Touring speaker sizes

[mrcool]

I am going to fit a clarion HU to replace my old tape deck and replace the ageing speakers with some new ones.


I believe it looks fairly subtle compared to some modern flashy ones, but still has the USB socket I need (want)

I want to retain the original locations for neatness. What are the sizes for a straight fit in a touring. Also I beleive fitting components with separate tweeters is better. Is there a good place to mount these? I read that some E30's had wiring there already?

Thanks in advance

[ImysE30]

The front speaker size is 5.25" IIRC, the rears are pods, 4"

You can fit tweeters on either side where the door mirror blanking plates are, wiring should already be there but not a difficult job to put some new wiring in.

[mrcool]

Thanks, but do I need find the OEM mirror tweeter pods, or can you fit them in the OEM normal mirror plates?

[ImysE30]

You can get the OEM tweeter pods brand new still from the dealer or post up a wanted ad on here for some 2nd hand one's. You could fit some tweeters into the blank plates but would be a lot of hassle IMO.

[toby]

Fitting new tweeters in the same place as factory, on the OE mirror plates, is easy without the OE pods provided the tweeter comes with a flush mounting option, and these are usually included.

[mrcool]

Just looking at speakers now. The Clarion HU is rated at 25W RMS (50W peak). How important is it to match the RMS of the speakers, I am seeing some speakers rated at only 20W RMS. Should they be rated at >25W?

I also saw one set that said

ӢRMS Power Range : 35-90 Watts

so I guess these would be too high for my HU without an amp

[Saga]

Just looking at speakers now. The Clarion HU is rated at 25W RMS (50W peak). How important is it to match the RMS of the speakers, I am seeing some speakers rated at only 20W RMS. Should they be rated at >25W?

I also saw one set that said

ӢRMS Power Range : 35-90 Watts

so I guess these would be too high for my HU without an amp

Not an expert, but - your speakers should be able to handle at least the peak and RMS output of your HU/amp! Otherwise you're going to overdrive them and fuck them up. Plus it will sound like shit when you turn it up for motorway driving. Unless you like that barryboy Nova distortion effect

Ready to be contradicted...

[mrcool]

So they should be at least the RMS (25W per channel) of the HU, but what if the speakers RMS is something like 75W. Should I try and match it closer to 25W. Im thinkign about the HU being not powerfull enough to drive a 75W speaker.

I have found some 25W 4" for the rear, just looking at front components now.

[Morat]

Using speakers with a higher rating has no negative effect, infact it is desireable to a point. Your amp may be rated at 25W/Channel but there may well be times when it produces more power than that for short periods. Speakers rated at 3x the amp sounds about right to me 4x would not be excessive if you're likely to push a relatively small amp very hard.

[mrcool]

I thought thats what the peak power rating was for ie. RMS 75W, Peak 250W. But all the same if it has no negative effect then thats fine.

[Morat]

Peak is "Peak Music Power Output" which is not a rigorously defined measurement normally used in marketing material (or Bollox, as it should be known )