HELP Suggestions on front/rear speakers

CrammerGram69

Master Mechanic
Nov 15, 2019
437
143
43
SW, Michigan
Hey all, finally at that point i need to install speakers. 3.5" front dash & 6x9 Rear or Quality 4x10s if i can find some. What do all of you run that will fit into the factory mountings without cutting? or minimal. I've been told Kicker has good clear sound w/ nice bass & is great bang-for-buck. What about Skar? or even Retrosound's own Speakers? I may be getting the Retro-sound unit Motor 2A Radio And running my MTX 15" Subwoofer and amp. (I don't remember the models atm). Around 1000 - 1500W. Giver take. So yeah Let me know!
 
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CrammerGram69

Master Mechanic
Nov 15, 2019
437
143
43
SW, Michigan
I really like these from the reviews/videos i watched. Does anyone use them? & Will they clear inside the dash without being too tall?

CS 3 1/2" 2-way > www.crutchfield.com/p_20646CC354/Kicker-46CSC354.html
(KS ones are $79 each) My budget is more like $50-60 Frts & $129-160 Rear.

KS 6x9 2-Way www.crutchfield.com/p_20647KSC69/Kicker-47KSC6904.html

KS 6x9 3-way > www.crutchfield.com/p_20647KSC93/Kicker-47KSC69304.html

KS 4x10 2-way > https://www.crutchfield.com/p_20647KSC41/Kicker-47KSC41004.html
 

CrammerGram69

Master Mechanic
Nov 15, 2019
437
143
43
SW, Michigan
Update. I've been told if i don't run the new Retro sound radio and use the stock one i will need to stay with 8-10 Ohm speakers. Hmm.
 

Sweet_Johnny

Has A Face For Radio
Supporting Member
Oct 4, 2022
668
1,217
93
Wichita, Kansas
Weren't the Concert Sound speakers from Bose 8-10 ohm?

Skar is good quality as are the others mentioned, but car audio seems to be as polarizing as politics at times so you'll get a multitude of passionate answers. I outfitted my '04 single cab Sierra with NVX and Rockville and it's exactly what I wanted. NVX is the house brand of Sonic Electronics, and here's a link to their available 3.5" speakers. I don't know if they'll fit under the G Body dash grilles as I've yet to do a complete audio job to my Elk, but I've got their woofers, mids, and tweets in my truck doors as well as replaced the factory speakers in the cab corners. https://www.sonicelectronix.com/search?keyword=3.5 They sound very crisp and clear, and the bass is there if you want it. I have tinnitus and use music to drown it out, and as a huge fan of music I can't stand bad speakers.

Another brand I'm fond of is Dayton Audio, and they come from Parts Express. I've got their home audio speakers and they're fantastic- they do make car speakers, just not a huge variety of them.

If you have the ability, putting together a component system will always sound better than using 3 or 4 way speakers. Subwoofers/ woofers can't replicate high frequency, tweeters can't do lows, and mids can have a wide range but should really only be used for mid-range audio and not the extremes of its potential. Stacking multiple drivers that rob power and quality from each other into a single basket is not the right answer, it's just the quick answer. They sound "fine" to most, in most situations. Until you hear a component system. The right answer is having dedicated drivers for lows, mids, and highs, respectively and then utilizing crossovers to limit which frequencies you're asking the drivers to replicate. I stuffed some 6.5" Pioneers in the footwells and Pyle Driver Pro Titanium tweeters in my El Camino dash for now but they're not discreet. The Pyles are also harsh and could use a 1 watt in line resistor to calm them down a bit. Save your ears and stick with silk dome tweeters over titanium when putting them into a small cabin vehicle.

Pay close attention to the wattage as well as the resistance of the entire setup- you can manipulate these in different ways for different scenarios, or you can fry your gear if you mix incompatible parts. Acoustics play a major role as well, and Bose has always been known for having high quality factory car audio systems, in part due to their chosen speaker placement. You don't need to break the bank as long as you get a few key things right. Wattage, ohms, speaker placement, and quality wire connections should be at the top of that list. The best speakers in the world will sound horrible if you get those wrong.

