Looking for 6 1/2" speakers for my 340

mnm99

mnm99

Well-Known Member
Oct 2, 2015
2,447
Long Island
Boat Info
2004 340 SeaRay Sundancer
Engines
Twin 8.1 Merc
Hey guys.. I'm pretty much out of upgrades the winter so far..IE Bow thruster, manifolds, Led transom lights, canvas....lol. I'm looking to upgrade my stock cockpit speakers, but there are so many to choose from. And the fact that I can't hear them before I buy bothers me a bit so I'm gonna lean on you. I want something that can handle the power of the stock amp and head unit. I'd like a little more bass and clarity. My budget is around 250-275 for 4 speakers. I know it's not much , but for instance I was looking at these Polk for around that price. https://www.amazon.com/Polk-Audio-Speakers-AA2652-MM651UM/dp/B00ZPK63E2 I would prefer white grills also.
Thanks
 
What ever you look at make sure cut out hole is the same, for some reason a 6.5" speakers are not all the same, unless you want to cut larger holes
 
Also, we upgraded the amp quality a lot and still use Clarion speakers and head. I will say we have the best sound on the dock. A really high end amp makes the difference
 
And the fact that I can't hear them before I buy bothers me a bit
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Why not? Seek out a local retailer/installer for brands such as Wet Sounds, Kicker, JL and Rockford.

Kicker KM654CW or add in an "L" for ones with LEDs. http://www.kicker.com/41KM654CW Great sounding speaker and well built, true marine speaker.

Wet Sounds SW series comes in the mid-level 65i or the hi-output 650 series. https://wetsounds.com/pages/products/SW-650 The curretn SW series are on closeout right now. Given the sale price, id jump on the SW-650W quick. Tons of mid-bass and handles some serious wattage. They are retiring to make way for the new Revo series, which will also include a white grill model.

Rockford PM262. Another great performing speaker. White grill but with a stainless insert. http://www.rockfordfosgate.com/products/details/pm262

JL MX650 http://www.jlaudio.com/mx650-ccx-cg-wh-marine-audio-mx-series-speaker-systems-91761 arguably one of the best sounding marine coaxials.

I'd like a little more bass and clarity
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All the speakers above are very accurate and will certainly handle your current amp's wattage, and then some.

However, dont expect bass from a 6.5" full range infinite-baffle marine coaxial. You can get excellent mid-bass, but not bass. If your system does not have a sub-woofer, then thats what you need.

Your lack of "clarity" may be distortion or just a cheap tweeter design. Amp and head unit tuning are key factors in sound quality and output. A good dome tweeter will also be an improvement over other speakers.
 
mnm99 said:
My budget is around 250-275 for 4 speakers. I know it's not much , but for instance I was looking at these Polk for around that price. https://www.amazon.com/Polk-Audio-Speakers-AA2652-MM651UM/dp/B00ZPK63E2 I would prefer white grills also.
Thanks
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I can't speak to this model of Polk speakers but I have used Polk DB651 speakers (marine rated) in several vehicles and boats and they have always sounded great.....these speakers consistently get high ratings as being very good quality for the cost.....but I don't think they come with white grilles.....

cliff

https://www.amazon.com/Polk-Audio-DB651-Certified-Speakers/dp/B000P0PF9G

51UL2ad6DSL.jpg
 
I replaced all my original Clarion units lat year with JL MX650 units. I think they sound great but as far as bass goes I've got a 12" subwoofer (that I also replaced with a JL) so I really can't make a judgement on the bass paerformance of the MX650's. I bought mine at the NY boat show last year and got a pretty deep discount.....and I was able to take them home with me that day.
 
bmac said:
I replaced all my original Clarion units lat year with JL MX650 units. I think they sound great but as far as bass goes I've got a 12" subwoofer (that I also replaced with a JL) so I really can't make a judgement on the bass paerformance of the MX650's. I bought mine at the NY boat show last year and got a pretty deep discount.....and I was able to take them home with me that day.
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Hmmm. You got a nice discount? I'm going to Javits boat show in January. Maybe I can find a deal there.
 
