Speaker Change, Need help.

[ConElite]

Alright. Well a while back I just had replaced the subs with some simply aftermarket Speakers. It was no where near as "Bassy" as stock. Well I got a component set And I went to put it in the front. Well I was reading The post "CirCut" made not to long ago and all the links he had, they are for Camaro's. I heard that the Firebird Monsoon system is different than the Camaro system. I realized that my car came with only one Factor Tweeter in the driver side door. The passanger side dorr did not come with a tweeter, simply the Mid 6.5" speaker, but there is the plug there for the tweeker. So this is what I did.

1. Replaced the 6.5" and hooked it up to the stock Harness for the mid-range.
2. Used the Tweeter harness and ran that to the Component set Cross-over then to the aftermarket tweeter. They sound good at low volume but if you put it up it starts to distort.
3. The other thing is I replaced the 2 speakers back in the cargo area, I dont know if this is causing to much load, or at what ohms those run.
4. I replaced the Sub's with the 6.5" Mid Range, but only hooked it up with 2 wires, since the stock speaker has 2 sets of wires. The other 2 wires are just there.

So at this point I dont know whats going on. Im getting just about no Bass at all. The speakers distort and its seriously starting to become a pain. Im already considering to go and buy a new Set of Stock Sub's b/c I have tried 3 different sets of Speakers and None "Bump" anywhere near as loud as the stock ones used too. (I replaced them b/c one blew)

One more question. Does anyone know at what Ohms Each speaker runs at?
Basically just these:

1. Mid-bass in doors
2. Tweeters in doors
3. Sub's in Side panel-Each set of wires
4. The 3"-4" speakers in the cargo area.

Thanks Guys

[Christopherrr]

I believe our cars with Monsoon run speakers at 2 ohms. Not sure. But when I was trying to convert stockers to Alpine units...I found out the ohms were wrong. It made the system sound like crap when linked with factor amp in the spare well.

[ConElite]

I believe our cars with Monsoon run speakers at 2 ohms. Not sure. But when I was trying to convert stockers to Alpine units...I found out the ohms were wrong. It made the system sound like crap when linked with factor amp in the spare well.

Thats what I understand as well. That everything runs on 2 ohms. I believe that the Subs are dual 4 ohm wires that make the speaker run at 2 ohms. I dont know thats why Im very confused. Its confusing. And I work weekends installing Audio in cars and Im lost.

[Christopherrr]

The monsoon speakers are wired Dual Voice coil, and the aftermarket speakers arent.... so its complicated to get them to sound good without cracking/distorting.

[ConElite]

Well I figured it out.. I went home and got out the ohm meter and started ripping apart the car. So here we go.

Doors have 2 speakers:
- One tweeter that runs at 4 ohms
- One Mid Range that runs at 2 ohms

The Side panel trip (By Back Seats) are the Subs/Lows
- One speaker with dual 4 ohm voice coil.

The speakers Back in Cargo air
- One Tweeter at 4 ohms
- One 4" Speaker at 4 ohms.

So basically there is only 2 area's that are the issue. The Mid's in the doors and the Subs. So What I'm going to do its attempt to find some 4 ohm Dual Voice coil speakers for the doors and Subs and bridge them over to 2 ohms which should lower the load on the stock Amp and make it sound good. Right now I have the door mid-range speakers working as subs and they sound a million times better than the aftermarket ones that I put, and its all b/c the stock ones are 2 ohms and the ones I put are 4. Its amazing how complicated yet simple it was. Its just going to be a pain looking for stable 2 ohm speakers.

Sorry for Jabbering. Hope this makes sense.

[Christopherrr]

The Side panel trip (By Back Seats) are the Subs/Lows
- One speaker with dual 4 ohm voice coil.

You sure it's 4 ohm? I completely removed the sail panel subs; stuff it with sound damping material and running a Basslink in the sparewell.

[ConElite]

stuff it with sound damping material and running a Basslink in the sparewell.

Are you saying you Stuffed it with Sound Damping Material and ran a Basslink?



You know what, I think I am wrong. I Think the way those work its a 2 ohm in signal then a 2 ohm signal out. So its actually just 2 ohms. That one its pretty complicated but Im pretty confident thats how it works. B/c the Stock Subs have a total of 4 wires. I hooked up the door mid-range speakers in their place with just 2 wires b/c they only have one set of terminals and they sound just like the original subs with 2 sets of terninals. So I dont know. I'll call up my buddy at Chevy and see if I can get the Scim. for the Audio system.

[Christopherrr]

Yup. That's exactly what I did.

I couldn't find a decent pair of good speakers that didn't distort when I cranked the volume...my solution, pull out the speakers, returned them, bought sound damping foam, stuffed the panels and ran a Basslink where the spare tire and jack would be.

Sounds dang good...haven't heard anything even come close.

