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"The Sound of Music" - Speaker Placement

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anthony7777

Yoda
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has anyone nailed town the relevance of speaker placement in the healey for best audio sound? i mounted rears to each side of 'side panels,not good,fronts are under each corner of dash,sound is good in front,probably due to there being closer,all speakers are very good ones but dont produce even a GOOD sound were thay are now located,anyone cured this problem?dont want to go to the"pimp my ride"50 billion amp boom boxes in trunk etc,anyones help on speaker placement,configuration etc would be appretiated. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/nopity.gif





good
 
Re: the sound of music

How much power per channel is your system capable of producing and what size and configuration of speakers are you running Anthony.?---Keoke
 
Re: the sound of music

I spent A LOT of time figuring out a system that was right for my BJ8. Speakers were the biggest issue. After trying a number of different speakers, I finally came upon a pair that was perfect. Installed on brackets in the footwells, just under the dash and facing slightly upwards. The issues was not as much placement, as it was getting the right type of speakers. I settled on polyplanar MA7500 speakers. Perfect small size, waterproof marine speakers, great power and sound. These are the only speakers in my car, and the sound is great.
 
Re: the sound of music

shg,it happens i put those particular speakers in my own boat!your right they are great,why didnt i think of that?[o.k. keoke lets not get into that!]im pushing a whopping 70 watts my front speakers are 3.5" tweeters used in high end "luxury"cars mounted just the way you discribed,'in each footwell slightly facing up'in custum made boxes of a material called azdec a plastic used in trimming houses rather then wood,they sound realy good,but the rears, also high end auto stuff dont sound correct,balanced,etc.befor i start drilling more stuff i wonder if placing them flat against the rear seat panel facing fwd.might be better?in the sixties they sold chincy speakers in a more chincy black plastic box that were cut or shapped on an angle that worked very well but i cant find them,more frustrating every place ive gone wants to sell me somthing the ;rolling stones'could use in a football stadium,ill probably end up pulling out what i have now and move them around a bit,thanks for reminding me of the marine stuff!any other ideas would also be appreciated thanks /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crazyeyes.gif,keoke you now have the floor! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crazyeyes.gif
 
Re: the sound of music

Hi Anthony,
Can you be more specific about your distaste for the rear speakers? Do they sound muddy (too much midrange), too tiny (not enough bass, speaker enclosure too small). Do they make odd thumping noises when cranked up (air leaks in the speaker box) No stereo separation (bad placement). What size are they 4x6, 5x7, etc. and how many drivers per speaker. I.E. 2 ways. Are the rear speakers in boxes now? If so, how big are the boxes?
 
Re: the sound of music

Well Anthony, if I read your description of the speakers correctly very simply you are not going to get total spectrum sound out of 3.5" Coaxial speakers.---Fwiw---Keoke
 
Re: the sound of music

Hello Anthony,

I know this is a minority view, (and not helpful to you) but I believe the best position for audio speakers is in the living room.

Alec
 
Re: the sound of music

PIman, thats where he put them in the foot wells.---Keoke /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
 
Re: the sound of music

[ QUOTE ]
Hello Anthony,

I know this is a minority view, (and not helpful to you) but I believe the best position for audio speakers is in the living room.

Alec

[/ QUOTE ]

Add me to your minority view. I prefer the sound of the car.

Bruce
 
Re: the sound of music

i also agree that the stereo belongs in the house,thats why every,yes every room no matter what its used for has its very own system!not just wired to a a central local,no its own system,do i love the sound of my car?ya thats why i installed all that stainless stuff!the reason i need tunes in my healey is that sometimes someone will request a particular piece of music that i must play with a group,ill study it in advance,but like to run through it for a while even while in transit to the gig,hence requiring a somewhat decent audio set up,forgive me please for not always driving around with my head against the tail pipe![i know at least keoke thinks i have my head in some other unmentionable place]but i never the less require a half way decent sound.grgw yes thumping,rears are 5" with midrange central cones,mounted through side panels accounting for your mentioned "air leak",i think ill try surrounding them somehow befor repositioning,what can you suggest here,thanks /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cryin.gif
 
Re: the sound of music

SHG, I have been giving this some thought for several months and had decided to do exactly what you did, find some small, quality marine rated speakers and make a bracket to mount them facing slightly upward. I am glad that someone, you, have done this and verified my thinking. I was wondering what you guys are using for a radio/stereo. I have checked out the web sites for classic car radios but really didn't find anything that jumped out at me. I wanted to buy something that fits in the same space left by the original Motorala AM radio, and really didn't want anything more than an AM/FM stereo radio with enough power so I can actually hear it while driving the car. I also wanted it to be able to retain the station settings after I turn the battery switch off in the trunk. The closest thing I have found so far on the web were some reconditioned manual BLAUPUNKT radios with old fashioned push buttons. But I am interested in hearing what you guys are using. Thanks
 
Re: the sound of music

Well now Anthony, that last reponse paints an entirely different picture.Let me suggest that for the pre gig run through you could use a set of those Hi Fidelity Ear Phones. They are very light weight and shut out the ambient noise. Additionally, the head phones do not require the large amounts of power that the conventional speaker driven systems need to faithfully reproduce music. What chu think.?---Keoke
 
Re: the sound of music

Hi Anthony,
The thumping could possibly be the radio isn’t getting enough juice from the electrical system. Are you running a generator? Your radio could be drawing more amps than the car can handle. Try putting the speakers “as is” in a newer car (no, not a BJ8) and see if they sound better, or grab a small set from your house and plug them into the Healey. Remember that they won’t be as loud since home audio is 8 ohm.
As far as air leaks, caulk up all the seams on the inside of the boxes, and run some weather stripping around the speaker mounting holes. The brown, thin, squishy, closed cell foam rubber should work for you. 3/8”x 3/8”. I usually fill the box 70%-80% full of cotton batting or fiberglass. As Keoke said earlier, you’re not going to get a whole lot of low end sound with 5” woofers.
 
