cmjuhl

What series speakers did you purchase, I am looking at the JBL GX series.
The problem your having (tinny sound) is why I am on the fence about doing the speaker upgrade?
I plan on adding Killmat sound deadener to my inner door panels,which should help.

Thanks in advance

73Corvette

Sound deadening the wheel wells stops a lot of road noise.....

GCG

This may very well be the result of sound cancellation. This problem happens when there are speakers out of phase with each other in the same listening environment and it is most noticeable at lower frequencies. The resulting sound is weak and lacking in the medium to bottom end.

Perception is very subjective and in the end it is a matter of personal preference, but there really is no reason to end up with worse low end frequency response unless the new speakers are inferior than the plain cone Bose twiddlers... and that's almost impossible

When replacing the OEM Bose twiddlers with aftermarket speakers, unless special attention is given, the likelihood of ending up with out of phase speakers is significant.

This is because although Bose does use the same narrow/wide spade terminals in its speakers as other manufacturers do, they don't follow the common standard and the polarity of their speaker terminals is REVERSED in relation to the aftermarket ones.

Take a look at this Post for more details and how to avoid it.

StrangelovesM6Vert

You can easily put any 6x9s of your choice in the doors.
All you have to do is gut the grilles and put them behind on the back of the speaker
to space it out so it clears the power window track.
The door panel fits fine lots of clearance.



To go with the 1200 watts rms from the old school Rockford Punch amps I'm currently running an Audiobahn sub with premium Hertz 6x9s in the doors and 3.5s in the back and volume adjustable tweeters at the top of the A pillars.







The cheap 50.00 high power 350 watts rms Pyles finally wore out after having them in various vehicles for 18 years when one died so I upgraded to the premium quality 300.00 Hertz HCX 690s

LTCHAPPA

If the original speakers are not blown out I would not change them.The Bose system in the Vette is not very good to start.I did the whole system replacement.Doing small upgrades never made me happy. Alpine head, Alpine component front speakers and rear speakers. Alpine 4 channel amp and a small powered subwoofer. I had my system installed by a pro and it is a seemless install.The sound is as loud as you want and very clean.The Alpine is very good quality and it’s been in my Vette vert for over 10 years with no issues.

StrangelovesM6Vert

Mine is loud, clear and thumping with the top down at 100

JimHarris4

Dirty little secret about speakers. After my five way bypass, I couldn't bend under the dash to install anything.
I researched everywhere and everything, and came up with an alpine head unit and four speakers. I found out my local Best Buy does an install of head unit for $69. Lifetime guarantee and they'll pull it out for free if I sell the car. The speakers were $39 install. Now I have everything I need from USB to iPhone call play.
My installer was a great guy. Very happy and very glad I didn't try and get underneath there to deinstall and reinstall.

jrprich

So does the Metra wiring adapter kit reverse the Bose wiring so that + becomes + at the aftermarket speakers connections?​​​​
Or do the + and - still need to be reversed at the aftermarket speakers connections?

retiredff

Damn! I found this post AFTER installing the JBL 5 1/4" speakers in the back of my vert. The OEM speakers don't have + or - on the connections so I guess the wiring would tell me. Can u remember if there is a black wire in the speaker connection and I can assume that is neg '-''? Any other way to tell?
I didn't notice much difference in sound but did notice the rears sounded weak and I didn't change any of the controls.
I haven't replaced the door speakers yet but will when I remove my interior to sound deaden and insulate.


THX

Tony

GCG

-Rear OEM wiring:

• Right:
  • (+) -> DK BLU
  • (-) -> LT BLU
• Left:
  • (+) -> BRN
  • (-) -> YEL

If you used the

Metra wiring adapter

Metra wiring adapter

when you installed the rear replacements, you're probably fine.

Click here for more details.


You may want to click here for a review of the JBL GX Series 2-way coaxials like yours to compare.

kemosabe

Just changed my vert's twiddlers to Infinity Kappa 300M's, and retained the Bose subs, what a difference!!!!, changed the the rear 5-1/4" to Infinity REF-5032CFX's, Great sound.

retiredff

Yep, I used the metra adaptors.

I haven't had much of a chance to test out the sound but I will. Thanks for the wiring colors.

Thanks

knewblewkorvette

If you can afford it, just replace the whole system. The sound difference is amazing. Bose=sucks.

retiredff

WOW! I bet that cost a pretty penny, but I'll stick with the crappy bose with upgraded speakers for a while anyway.

GCG

When you install your front 3½" JBL speakers you will have to replace the OEM spade connectors with new ones because they are reversed, or create your own adapter harness.


My pleasure!

When you do, it would be great if you could come back and post your impressions

retiredff

so u r saying my current connections are for sure reversed?

I will post my results.

GCG

What I'm saying is that the factory connectors for the "front" OEM Bose 3½" twiddlers are "spade" ones and they do follow Bose's standard, which is the opposite of what aftermarket manufacturers use.

I was just giving you a heads-up for the future, so you can be prepared when you go to replace your front twiddlers: you will need to cut those spade connectors and crimp new ones following the "normal" standard (reversed in relation to Bose), or create your own adapter harnesses if you don't want to cut and crimp the OEM wires

Your current connections are fine now because they are correct for the current speakers.

retiredff

OK GCG thanks.

Budwise

I installed the GX302's and 502's yesterday and can say I'm quite impressed with the improvement. The install was straight forward and there was no fitment issues in my Z06. The sound is significantly more detailed and brighter but an even better improvement is the fact that you can turn them up louder before running into distortion. The OEM speakers were terrible and if you wanted to turn them up loud enough to hear your music while the windows are down it would just fall apart in a distorted mess. These hold up quite well at louder volumes and I can finally listen to my music and enjoy it with the windows down on the highway.

I actually went to Best Buy and heard the GX series compared to some Kickers, Alpines, and Kenwoods and the GX actually sounded the best, especially when run off of head unit power and not an amp.

Hard to beat for ~$100!

GCG

@Budwise Thank you for taking the time to come back and provide feedback about your experience. Not many people do that, and it's the only way to help each other.

Great review. To the point, and addressing the aspects that people usually want to know.