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tubes4life
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Post subject: Using car stereo speakers as replacements? Posted: Jun Sat 08, 2019 7:02 am |
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Joined: Aug Tue 24, 2010 8:56 pm Posts: 5673 Location: Northeast Florida
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I have a couple of phonos where the original speakers are just worn out--paper surrounds are tissue-thin, and distortion increases as a result. As you are no doubt are aware of, replacements are hard to come by. But what about using car stereo speakers, as long as they have compatible specs?
The ones I need to replace are 6". I like the fact that the car stereo speakers are 4 ohm, which is pretty close to 3.2 ohms. I realize that they are surface mount, but I'm ok with the idea of back-spacing. And they are designed for open-air environments (ie, no ported enclosures).
But the big question is, are there some that will have the sensitivity I need? I'm guessing I'll need something that's at least 96 db, do they exist?
Thanks in advance for any advice you can give
_________________ William
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Artcurus
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Post subject: Re: Using car stereo speakers as replacements? Posted: Jun Sat 08, 2019 2:28 pm |
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Joined: Feb Wed 04, 2015 12:26 am Posts: 973
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T4L,
The sensitivity should be listed for the speaker you are trying to use. Most car speakers are 90-92db sensitivity. Not the best, but not the worst.
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FStephenMasek
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Post subject: Re: Using car stereo speakers as replacements? Posted: Jun Sat 08, 2019 4:48 pm |
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Joined: Mar Sun 11, 2007 6:55 am Posts: 11214 Location: Mission Viejo, southern California
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tubes4life
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Post subject: Re: Using car stereo speakers as replacements? Posted: Jun Sat 08, 2019 5:55 pm |
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Joined: Aug Tue 24, 2010 8:56 pm Posts: 5673 Location: Northeast Florida
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Thanks, guys, I will start looking to see what I can find in a 6" with high sensitivity
_________________ William
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Artcurus
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Post subject: Re: Using car stereo speakers as replacements? Posted: Jun Sun 09, 2019 12:28 am |
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Joined: Feb Wed 04, 2015 12:26 am Posts: 973
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T4L,
One option might be to look for Zenith speakers from 40-60's era stereo/radios.
Zenith speakers do sound nice
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tubes4life
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Post subject: Re: Using car stereo speakers as replacements? Posted: Jun Sun 09, 2019 5:03 am |
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Joined: Aug Tue 24, 2010 8:56 pm Posts: 5673 Location: Northeast Florida
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They do indeed! I don't know if Zenith made any 6" speakers, but they certainly made some quality 6x9's--if I have enough space, I would not be adverse to using those
_________________ William
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tubes4life
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Post subject: Re: Using car stereo speakers as replacements? Posted: Jun Mon 10, 2019 1:46 am |
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Joined: Aug Tue 24, 2010 8:56 pm Posts: 5673 Location: Northeast Florida
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Just thought I'd post an update. Tonight online I bought a pair of Alpine 6" car stereo speakers...25w rms, 90 db sensitivity (90 was the best I could find). I should have them in about a week, I'll give another update once I have them installed
_________________ William
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Artcurus
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Post subject: Re: Using car stereo speakers as replacements? Posted: Jun Mon 10, 2019 10:39 pm |
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Joined: Feb Wed 04, 2015 12:26 am Posts: 973
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it won't be nearly as loud, that's the only problem.
Low wattage tube amps can be really tricky with speakers.
Keep us posted.
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FStephenMasek
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Post subject: Re: Using car stereo speakers as replacements? Posted: Jun Tue 11, 2019 4:29 am |
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Joined: Mar Sun 11, 2007 6:55 am Posts: 11214 Location: Mission Viejo, southern California
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My Crosley Buddy Boy has a Renegade 8" 3-way speaker driven by just one '45 tube, yet is more than loud enough. I just listened to it, and it way loud with the volume just partly up, an annoyingly loud with it higher. The same with the Gloritine cathedral in which I have used that speaker. I'm also driving one of those speakers with the push-pull 6L6GC amplifier I recently built, and it sounds nice indeed with that much power and a clean signal from a quality FM tuner. 
_________________ many of my radios http://s269.photobucket.com/user/FSteph ... t=3&page=1
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tubes4life
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Post subject: Re: Using car stereo speakers as replacements? Posted: Jun Tue 11, 2019 4:33 am |
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Joined: Aug Tue 24, 2010 8:56 pm Posts: 5673 Location: Northeast Florida
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Nice amp. Do you remember the sensitivity specs of the Renegade?
_________________ William
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FStephenMasek
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Post subject: Re: Using car stereo speakers as replacements? Posted: Jun Tue 11, 2019 4:42 am |
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Joined: Mar Sun 11, 2007 6:55 am Posts: 11214 Location: Mission Viejo, southern California
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tubes4life
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Post subject: Re: Using car stereo speakers as replacements? Posted: Jun Sun 16, 2019 6:38 am |
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Joined: Aug Tue 24, 2010 8:56 pm Posts: 5673 Location: Northeast Florida
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Ok, here's the update. It's not going to be a one sentence summary, because I don't think that will help anyone else looking to do the same thing.
First let's talk about fitment. As these are car stereo speakers, they are front-loaded...as a result, back-spacing is required (which I already knew). They fit with no problems at all, because they are actually more shallow than the original speakers. Keep in mind though that the magnets are much larger, which could result in fitment issues in some installations.
Sensitivity. These are 90 db, which is no doubt considerably less than the originals. In this instance, I have a transformer-powered amp running 7189 finals, so output was hardly affected. But in a phono with an ac/dc amp with 1-2 watts, output could be compromised.
Sound quality. My original complaint was excessive distortion due to worn-out surrounds. Distortion is now much less, however bass response is also reduced. Perhaps a component of reduced sensitivity? Bass isn't absent, just not as strong as before (albeit with loads of distortion). One very nice "extra" is that the car stereo speakers are two-way---this unit does not have dedicated tweeters, so the addition of them brought a welcome boost to the high end.
My overall thoughts. They certainly sound better than the originals. The bass is reduced, but so is the annoying distortion. They are an upgrade, but are they ideal? No. The ideal speaker would have 100 db sensitivity, while at the same time having bigger bass and low distortion. But in today's speaker market, good luck finding those. This is probably not a worthy upgrade for those running lower-powered amps.
Hopefully this review will help someone
_________________ William
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