem to rattle at the moment.

The wires are connected to the in line crossover via some spade connectors which is then connected to the door wiring via some more spade connectors and it is all covered in electrical tape. You do have to cut off the stock connector, unless you are able to source a connector from ford. I might at some point trim up all the wires as they are pretty long and solder the connections and add heat-shrink, but there is enough room in the door cavity that it all fits nicely anyway.

When everything is in place you cant tell they are there, until you turn on the system... Really truly sounds better at all volumes.


One other note. To remove the stock tweeters i used 2 picks to pry them out. They are held in by 3 tabs down the side and take some reasonable tugging to get them out.

IMG_20141214_165722.jpg IMG_20141214_165530.jpg
 


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Levy
#9
…and in a sort of reply to your initial post, last sentence - I installed this under my passenger front seat = AMAZING! It adds a VERY nice balance to the rest of the system and the base is "tunable" on the fly with the included remote.
http://www.amazon.com/Kenwood-KSC-SW11-Compact-Enclosed-Subwoofer/dp/B00BO8O9XQ
I just installed this sub as well. While it obviously isn't going to blow out the windows, it does a fine job of filling in the lower end that that the stock system is sorely lacking. Definitely worth the $150 it cost.
 


Messages
134
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67
Location
Levy
#11
I'm Ol Greg!

Nice set up i may follow
Bailey's. Mmm... creamy. Soft creamy beige. [biggrin]

Do it, you won't be disappointed. For the money, you can't beat it. Plus, it doesn't eat up the already marginal trunk space.
 


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59
Location
Metro Detroit
#13
This is a great upgrade for someone that doesn't want to custom fabricate tweeter pods and simply wants improved sound quality over the awful stock tweeters.

Thanks for finding what's essentially a plug-n-play tweeter upgrade. [twothumb]
 


RAAMaudio

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#14
I have some really good tweeters I am going to install but will likely put them in the A pillars once I do a listening test.

Either JB weld which is fairly permanent, or silicone sealer are better materials for mounting speakers but you can use a dab of hot glue to keep them in place until one of the better materials sets up.

Hot glue is not great in a car, it will let go or even melt over time unless you get a high temp commercial grade version.
 


GAbOS

Active member
Messages
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Location
Carson City
#15
I have a whole lot of gear ready to go in my car, but just have not found the time yet. As Rick mentions, Silicon is a great choice. I am also concerned about the OE tweeter placement and will probably do some sound testing with some double sided tape and the A pillar.
 


Messages
186
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57
Location
Dayton
#16
I have some really good tweeters I am going to install but will likely put them in the A pillars once I do a listening test.

Either JB weld which is fairly permanent, or silicone sealer are better materials for mounting speakers but you can use a dab of hot glue to keep them in place until one of the better materials sets up.

Hot glue is not great in a car, it will let go or even melt over time unless you get a high temp commercial grade version.
Considering trying some of this stuff. The local Ace has kits for it. Thoughts?

http://notaglue.com/
 


Messages
107
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8
Location
Vero Beach
#18
Seems like this guy explains the tweeter issue quite accurately.
It's called 'BBC dip'.
[video=youtube;CM_wAT4rBKg]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CM_wAT4rBKg[/video]
 




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