MSA Speaker Box and other Speaker Advice

[Victor Laury]

Has anyone on our forum installed the rear panel replacement speaker box like the one MSA sells? If so, what do you think about it?

My last set was the MTX "RoadThunder" Full range 8'' boxes. They are now owed by the stinking theives who stole the car last January :tapemouth.

They sounded excellent really, well, better if I cut the base a point or two. With 8'' cones and mid range horns, they sure could take the power and still sound crisp at higher volumes. Their only draw back is they were so big, and, I never found a way to anchor them down neatly (I used the luggage straps).

I toured the audio shop today, and saw a set of Sony "Exploid" 6X9's rated 400 watts peak and 100 watts rms. Can anyone tell me if these, in the MSA box, will give me the same "Led Zep at concert level" enjoyment?

[2ManyZs]

I put one in the 71 before I tore it apart and it sounded pretty good with the radio that was in the car. I used a set of 6x9 Infinity speakers I've had since the mid 80's....

I never got around to putting my good stereo (80 watt x4 channel) in it so I can't vouch for the sound quality, but with the cheap one in there it's acceptable, although not quite what I know that system of mine is capable of.

I did find that the speaker panel is a tight fit, and had a tough time getting one of the screws in. They used a long screw to mount it into the tabs that hold the plastic panel by using a clip on "nut" and it was a little difficult to line up properly due to how tight it was against the rear bulkhead and side panels. I would also use some kind of sound deadener in back of the speakers in between them and the taillights.

If you are good with wood, you should be able to make one very similar yourself and save a bunch of money, but when you're like me and can't saw a board straight with a table saw...... :cross-eye

[ZmeFly]

Sound the MTX's gave you but in a better package with better sound then I would recomend the Kickers box. If you get the 6 inch they sound great for there size.

You could also put these bass tubes behind your seats on the Z!

(__) <~~ they are shaped something like that, flat bottom with a rounded top. Really nice, friend of mine had a set and I couldnt believe the quality of sound and bass that was produced by these little wonders.

Definetly check them out.

Me personally, I never did like the sound 6x9's put out. If they made that box in a 6 inch round speaker design, I would buy it in a heart beat

[mperdue]

Originally posted by ZmeFly

Me personally, I never did like the sound 6x9's put out. If they made that box in a 6 inch round speaker design, I would buy it in a heart beat

IF you're talkign about 6" coaxials there's really very little difference in sound if the speaker quality is comparable. The distortion caused by the oval shape of the speaker is really insignificant. Now if you mean 6" seperates that's a different story. The funny thing aoubt all this is that 6x9s and coaxials DONT BELONG IN BOXES! They are designed for free air, and even if the ones you have happen to be designed for a box (maybe 0.5% of them), any ol box (such as the MSA one) wouldn't work. It'd have to be the correct volume for the speaker and it'd be darn small, and you wouldn't mount both speakers to the same open box. The whole box thing is just a scam because so many people are dumb enough to believe all speakers belong in boxes.

The only thing I will give those MSA boxes is that they probably provide a very sturdy mounting surface for the speakers, which is what will make the biggest difference in sound quality for combo speakers. The thing is you could do that yourself with a piece of plywood and you sure as hell don't need that big box.

I'm still waiting for someone to make some nice speaker pods for the front. That's where the sounds needs to come from, except for the bass of course.

[240ZX]

mperdue,

Man, you had better slow your avatar down or it's likely to have a heart attack. That's one FAT kid!!!!!!!!!!!