Speakers option to upgrade the base 6 speakers system

[SimmZ]

As some of you may know, I replaced my old 2016 Dodge Grand Caravan by a 2019 RAM 1500 Classic. The base sound system in the Caravan were definitely decent, however in the RAM 1500, it's definitely disappointing a lot for me. I have the 8.4c uConnect radio which is AWESOME, but the factory 6 speakers system doesn't handle even a bit of bass without distorting a lot!! Since I spent much money already in my truck since I got it (side steps, bed cover, bed mat, floor liner, etc, etc, etc), my budget is quite limited for a speaker upgrade, but I still definitely want it quick! Maybe that I can even do a very budget upgrade quickly and look for something higher end later.

I read on a few places online that the base 6 speakers in a RAM 1500 is made of 2x pairs of 6x9 speakers in all four doors and a pair of 3.5 inch round speakers in the upper dash under the grilles. I heard that the speaker depth are limited in doors, so I want aftermarket speaker thin enough for a perfect fit. Is that correct?

If it's matter for your suggestion, I would prioritize bass response and loudness over sound quality/precision.

Thank you!!

 

[fraleywp]

In my experience, you will get more out of amping your current speakers vs changing just the speakers. The weakest link in most OEM systems is the puny amp in the factory head unit. I have amplified many factory speakers and they sound much better with ample power to them.

Ideally I would want to do both, but if my budget were limited I would start with an amp. I am sure others will have different opinions.

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[SimmZ]

In my experience, you will get more out of amping your current speakers vs changing just the speakers. The weakest link in most OEM systems is the puny amp in the factory head unit. I have amplified many factory speakers and they sound much better with ample power to them.

Ideally I would want to do both, but if my budget were limited I would start with an amp. I am sure others will have different opinions.

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I appreciate this suggestion, however in the case of my RAM, the problem is not much a lack of power that create distortion, it's because the speakers appears to be thin cardboard and extremely weak to the bass. Probably that the magnets are extremely tiny. I agree that adding an amplifier is the best solution, but it's probably overkill for my needs for the moment. As reference I have not a quarter of the distortion of my RAM in my Caravan with the factory 4 speakers (very basic!).

 

[Michael]

I replaced my 6 speakers with JBL’s club series speakers. I used 6x9’s in all four doors. The front doors just required a small spacer. They made a huge difference in sound. There was a big difference in weight between the oem and the JBL speakers.


I know the voices in my head aren’t real, but man, do they ever come up with some great ideas

 

[Joshua Collins]

I debated and debated what speakers to get i just finished replacing mine yesterday so not a lot of time in the truck yet but i did kicker CS series in 6x9s & 3.5s. I debated the JBLs and others but the kickers so far sound good i did put base blockers on the 3.5s and they are a bit louder as they are 4 ohm instead of 8. I may go back and do the resistors on the 3.5s but i can tell you over the factory paper speakers the bass is well improved. I did put sound deading in the doors at the same time so i know that did help them as well but im sure just replacing the speakers would have made a dramatic difference. Note the front 6x9s i had to use 1/2" spacers for them to fit due to speaker depth.

Also i will eventually amp them to get better response out of them as has been suggested but i think you will be surprised by replacing just the speakers.

 

[buddy guy]

cheapest dramatic upgrade is to add 4 replacement door speakers and the ones some of us are running here do not require spacers either. all you need is the speakers and the metric adapters or just cut and solder regular lug connectors which is what i did. these are the ones I bought and they are louder, have more bass AND the sound is more precise. as well, some of us don't worry about changing out the dash speakers as they actually sound quite good with the doors changed.

https://www.amazon.com/Pioneer-TS-G6930F-3-Way-Coaxial-Speaker/dp/B07594MRH2

 

[Graygoose]

My 2019 Ckassic replaced dash with Kicker KS354, doors a mopar 6x9 midbass, Kicker KEY1804 amp.

 

[Dpressed1]

In my opinion, the paper oem speakers have more ‘solid’ bass than aftermarket. Maybe its just the set up i have. Im running polk audio 3.5s on dash, pioneer 6.5 component speakers with kicker tweeters on front doors. And 6x9 kickers on rear doors. Not in to brand matching speakers. What ever has good specs at a good price, i get. Bass now sounds good, but i do get a little rattle. Highs are bad ass!!!! I have mids turned down but audio does tie in. When i had the oem speakers, bass level was at highest and had a good thump. With aftermarkets, i had to turn bass down and still get a slight rattle. Thats what i refer to when saying factory speakers sound more solid. Other than that, i think it sounds good with the factory radio (base 6 speaker set up).

 

[buddy guy]

i have better, louder, tighter bass with my pioneers with the poly and no rattles ever.

 

[PowrRam]

As some of you may know, I replaced my old 2016 Dodge Grand Caravan by a 2019 RAM 1500 Classic.
I read on a few places online that the base 6 speakers in a RAM 1500 is made of 2x pairs of 6x9 speakers in all four doors and a pair of 3.5 inch round speakers in the upper dash under the grilles. I heard that the speaker depth are limited in doors, so I want aftermarket speaker thin enough for a perfect fit. Is that correct?

That is all correct.

If it's matter for your suggestion, I would prioritize bass response and loudness over sound quality/precision.

Thank you!!

Find some speakers you are interested in possibly buying and go to the manufacturers website. For the 6X9's that will go into the front doors look at the mounting depth. There is 2 3/4" available in the front doors of your truck.

Then look at the frequency response for bass. A decent 6X9 should be rated down to 30 Hz (or better.) Be aware that as the frequency decreases, the loudness of the speaker drops as well at those lower frequencies. So it's not enough to find a speaker that has a bass response down to 30 Hz. You also have to look where it starts to "roll off" at the lower frequencies and how loud it is (in dB) at those lower frequencies. The further down the frequency chart it goes before rolling off, the better it is for louder bass.

