6.5" Speakers: JL MX650 vs Polk DB651

[swatski]

Finally got to swapping my bow speakers, have been running DB651s in the boat for 3 seasons now, love them (I have 5 pairs of DBs - 10 speakers, and a pair of WS ICON8 towers, plus a powered sub - Infinity BassLink).

The only complain with my set up has been the bow - 2 DBs were relatively tame there at speed, with my teens & friends loving to nest in the bow all the time. I decided to just replace the 2 DBs with 2 MX 650s. That gave me a chance to compare those two side-by-side during the install. They are powered by a micro class D amp - Clarion XC1410 at 50 Watts RMS per channel or so.

I used a certified JL technical expert (wearing yellow company uniform) to decide which speaker performed better:


The verdict was quick and decisive:
JL MX 650 wins, hands down .

At higher volumes that MX650 speaker outperforms the DB by what seems like a 2:1 ratio in loudness, clarity, and bass.
I'm sure with more power behind them the JLs would outperform the DBs even more.

That said, the DB is a great performer! I would say really almost as good as JL musically (minus some bass) when played at low volumes. Really, to the point which surprised me greatly and made me change my mind about replacing all of them at this time. I considered replacing all of the DBs, but will not do so, until they start croaking.

For anyone needing to entertain a cove - the choice is clear: go JL!
For everyone else (and me) - I'd stick with DBs as long as they last (in my case pushed by super efficient Clarion micros).

(My tower ICONs take care of friends with loud musical tastes and Southern rap, they just need to sit in the rear - behind those)



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[robert843]

This has always been my opinion as well after hearing both on the same set up. The DB's were fine on volume but the bass was a massive difference.

 

[dzeppos]

Almost on the same thread - but running stock speakers from my 16 242 limited S with subwoofer and one extra amp. Will either of these speakers make a significant difference replacing them with the DB or the JL?

 

[swatski]

Almost on the same thread - but running stock speakers from my 16 242 limited S with subwoofer and one extra amp. Will either of these speakers make a significant difference replacing them with the DB or the JL?

If you still have the factory "Seaworthy" white speakers - that is THE number one item to replace. Even without amps the difference will be just HUGE. It is hard to believe they would still use those, total garbage speakers, but if they do - I'd get rid of those first.

IMO the Polk 6.5 DBs are best suited for moderate or low-ish power/volume setup, the JL or WS can be significantly louder but need to be supplied with adequate power. DBs will do well with less power and still sound good and musical even off the HU (JL or WS MX 650 will not).

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[rkim808]

Aloha @swatski I have the Polk MM651UM in my AR they sound great, but was wondering what’s the difference between the DB and MM series, and would it be an upgrade in sound quality and loudness to swap out to the JL’s? I have a JL M1000/5v2 powering the MM’s now so around 100w of power to each. Do u think it would be worth my wild to swap out to the MX’s?

 

[swatski]

Aloha @swatski I have the Polk MM651UM in my AR they sound great, but was wondering what’s the difference between the DB and MM series, and would it be an upgrade in sound quality and loudness to swap out to the JL’s? I have a JL M1000/5v2 powering the MM’s now so around 100w of power to each. Do u think it would be worth my wild to swap out to the MX’s?

I believe the difference is huge. The MMs are more powerful, a different class, I believe those are along the lines of JL or WS 6.5 (where the difference between MX and M is not as enormous from what I understand).
Hopefully the guys who actually know something about it will chime in!

 

[rkim808]

I believe the difference is huge. The MMs are more powerful, a different class, I believe those are along the lines of JL or WS 6.5 (where the difference between MX and M is not as enormous from what I understand).
Hopefully the guys who actually know something about it will chime in!

Yeah, my wife thinks I’m crazy cause the system sounds great and it’s LOUD. She feels that there’s no need to upgrade anything on the system. The REV8’s project sound so far it’s not funny. My kids love it cause we’re the loudest boat on the river, but I’m always looking at how could improve things and that can be a bad thing sometimes lol. NOT BROKE NO FIX Right... Haha???

 

[Kaschool]

Hi @swatski youve convinced me to go straight to the MX650s. I have a 2020 AR210 and would like to start by just replacing the 4 stock speakers with 4 MX650s - can I do this without adding an amp or changing the HU just to start with? And then later add the amp? I may not want to change the HU.

thanks!
Rich.

 

[swatski]

Hi @swatski youve convinced me to go straight to the MX650s. I have a 2020 AR210 and would like to start by just replacing the 4 stock speakers with 4 MX650s - can I do this without adding an amp or changing the HU just to start with? And then later add the amp? I may not want to change the HU.

thanks!
Rich.