Re: the sound of music

Hi Ed,
It seems like most of the car stereos these days are targeting the import tuner crowd. I bought a Sony that had the least amount of flashing lights and LCD screensavers. I found that I had to make a custom bracket behind the console for the DIN style radio bracket. So, a bracket for the bracket. Otherwise, the Sony would sit too far out and was threatened by 1st and 3rd gear. I’m running separates up front. I’ve got 5” mids hidden behind the center console (BJ8) and little tweeters that will go on the dashpad near the windshield pillars.
Is the Blaupunkt positive ground, or did you convert the car to neg. ground?
And lastly, talking about the radios memory with the battery switch. You could run a short wire from the battery side of the switch through an inline fuse and screw it to ground. 16 gauge wire, 1 amp fuse. That will keep the radio alive but won’t allow the car to be hotwired. Any moment now, Keoke will come and say “That was MY idea” and he’d be right. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/devilgrin.gif
134157-tweet.jpg
 
Re: the sound of music

Well Greg, I have given this Memory keep alive thing a bit more thought. yes it can be done as stated,but why! do you actually think you are going to be able to take your eyes off the road long enough to find the station switch you want to push?,If you do you just might end up in the bush.Further , unless the car is driven regularly the current drain from the memory will cause the battery to go flat, unless you put a battery charger maintainer on the car while setting.Most modern radio units have a signal seeker function which is connected to one of the main tuning shafts or a prominant button/bar.You can use that function to tune up and down the frequency spectrum without taking your eyes off the road. Therefore, I really do not think that maintaining preprogrammed memory is a significant issue in the LBC.---Fwiw ---Keoke
 
Re: the sound of music

Hi Ed. I'll tell you what I've come up with (notwithstanding that Keoke's always making problems). I found an old Becker Europa push button am/fm/cassette radio on ebay. Some has already been restored; others will need some work. Becker can still provide parts if needed. They fit the hole perfectly.

I added a high/low converter to use the speaker out wires into a very small 200 watt amp, that I attached underneath the heater box (installed upside down). If you don't use the converater (about $10), the amp will not work right and everything sounds horrible. I found this out the hard way. The amp I used wasw a Pyramid. It's very inexpensive ($25 online) and works great.

You can't see a think from the cockpit and the old radio looks like it belongs. Granted that the radio is a few years newer than it should be, but nobody but you will know that. And the combo of tne amp and good speakers with the old restored radio pushes plenty of high quality sound that can be heard over the roar of a SS exhaust.

No matter what anyone says, the combo of 60's music plus the exhaust sounds better than anything else. Especially "Born to be Wild." ;-)
 
Re: the sound of music

Well SHG, that is part of the secret. The internal audio power amplifier in most radios is incapable of producing adquate clean output power .The addition of a HIGH Powered external power amplifier should be incorporated to drive the aftermarket speakers.---Keoke /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/angel.gif
P.S. The converter can be iliminated where the receiver has a "Tuner Output" Or you can have Detector output modified to produce one in the older radios.
 
Re: the sound of music

[ QUOTE ]
P.S. The converter can be iliminated where the receiver has a "Tuner Output" Or you can have Detector output modified to produce one in the older radios.

[/ QUOTE ]
I'm glad you brought that up. There is a single black wire that comes out of the back of the radios that provided switched power for an antenna. Uset his wire for the amp (ground as always) and this will turn the amp on and off with the radio, so it isn't powered whenever the car is on. Also, the hi/lo converters include a left and right channel adjustment, which makes up for the fact that the old radios don't.

Keoke, did you ever get a sample of the newfangled door weatherstripping that was guaranteed to stay put? I've been waiting for your review.
 
Re: the sound of music

Hi SHG, /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/eek.gif Yes I dropped the ball on that one . Let me just say simply that the material Martin sent is fantastic.Grips like a tasmanian devil and is molded in one vitually undestructible piece. You will be very pleased with this product and all colors are available now.---Keoke
 
Re: the sound of music

Greg, It sounds like you were thinking the same about radio selection as I am. I don't want something that looks like a radar tracking screen " tarting up" my BJ8. If I wind up buying a modern unit, it will have to be as simple of a display as possible. I have already converted to neg. ground.
If I buy something modern, I will look for something that uses non-volitile memory so I don't have to run a seperate
" keep alive " ground wire to the battery. I like your idea of using the space above the radio in the console for a couple of speakers. Also, I am trying to keep the expense down as I already spent many $$$$$ on this car.
 
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