Kick the budget up and grab the JLs. No offense, but throwing another hundred bucks at a set of speakers on a 100k boat doesn't seem like too much of a stretch.

If you're replacing the stock Clarions, it's likely that you'll need a 1/2" spacer for the arch speakers, as the JL will bottom out without them.
 
this is a little off topic but i am bored and thought i would share this since it is related to sound quality and speakers and could help the OP enhance the sound system on his boat.....

i am an 'experienced novice' when it comes to installing sound systems but I have recently learned from upgrading the stereo system in my truck that if you try to generate a lot of true bass thru conventional 2-way or 3-way small (less than 6" x 9") speakers you will end up with significant distortion of the mids and highs before you get satisfactory sounding bass....from my research and understanding the air movement required to produce bass causes the midrange speaker to pulsate too much which interferes with the mid range and high range true sounds.....I am sure someone well versed in sound quality can much better explain this....

i have a two door standard cab full size truck.... I installed a new mid-grade Pioneer head unit and two good quality Pioneer 6.5" 3-way speakers in both cab doors....the sound was good but when I tried to pump up the volume and the bass the inner workings of the doors would rattle and the mid range and high range sounds got distorted....so I decided to remove the bass from the door speakers by installing bass blockers in them.....i then installed a 10" low profile Kicker subwoofer powered by a 400 Watt Alpine amp behind the seats to produce the bass....

i am by no means an 'audiophile' but after playing with the adjustments for the high and low pass filters and gain control in both the head unit and amp I am simply amazed at the sound quality you can get from basic components like i used.....the mids and highs from the door speakers are soooooooooo much cleaner since the bass frequencies are blocked from getting to them and they do not have to attempt to produce the bass notes.....i can turn the volume up as high as my ears (and surrounding motorists :grin: ) will let me without any distortion or rattling from the doors.....the small Kicker sub can really hit hard and rattle the windows in the cab if I wanted it to but i don't (i'm 61 years old :smt009 ) so i have it set to fill in the bass notes nicely without too much pounding (except when i am listening to some classic disco!!!!).....

I have installed many stereos and speakers in my life in many vehicles and boats but this simple combination of basic inexpensive components blows anything I have done in the past out of the water regarding sound quality.....this is my first experience using bass blockers and I only wish I knew about them earlier and how they can significantly enhance the mids and highs from conventional speakers......high pass filters in head units do the same thing as bass blockers but I read that there still can be some bass frequencies get to the speakers if only the high pass filter is used.....

cliff
 
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So i pulled one of the speakers. The ones in there now are panasonic easa16px86a1. Says rated at 160w at 4ohm. Does anyone know what the RMS was on these back then? Can't find any specs. A friend of mine has Kicker and says he's very happy with them. I'm just concerned about the RMS at 2-50 Watts. Reviews say they have a lot of high and low, but lack mid. I'll have to listen for myself. They are in my budget and will fit. It looks like they will handle my amps with no problem. Whats your feedback?

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_20641M...18985&awat=pla&awnw=g&awcr=47699481625&awdv=c

EDIT.. Found this, but it wasn't an official Panasonic site.
Panasonic Part Number EASA16PX86A1 Speaker Cone diameter 16 cm woofer, 2.5 cm tweeter Speaker weight 1135 g Sensitivity 1W/1m (dB) 86 ± 3 dB (2 V, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5, 0.6 kHz Ave., 1m) Power Handling 20W (160 W Max) Nominal V.C. Impedance 4 ± .6 ? (.2 kHz, 1V) Resonance (Fo) 55 ± 11Hz (2V) Distortion(Max.) 5% MAX .2 kHz, 1W, 1m Mounting Depth (overall height) 68.5 mm MAX

EDIT #2...LOL Looks like these are the specs
[FONT=&quot]Panasonic Part Number EASA16PX86A1 [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Speaker Cone diameter 16 cm woofer, 2.5 cm tweeter [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Speaker weight 1135 g [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Sensitivity 1W/1m (dB) 86 � 3 dB (2 V, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5, 0.6 kHz Ave., 1m) [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Power Handling 20W (160 W Max) [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Nominal V.C. Impedance 4 � .6 Ω (.2 kHz, 1V) [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Resonance (Fo) 55 � 11Hz (2V) [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Distortion(Max.) 5% MAX .2 kHz, 1W, 1m [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Mounting Depth (overall height) 68.5 mm MAX[/FONT]
 
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mnm99,

If panasonic labels that speaker at a peak or 160, its realistic rms would likely be in the 50-75 watt range. However, I would not get too hung up on rms and peak numbers as just about any marine 6.5" from a credible manufacturer, will handle the wattage from just about any typical system.

