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Speaker location?

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Chet Zerlin

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Anyone have suggestions on where to mount speakers on my 100-6 BN6? Radio is easily mounted underneath the heater box but all locations I could think of to mount speakers would involve cutting into something which I don't want to do....

Thanks!

Chet
 
Chet--

You can use gimbal-mounted speakers such as these at West Marine:

https://www.westmarine.com/buy/west-marine--compact-waterproof-box-speakers--1193119?recordNum=1

and mount them under the dash in the locations of your choice without having to drill more than a couple of small holes for mounting hardware.

You can also get brave and use surface-mounted speakers in the kick panels which may involve some cutting which can easily be repaired/replaced.

All that said, I finally gave up on audio in the Healey--between the exhaust and the wind noise it just isn't worth it and now I focus on the sound of the car.
 
Last edited:
Chet Zerlin said:
Anyone have suggestions on where to mount speakers on my 100-6 BN6? Radio is easily mounted underneath the heater box but all locations I could think of to mount speakers would involve cutting into something which I don't want to do....

Thanks!

Chet
Click to expand...

The only music needed in a 100-6 is from the motor. :cool:

 
Mine has headlight buckets set into the outside toe kick panel. A Martin Jensen special.
 
The referenced West Marine speakers have an input Impedance of 4 Ohms,Most car type radios have an 8 ohm out put impedance.?????

I would suggest:

looking on E Bay or Amazon for similar type 8 ohm speakers at a lower cost.
 
Who needs music when I have a choice , the 67 regular straight 6 with stock exhaust , the 64 with side exhaust or the one that gives me the most goosebumps and is a full on orchestra ...my V8 Vantage .
 
Dougie ....I cant help but notice you have two valve cover vent Ts on you car with two vent hoses , where do the hoses go and why twin T's ?
 
Healey Nut said:
Dougie ....I cant help but notice you have two valve cover vent Ts on you car with two vent hoses , where do the hoses go and why twin T's ?
Click to expand...

The motor on '57 100-6 MM vintage racer produces a lot of internal pressure, the twin breather outlets run from the crank case to the value cover and empty into a catch tank in the wheel well.

'57 100-6 MM Motor.jpg
 
I don't have a radio in my BT7 anymore. I still have the Allstate AM tube radio that was in the car when I bought it in 1963. I did install a single ear phone from a transistor radio (remember, they didn't have dual earplugs until much later) which I used to used when driving but eventually just took it all out of the car. If I wanted music while crusing around town now, I would just take my Bluetooth Jambox speaker and my phone. Won't shake the other cars at a stop light but if you know the songs already, you can hum along.
 
eh !
 
Chet, you don't say what sized speakers you want to use, but they would need to be fairly big to make it worth it. If I were doing it, I'd make some enclosures that sit behind the seats (isn't there a shelf back there?). No cutting required, and if you wire up a plug, you can quickly disconnect them and remove them if need be. What speakers are you thinking of? 6x9 triaxial might work well and provide decent sound in a small package.
 
Maybe try 2 smaller speakers hidden under the dash and 2 larger speakers in back as suggested by Hugh. I think most decent car stereos can drive 4 speakers with balance and fade adjustments.
 
Chet,

How far do you intend to go? The type radio head unit and amp power is crucial to determining what speakers you can and should choose. Keep in mind that sound from rear speakers will be buffeted by the wind when driving with the top down and front speakers will be dominant. If you intend to install rear speakers, consider boxed units with built-in amplifiers that can be unplugged from power and radio connections and removed.

Also, you will need to make a choice on the presentation you want to make with your radio (how obvious or inconspicuous and time-consistent with your Healey model you want it to be). Although you can install a modern head unit, equalizer, amplifier, and a host of speakers (midrange, tweeters, and sub-woofer), you would need to determine how far you really want to go and expensive components placed in the wrong environment will not deliver the sound you may be after and paying for.

If you want decent sound from an inconspicuous time-consistent radio, then place 2 small speaker boxes above the heater duct and I expect you will be happy. If your radio supports more speakers, you can even add to the fronts by installing an additional 2 removable box/amplified speakers in back. Or, you can do what I did and install a replicated console (original on shelf) with the needed dimensional modifications to accept Bose head and equalizer, acoustically separated midrange speakers on each side of the console, tweeters at the ends of the dash and an amp supporting my subwoofer inside the spare in the trunk. Since most all was purchased from a salvage yard and came out of an Acura TL or on sale, the cost was reasonable and the sound perfect to listen to the Beach Boys when driving with the top down. But my approach is my approach and most all others have taken a different path and are as happy with their results.

100_0268-1.jpg100_0270.jpg100_0268.jpg

My thoughts,
Ray(64BJ8P1)
 
BN2guy said:
It's my opinion that the best place for speakers and the radio that goes with them is in your BJ9.
Click to expand...

For those of us that owned Healeys in our youth, many of us think of them as time machines that take us back to our glory days. And what's more evocative than hearing the music of that same period? Put them together and it's a heightened experience. My high school bugeye had a crummy AM radio with integral speaker, but I can still hear the Door's "Light My Fire" playing as if it were yesterday.
 
It's my opinion that the best place for speakers and the radio that goes with them is in your BJ9.
Click to expand...

I appreciate your opinion and recognize it is YOUR opinion and not mine. My intention was to answer the question presented in the thread. For those who do not feel a Healey should have a radio, don't install one.

Rick, I have had a radio in my BJ8 P1 since new. Today, when I take my Healey for a drive, I put the Beach Boys on and, as I have said before, am back in my younger days again. I always arrive home with a smile.

Enjoy Your Healey as you will,
Ray(64BJ8P1)
 
BN2guy said:
It's my opinion that the best place for speakers and the radio that goes with them is in your BJ9.
Click to expand...

Since BJ8's came from the factory with a speaker in the console and provision for a dealer installed radio, musta been OK then, and it's OK now!
 
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