Yeah, that test was very revealing to me:

Finally got to swapping my bow speakers, have been running DB651s in the boat for 3 seasons now, love them (I have 5 pairs of DBs - 10 speakers, and a pair of WS ICON8 towers, plus a powered sub - Infinity BassLink).

The only complain with my set up has been the bow - 2 DBs were relatively tame there at speed, with my teens & friends loving to nest in the bow all the time. I decided to just replace the 2 DBs with 2 MX 650s. That gave me a chance to compare those two side-by-side during the install. They are powered by a micro class D amp - Clarion XC1410 at 50 Watts RMS per channel or so.

I used a certified JL technical expert (wearing yellow company uniform) to decide which speaker performed better:
View attachment 94143

The verdict was quick and decisive:
JL MX 650 wins, hands down .

At higher volumes that MX650 speaker outperforms the DB by what seems like a 2:1 ratio in loudness, clarity, and bass.
I'm sure with more power behind them the JLs would outperform the DBs even more.

That said, the DB is a great performer! I would say really almost as good as JL musically (minus some bass) when played at low volumes. Really, to the point which surprised me greatly and made me change my mind about replacing all of them at this time. I considered replacing all of the DBs, but will not do so, until they start croaking.

For anyone needing to entertain a cove - the choice is clear: go JL!
For everyone else (and me) - I'd stick with DBs as long as they last (in my case pushed by super efficient Clarion micros).

(My tower ICONs take care of friends with loud musical tastes and Southern rap, they just need to sit in the rear - behind those)



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I do think you need an amp to drive those speakers, in my case Im using a micro amp (clarion 1410?) and it does an excellent job. The JL is the way to go in my mind, I do not think you can go wrong by adding even a micro amp, the HU ratings are not real in most cases. I think something like a Polk DBs can be okay with HU power but I would amp JL 650s for sure. They are fabulous speakers.

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[Kaschool]

@swatski - ok perhaps I jumped the gun a bit... follow up question related to MX650 vs DB651. Assuming I was not going to add an amp - which speaker would you think sounds the best in that case? i.e. would they be more comparable ?

 

[swatski]

@swatski - ok perhaps I jumped the gun a bit... follow up question related to MX650 vs DB651. Assuming I was not going to add an amp - which speaker would you think sounds the best in that case? i.e. would they be more comparable ?

That is a good question. I would probably go with the DBs as they can be had for very little money especially if you can find them used from someone upgrading, several of us have had those powered by the HU at one point or another and liked it. They actually sound surprisingly good off of a HU, relatively speaking. The JL 650s are no doubt more demanding as far as power.

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[Kaschool]

also after some research I see that there is two versions of Polk DB651

• MFR # AA1652-A (Shallow Mount)
• MFR # AA1651-A

Can anyone confirm that they installed the # AA1651-A into an AR210 or similar and had no issues with clearance? seems like this version (non shallow mount) has slightly better specs.

rich

 

[F.M.]

The db651 and mm651 both have better specs, but have been discontinued. They are replaced by the db652 and mm652.

Edited: You can still find some 651s floating around for sale on some websites, but the 652s are much easier to find.

 

[swatski]

also after some research I see that there is two versions of Polk DB651

• MFR # AA1652-A (Shallow Mount)
• MFR # AA1651-A

Can anyone confirm that they installed the # AA1651-A into an AR210 or similar and had no issues with clearance? seems like this version (non shallow mount) has slightly better specs.

rich

I never heard of the shallow mount DBs, frankly. However the full size is no issue in the usual locations, direct replacement for the factory “Seaworthy” in these boats which should had been called “Seaworthless”, lol.

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[ThatJeepGuy]

@swatski - ok perhaps I jumped the gun a bit... follow up question related to MX650 vs DB651. Assuming I was not going to add an amp - which speaker would you think sounds the best in that case? i.e. would they be more comparable ?

Today I got to do some work to the boat and I did a little testing. I had the 2 DB651’s and 2 MX650’s running off just the head unit. To me they sound very similar. I was thinking wow someone could probably run these MX650’s off just the head unit and it sounds good. Then I put some actual power to them, MX280/4. WOW! Those JL’s came alive! The Polks sounded great at low volume but would break up really bad as you crank it up. The JL’s took everything that amp has and could probably take more.

 

[white2kstang]

Sounds about right. The JLs are worth the money if you can spend it. IMO