Loudest, clearest, most badass, (economical) marine speakers?

[Vedner19]

Okay so I've installed the Rockford m262 in 3 boats and the JL's in 2 boats. Anyone have suggestions on any new speakers that are in the 75-100 watt RMS range that sound good? I spent about $179.00/pair for the Rockford and JBL's. Anyone had any luck with a speaker that compares for less money? Don-

 

[brockhals]

I've had good luck with the Polk DB series, although not quite where the JLs are, but a good choice for the money

 

[robert843]

I went with the kickers with the led lights they seem good but have not compaired them to the JL speakers. About $250 for four of them on amazon.


https://www.amazon.com/Kicker-Charcoal-Speakers-replacement-speakers/dp/B01EX5M3AM/ref=sr_1_11?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1469808995&sr=1-11&keywords=kicker+km

 

[OrangeTJ]

I have Polk MM651UM speakers in my SX210. I was very, very impressed with the sound they produced when amplified. I got them as a gift but I believe they were about $200 a pair. Comparing them to the db series speakers I had in my truck for a while, the MMs were of considerably higher quality - both build and sound.

 

[Bruce]

With a SPL (Sensitivity) of 96db and frequency response of 35Hz - 20kHz and prices as low as $120 a pair I believe that the 2 way ] Infinity 6912M is the best value for money marine speaker. I am biased though because I have 6 of them in my boat that have functioned perfectly for 3 summers. Originally I planned to add an amplified sub and another pair of 6912Ms but after listening to them playing from a Fusion IP600 head unit I decided that I did not need the sub. I still plan to install the pair in the bow but have not gotten around to modifying the seat cushions to make room for them.

Thes is the official Infinity page for the speaker http://www.infinityspeakers.com/marine-speakers/6912M.html

Amazon's best deal currently is $136 per pair https://www.amazon.com/Infinity-Reference-6912m-High-Performance-Loudspeaker/dp/B0029Z2WZU

 

[Bruce]

Revising my earlier recommendation, the new Infinity 6952M is available for $110 shipped. With basically the same specs at a lower cost it wins for value.

https://www.amazon.com/Infinity-6952M-2-Way-Speakers-White/dp/B00S5ZC1MC

I still prefer the look of the 6912M.

 

[msavold]

I wanted the JLs but was given a pair of Polk MM651UMs as a gift so I've gone with those - love 'em considering the price difference to JL, Amazon has had them as low as $120 a pair and now they're $140 with warranty, free shipping and no tax. https://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B001E5PN2A/ref=dp_olp_new?ie=UTF8&condition=new If I had it to do over (and no freebies to start with) I'd also give Odin at Earmark a shout for his best price.

 

[DCB-270]

I've had
Polk DB 6x9
Polk MM 6x9
DD Audio http://ddaudio.com/products/mids-and-highs/vo-series/vo-m6-5/
DC Gold http://www.dcgold.com/car-and-marine/waterproof-speakers/classic-line/n69c/

I think the DC gold sounded the best but the DD Audio I have now sound great and are more durable.

 

[Mainah]

I have seen some listings in the classifieds on this site for new take out polk db 651s. When amplified they are pretty darn good and I think most people are asking $50 per pair. They only lack some in the bass department compared to higher cost options IMO. I was going to add a second sub but now that I have a polk mm1040um sub and have sealed the mounting location pretty well I think I need only add more bass through better coaxials so I am going to upgrade to polk mm um throughout. So I have 2 pairs of used polk db 651s with grills, a pair of used polk db 691 with grills, a pair of used polk db521 with grills and a used 10 inch polk db sub with grill that $200 plus shipping would part me from.

@Bruce has good advice considering sensitivity if only going to use a head unit. The higher the better in that case.

