Possible new front speaker location

[CraigAR]

Has anyone tried placing a pair of 6.5's or larger speaker in this location?

Thinking about possibly cutting in a pair here to make the bow sound a little fuller. I saw that someone was talking about facing a sound bar foward to accomplish this but after taking the boat out yesterday and realizing how much driving I do standing up, i dont want to blow out my eardrums trying to fill in that area up front. Pro's con's or ideas all welcomed.

 

[Jaylex]

I knew I wasn't alone in figuring out how to add some sound up front!!!

@CraigAR I've looked at a few options to add more sound up front and that was one of them....something like this, but with coaxials.

Your point about the sound affecting you while driving standing is spot on....i almost forget how much I stand up as well.

Options I've thought about are a second set of towers, a sound bar, or another set of 6.5s.

My only concern with putting them down low is not getting 100% of the sound up high enough, like most of the cabin speakers dowm low, which has me leaning towards having the sound on the tower.

My other long shot is putting up the smaller WS soundbar which is 21in vs the 34in of the bigger one, that might work if it's dead center.

 

[swatski]

Watching!
Hope you guys figure this out, good thread!

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[Mainah]

The only issue will be dealing with the curve. Silicone may be enoungh but making a contoured shim could be better.

Unless loking for more mid bass I am not sure you will get what you are looking for though. I have 6x9s mounted down at the feet of the captains seats. I added 6.5 in the combing afterwards when I saw the thread on that. The 6.5 made a much bigger difference because closer to ear level. When I am sitting in the seat the volume sounds almost twice as loud as when I am standing. I firmly belive a front facing sound bar (I don’t have one yet) and 6.5 in combing are the best audio additions.

 

[swatski]

I firmly belive a front facing sound bar (I don’t have one yet) and 6.5 in combing are the best audio additions.

My thoughts exactly!
ANd that sound bar needs enough juice, per @jcyamaharider.

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[CraigAR]

So I've been racking my brain over this decision and I think if I mounted the speakers in the location I circled up above that the sound will not project properly while facing each other so close. Maybe offset them and let the sound reflect from the surface directly across from them? I don't think I could drill holes up there to find this out lol and I wouldn't like the look of them offset due to my OCD. Now onto the sound bar idea, maybe if it is centered away from the drivers seat this could work. Are the speakers only 3"? Would this actually project the sound up front while under way. I think this friday evening I'm going to sit in my boat and drink some beer while trying to figure this out. Of course the boat will be on the trailer in my driveway waiting to go out Saturday

 

[David Analog]

If you have no bow coaming location available, then the location you circled in the seat risers is your best bet for getting good output in the bow area when underway. Not so good for sound quality or treble, but good for midbass and output. Getting acceptable output should be the first priority. In this case, there's no real benefit to offsetting the speaker locations. A big "NO" to the forward-facing bug-catching tower soundbar....it's fighting both wind and motion....the energy dissipates more rapidly without any boundaries around it....no midbass.

 

[CraigAR]

@David Analog thank you for that information. That was exactly what i was thinking. So if I decide to cut in the locations I have circled, maybe I can adjust my amp settings to have the lower mounted speakers setup up with more of a mid/bass sound and set the other 2 speakers that are in the factory loctaion to a higher frequency.

 

[David Analog]

@David Analog thank you for that information. That was exactly what i was thinking. So if I decide to cut in the locations I have circled, maybe I can adjust my amp settings to have the lower mounted speakers setup up with more of a mid/bass sound and set the other 2 speakers that are in the factory loctaion to a higher frequency.

Since you don't have independent zone by zone equalization or tonal control, just let the chips fall. The bow will make no contribution to the cockpit area (the inverse being nearly the case) and without a windscreen the bow is never going to be a critical listening area while underway (if such a thing exists in a moving boat). A nice feature to have is a separate bow zone control. That way the bow occupants can also enjoy music, or use this as a getaway/conversation area, or it's nice to shut it down if kids are riding up there.

 

[Jaylex]

Excellent info, @David Analog Im trying to figure out the same thing as @CraigAR re: adding more sound to the front.

So is adding two speakers in the locations a better option than a pair of MX770 towers, the 6.5s are cheaper, but figured the second pair of towers (would also have some M880s on swivel mounts) pointing forward to get the sound in the bow area would be better since its up higher than being low. I'll have a M600/6 so the second set of speakers would have 75w x2.

Just want to make sure the sound is just as good in the front as the rear.

A soudbar was my 3rd option.

@CraigAR what amp are you gonna power your bow speakers with?

