Advice needed on budget speakers

I'd like to upgrade the speakers on my DCSB but I'm hoping to spend $200 or less for the four door speakers (I'll upgrade tweeters later). Kickers seem to get all the love around here but I've also heard some people saying that their quality has declined recently. Does anyone agree or disagree with that? What are some other brands and models I should consider on that budget?

 

I personally wouldn't bother with 200$ it wont be much of an upgrade. I'm a fan of Hertz but they are 100$ each.

 

Kicker quality is still as good as ever.

don’t waste your money on speakers right now though. The limiting factor is the head unit, not the speakers. Adding sound deadening will make things sound better. Don’t worry about speakers till you’re ready to add an amp as well

 

check crutchfield, they will have some options

if you're doing the work yourself, nothing wrong with updating them now and seeing how you like it without an amp. if you need more later, add more.

agreed though on sound deadening as well...makes a big difference in music quality. even one layer. swap your speakers when you do the sound deadening. do the tweeters too, crutchfield has some kits for the front that cover both the door speakers and tweeters. they can help you out a lot and are more than willing

 

That's the plan for now - and I've also considered doing the sound deadening while I'm at it. I'm taking a road trip tomorrow and I'll pay attention to the level of road noise. I've never thought of my truck as particularly noisy but I've only had it for a few months. Do you have any experience with any of the less expensive speaker brands?

 

Yeah I do. Swapped out my door speakers all around for Rockford Fosgate Prime series R1675-S in the front doors, and

$66 R1675x2 6.75" 2-Way Full Range Coaxial Speakers (Pair)

R1675x2 for the rear doors. I did that upgrade before I did the amp and sub, and it was a pretty significant difference, though one of my door speakers was blown out when i got the truck so hard to say just how much difference. But I was happy with the upgrade...just like deeper bass haha

 

Take a look at Pioneer.

TS-A692C are component speakers with tweeter and 6x9 woofer. $130 at Crutchfield. Put these in the front doors.
TS-A652F are coaxial 3 way, 6 1/2". $80 at Crutchfield. Put these in the rear doors.

You can run these with your HU. Later, you can upgrade the HU and/or add an Amp.

These are pinch over your $200 budget.

 

I was actually going to link these for OP's budget as well.

 

I have these they are pretty good.

not JL good but i like them for the price

 

Yeah. I get the budget dance. I want to replace my HU and speakers. Budget is under pressure from other needed sources. As we ride out this pandemic mess, we need to keep our focus on NEEDS and delay the WANTS.

With a bit of luck, I may be able squeeze the speakers from the coffers. The HU will need to wait for a while.

I won't say Pioneer are the best, but I do know they are very good and have been in the audio business for many, many years.

 

Please try the Subaru tweeter upgrade first. I did that with stock audio system first (8" non-jbl head unit), and almost didn't keep going to upgrade the door speakers. The improvement was so substantial I could have lived with that if on a budget.

 

Dude! We don't NEED that kind of talk around here! I'm trying to have fun right now and you're being all responsible.

But yes, you're right. Hence the budget. And even on a budget I've found myself wondering if I should really upgrade the speakers. Are the stock speakers really that bad? Should I just learn to be happy with them? I've definitely heard worse.

 

Interesting. I've been totally focused on the doors speakers, thinking that I wouldn't do the tweeters for a while. Now I'm wondering....

 

Yep.....there are primary needs first.....mortgage, food, heat, water, electric, clothes, repairs (home & truck)

Our stim check is ear marked for repairs. Home and truck. Home has priority.

It sucks being responsible.

 

Similar situation here. I've been planning to replace our galvanized plumbing with pex for a couple of years before it starts springing serious leaks and causing more costly damage to the house. I just dropped $700 to replace our 18 year old water heater. I've got siding to repair, and a back door that needs replacing and a window that's starting to sag... Fun stuff. I'm thankful that I have a home to repair though.

 

The only thing really missing after Subaru tweeter upgrade was omph feel of the bass. But those did fill in that missing mid range, and clarity so much I could finally understand words instead of just hear muddled voice.

I had to mess with the head unit settings a lot after adding the door speakers to get a decent balance back, so I wouldn't say door speakers alone would make things amazing. For the first $100 do the tweeters then decide.

 

Oh and other tip, save the extra $100 on rear door speakers unless you add in an amp. It's not just you, there is almost no power going to them.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/low-volume-in-rear-speakers.712148/#post-25328673

 

Beginning with lowest price, this is the first 6x9 component set I’d be willing to try out. I’m not a huge fan of aluminum diaphragm tweeters, but that’s a personal thing, most people like them.

They are 4 ohm, just like the newer factory speakers, but the sensitivity is tits. You’ll never hear the rear speakers with these in so it doesn’t matter that you can’t get all 4 doors done for under $200.

The C1 line comes in all sizes so you can add the coax rears later and get your voice matching.

https://www.crutchfield.com/p_13699046/JL-Audio-C1-690.html?tp=106

• handles up to 60 watts RMS (225 watts peak power)
• frequency response: 39-22,000 Hz
• sensitivity: 94 dB @ 2.83 volts