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I've ordered a Kenwood DDX9903S from Double D. It's going to ship soon after a long delay for AppleTalk certification.
Now is the moment of truth: do I strip out the Bose speakers and replace them with the boffo set that Dennis would like to sell me? Doing so would more than double the cost of the project because I will not be doing any installation myself. A local shop will do it and it won't be cheap (but I expect it will be well done).
I have a convertible 04 that I usually drive top down with music playing about as loudly as I can without becoming a public nuisance. I like my music, but not having had anything but the Bose speakers to listen to since I bought the 'vette, and being generally deprived of a better sound system anywhere in my life (long story), I'm not sure what I'm missing. I was once somewhat of an audiophile but that was long ago.
Will a new set of speakers be a dramatic improvement over just a change in head unit? Take it for granted that Double D's recommended speakers are top notch.
yes I suggest Polk Audio or Alpine replacements ... not too expensive but good quality sound...
I did Kickers and wish I had gone with one of the above...
The speakers are PLUG and PLAY you can do it...or they should charge you very little for installing the speakers will take them about 20 minutes...
Last edited by 73Corvette; Jul 8, 2016 at 04:34 PM.
Well Dennis strongly recommends includes a subwoofer in the rear. The wiring for that (and an amp to go with it IIRC) may make it more expensive to install. There's no way I'll be doing it myself, I don't have the time or the skill.
If you want high quality audio then swap the speakers. I replaced my head unit with a kenwood but did not swap speakers. Took a while to dial in audio settings including setting the pac romvette interface which is needed to hook up the new unit to the stock speakers. Keep in mind the stock speakers are not very efficient they do not sound great at low volume they sound better to me at higher volumes.
Do a quick search on the forum there is an active thread where many members have posted. Look through it as it may help you decide
I also have a vert and will do the speaker upgrade at some point.
If you want high quality audio then swap the speakers. I replaced my head unit with a kenwood but did not swap speakers. Took a while to dial in audio settings including setting the pac romvette interface which is needed to hook up the new unit to the stock speakers. Keep in mind the stock speakers are not very efficient they do not sound great at low volume they sound better to me at higher volumes.
Do a quick search on the forum there is an active thread where many members have posted. Look through it as it may help you decide
I also have a vert and will do the speaker upgrade at some point.
Thanks for the reply. I'm looking specifically for feedback from owners of C5 verts and your feedback is very helpful.
I have a 02 Coupe and did a complete system replacement my self over 10yrs ago. It still sounds awesome. As some others have said the Bose speakers are not the greatest.
If you want to keep the costs down and not use a sub woofer, look into CDT audio MX623F. These get down almost as low as a sub, about 40Hz. I have these in my C6 vert and they get pretty loud to the point that they can rattle the door. I am driving them with a 100W/channel 2 channel amp, a CDT Audio MXMA-1502. This is a small form factor amp, it happens to fit in the factory amp location in a C6. In a C5 it will fit behind the passenger seat perfectly or in the area the top is folded into.
This is needed since the factory mounting will not work with aftermarket speakers. (Note: The 3.5" speaker can be replaced in the factory mount with aftermarket ones. The 8" woofer opening is not sized for any aftermarket speakers. Also it is ABS plastic, not good for woofer mounting.)
If you were in so-cal I would help you with the install.
Thanks for the reply. I'm looking specifically for feedback from owners of C5 verts and your feedback is very helpful.
In our 04 vert we left the factory head unit and upgraded speakers and did LOTS of sound deadening... added the Kit from DD to play bluetooth, Ipod... it sounds GREAT
Dennis sold me my Alpine stereo/nav system and bezel. I Installed that and changed all speakers to Polk, including tweeters in the door latches. Not wanting to sacrifice trunk volume, I added a pair of powered subwoofers behind the seats. I can crank the volume at "highway speeds" with the top down and still hear clear, undistorted music. I haven't even come close to max volume yet, nor need to.
I have a pioneer nex 8100, I did full audio system builds back in my day, JL,memphis, Image dynamics etc, decent stuff...so the stereo in this car with the bose is abysmal. I bought $70 pioneers on amazon on close out and it went from horrid to acceptable, worth every penny. The bose woofers stay in the door and its enough base, its just coming from the doors and not the rear...if you do not amp them watch the RMS on the speakers, that HU probably puts out 15-20 RMS, if you buy too good of speakers without an amp they will not sound that good...truly the biggest upgrade with the speakers is the pure fact your adding tweeters...Im top off most of the time so its not huge concern to me in this car.
Dennis sold me my Alpine stereo/nav system and bezel. I Installed that and changed all speakers to Polk, including tweeters in the door latches. Not wanting to sacrifice trunk volume, I added a pair of powered subwoofers behind the seats. I can crank the volume at "highway speeds" with the top down and still hear clear, undistorted music. I haven't even come close to max volume yet, nor need to.
I don't recall which exact model #, but I put 6.5" in the doors, 1" tweeters (DB1001) in the door pulls and 3.5" in the rear. I believe you could get a bigger midrange in the door, once you get the adapter plates (available on ebay), and/or add another midrange and/or tweeter to the doors. Plenty of flexibility and room there. Polks aren't the only option for an upgrade. A call to Dennis will get you more options, as he's very helpful with this stuff.
Dennis sold me my Alpine stereo/nav system and bezel. I Installed that and changed all speakers to Polk, including tweeters in the door latches. Not wanting to sacrifice trunk volume, I added a pair of powered subwoofers behind the seats. I can crank the volume at "highway speeds" with the top down and still hear clear, undistorted music. I haven't even come close to max volume yet, nor need to.
If you're heading into NH in the near future I'd be happy to let you try mine out.
Thinking about adding sub behind seats as well so I don't lose any storage room. If I may ask what subs did you install, any issues with seat clearance?
Thinking about adding sub behind seats as well so I don't lose any storage room. If I may ask what subs did you install, any issues with seat clearance?
Check the link above to the other thread where I showed pix and a link to Crutchfield for the subs. When I said I put them behind my seats, I meant on the deck behind, where the top stores. I haven't tried putting them directly behind the seats on the bulkhead, but they will probably fit down low, as long as your seat doesn't go all the way back. I'm going to check clearance under the seats, as they may just fit there, too.
I think mine sounds great with the Bose speakers !! Head unit DDX793, many audio adjustments, (like insane amount)
X2 for me...my Alpine HU makes the factory speakers sound fabulous and I needed zero adjustment of the sub gain right out of the box. IMO the quality of the aftermarket HU has a huge influence and new speakers are potentially just a band aid for a mediocre deck.
Help Me Decide - Audio Upgrade