 

[David Analog]

A couple of points to share here.
The DCGold has no spider to damp the cone motion, and no spider to center the cone. At the time the Babb (DCGold) was designed, spiders where cotton/linen and they wanted to make a waterproof speaker. So instead it uses a Teflon bearing to reduce friction between the voice coil and pole piece. This is a truly antiquated approach because today, synthetic materials are used to make spiders in marine speakers. The DCGold has no tweeter. Just a one-way single-cone fullrange speaker.
The DD Audio is a great mid driver, but uses a coated paper cone. Not my first choice in a boat.
Infinity specs. Sensitivity = 96 dB @ 2.83V. Deceptive. That equates to 1 watt if it's an 8-ohm speaker. But, it's a 4-ohm speaker. That means it requires 2 watts to reach 96 dB, or once converted to a 1 watt industry standard, the sensitivity is actually 93 dB (-3dB less). And that is still very dubious. Frequency response? Totally unqualified. It could be +/- 10 dB. It could be 25 dB down at 35 Hz. There's absolutely no doubt that a 6X9 will play louder and have more bass than a 6.5" coaxial because it has so much more surface area. A bit apples to oranges since a 6X9 will not always fit into the factory speaker provisions. But you won't learn anything of value about the speaker from the specs. That model of Infinity uses a basic W-dome tweeter versus a true dome tweeter. There's plenty of highs but the quality of highs is no where close to better marine speakers.
There are many good to great dedicated marine 6.5" coaxials. Polk MMUM. The better Kickers (with a true dome). Rockford Fosgate. Wetsounds. JL Audio. Keep it simple and select any one of these.

 

[DCB-270]

I was at first concerned with the DD Audio being paper. They are treated for water so I trusted them. They have been in the boat for two summers without any issues. I have also driven for 3 hours in a rain storm with the speakers getting soaked. So far so good. We will see. They sound great and are 150 RMS. Will take a big amp. I may add tweeters in the future but sounds OK now. I had Polk MMS come apart after 2 seasons. The D c gold melted a black fluid after a couple seasons.

 

[robert843]

I just finished installing my new Sony MEX M100BT head unit which has a class D amp built into the head unit its running 4X45 watts RMs and 4X100 watts peak on a some Kicker 41km654lcw 6.5 inch led speakers and whole cow what a difference these things now produce some serious deep base for a 6.5 speaker very impressed. The head unit is very nice as well only regret now is I wish I would have bought the 2 ohm version of these speakers so could have utilized more power from the head unit. I may still wire the ones I have down to 2 ohm and see what happens.

 

[David Analog]

I was at first concerned with the DD Audio being paper. They are treated for water so I trusted them. They have been in the boat for two summers without any issues. I have also driven for 3 hours in a rain storm with the speakers getting soaked. So far so good. We will see. They sound great and are 150 RMS. Will take a big amp. I may add tweeters in the future but sounds OK now. I had Polk MMS come apart after 2 seasons. The D c gold melted a black fluid after a couple seasons.

The black ooze (like tar) coming from the DC Gold was Ferrofluid.

There's no doubt that the DD Audio speaker (besides being a home state product) is a darn good sounding one. Since the front of the cone is coated it is protected in that sense (in what you can see). However, the rear of the cone is not coated and remains unprotected. There's no way around the fact that paper cones absorb moisture, and even in the short term this changes the speakers characteristics with the ebb and flow of humidity. And in the long term the humidity cycles have an accumulated impact.

 

[Ronnie]

So I have 2 pairs of used polk db 651s with grills, a pair of used polk db 691 with grills, a pair of used polk db521 with grills and a used 10 inch polk db sub with grill that $200 plus shipping would part me from.

So you are selling four 6.5", two 5.5" and one 10" sub, all polks, all used, none blown for $200 plus shipping? I'm no audiophile but that is an awesome deal that I would have jumped on had I not already replaced my stock seaworthy speakers with used polks from another member here.

 

[Mainah]

Well someone on here already hit me up for one pair of the db651. I also thought better about keeping the db521 as the mm are power hungry and I am driving the rear deck with my head unit (only thing being powered by the head unit). So right now I have one pair of db651 and one db1040 for sale and will have the db691 up for sale soon. If someone is interested please make me an offer. All in working order.