Hey all... did some searching on the idea of custom lower door panels to fit some 5.25" or 6.5" speakers down there, and come up with these conclusions -

1) Won't do well with power windows (I have manual windows)
2) Imaging isn't as good as with kicks
3) Nobody has any pics of door panel speakers!!

Now for the questions...

Would tilting the speakers (assuming in the door) slightly up and forward a few degrees help imaging at all?

Would a set of speakers sound better in the door, than the stock dash location?

That's all for now...

 

What I'm looking at specifically, is which would sound better -

Infinity Kappa 62.5I mounted in the doors (can always go component later)
Infinity Kappa 692.5I rear (sail panels)

or

Infinity Kappa 462.5CFP (plate components)
Infinity Kappa 692.5I rear (sail panels)

Which do you guys think would sound better?

 

Anyone?

 

From an SQ standpoint, neither option is too good. But I say option 2 will sound better only because the tweeters will be higher up. A 6.5 in the door will put out some midbass, but the tweeter low in the door would not sound good. I've had those kappa plates and they have no bass. Make sure you filter out the lows going to them. With that set up, the sound will seem to be coming from the rear (with equal power, both options will sound like that).

 

So either way, I'm going to shift my staging to the rear?

What's so good about the kick panels, then? I know they're angled up toward the dash... so I had thought angling them from the door would work, too...

*sigh*

Maybe I'll just go with the kicks. I'm just really worried about my big feet, and the clutch pedal, getting in the way.

Just how far do they extend inward, on the driver's side?

 

PM redraif... she has 5¼'s in her doorpanels w/pwr windows.

http://www.cardomain.com/member_page...191601&page=32

 

You will almost always have the the rear overpowering the fronts on 3rd gens. A 6x9 will sound louder then the 4x6s or even 6.5s. Having rear speakers will give you more volume but will take away from the staging if thats your main goal.

There are several benefits to kicks.
1-Easy to put in and premade ones avail
2-Allows a bigger speaker then can fit in the dash and use components.
But I do not like how low the tweeters sit in kicks. They usually get blocked by a passanger's leg (or even your own) and kill the highs. Plus they can give a sort of rainbox effect. I plan to put 6.5s in kicks, and the tweeters in the a-pillars. The key to that is seperate amps for the tweeters and high xover points. As far as fit, I wear a size 13 shoe and drive an auto and I felt cramped with kicks, plus the dead pedal is rendered useless.

 

Figures... I'm thinking 5.25" or 6.5" in the doors, angled slightly forward and up, with tweeters in the a pillars... ampd in the front, rear for fill, then a 12 or two in the back...

No way I'll fit a size 13 shoe, and the clutch and all down there with kicks then.

 

Good thing every radio currently available on the market has a fader control.

Anyway... on to the door speakers. Angling them may help with imaging, but ultimately it's their position that limits your imaging. Moving them farther forward helps. In my firebird I put the mids in the doors and the tweets in the kicks, and the imaging wasn't too bad, but it's 100% better in my IROC with them in the kicks.