6x9's in doors?

[muddpile]

This seems to be a pretty popular thing for people to do to old pickups of any year, brand, etc. I think this will be the route I take when I do my 72 as well, and I was just wondering how it sounds, and if you run speakers anywhere else. Pictures would be very helpful and what brand/model of speakers you are using. I figure if I go this route, I can amp the 6x9's and have good mids and highs, plus decent bass. I will sound deaden the doors good, so vibration shouldn't be a problem. Wires will be run through those stainless streetrod looms. All I need to know is how far forward I cut the hole, what I use to cut it, what kind of speakers do people use and how it sounds. Can anyone help me out? Thanks!

[LUV2XCLR8]

I would only do it if my truck was a driver, JMHO, once you cut them you
can't go back, lots of people do it and the sound IMHO is ok, but that's it

[truckdude239]

i have an pinoneer cd player with 6.5s in the door also pinoneer and i think it sounds great

[jhwkns]

Mine are Pioneers. They sound great. I'm not too worried about the holes in the doors. I can always weld in some patch panels.

[special-K]

Unfortunately,it`s the best place for speakers.That`s where the factory would have put speakers if they came with stereos.The dashes would have had a large rectangular hole in the middle of it if there were cd-players back then.It`s alot easier for me to put stereo components in holes that have been cut by p.o.My Highlander has a cd-player in the dash(cut).It looks like it belongs there and I can get right to it.Don`t listen to AM at all.

[VinceY]

I used to have 6x9s in the doors of my C10 but welded in patches when the truck got painted. I have no gas tank behind the seat so I put the 6x9s in boxes in the corners and the sound is so so much better. The speakers will last longer there also as they will not get wet like inside the door.

[Longhorn Man]

Water is an issue, but if you get poly instead of paper, you'll be way ahead. Something to cover the speaker fromt he top on the inside of the door would help a bunch too.
I just cut mine up a couple weeks ago after years of having the 'wedge' boxes sitting in front of the bench seat on the floor. Sound is 10 times better now. Instead of mounting them forward on the door like most ppl do, i mounted mine back fuirther. This way once I mount some speakers up under the dash, I'll have front to rear seperation...at least a little.
I used an air nibbler to cut mine. I also mounted mine from the inside of the door...which was a total PITA...I stopped bleeding after only a few short hrs, but it was well worth it.
I have a Pioneer CD unit wired directly to 2 poly pioneer 3 way speakers. I was rather shocked to discover that not only can I hear it at 4000 RPM with the windows down and a sorry excuse for an exhaust system...but they actually hit....just a little... but none the less. Rattling was something I was concerned about, however, as long as the windows are all the way up, or all the way down, I don't hear any rattling, inside OR out.
I highly recomend it....the metal can always be welded back in later if you ever decide that all you really need is AM.

[muddpile]

jhwkns, that is the type of picture I am looking for. I hated the idea of cutting my doors... At first. I've owned my truck for a year now, and I have finally realized that realized that it's just not worth it to me to keep it original. Putting the radio in the glovebox is inconvenient, speakers in the kick panels won't last long in a truck that gets used for work, and I don't think I've ever heard of anyone being satisfied with dual 4" in the factory dash location. The real funny part about me cutting the doors is that they will be brand new . The corners have rusted off my old ones, and they have had so many different sets of mirrors on them that the skins look like swiss cheese. I figure if I'm going to build my daily driver from the ground up, I might as well make it comfortable. As for the water issue, anytime I put speakers in a door, I always invest the extra ten bucks in those foam or plastic covers. It's cheap insurance. I can always save the pieces and weld them back in at a later date if I ever decided to restore it. Anyone have any more info or pics?

[71Dragtruck]

Boston makes some killer 6x9's buddy has a pair. I have a pair of Pioneer in my doors with a weatherproof cover on them, can't remember what they are called but they make them sound better and keep them from gettig wet and dirty.

[KEH]

VinceY,

Any pics of your speakers?

[Jwill41]

This is what i am doing to mine. I will have the amp, 10" woofer, and 12 disc changer behind the seat where the tank used to be. This is the drivers side door but it could be used on the passenger side and the spaekers would be at the rear of the door. I stapled the plastic on it to help keep dry. I may also try to seal the edges of the plastic to the wood.

[muddpile]

Wow there are a lot of great ideas out there for this project. Jwill41, that looks pretty cool!

[Longhorn Man]

An added benifit to mounting them to the rear of the door is they are less likely to get damaged by your...or a moron passenger, holding the door open with there foot.

[briarpatch]

An alternative...

