Replacement Door Speakers 10' HHR Base Model
 

Hello all joined the club a while back, this is my second post, posted my 1st on the Introduction :thumb: I purchased my 10' HHR Base Model (Auto) black on black well over a year ago, maybe longer. It was a rental car before I bought it.

Looking forward to purchasing some nice speakers to replace the factory door speakers to work with the factory head unit. Mine does not have the Pioneer system. Looking for advice on full range speakers to replace the ones in the front and rear doors, factory tweeters seem to sound ok. I'm a musician too so I'd like to think I have a pretty good ear for sound :guitarrocker:, trying to stay on a budget somewhat. If anyone has some good suggestions please let me know I would appreciate it.

I bought MBquartz cause they were cheep, they sound great....:thumb:

Don't know that much about MB Quart, like what series, etc? What about other brands like Infinity, JBL GTO Series, etc?

I've been told to replace the stock head unit for the first and most immediate upgrade. I just can't bring myself to do it, the factory radio looks just right where it is. If anyone has replaced theirs with something that attractively compliments the waterfall, I'd love to see.

I put a powered sub in and am not in love. I'm also a musician and would like better quality. On both my Jeep and Firebird, I replaced just the head and it made a world of difference.

Jim

Factory speakers are always crap. MBQuartz are fantastic speakers. I bought a component set in the 90's and they are still going strong. I have moved them to every truck I have owned. Bulletproof.
I would also keep the factory head unit, as I like it and I would hate to mess with all the computer stuff that is hooked up to it.
I would get some quality aftermarket speakers, and that includes swapping the sup in the sub box, and then putting in some in-line amplification. (alpine makes an inline amp that goes between the head unit and the speakers.)

I got some Powerbass 10" installed in my 06 a while back. I'm not an audiophile, but the originals started crackling and I just wanted an inexpensive working speakers.

Are the JBL GTO 6 1/2" speakers pretty good to work with the factory head unit? Which MBQuartz door speakers 6 1/2" 6 3/4"? Seems like people are putting in Alpine Type-S and Infinity Kappa's too?

So I've been reading that the factory door speakers are 6 1/2" but it's possible to use 6 3/4" too and the rear speakers are 8 Ohms and the front doors are 4 Ohms, is this true? What would happen if I got all 4 Ohm speakers? I'm no electronic whiz and when I do get aftermarket speakers I'm gonna have to have on of my friends help me out. Been looking on Crutchfield and SonicElectronix.com mainly, Sonic though seems to throw in that NVX Sound Dampening Material

Being a guitarist & musician I have a pretty good ear for sound. I listen to anything from Classic/Hard rock/80's music/80's metal/hair metal/Modern metal (aka: Killswitch Engage, Shadows Fall, Slipknot, etc). At this point, I'm just looking for speakers that are much better than the junky stock speakers and really brings life to the stock head unit and sound loud and clear, gives max loudness with stock head unit and have very clear highs and midrange and solid and tight bass. Also, with great low bass if thats possible.

I was just chatting with one of the online advisors at Crutchfield and they were recommending these:

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_130TA16...75R.html?tp=95

These are 6-1/2" 3-way and the sensitivity is 90 dB. Saw on the back of the magnet Made In China though

Saw this pair of Infinity 6-3/4" 2-way speakers which have a True Four Ohm Impedance technology: speaker's 3-ohm impedance combines with speaker wire impedance for a 4-ohm load which looks like they'd work for the front doors and the sensitivity is 93 dB

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_108R650...2ix.html?tp=95

Could I install four of the Infinity Reference X 6-3/4" 2 way speakers in all the doors or would I run into problems with the different ohm ratings between the factory 4 ohm front and 8 ohm rear door speakers?

So looking at the MB Quart speakers these look pretty interesting:

Anyone try the Polk Audio DB651 6.5-Inch Coaxial Speakers in their HHR with factory base head unit? Seems like they have a pretty hig Db rating

Welcome! I myself am a musician as well (who has an 09 LT black/black) and I just replaced my in door speakers with Pioneer TS-A1685R's all around. They're 4-way speakers and I read they're perfect if you don't want to make room for a sub (being a drummer, I can't have a woofer/box taking up valuable space. You can get them (in a pair) for about $53 on amazon ( )

Some things you'll need:

Speaker adapters - I bought the ones in the link. I had to remove the one side tab closest to the door panel (easily done with a hacksaw). You will need to visit your local hardware store for screws that will fit in the mounts since the ones provided with the speakers are too big.


soldering iron - I clipped the wires already in the doors and soldered the ends to the adapter wires/clips that came with the speakers.

Rosen core solder - you can pick it up at any radio shack for about $14. The thinner the better.

