POLK Audio Upgrade Questions

Hi Guys, I have a decent amount of experience putting in stereo's and speakers but not enough to start this without some advice. I am upgrading my speakers in my 08' Double cab.

I am putting Polk Audio db 6.5 components in the front and polk db 6.5 coaxial in the back.

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_107DB6...lk+Audio+VENDORID107&searchdisplay=Polk+Audio

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_107DB6...lk+Audio+VENDORID107&searchdisplay=Polk+Audio

I have upgraded the head unit to a Kenwood KDC-BT852

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_113BT852HD/Kenwood-KDC-BT852HD.html?tp=5684

1. So through some research I have noticed that people highly recommend the ********* speaker mounts, are those worth it? They are pretty expensive so I just want to see what you guys had to say. Are there any others out there that are good?

2. Should I get an amplifier? I have no problem buying one if it will make the sound better or improve the life of the speakers, however if theres not much of a difference I would rather not go through the hassle. If you think i should, do you have any suggestions on brand how to wire it?

3. I eventually want to get a double din head unit, but not for a while till the $$ appears, will that change the speaker quality if I do not have an amp? assuming that the output from the head unit will change..

Thanks again for all your help in advance guys

 

Hi Tony, I've got pretty much the same speaker setup., but I've got an Alpine head unit and a 4 channel Alpine amp. The amp really made a big difference in the speakers. My amp is 50 X 4, mounted under the drivers seat. This is the only picture I have of it.

 

Thanks oldtacomaguy!! how did you mount your amp?

 

i have polk db6501 components in both the front and rear. i would recommend amping them. they can take 100 watts rms, while the hu is only going to give them 22 rms. let em breath ha

i would recommend a sub with these speakers. they are ok for mid and highs but the base in them sucks.

i've got an alpine pdx5 under the driver seat. for mounting, mine just sits there. no issues in the two years it's been there.

 

What he said!

 

I put two strips of MDF under the carpet to mount mine, just enough to make it not move around.

 

Another thing I noticed... The components you picked have about twice the wattage needed to run.... You should really find a set that matches...

 

Ok looks like I will be getting an amp, any ideas on type? Also how do you wire it to the speakers and everything? I know how to get it power from the battery but not really anything else.

Chadderkdawg- are you saying I should have the components in both the front and rear? I can always return either if I need to but let me know what you guys think

 

No, you just need to match wattages like such...

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_107DB6501/Polk-Audio-db6501.html?tp=106

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_107DB691/Polk-Audio-db691.html?tp=91#details-tab

Notice that both sets are rated from 10-100....

About the amp....those are some very very basic questions... I would HIGHLY recommend going through quite a few more amp wiring tutorials before you take on this project yourself. In a nutshell, you wire the amp directly to the battery (through a fuse of course) and you wire the speakers directly to the amp as well.... There is also a ground to connect, and a remote power on wire.... Plus RCA connections... again, go to youtube and watch 3-4 tutorials before you drop half a grand....

 

yes I was planning on watching some.... thanks a ton for the advice. if the speakers have crossovers do i bypass those if they are going to an amp? any ideas on amp brand?? i cant get those 6x9s because they wont fit so I will just prob stay with the 6.5's if theyll work. also if i get a sub, thats another amp huh...?

 

You will want to use the crossovers as well as the amp. I really enjoy Alpine products, that's what I'll be using for mine. As far as rear speakers, get what fits, just check the wattages, a component system will be overkill for the rear. And yes generally a second amp is recommended for adding a sub as well. To power that, you would typically run a 4 gauge wire from the battery to a distribution block, then, depending on the size of the amps run either an 8 or 4 gauge wire from the distribution block to the amps. You'll want separate grounds for each.

 

For reference, here is what I will be running.

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_500MRPF300/Alpine-MRP-F300.html

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_500SPS610C/Alpine-SPS-610C.html

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_500SPS619/Alpine-SPS-619.html

 

if i get an amp that powers 50 watsx4 will the back sound different because its RMS is only rated to 55 compared to the front at 100? as in will the front be too under powered and not sound right?

 

Correct.

 

looks like I should start over and get different speakers.... I cannot find any 6.5 polk coaxial's that would go well with the components..

 

if you can wire in a head unit, you can wire up a amp.

you'll need to run some rca wires from the stereo to the amp, and then speaker wire from the amp to the speakers. if you have components, you'll run the speaker wire to the crossover, adn then to the woofer and tweeter.

for the amp, get an amp kit and you'll need to run the power wire from the batter thru the firewall (their are plugs in teh firewall that you can pull out to pass the wire thru. just make sure you put a grommet on the power wire so that the fire wall doesn't rub thru the wire insulation. if you mount under a seat, you can ground the amp to a seat bolt.

the only other wire is the amp remote on wire.

it really is easy.....a caveman could do it.

 

I have the ********* mount for front and rear in my 2011 and they front's didn't fit right. They have one area that will hit part of the cup holders in the truck. I have to pull them out and grind them down.

if you have a router and jig saw, make them out of MDF. It wouldn't be hard at all to do.

 

50 watts isn't going to be enough. ha. my first amp put out 40 watts per channel. i sold that, and picked up the pdx5 which is rated at 75, but was birthed at 100. makes a huge difference.

 

i wouldn't be too worried about pairing the two you picked out.

or you could always go with two sets of the db6501's. crutchfield has them at buy one get 50% off the second pair.

i'm running them front and rear in my access cab. that said, i would recommend a sub if you went that route.