What speakers for my E30?

[Gasturbine]

PO installed this Alpine unit in my '87 325ic, but left the stock (5.25"?) speakers. Needless to say, it sounds like sh!t.

Can someone confirm the size, and recommend a speaker that has good bass.

I do not want to put a sub in, and I do not want/need loudness, rather some smooth rich sound.

Thanks!

[E30_Pare]

If you don't have premium sound. GET IT.

Door tweeter & rear tweeters make a good difference. From there it's all about settings on the HU

[JTDay]

The stock premium sound speakers are what you should look for. They have excellent midbass.

[agent]

It's probably as simple as adding an amp. Most likely it sounds like shit because the deck isn't pushing enough power to the speakers. As long as they're not rotten, the stock (premium) speakers do just fine when properly set up.

[StereoInstaller1]

Shit sound at 1 watt will still be shit sound at 100 watts...so basically, the only advantage an amp will give you is adjustability...which the E30 certainly needs.

The difference in power really won't do much, but the ability to change crossover settings and adjust your gains will help a bunch.


Oh wait, OP, you have a cabby? OK, nevermind...plain and simple: you are gonna get shit sound no matter what you do without a sub. Remember ALL modern cars with decent SQ have subwoofers...subs ain't just about big stupid boom.

Luke

[Gasturbine]

If you don't have premium sound. GET IT.

Um, thats what Im asking about. The deck seems high-end enough.

[Gasturbine]

The stock premium sound speakers are what you should look for. They have excellent midbass.

You say "premiums"...where would i get these? I presume the stock ones I have now are sub-par, as they suck...nothing but "tin".

[Gasturbine]

It's probably as simple as adding an amp. Most likely it sounds like shit because the deck isn't pushing enough power to the speakers.

The deck is 4x50 watts!

As long as they're not rotten, the stock (premium) speakers do just fine when properly set up.

Then something is wrong, because the have very low midrange, and absolutely no bass to speak of. And yes, thats with the bass turned all the way up in the deck.

[Gasturbine]

Oh wait, OP, you have a cabby? OK, nevermind...

I dont know what a "cabby" is.

plain and simple: you are gonna get shit sound no matter what you do without a sub.

Like I said, Im not looking to blow anybody away with this system...just looking for some decent sound without throwing a bunch on maney at it for a amp/sub.

Remember ALL modern cars with decent SQ have subwoofers...subs ain't just about big stupid boom.

Both my Dodge truck and Nissan car have sound systems that sound great to me with no sub. Again, Im just looking for some "full range" speakers to put in.

Thanks!

[StereoInstaller1]

I dont know what a "cabby" is.

Cabriolet = "cabby"

[g.ruff561]

IJS. I have some MB Quart componants for sale in the Parts For Sale section if you are interested. The old school made in Germany models. Not the newer Asian copies. The e30 wiring is there. All you need are the parts (speakers + tweeters + crossovers).

[Cabriolet]

The deck is 4x50 watts!



Then something is wrong, because the have very low midrange, and absolutely no bass to speak of. And yes, thats with the bass turned all the way up in the deck.

Bro. I have a cabby and i have the absolute best sound system you can put in the car.

listen to me when i say. with the stock speaker enclosures. you will NEVER have good sound in that car. I have a Luke 8"x2 sub box. PITA to install but otherwise, you have 0 options. well worth to the work.

1. Dont run audio off the head unit EVER. get an amp.
2. Get the Pioneer TS-D1320C (front) and TS-D1302R (rear)

Cabriolet = "cabby"

HAHA so true.

[agent]

The deck is 4x50 watts!

Dont run audio off the head unit EVER. get an amp.

[Cabriolet]

Here is a audio test video shot on my Canon 60D, no recording mic.


amps
Alpine MRX-F30 and MRX-M50
Pioneer TS-D1320C (front) and TS-D1302R (rear)
Luke sub box for power top cars
2x8" Kickers

[Mitch H]

OP, you can run speakers off just the head unit just fine. It wont sound amazing, or amazingly loud, but with the right set of speakers it should be fine. Your HU is rated at 18W RMS per channel, and you'll probably not want to use all of that to reduce THD. So the key is to get speakers with high sensitivity to make the most use of that little power you have.

I would suggest these. The sensitivity is about as high as you'll find for car speakers (93 dB), the frequency range is really large for mids (53-23k Hz), and the power handling is large enough that should you decide to add an amp later your speakers will be able to handle it. Plus they're 42% off. The downside is you'll miss out on any notes below A1; to get those you'll need to add a sub.

Uh, wait disregard that last paragraph. It looks like the power handling on that set is 10-100W RMS, so the lower threshold is already more than half what your HU can produce. Go with these instead. They're cheaper, and they power handling is 2-45 W RMS, but they're components (I've heard these aren't as good?), and the frequency range isn't as large (67-21k HZ).