Convertible Rear Speakers

[thereisnoyun]

Just tried to put in a pair of infinitiy reference series 5.25, and it wont clear on the rear. FYI

[E30 Cabrio]

I've been trying to find a decent pair of rear speakers for my Cabrio but no luck due to fitment issues.

I recently installed rear headrests, and I'm thinking of gutting them and mounting some speakers in them.

[E30 Cabrio]

Quick Google search shows that the following speakers should fit the back of E30 Cabs:

Blaupunkt ODx 542e
Blaupunkt PCxb542
Polk Audio EX350

The Blaupunkt PCxb542s are crap.
Don't know about the ODx 542e

The Polk EX350's might be a good choice.

http://www.verrill.com/car/e30_rearspeakers.shtml

[lylefk]

A viable option that people maybe not think of would be to go down to a 4" speaker and make an adapter plate out of ABS. Not the ideal solution, but for rear speakers IMO it's good enough.

[E30 Cabrio]

A viable option that people maybe not think of would be to go down to a 4" speaker and make an adapter plate out of ABS. Not the ideal solution, but for rear speakers IMO it's good enough.

Good thinking. That's another option.

My fear is that there is no room behind the speaker so it can generate decent sound and that the metal behind it will cause it to sound tinny.

[lylefk]

You could put some sound deadener behind and on the panel or create a little fiberglass enclosure for them if you are worried about it.

[E30 Cabrio]

I found a pair of Blaupunkt PCxb542 speakers online for cheap - About $34.00 shipped to my door.

They did improve the sound over the stock rear Cabrio speakers so they were worth the money, but I will eventually upgrade them someday.

If the stock rear cabrio speakers are rated at a 2 on a scale of 1-10, the Blaupunkt speakers are about a 4 or 5 on a scale of 1-10

Better then the stock speakers, but still plenty of room for improvement but it's hard to find something that will fit.

I might try to squeeze a layer of Dynamat in there, but there is very little space between the speaker magnet and the sheet metal, but would probably do wonders for the sound quality of the el cheapo Blaupunkt speakers.

I also plan to add a low-profile powered Subwoofer under my driver seat.

Thinking of something like the Blaupunkt THb 200 A or maybe a Boss Audio BASS600 or a SoundStorm USS8 - something that fits under the seat or perhaps a Bazooka tube in the trunk.

I don't need booming bass that shakes the car apart and sets off car alarms, just a little extra thump that's missing from my current setup, which is the aforementioned Blaupunkt speakers and the front has the stock "Premium" speakers and tweeters which sound decent.

Maybe I'll put the low profile Sub under the passenger seat and play something booming when I have a slim riding with me so the vibrations get her slippery.

My Clarion HU has 6v RCA outputs for the sub(s) so I can use those when I add the subwoofer.

I only drive about 4k per year, so I really don't need a top of the line system, but would like something decent and the Clarion HU and Blaupunkt rears have been a huge upgrade over the stock "Premium" sound system and for less then $200.00 total.

[thereisnoyun]

PCxb542 mounting depth is 2 1/16 wouldnt like the kappas 5.25 fit, since it also is suppose to be 2 1/16 top mount. It seems like there is alot of top mount components out there that is 2 1/16.

[E30 Cabrio]

They barely have enough clearance. I wonder if instead of Dynamat I could just cut out a piece of carpeting and glue it to the inner fender behind the speaker to help increase the bass and improve the sound and also around the sheet metal that houses the speakers.

I might give it a shot this weekend as I have some carpet remnants laying around and if I have some time, I'll try it and report back.

The cheap Blaupunkt speakers are an improvement over the stock rear Cabby speakers though and maybe adding some sound deadening material over the sheet metal might help.

[thereisnoyun]

you would have to cover quite a bit of the metal behind it to have any real effect I would imagine. Since its all hollow and in order to reflect the sound with the mat it would need to be relatively enclosed.

I'm going to go try some other speakers and follow up with you folks.

[Naplm00]

I have a set of pioneer shallow basket speakers 5.25 in. they fit fine behind the stock "grills"

[E30 Cabrio]

I have a set of pioneer shallow basket speakers 5.25 in. they fit fine behind the stock "grills"

On a scale of 1-10 with the stock rear speakers being a 2 or 3, how do the pioneer speakers rate and what model are they?

I swapped in some cheap Blaupunkt speakers that are a noticeable improvement over stock, but would like something better in the back and will probably add a Sub at some point for a little boom.

Not enough to shake the car apart or set of car alarms, just enough to feel and hear.

[thereisnoyun]

I bought a pair of kappas full range. They fit perfectly, you ahve to space out the speakers a bit so it will clear the cover. But they sound pretty good.

they were on sale at crutchfield for 60 dollars for the pair of speakers. Looks uber nice too.

- Yun

[E30 Cabrio]

I bought a pair of kappas full range. They fit perfectly, you ahve to space out the speakers a bit so it will clear the cover. But they sound pretty good.

they were on sale at crutchfield for 60 dollars for the pair of speakers. Looks uber nice too.

- Yun

Model number?

How would you rate the sound vs. stock?

Thanks.

[thereisnoyun]

Model number?

How would you rate the sound vs. stock?

Thanks.

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_108527I/Infinity-Kappa-52-7i.html?tp=97

kappa 52.7

Its better... but I cant really compare, my original set up was a stock

panasonic deck powering the stock speakers with no amplifier, and mediocre 18 gauge wires.

now its blaupunkt sd48, to mtx 704x to the speakers, with double insulated 12 gauge wires.

so I was expecting it to be better, but I have no idea how much better. Its cleaner sound, but its no audiophile grade. I would definitely need a sub in the near future, the lows are minimal.