[67chevemall]

cut what! wow.
Does anybody remember the wind and the engine?

[67ChevyRedneck]

The previous owner of my truck cut the doors just like jhwks truck, so I put 4 3-way pioneer 120W speakers in em. Sounds really good but only with the windows up, the duals and wind noise kill the sound with the windows down.

[Putter]

NICE CUP-HOLDERS there Briarpatch!!!
As easy as that is, it never even crossed my mind to hang those THERE!

[special-K]

Bose and others make outside and marine speakers of high-end quality these days,also.Another thing.If andwhen going back to original,unless going for 100%,there are the kick panel/lower door carpet pieces to cover up less than perfect patching.I`ve never heard much complaint about these non-original pieces.On my CheyenneSuper,it is so loaded and original that I don`t want to permanently alter anything.I have the post-type hi-power Alpine AM/FM/Cassette from an`84 I had that has a matching cell-phone(analog to be converted)that`s integrated w/stereo to pause tapes and turn volume down on radio.I`ll have a seperate cd-player in the console,kickers and amp in tank area,under bed tank(stock filler left in place).I may do an original looking AM/FM from that company that does those.Anyway,alot of trouble to do all this.Oh,and the doors are already cut for speakers and I have two N.O.S. doors to hang.The nice original doors(cut for 4 1/2"? speakers) will be hung on another truck cut out for 6x9s or 6 1/2s.My point?I dunno...Some I cut/some I don`t.Either way,I want to hear good tunes driving in my ol`truck.The last good AM station I listened to was in 1976,cuz it was good music.

Oh yeah,like Longhornman said,watch the feet!It seems the passenger side gets all the abuse.Ever notice how passengers always want to SLAM! the door,even if it`ll still close with a "click"?I mean,I had one guy constantly griping about the cover coming off(my Bazooka)when he got in.I`d tell him every time,"it doesn`t need slammed.One day you`re gonna break the glass.Then you`ll have some thing to gripe about.And,it`s coming outta yer check!"He`d keep slammin`it,I`d keep tellin`him.

[Mudder]

I have been doing the door thing for over twenty years. The best thing to do imo is to get some baffles from like Crutchfield that the speakers are surrounded by. They will take the tiny sound out of them and help keep the moisture off. I still drapped them with plastic. No matter what you do they are prone to moisture. Plastic cones last lots longer.

[muddpile]

All the speakers I am looking at have poly cones (or any other various form of waterproof material) and foam surrounds, so moisture shouldn't be a huge problem. I will also be sure to invest in a pair of those Foam baffles for the back, and a carpet kick panel/door bottom set to help kill any unwanted vibration. Passengers feet are a concern, so I am looking for a strong grille also. I figure that the speakers are much safer in the door than the kick panel though (they don't call them "KICK" panels for nothing).

[PT'S 70 CST]

This may be something you want to try before you hack up a good door. I used about a 1/2" shim and shimmed my seat up and you can buy a 6x9 single box from many different places (Crutchfield ect...) and put the speakers under your seat. That is how I did mine and it sounds fine.

PT

[Longhorn Man]

Originally Posted by PT'S 70 CST

This may be something you want to try before you hack up a good door. I used about a 1/2" shim and shimmed my seat up and you can buy a 6x9 single box from many different places (Crutchfield ect...) and put the speakers under your seat. That is how I did mine and it sounds fine.

PT

I had done that and was VERY disapointed in the sound.
In the door is WAY better IMO.
It's just metal, it can be welded back one day if you ever decide that talk radio is cool.

[Jwill41]

I had some under the front of the seat and could not hear them on the highway.

[briarpatch]

Originally Posted by Putter

NICE CUP-HOLDERS there Briarpatch!!!
As easy as that is, it never even crossed my mind to hang those THERE!

Those cupholders work great. Just have to remember to remove the drink(s) when the glovebox door is opened, otherwise the passenger takes a shower!

[special-K]

I`ve had Kickers behind the seat with a 100w(not much by today`s standards)compoment amp under the seat and sound quality(which I had my doubts about)was second to none.It all depends on the quality(power & clarity) of your components.I`ve had ADS little box speakers under the seat w/just 50w amp and they sounded great.Most of the time they were at front edge of seat facing forward.If I slid them out to face up it got better.For some serious hiway cruisin`I`d pull them out and put them on the sloped part of the floor under the dash facing me.That was the best!*

*side note:`69 Power Wagon,14/37x16.5 mud tires,and 440 police motor w/exhaust exiting in front of rear tires.Oh,and no sound insulation.Wuhsat?