Need drop in speaker recommendations.

[RIvey]

I'm looking at drop in speaker replacements for the PT for improved sound quality.
I don't need additional power, just something to clean the muddy sound of the POS factory speakers.

Anybody happy with their upgrades?

Thanks for any recommedations.

[GTSteve]

I belong to the PT Cruiser Club: http://www.ptcruiserclub.org/

There is great information there on upgrading your speakers. You will however have to join. I think it is well worth the money. Here is a tidpit from the speaker upgrade guide. You will have to join to get the rest. You won't be sorry if you join. Believe me, it is a geat site that has a good forum too.

PT Cruiser Club Customizing Tip
"How to install upgraded speakers in a PT Cruiser."
Where do I start?
Decide which speakers you want to replace: The PT Cruiser has front dash speakers, front door speakers, and rear pillar speakers. You can replace all six speakers at once, or just replace any pair by itself. Some my also desire the added bass of the Mopar Subwoofer that installs in the left rear quarter panel. You will get the biggest improvement from installing upgraded dash speakers and from installing a Mopar Subwoofer.

[Gear_Head]

I went to crutchfield and bought pioneer 3way 6 3/4" front speakers and 6 x 8" 4way rear speakers. Front speakers came with adapter rings. Screw the rings to the soeakers and you have a direct replacement speaker. Rear speakers were direct replacement already. Crutchfield even supplies a wiring adapter so thete is no wire cutting needed. They sound great. I was a little unsure about the PIONEER brand speakers, but when I installed and listened I was very satisfied. I had never purchased Pioneer car speakers before. I also supplimented with 2 12" MTX subwoofers in an enclosure on the package shelf and a pair of Kicker DX35s (Tweeter/Midrange combo) in the dash. Awesome!!

Alan [}]

[stereo888]

Let me first tell you that i own a audio store called Viavibrations.com It still under a little construction at this time but please check it out soon. Second i also own a 2003 PT Cruiser GT of my own and I installed all sony using 3 1/2" #xs-w3521 in the dash, 6 3/4" #xs-f1721 in the doors, and 6"x8" #xs-v6833 3-way speakers in the rear. The music was definitely cleaner and very crisp. I deal with 58 different Brands of audio equipment and for the price Sony has the best sound for the buck. List price for the 3 sets of speakers for your PT are $239.95. We sell them for just $154.55 plus shipping. Note# that your 3 1/2" speakers have a bigger magnet than the original equipment so some slight cutting of the plastic panel under the dash will need to be done. It took me all of 2 minutes to cut the the hole bigger, so dont panic.lol! thanks, tony

[ae3753]

Check out the guides available at http://www.ptdoityourself.net. They have very good information on speaker installation.

I recently installed the Kenwood KFC-C1739ie 6-3/4" 3-Ways in the doors (had to drill holes, since no adapter was available), and they instantly sounded better than the stock "premium" speakers. This weekend or so, I'm cutting up my dash to install the Kicker DX35s (like Gear Head). Putting on some bass blockers on those guys, so I should have a better imaging up front. The stock 1"ers are cute, but they aren't cuttting it.

I didn't replace the rears since 1) I'm lazy (the 2002 has the speakers glued on) and 2) they are in the rear, and so they're filler for me.

[Gear_Head]

ae3753 I used the 800Hz Bass blockers on the DX35s. These speakers made a huge difference in the stereo imaging in the front. It brought the soundstage up from the bottom of the doors to the middle of the car nicely. You're right though, because of the bigger speaker basket there will be some grinding necessary. The speaker hole is not completely round. The little tweeters are mounted on a brace that traverses the speaker hole so it did not matter that the hole was not round. I used a dremel tool to do the job, and it only took a few minutes per speaker. Its well worth the investment of cash in the speaker and time in the mounting. Good Luck.......

Alan [}]

[GR8FLPT]

The stock 1" speakers are 1" soft dome tweeters. Compared to what other car manufactors use (3/4" hard dome) these are not that bad. What they could use is a tune up. I am working on a new crossover mod for them. I will hopefully finish that mod in a couple weeks (car at body shop getting repaired & painted). Add a samll set of tweets to the rear w/ crossovers also & it should sound much better for a lot less $$$.

[yobiebs]

Just an FYI, I've heard Gear_Head's system, and it's KICKIN'!!!! [?][?][?]

I only WISH I had the $$$ to come close to a setup like that!! [8D]

[Stephen R.]

stereo888 - Do you do any fiberglassing? Since you are a PT owner, you may be inclined to make 'glass door pods to hold components. Panasonic had a red PT show car a couple years ago where they completely replaced the inner (taupe) door panels with red, flowing component inserts. It was just fabulous!! I don't have that pic, so how about this one:



This one is just slightly over the edge but you get my point.

Does anybody have other pics and/or leads on what I am looking for?

[PianT]

Hey Stephen, I don't recall giving you permission to publish a pic of my PT!! LOL

That is the wildest looking thing I ever did see.