[ConElite]

Maybe its a different term for it, but whats a Basslink? And what did you do?
Did you run the wires from the Subs to the Area where the spare goes? and then put a sub there? Im confused bro, Im sorry. Yeah the replacements that you said you tried, Were they 4 ohm or 2 ohm. B/c if they were 4 ohm thats what was wrong.

[sneitzel]

So What I'm going to do its attempt to find some 4 ohm Dual Voice coil speakers for the doors and Subs and bridge them over to 2 ohms which should lower the load on the stock Amp and make it sound good.

That's a good idea as long as the stock amp can handle the 2 ohm load without overheating.

Remember, lower resistance means the amp can push more power across the speaker but at the expense of heat, heat that could damage or destroy the amp.

[Christopherrr]

Oh sorry...Eddie. I thought you'd know what a Basslink is. It's an all in one sub/amp unit by Infinity that I rigged in the spare tire compartment.

I couldn't find a 2ohm speaker to run in the sail panel and when I did, it would distort when I turned it up. I believe the speakers I got were Polk. It's been like 4 years since this came up. Anywho, I ran 4 ohms and they sucked obviously so I got fed up and decided to run the Basslink and couldn't be more happy.

I run Apline Type R mids (ewwww, felt funny saying that) on the doors and everything else is stock but sound-wise I haven't sat in anything that sounds better.

[ConElite]

That's a good idea as long as the stock amp can handle the 2 ohm load without overheating.

Remember, lower resistance means the amp can push more power across the speaker but at the expense of heat, heat that could damage or destroy the amp.

I think It should be fine considering the stock speakers run at 2 ohms. Unless Im over looking something.

Oh sorry...Eddie. I thought you'd know what a Basslink is. It's an all in one sub/amp unit by Infinity that I rigged in the spare tire compartment.

I couldn't find a 2ohm speaker to run in the sail panel and when I did, it would distort when I turned it up. I believe the speakers I got were Polk. It's been like 4 years since this came up. Anywho, I ran 4 ohms and they sucked obviously so I got fed up and decided to run the Basslink and couldn't be more happy.

I run Apline Type R mids (ewwww, felt funny saying that) on the doors and everything else is stock but sound-wise I haven't sat in anything that sounds better.

Ah That makes alot more sense. Yeah If you went with something like that then Yeah there is nothing that sounds better. lol.
Im considering a little 8" Solo-baric for the Lows and Design some custom Box in the Spare Tire area, Or design a really small box That goes in the back that allows me to still use the T-top racks. But Im not sure yet.

[toddwirges]

Hey, if you go to the LS1tech electronics forum there's some really comprehensive threads about exactly how the speakers are driven, what the ohm ratings are, and suitable aftermarket replacements. Monsoon systems are different than base. Firebirds are different than Camaro's. Convertibles are different again.

The factory monsoon head unit puts out a lot of distortion. The amp is actually "decent". The speakers tend to fail easily and don't make very good treble.

You can get much improved sound by just replacing the front door speakers (wiring them properly) and adding a small powered sub like a basslink or tube.

Replacing the speakers hoping for improved bass doesn't work well. You need more power or subs to get stronger bass response.
For sound quality - focus first on the front speakers and then the head unit.

If you are open to a full tear up, head unit, four channel, and a "stealthbox" w/ a 10" sub is the cheapest route to a good system.

Stealthboxes are built to line right up in that little cubbyhole area to the left or right of the ttop well. You can use two but you have to lose your spare.

[ConElite]

Im very Aware as to how I can Get amazing sound. I install Audio Systems at my work. I have done some pretty crazy systems. I know how to get 100+ dbs out of one single 10" sub. Its all in the design. The issue is I do not want to Upgrade the Head unit nor take up space in the trunk. I would get the stealth box but with a sub box and amp, its weight I dont care to have and I have a CD changer. I want to have a very good sounding system with simple Speaker set up and original wiring. I have changed the Tweeters which I have running through Crossovers and I have changed the small speakers in the cargo area, So my Highs Sound Amazing. The next thing is the sub. I dont plan on making it "Bumb" Anywhere near as good as a seperate Subwoofer. Im simply looking to make my stock set up sound as best as possible.

And for the price of the stealth box, I can have one hell of a good sounding sound system with the stock wiring.

[toddwirges]

Sounds like you know everything already. Good luck.

Im very Aware as to how I can Get amazing sound. I install Audio Systems at my work. I have done some pretty crazy systems. I know how to get 100+ dbs out of one single 10" sub. Its all in the design. The issue is I do not want to Upgrade the Head unit nor take up space in the trunk. I would get the stealth box but with a sub box and amp, its weight I dont care to have and I have a CD changer. I want to have a very good sounding system with simple Speaker set up and original wiring. I have changed the Tweeters which I have running through Crossovers and I have changed the small speakers in the cargo area, So my Highs Sound Amazing. The next thing is the sub. I dont plan on making it "Bumb" Anywhere near as good as a seperate Subwoofer. Im simply looking to make my stock set up sound as best as possible.

And for the price of the stealth box, I can have one hell of a good sounding sound system with the stock wiring.