I also bought the Dynamat speaker kit to reduce the door buzz. Definitely works! -

One thing I noticed was I don't need to crank the highs and lows as much as I did the stocks. I just have to give a little boot for the lows, and a few notches for the highs to get a real clear full sound. Of course next step is the head unit to push more power to the speakers! :thumb:

lot of choices out there..me personally ive tried lots of speakers over the years and I am in love with speakers by Infinity! I am very picky when it comes to sound! Have them in my HHR and other vehicles, until i hear something better I will always use them

I think I've narrowed it down to either of these to replace all 4 door speakers:

Alpine SPE-6000 6-1/2" 2-Way Coaxial Car Speakers with Polypropylene Cones (Pair) $79.99

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Alpine--...=1218256568420

or the new Polk Audio DXI651 6-1/2" Coaxial Vehicle Speakers with Bilaminate Polymer-Composite Cones (Pair) $99.99

I'm keeping the factory base stereo for right now, does anyone know how many watts the base stereo (non-Pioneer) head unit puts out? Later on I might get the Alpine - Power Pack 180W Class D Bridgeable Multichannel Amplifier with High-Pass Filter to run with the stock head unit

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Alpine--...&skuId=4769803

Looks like the Polks have a better Frequency Response 35Hz - 23kHz vs the Alpine's 68Hz - 20kHz but have any of you guys ran either of these speakers in your HHR with factory head unit?

I have experience with both the MB Quartz and alpine.

I had some Reference series MB Quartz. 6.5 components. They are now still happily running in a friends ride. Beautiful sound.

I am currently running Alpine SPR-60c up front and SPR-60 in the rear. Beatiful sound a little more mid bass then the MB Quartz.

Stay away from E or ONX both are there entry level speakers. Also stay away from best buy.

The mark up on car audio is ridiculous. Try ebay, or Sonic electronics.

I got my R series alpine rears for close to what bestbuy is chargeing for the E series. Alpine from low to High end is E, S, R, X.

At bare minimum go for the S series.

Well driver's side front door speaker went out couple weeks ago so now I have no sound from front door speakers just the 2 rear ones and the tweeters in the front pillars!! AARRGGHH!!

why wait till spring, change them out! BBBrrrrrr!

What series or model of Infinity 6.5's did you go with?

Well after watching this YouTube video I think I'm going to go with Polk Audio db651 6-1/2" 2-way car speakers but my question is there is also the Polk Audio db651s shallow-mounts, can I use the regular db651 for both the front and rear doors?

Plenty of depth in the doors, especially if you use the adapters that add another inch or so.

Thank you :twothumbs: so I could go with the regular Polk Audio DB651 6.5's then for all four doors, heard they have more bass than the shallow-mount ones & seems like they have a pretty high Db rating of 92 & frequency response 35Hz-22kHz

What 6.5" or 6.75" door speakers have you put in your HHR?
 

Been researching replacement 6.5" door speakers for all 4 doors. Factory head unit & speakers: Non-Pioneer system and I'm on a budget. Looking for input on 6.5" or 6.75" speakers that sound good for listening to everything from talk radio to classic rock to metal music with heavier bass. Any recommendations?

Bottom line is it's your ears that count. I personally can't tell the difference between $15 speakers and $150 speakers.

Brand are like belly buttons; everyone has one.

I have a friend who swears by pioneer. She's got 4 of the cheaper pioneers in her 2007 Vibe, and it sounds killer. She had 4 speakers, installation, and a new headunit(hers crapped) for $242 TOTAL... from Best Buy... Food for thought.

What is your budget? I cant speak for all Best Buy stores but I wouldnt trust them with my car.

Yea I don't trust Best Buy either, their prices are way too high and have read some negative stuff about their Geek Squad. Budget-wise I've been looking at around the $50/pair and maybe a little up range

My apologies for the late reply. I would try sonic electronixs online. Great deals there. If you could swing 100 a pair I would highly recommend entry level Infinity. The problem is 50 a pair doesnt buy much. But pioneer is a reasonable nrand for the price. Hope this helps.

I just stumbled across this pair of massive audio lx6 speakers on sonic electronixs site:

Massive Audio LX 6 6.5" Car Speakers - Sonic Electronix

Reviews seemed to be pretty good and right around my budget too.. Is massive audio a fairly new company?

There was another company I hadn't heard of either on sonic electronix site called RE Audio was looking at their 6.5" speakers too

RE Audio and Massive Audio are both good speakers. Better than pioneer or sony etc... In my opinion. Yes Massive Audio is a fairly new company, but they have great reviews across the board. RE will probably give you a little better bass response. But remember in car audio its 80 percent how its installed 20 percent equipment. Even the best speaker will sound bad if not installed correctly. Will you be using the stock HU?

Yes I'll be using the stock head unit.

Similar threads merged

From 2014 ? Why?

Exactly the same question Feb. 2013 and Sept. 2014 with the same answers.