 

[David Analog]

Jaylex,
Keep this very simple factor in mind. Tower speakers by necessity should be well above-the-head and off-axis of cockpit occupants, are intended to be directional, and are intended to project a long distance away from the boat. They all lack in midbass. The identical driver (880 or other) sound completely different installed within the boat coaming surfaces. Better bass. Fuller/warmer. Louder with the same power. Why? Because on the tower the sound pressure can dissipate in a 360 degree sphere and loses lots of energy. In the bathtub mold of a boat the same exact acoustic energy has one/half the environment (a 180 degree sphere) to dissipate so the output is double (at least +3 dB with its acoustic world cut in half). Probably a little better than that with the wrap-around boundaries of the bow structure. So if you want sound inside the bow, place the speakers flush in the bow. There's more to the story, but you get the first point.

 

[CraigAR]

Excellent info, @David Analog Im trying to figure out the same thing as @CraigAR re: adding more sound to the front.

So is adding two speakers in the locations a better option than a pair of MX770 towers, the 6.5s are cheaper, but figured the second pair of towers (would also have some M880s on swivel mounts) pointing forward to get the sound in the bow area would be better since its up higher than being low. I'll have a M600/6 so the second set of speakers would have 75w x2.

Just want to make sure the sound is just as good in the front as the rear.

A soudbar was my 3rd option.

@CraigAR what amp are you gonna power your bow speakers with?

These are the amps I have now. A wet sounds htx-6 powering (6) wet sounds xs 650's and a rockford m400-4 bridged powering my wet sounds icon 8's tower speakers. Thinking about changing out the rockford with another htx-6 so I can add another pair of speakers and possibly a sub down the road. Not sure on the sub because I like how the cockpit sounds now but it will give me the option.

 

[Jaylex]

@CraigAR ok so you have some nice power going to those 6.5s. Sure it sounds good!

I'm using JL stuff, but was curious...but another 6 channel amp would give you a ton of flexibility....do it!!!

@David Analog sounds like the coaxials in the bow mounted low as discussed might be a better option than towers, its cheaper and dont need to worry about a second set of towers to hit my head on.

Would it be worth it to do some MX770s instead of the MX650s upfront since there is enough room? I just want more sound up front....I have the bass covered with 2 12s, and the M880 towers will take care of the projection I need.

Am I missing anything?

 

[David Analog]

@CraigAR ok so you have some nice power going to those 6.5s. Sure it sounds good!

I'm using JL stuff, but was curious...but another 6 channel amp would give you a ton of flexibility....do it!!!

@David Analog sounds like the coaxials in the bow mounted low as discussed might be a better option than towers, its cheaper and dont need to worry about a second set of towers to hit my head on.

Would it be worth it to do some MX770s instead of the MX650s upfront since there is enough room? I just want more sound up front....I have the bass covered with 2 12s, and the M880 towers will take care of the projection I need.

Am I missing anything?

Since it is a stand-alone zone, separated from the cockpit by the port/starboard consoles and a windshield, go with the greatest surface area, the larger MX770. The MX770 is a warm speaker. It's a warm location. So the speaker will sound warm. Period. No way around that. But it will be heard when underway. I'd say that's the primary mission.

 

[David Analog]

These are the amps I have now. A wet sounds htx-6 powering (6) wet sounds xs 650's and a rockford m400-4 bridged powering my wet sounds icon 8's tower speakers. Thinking about changing out the rockford with another htx-6 so I can add another pair of speakers and possibly a sub down the road. Not sure on the sub because I like how the cockpit sounds now but it will give me the option.
View attachment 65335

Not really sure until you decide on the final system schematic. Two channels of an htx-6, run stereo into a 4-ohm load, will not be the equal of the bridged RF m400-4. So maybe keep the RF amplifier and add an htx-4 in the three channel mode to drive a 4-ohm subwoofer and one additional pair of in-boat speakers.

 

[Jaylex]

Thanks @David Analog, sounds like some MX770s are likely part of my phase 2 upgrades over the winter. That will round out the bow nicely and then the M880s on the towers with swivel mounts.

I think that should satisfy me enough for what my needs are. Now on to research the WS420, pick out some leds and revisit my sub placement

 

[4x15mph]

I added speakers to the front of my boat and misjudged the problem with the curve. I had to make some shims and the look is marginal but the sound and location was what I wanted. This year, I will replace the junk speakers with a mid range set of polks. In hindsight, I would avoid a curved section and only put speakers where others have gone before

https://jetboaters.net/threads/speaker-fit-help.1883/

 

[Adrian @ JB Solutions]

^^ Could use fast rings to compensate for the gap. https://www.amazon.com/FAST-Rings-3-Piece-Speaker-Enhancement/dp/B016LFVKHY