Full Version: New S type Alpine 6.5's in the back
whats the deal here? Wiring audio has always been kind of beyond me because ive never really tried to do it...I bought 2 alpine 6.5's type S speakers at best buy and I paid like 40 bucks to have them installed...the guy said that they didnt make any noise other than base and that it might be something to do with the stock amp? I have no idea where that is or what it would look like...I have a 95 with premium sound(not bose)...whats the deal here? Can anybody help me out? itd sound 100 times better with voices coming out of those speakers...
were they 4ohm or 2ohm speakers? Firebird Monsoon systems use 4ohm Dual Voice Coil speakers. Camaro guys got lucky with having 2ohm sail panel speakers.. lucky bastards. HARD to find good speakers for Firebirds.
its not a monsoon system...its just an acdelco premium system...its a 95 so they didnt even have monsoon then...and i have no idea if its 2 or 4 ohm...how can i tell?
QUOTE(MasterTomos @ Aug 5 2008, 05:55 PM) 
its not a monsoon system...its just an acdelco premium system...its a 95 so they didnt even have monsoon then...and i have no idea if its 2 or 4 ohm...how can i tell?
I think the premium radios before Monsoon were setup almost the same (separate woofer/tweeters in front and hatch area, subs in sail panels). If that's the case, the sail panels probably have a low-pass signal going to them (to allow just the low bass frequencies to pass through), and you'd have to run new wiring to them if you want full-range sound from your new speakers.
You act like you dont believe then maybe you'll believe this from another website called LS1Tech:
Tell Best Buy to find a 4ohm speaker and watch thier eyes light up with amazement.
QUOTE
The head unit is nothing special - it's just an ordinary 1.5 DIN Delco radio with a Monsoon label on it. In fact, some of the early Monsoon systems didn't even have the label on the head unit. Camaro HUs are black with black controls and blue/white illumination. Firebird HUs are dark gray with gray controls and red illumination. Both types are basically the same and are physically interchangeable although they had some different features - Camaros came with speed compensated volume whereas Firebirds have a graphic equalizer. Both are capable of using a power antenna but only the Firebirds came with one. None of the factory head units had MP3 capability, line-level (RCA) output, or auxiliary input other than for the factory CD changer (although there are adapters available).
Contrary to what some stereo shops will try to tell you, it is easy to replace the Monsoon head unit. Since it is just an ordinary Delco radio, replacement is the same as for any standard GM product. You will need a mounting kit to fit an aftermarket single DIN head unit in the 1.5 DIN opening. There are some 1.5 DIN aftermarket HUs available that would not need a mounting kit but they aren't very common. Although not strictly necessary, you should get a wiring harness adapter kit so that you can connect your aftermarket HU without having to cut the factory wiring harness. Finally, you will need an antenna adapter to fit the small GM antenna plug into the standard Motorola antenna port on your new HU. With these parts it is a simple matter to install your new HU and connect it to the factory wiring. Depending on the head unit you install, you should notice an improvement in sound over stock because of the reduced distortion. The difference won't be dramatic but it will be noticeable and you will be able to use higher volume levels than the stock setup without the sound becoming horribly distorted.
Contrary to what some stereo shops will try to tell you, it is easy to replace the Monsoon head unit. Since it is just an ordinary Delco radio, replacement is the same as for any standard GM product. You will need a mounting kit to fit an aftermarket single DIN head unit in the 1.5 DIN opening. There are some 1.5 DIN aftermarket HUs available that would not need a mounting kit but they aren't very common. Although not strictly necessary, you should get a wiring harness adapter kit so that you can connect your aftermarket HU without having to cut the factory wiring harness. Finally, you will need an antenna adapter to fit the small GM antenna plug into the standard Motorola antenna port on your new HU. With these parts it is a simple matter to install your new HU and connect it to the factory wiring. Depending on the head unit you install, you should notice an improvement in sound over stock because of the reduced distortion. The difference won't be dramatic but it will be noticeable and you will be able to use higher volume levels than the stock setup without the sound becoming horribly distorted.
Tell Best Buy to find a 4ohm speaker and watch thier eyes light up with amazement.
Its not that i didnt believe you, i was just sayin that i dont have a monsoon system...so, what can i do at this point for speakers if i dont want to rewire my whole car? Can I find a 4 ohm speaker thatll work? If so what brand?
I just stumbled across this thread and i'm glad i did because, being the huuge car audio fanatic that i am, i have already been there and done that in this situation. The reason you are only getting bass from those speakers are because they are not setup for any kind of treble whatsoever. They were put into our cars as subwoofers, just very small ones. If you even attempt to rewire the car, you will probably just end up messing it up because the way the audio systems in our cars are set up is very complex. ESPECIALLY if you have the Monsoon system (which you don't, but this is just for future reference and those who do have it). Both of my sailpanel speakers went dead a while ago and you can get replacements for them, but you are very very limited. I did a LOT of research on them, and i went with the Inifinity Kappa 62.7i speakers. They are 2 ohm and will work just fine with your system. I am very happy with them so far and they do thump pretty good.
Another thing to note, you CAN use a 4 ohm speaker if you want, but the power will be cut right in half...so it wont be as loud or as clear. I have heard that the Alpine speakers do sound very good in the sailpanel's because they are very good quality and just the way they were engineered work okay for the sailpanels. If i were you, just leave them in because you cannot get voice to come out of those speakers unless you completely redo the entire system. If you need any more help let me know, cause i've been through all this before. Not a single speaker in my car is stock, nor is my headunit plus i did the work all myself. Hope this helps you!