As much as i am a Kicker fan, the KM604 is not the one I would go with. As noted in my earlier post, go with the KM654. The 604 model is their entry level OEM grade speaker. it has a smaller .5" tweeter compared to the KM654's larger .75" tweeter. In tweeter world, that .25" different is huge in terms of surface area and power handling. The larger tweeter will extend deeper, making for a better hand off from the mid-bass to the higher end frequencies. Further, the 604 has a hybrid dome, or "W" tweeter compared the KM654's metal dome tweeter. The dome is MUCH smoother up in the higher volume ranges, like when buzzing across the water kind of volume.

So spend a little more and step up to the KM654CW over the KM604W , The KM654 is in the range of the JL MX650, Wet Sounds SW-65i and Rockford PM262.

In regards marine build, the Kicker KM604W is 2X the speaker that polk DB series is. You need to loosely, i mean loosely apply that "marine rated" they tad the DB. There is no actual rating. Some things the DB (the newly retired DB series) lacks that true marine speakers have: stainless mounting hardware, enclosed magnets, composite baskets, a grill mounted tweeter or at least a boot to bridge the gap between the mid-bass cone and tweeter pole to keep out moisture. The old DB series has cheap steel screws, exposed magnet and cross over, steel basket and a gap around the tweeter pole that lest moisture in.
 
Go with the polks, but not their db series, those are entry level. Stick with the mm polks, marine rated, right price, high sensitivity. They do want to be amped eventually with an extra 75-100 watts. We have 4 pair in our sea Ray, 3 pair in our formula, and some in the truck as well. Crutchfield had them for 120$ a pair, and they have awesome customer service. Good luck.
 
cdog said:
Go with the polks, but not their db series, those are entry level. Stick with the mm polks, marine rated, right price, high sensitivity. They do want to be amped eventually with an extra 75-100 watts. We have 4 pair in our sea Ray, 3 pair in our formula, and some in the truck as well. Crutchfield had them for 120$ a pair, and they have awesome customer service. Good luck.
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They don't come with white grills. Now that I'm looking more I think I want that. Gray wouldn't look to great on the white arch to me.
 
Wylie_Tunes said:
http://clubsearay.com/showthread.php/81692-Wet-Sounds-SW-650-W-quantity-of-4

Search over.
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Agreed,

BUT depending on the hole size from the Clarions you might need spacers I did. I went with the same Wet Sounds and I really like them they sound amazing. But I also have 2 1600 Watt Fusion amps driving them and 2 - 10" Subs.

Just swapping from the Clarions to the Wet Sounds you will see a good difference in quality and sound with just the stock amps. The first time I replaced my original speakers with cheap actual replacements and it was a waste of money like $110 down the tubes they failed the next season. I should have held out and just done the Wet Sounds speakers all in one shot, even with out the amps upgrades it would have been the way to go.

FYI asking speaker and amp brand opinions is like asking what kind of oil do you use LOL. A million different ways to go and none of them are bad, unless you don't do it. Good luck and let us know how you make out.
 
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BUT depending on the hole size from the Clarions you might need spacers I did
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CTSearay makes a good point about physical specs when swapping out existing speakers. However, given the cost of a nearly new premium speaker like the Wet Sounds SW-650 linked earlier, I would be willing to tackle the job of enlarging the original cut out or adding a spacer, like an LED ring, if depth was an issue. One bit of good news is, IIRC, his existing panasonic speakers use a common 5.0" cutout, same as the Wet Sounds. Also, the Wet Sounds 5.0" cutout is slightly smaller than the polk mm651um that the OP is interested in. In reality, 10 seconds per hole with a drum sander would fix this minor difference.
 
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