Then look at the sensitivity of the speakers. This is the spec that tells you if the speaker play loud. Measured in dB, a higher number is better. Look for a number at or above 90 dB.

In my case, I went with the Pioneer TS-A6966R for my 6X9's in the front doors. Definite improvement in bass and clarity and also a slight uptick in loudness. I didn't replace my rear door speakers.

If you replace the dash speakers you should install the 4 ohm resistors to stop these new speakers from playing overly loud. Almost all aftermarket 3.5" speakers are 4 ohms; the factory Ram speakers are 8 ohms. So when you replace an 8 ohm speaker with a lower resistance speaker of 4 ohms, it's going to get more voltage to the new speakers and they will play louder. I think replacing the dash speakers gives you the best overall improvement in the clarity of sound, but they really need the 4 ohm resistors.

 

[OC455]

I went on the cheap with (4) HiFonics 6x9 3 ways, with 6mm spacers in the doors and HiFonics 3.5inch 2 ways in the dash with the 4ohm resistor mod done to the adapters.

I purchased them through sonicelectronix.com
Cheap speaker but they sound good and have a good bass sound. A little over $100 for everything.

 

[fraleywp]

I went on the cheap with (4) HiFonics 6x9 3 ways, with 6mm spacers in the doors and HiFonics 3.5inch 2 ways in the dash with the 4ohm resistor mod done to the adapters.

I purchased them through sonicelectronix.com
Cheap speaker but they sound good and have a good bass sound. A little over $100 for everything.

Sound quality is not always in parallel with cost. You can spend a fortune and it can still sound like crap. As pointed out in an earlier post, knowing your needs and matching those reqs is key. You could also just get lucky. Lol

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[OC455]

Sound quality is not always in parallel with cost. You can spend a fortune and it can still sound like crap. As pointed out in an earlier post, knowing your needs and matching those reqs is key. You could also just get lucky. Lol

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After the update they did with the 8.4 that they haven't fixed yet, at least getting a better than stock speaker in there would help. I was thinking of gong all out with components and amps, but that gets expensive. The speakers I purchased had good reviews and they weren't expensive, and that why I got them.

 

[PowrRam]

After the update they did with the 8.4 that they haven't fixed yet,

To clarify, 8.4 UConnect without navigation has been fixed; 8.4 with navigation has not been fixed.

 

[OC455]

To clarify, 8.4 UConnect without navigation has been fixed; 8.4 with navigation has not been fixed.

Yeah, I have the Nav so that's what I was referring to, shoulda put that in there.

 

[bchap05]

I'm always suprised when people say this. I have the 5.0 with base speakers. It honestly sounds like I have a small sub (I don't) I've even had multiple people comment on how good it sounds and ask what sub I have.

I've had lots of decent systems over the years and usually upgrade. But I'm not really bothered by the stock sound at all this time.


I'm sure the clarity would improve quite a bit if I went aftermarket but I kind of doubt the bass would be matched.

 

[NapaRam]

I may get new speakers but before I do I want to give this bad boy a try to see if it's as good as they say it is. I want to give the stocks speakers a chance to prove themselves before I change them. http://www.me-mag.com/product/item/...oundbreaking-key-smart-amplifier-with-auto-eq

 

[Michael]

I'm always suprised when people say this. I have the 5.0 with base speakers. It honestly sounds like I have a small sub (I don't) I've even had multiple people comment on how good it sounds and ask what sub I have.

I've had lots of decent systems over the years and usually upgrade. But I'm not really bothered by the stock sound at all this time.


I'm sure the clarity would improve quite a bit if I went aftermarket but I kind of doubt the bass would be matched.

My truck came with the 5.0 and base speakers too. I thought they were garbage. I replaced them and now I have good bass for not having a sub. With certain songs I can even get a bit of a massage.

The oem speakers might weight about 1/3 of the aftermarket speakers.


I know the voices in my head aren’t real, but man, do they ever come up with some great ideas

 

[autokraftgt]

As some of you may know, I replaced my old 2016 Dodge Grand Caravan by a 2019 RAM 1500 Classic. The base sound system in the Caravan were definitely decent, however in the RAM 1500, it's definitely disappointing a lot for me. I have the 8.4c uConnect radio which is AWESOME, but the factory 6 speakers system doesn't handle even a bit of bass without distorting a lot!! Since I spent much money already in my truck since I got it (side steps, bed cover, bed mat, floor liner, etc, etc, etc), my budget is quite limited for a speaker upgrade, but I still definitely want it quick! Maybe that I can even do a very budget upgrade quickly and look for something higher end later.

I read on a few places online that the base 6 speakers in a RAM 1500 is made of 2x pairs of 6x9 speakers in all four doors and a pair of 3.5 inch round speakers in the upper dash under the grilles. I heard that the speaker depth are limited in doors, so I want aftermarket speaker thin enough for a perfect fit. Is that correct?

If it's matter for your suggestion, I would prioritize bass response and loudness over sound quality/precision.

Thank you!!

"bass response and loudness"....buy a subwoofer/amp with a bass knob and call it a day. Use your HU to remove some bass from the factory speakers and 'clean up the sound' while also keeping your factory speakers a bit more comfortable ...maybe set your LPF to 100hz on the sub and let it rock.

 

[Graygoose]

I may get new speakers but before I do I want to give this bad boy a try to see if it's as good as they say it is. I want to give the stocks speakers a chance to prove themselves before I change them. http://www.me-mag.com/product/item/...oundbreaking-key-smart-amplifier-with-auto-eq

That's what I have. You can use on factory speakers for now. Then when you change speakers, just retune it...takes 5 minutes.