I have a 92 lebaron convertible with a factory Infinity am/fm/cd player...I just replaced the front 5 1/4 speakers with some new Pio9neers. I just find the volume is too low..I LOVE the look of the factory one in the dash but would like to boost the sound a bit...not rattle windows just a little louder to cover wind noise with the top down. Can I do that or do I have to go aftermarket? What size amp should I use if I stayed with the 5 1/4 fron't and rear. I also need to replace the 3 inch ones on the dash..Are they still available ? These do absolutely nothing!
amplifying factory stereo
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The factory sound system, I find, just isn't very powerful. I had an Infinity that I cooked with a voltage excursion due to a solar charger (sad day) that I replaced with a Pioneer DEH-1300MP, and the change is night and day. Much more power, and sound was comparable to the quality of the Infinity.
That being said, you can get 4-channel amps that are designed to do exactly this. More than about 25-30 W RMS/ch is overkill, I think, if you really don't want a deafening system. My receiver puts out somewhere between 14-22 RMS/ch depending on who you believe, and that's more than enough to give a VERY accurate representation of Springsteen's masterful version of "Prove It All Night" at Passaic, 1978, at over 90db. That's a hearing-damage level. I have a suspicion that you may even be able to get away with fewer watts, since the new 5 1/4's are probably more efficient than the old stock speakers that I have. (RMS, by the way, is a "realistic" power rating. Just because I have a "200-watt" stereo (4x50 max) does not mean that's the kind of power it's pushing at any given time. 4x50 is the absolute highest peak that the chips can push without destroying themselves, and it will not be a pretty sound when those peaks hit. If you average out the power that the chips are putting out at max volume, it'll be roughly that RMS value.)
Crutchfield would be my go-to on this.
That being said, you can get 4-channel amps that are designed to do exactly this. More than about 25-30 W RMS/ch is overkill, I think, if you really don't want a deafening system. My receiver puts out somewhere between 14-22 RMS/ch depending on who you believe, and that's more than enough to give a VERY accurate representation of Springsteen's masterful version of "Prove It All Night" at Passaic, 1978, at over 90db. That's a hearing-damage level. I have a suspicion that you may even be able to get away with fewer watts, since the new 5 1/4's are probably more efficient than the old stock speakers that I have. (RMS, by the way, is a "realistic" power rating. Just because I have a "200-watt" stereo (4x50 max) does not mean that's the kind of power it's pushing at any given time. 4x50 is the absolute highest peak that the chips can push without destroying themselves, and it will not be a pretty sound when those peaks hit. If you average out the power that the chips are putting out at max volume, it'll be roughly that RMS value.)
Crutchfield would be my go-to on this.
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If the car has a factory Infinity system, then there was an amp system from the factorty. I can't recall of the top of my head if a 1992 LeBaron had the amps on the speakers (one amp on each door and rear quater speaker) or the single amp in the trunk.
For sure there is no amp in the trunk..there is something on the floor inside one of the rear armrests(drivers side).Speakers do not seem to have circuit boards but they do say infinity on them as do the dash speakers.I'll check to see what crutchfield has available..There was an aftermarket Audiovox in it when I got it but it looked so out of place in the dash that I bought a used factory unit. Deafening sound is definitely NOT the objective..I just want clear and loud enough to cover the wind noise with top down. Having working 3 inch speakers would help I'm sure with that..anyone know what brand is best for those or where to find them? or will something bigger fit the dash without butchering it??
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This article shows an amplified speaker in the first picture, which is probably what you had:
http://www.allpar.com/stereo/Infinity-Amplifiers/index.html
The amp would be on the driver's side of the trunk I think behind the trim panel. I can see that if you had speakers with amps and put in speakers without the sound would decrease.
I'll leave equipment recommendations to others as I tend to keep factory setup in my cars to reduce the odds of theft in my area.
http://www.allpar.com/stereo/Infinity-Amplifiers/index.html
The amp would be on the driver's side of the trunk I think behind the trim panel. I can see that if you had speakers with amps and put in speakers without the sound would decrease.
I'll leave equipment recommendations to others as I tend to keep factory setup in my cars to reduce the odds of theft in my area.
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If the original speakers had no bolted on amp module, but do say Infinity on them, you have an amplifier somewhere else in the car that will need to be dealt with as it contains all the system crossovers. Your new door speakers would not only be getting the rather limited power output from that amp (about 20 watts a speaker), but they will be bandwidth limited as well due to the crossovers. All bass and no treble, in the case of the door speakers.
Personally, I would at least run new speaker wires directly from the deck to the new speakers, entirely bypassing the factory wiring. But for a convertible, getting enough sound with the top down really is best done by tearing out the entire factory system and going 100% aftermarket, using outboard amps for all speakers (deck power is not enough, no matter what crazy numbers the marketing department puts on the face) and adding a dedicated subwoofer.
Your dash speakers are probably blown. My suggestion would be to migrate the new co-axial Pioneers to the rear locations and get a component set for the front. Then you can put the component tweeters in the old 3.5" dash locations.
50 legit watts to each of the front and rear speakers and 200-300 watts to a decent subwoofer would go a long way for a convertible, I think.
Personally, I would at least run new speaker wires directly from the deck to the new speakers, entirely bypassing the factory wiring. But for a convertible, getting enough sound with the top down really is best done by tearing out the entire factory system and going 100% aftermarket, using outboard amps for all speakers (deck power is not enough, no matter what crazy numbers the marketing department puts on the face) and adding a dedicated subwoofer.
Your dash speakers are probably blown. My suggestion would be to migrate the new co-axial Pioneers to the rear locations and get a component set for the front. Then you can put the component tweeters in the old 3.5" dash locations.
50 legit watts to each of the front and rear speakers and 200-300 watts to a decent subwoofer would go a long way for a convertible, I think.
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