Another thing to note, you CAN use a 4 ohm speaker if you want, but the power will be cut right in half...so it wont be as loud or as clear. I have heard that the Alpine speakers do sound very good in the sailpanel's because they are very good quality and just the way they were engineered work okay for the sailpanels. If i were you, just leave them in because you cannot get voice to come out of those speakers unless you completely redo the entire system. If you need any more help let me know, cause i've been through all this before. Not a single speaker in my car is stock, nor is my headunit plus i did the work all myself. Hope this helps you!
I still dont see how you can say he doesnt have a Monsoon System? The earlier post quoting LS1 Tech even says earlier stock HU's didnt have Monsoon Labeled on it just the Delco label and even some of them didnt even have that. If you have a 10 speaker set up in your car then YES you do have a Monsoon System, its just not labeled Monsoon. 4 speakers for both doors, 4 speakers in the Hatchback, and 2 in the Sail Panel. 10 Speakers = Monsoon/Premium Sound Stereo. And Tomos dont think Im dissin you man, just I know what Im talkin about when it comes to Firebirds/Formulas/Trans Ams.. this is all I do day in and day out when Im off work. Im always on the forums finding out new tricks/tips/mods to do to my ride that are cost effective and those that are worth the money.
I would stay with a 4ohm speaker if it were my car personally to get the full use of that premium sound system, unless you plan on upgradeing the HU. Sure base is nice but with out clarity it just sounds like pure crap imo. Also how is the system cut in half if your using a 4ohm speaker?? It sounds more like you'd be cutting it in half using a 2ohm because your not getting the full extent of the 4 ohm for the dual VC to work from the HU.
I plan on going with a company called ::: Kee Audio :::. They have some 4ohm Speakers that are freakin awesome. Not to pricey, but worth every bang for the buck from what I hear through different forums. Plus the fact that they mainly speciallize in speakers for Camaros and Firebirds
I would stay with a 4ohm speaker if it were my car personally to get the full use of that premium sound system, unless you plan on upgradeing the HU. Sure base is nice but with out clarity it just sounds like pure crap imo. Also how is the system cut in half if your using a 4ohm speaker?? It sounds more like you'd be cutting it in half using a 2ohm because your not getting the full extent of the 4 ohm for the dual VC to work from the HU.
I plan on going with a company called ::: Kee Audio :::. They have some 4ohm Speakers that are freakin awesome. Not to pricey, but worth every bang for the buck from what I hear through different forums. Plus the fact that they mainly speciallize in speakers for Camaros and Firebirds
Okay i had a 1995 Firebird formula that did not have the monsoon system either. However, my car was a vert, so naturally none of the verts have the 10 speaker setup. I only had 6 speakers. I did do some research of my own back then and just because the car has 10 speakers does not automatically make it a monsoon system. The one thing you did not consider is that the stereo systems that actually have "Monsoon" labeled on the radio also come with a factory amp hidden away in the passenger rear wheel well area. From what it sounds, he doesn't have that. His headunit is what powers everything. It's called an "Extended Range" Premium Sound system that Tomos has in his car. I know what you're saying though Creed, i am on forums all day and night as well...but i guarantee there is ALWAYS things to be learned about these cars.
As for why the power is cut in half, think about it...you've got a sound system with speakers that are wired to power a 2 ohm speaker. If you put a 4 ohm speaker in there, you are upping the resistance going to that speaker by double...meaning that the speaker is getting half of the power that it's supposed to.
As for why the power is cut in half, think about it...you've got a sound system with speakers that are wired to power a 2 ohm speaker. If you put a 4 ohm speaker in there, you are upping the resistance going to that speaker by double...meaning that the speaker is getting half of the power that it's supposed to.
Oh and another thing i wanted to add that is a bit confusing is that YES the sailpanel speakers are 4 ohm Dual Voice Coils. What this means is that each coil is 4 ohms..but because there are 2 voice coils in the stock speakers, they work in parallel and equal an equivalent of a 2 ohm speaker. When you replace these speakers with aftermarket ones, you have to get the single voice coil with 2 ohms resistance in order to keep the circuit the same as the stock speakers did.
Ok, wasnt sure if he had a amp or not. He never said, so I went back and found more info just for my own sanity. The amp was added back in 97 thus labeling it the "Monsoon" altho the HU kept the same look/design.
Course one thing I dont quite understand bout the quote I posted.
Course one thing I dont quite understand bout the quote I posted.
QUOTE
None of the factory head units had MP3 capability, line-level (RCA) output, or auxiliary input other than for the factory CD changer (although there are adapters available).
My 98 HU can play MP3 burnt CD's... could your 95?
Well my 95 only had the cassette deck so i immediately replaced that with an aftermarket HU so i'm not sure if the 95's are capable of MP3 CD's...maybe Tomos has the CD player version and could fill us in. My 98 played MP3's till it stopped reading the disks and i replaced it with another aftermarket HU. I want to put back in a factory Monsoon HU, but i am enjoying having a direct ipod hookup which i can control through the HU...i dont know if i can live without it haha.
I couldnt tell ya, I bought my car with an aftermarket alpine head unit already installed in it...
I may have missed it, but was your audio system the 10 speaker system? If it is, a simple fix, which I have done, is to unhook the 4 inch driver in the hatch area and extend that wire up to the sail panel to power your replacement speakers. I found that without replacing the stock 4 inch hatch speakers in my bird, it distorted rather easily with the power from the replacement stereo. I did leave the tweeter hooked up in the hatch, and i am very happy with the sound quality.
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