SonicElectronics.com, PartsExpress.com, and DelCity.net will have everything you need. I also very highly recommend a mini-amp, such as the Soundstream ST4.1200D. This will require better speakers than what would suffice for the factory stereo, but the ones discussed are fine as long as the wattage isn't exceeded.

Perhaps you could use some Concert Sound speakers for now to get the placement right while meeting the 8-10 ohm requirement, and upgrade to better speakers if/when you change your head unit. Or the factory GM Monsoon system isn't too bad. In fact, I plan on saving the entire setup- from my friend's 2002 Grand Am.
 
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Rodknok

Greasemonkey
Jun 14, 2022
210
577
93
I have the 3.5 cs kickers in my dash of my GN. They are powered off an aftermarket double din radio. Sound pretty decent. Wish I would have went with the KS though.
 
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MadDrOlds

Not-quite-so-new-guy
Mar 19, 2023
39
15
8
Update. I've been told if i don't run the new Retro sound radio and use the stock one i will need to stay with 8-10 Ohm speakers. Hmm.
Historically, home speakers are 8 ohm and car speakers are 4 ohm. Bose were fancy at a lower 1 ohm. I’m certain any head you can work in a g body would work with 4 ohm speakers.

Also: the head determines the resistance so you don’t want a 1 ohm unit going into a 4 ohm speaker, but the opposite is fine. You need speakers that can handle the efficiency (resistance) of your head.
 
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SoFloG

Royal Smart Person
Mar 9, 2016
1,107
1,258
113
South Florida
I would look into a quality aftemarket head unit like Pioneer(not retrosound) and go from there. 3.5" and 4x10" are the worst sizes ever really known to exist for acoustic quality, they were pretty much a gm thing made to fit where they could and have stereo separation. If you have a 15" subwoofer you will want to look in to upgrading...maybe some kick panels for 5.25" or 6.5" coaxials or the lower door panels with speaker pods in them. 90% of all aftermarket mids/highs will be 4 ohm and usable with any quality aftermarket head unit with built in amplifier and/or separate amplifiers.
 
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CrammerGram69

Master Mechanic
Nov 15, 2019
437
143
43
SW, Michigan
I would look into a quality aftemarket head unit like Pioneer(not retrosound) and go from there. 3.5" and 4x10" are the worst sizes ever really known to exist for acoustic quality, they were pretty much a gm thing made to fit where they could and have stereo separation. If you have a 15" subwoofer you will want to look in to upgrading...maybe some kick panels for 5.25" or 6.5" coaxials or the lower door panels with speaker pods in them. 90% of all aftermarket mids/highs will be 4 ohm and usable with any quality aftermarket head unit with built in amplifier and/or separate amplifiers.
I decided for now to stay with the stock unit, I want a factory correct yet aftermarket head unit, hence why Retrosound is really my only option unless i send my OG unit in to be Modernized.
 
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Sweet_Johnny

Has A Face For Radio
Supporting Member
Oct 4, 2022
668
1,217
93
Wichita, Kansas
Define "modernized"... If you want a 3.5mm aux input jack or Bluetooth you can add both of those yourself. Or just add the jack and plug in the Bluetooth when you want it. There's also the option of wiring in a separate Bluetooth receiver/amp with speaker outputs, they're cheap and work very well.

And then there are Bluetooth receivers that double as control knobs like these https://www.sonicelectronix.com/search?keyword=xubt4.
 
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SoFloG

Royal Smart Person
Mar 9, 2016
1,107
1,258
113
South Florida
I decided for now to stay with the stock unit, I want a factory correct yet aftermarket head unit, hence why Retrosound is really my only option unless i send my OG unit in to be Modernized.
You can use your factory unit and run a line level converter from the amplified outputs which takes the speaker signal and converts it to RCA and then use an aftermarket amplifier if you are truly in search of great sound... for now though, sounds like any standard 4 ohm coaxial kicker, pioneer, jbl, rockford, etc. 3.5" and 4x10" replacements will give you better than factory paper speaker sound and keep things stock appearance. Since you're keeping the factory deck look for speakers with higher "db" or sensitivity ratings. They will get a bit louder and clearer without having to crank the volume as high and increase distortion. The factory speakers are lightweight paper cones(efficient) and the stock head units can have a hard time powering inefficient(lower sensitivity) aftermarket speakers.
 
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