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Speaker upgrade

g911omr

Well-known member
Joined
29 Sep 2009
Messages
404
I'm looking to improve the speakers in my 996.1 C2.
Currently there are dash mounted, 1 in each door and the rear speakers. I'm assuming that they are standard original items.
The head unit is Alpine along with a separate amp under the bonnet care of the PO.
Sound is ok, but just a bit average.
Any ideas on the best way to go? Possibly starting with the door speakers.

Cheers all.

Mark
 
the door speakers are actually good quality, but you have to send the right frequency range to them (they are woofers, not subs) If they are driven by a dedicated amp, set it to LF/LPF for low frequency.
Dash and rear speakers - Alpine SPG-10C2 is a popular upgrade - you will have to do some work to get them to fit (or indeed any replacement speaker) Or Hertz if you're feeling flush.
Then add a slimline sub under the passenger seat (as there's nowhere else to put one.)
Sorted!
 
I replaced my speakers with Alpine ones, you're limited for choice due to the tight space in the dash. Can't remember the model but a search on here should show plenty of posts.
 
There's a good video on YouTube too about cutting the carrier to fit your new dash speakers
 
The amp is 4 channel so as it stands, 2 channels power the dash and door speakers and 2 channels power the back speakers. Is there any benefit in replacing the doors with Bose?
 
I changed mine to the Alpines mentioned above and in the JMG link for both the dashboard and rear speakers. Yes they sound better / fuller than the originals (mine had the Bose system FWIW which isn't a lot IMHO!). They are only 4" ish in size and not in a great place so don't expect much bass just a better quality sound over the originals

A worthwhile upgrade i think as they aren't very expensive

The biggest improvement was ditching the the totally cr@p CDR-23 head unit and replacing it with the AVIC F20BT and a Pioneer amp which sits neatly under the plastic cowling in the frunk. These now power all of the speakers plus the original Bose sub which my son opened up and lined with Dynamat and loose fill fibre and have made a huge difference. Very effective and cheap upgrade IMO
He also Dynamatted/filled behind the rear speakers as the backing is pretty flimsy
The only speakers that are original in mine are those inside the Bose sub unit and the Bose door speakers which are probabaly the weakest link now and next to be replaced

It won't win any competitions but is a 1000% better than original!

HTH

:thumbs:

The Bose system in a 996T really wasn't their finest hour - but that's ok as the engine was :D
 
I am in the process of swapping out all 4 upper speakers from the old Nokia ones to Hertz DCX 100.3's. O chose these as they give a much broader frequency response compared to the Alpines and others. Theyre also made by the same people who make Audison (and are pretty much the same thing :D ) but for less money.

The kit suggested is great but *very* expensive. The Hertz are not a perfect fit however, and you'll also want to get some VM speaker connectors.

I am not (yet) swapping head unit, amp or door woofers as they are still good enough.

I'll post photos soon of the process if you are patient, or feel free ot DM me with questions.
 
I wasn't sure where best to post this, so thought I'd reply to this old thread for anyone else who stumbles across it.

Hope this helps anyone else looking for a cheaper alternative to the JMG kit.
I bought:

2 sets of the Alpine speakers from Amazon (£39-45 per pair)
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B002XCNPMS/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

1 set of JMG spacers & cables.
https://www.jmgshop.com/9xx---dashboard-speaker-fitting-kit-without-speakers-355-p.asp

I appreciate JMG will have had some R&D costs to recover, but having seen what you get for your money, I couldn't bring myself to pay the asking price for a 2nd set.

After a little hunting around I found adaptor leads on Amazon for under £2

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01KQG3MK2/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

These seem slightly better quality than the JMG ones, as they have thicker gauge cables & the plastic connector was a better fit. The Amazon ad doesn't list Porsche for compatibility, but I can confirm they are a perfect fit.

I made up a 2nd set of spacers with the help of some Thermomorph (£16)

https://www.amazon.co.uk/ThermoMorp...?srs=4057927031&ie=UTF8&qid=1539511322&sr=8-1

1 tub of Thermomorph would probably be enough for 2 sets of spacers, so for £20 you could get a tub & 2 sets of leads which should be enough to upgrade both front & rear speakers.
 
Never heard of Thermomorph but a quick search and it looks like very handy stuff that has loats of uses :thumb: thats todays lesson for me :thumb:
 
Isn't there a danger that the ThermoMorph will deform on a hot day?
 
maldren said:
Isn't there a danger that the ThermoMorph will deform on a hot day?

I don't think so, they advise you need to immerse it in water boiled to 150degrees to mould it. Having said that I just boiled the kettle. It probably wasn't 150, but did the job & they've been in the car for several weeks now.

Having said that I probably wouldn't use it in a hot engine bay or for safety critical components.

Like Sugru it does seem to have many uses. Sugru once cured has a more rubbery/soft texture, by contrast Thermomorph is rock hard.
 
That would have to be a pretty deep mine! The deepest mines only add about 5deg or that sort of order of magnitude, you're better off with a pressure cooker, you'd get 120 no problem. Think it must be farenheit, but 150 is only 62c so reference boiling is a bit odd..
 
My mistake... I hadn't spotted the "f" suffix after the reference to 150 degrees in the manufacturers instructions.
 

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