Speakers-best bang for the buck

[Mosey]

Hi all, my XLT has the stock six speaker sound system and I want to improve the quality without going nuts. Regarding speakers, what is the best bang for the buck in replacements?

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[sbreech]

For the front soundstage, you could install a set of 6.5" JL components, or for a bit more, go with Focal. Morel makes great sounding speakers, but they're a bit more even.

For the rear doors, 6'5" 2 ways by JL, Focal, or Morel will be great. I went with Focal for the front AND the rear, and then applied Dynamat to the inside of the external door skin and to the inside door skin.

All that said, buy the adapter rings and speaker wire harnesses to make the installation more simple.

 

[Mosey]

For the front soundstage, you could install a set of 6.5" JL components, or for a bit more, go with Focal. Morel makes great sounding speakers, but they're a bit more even.

For the rear doors, 6'5" 2 ways by JL, Focal, or Morel will be great. I went with Focal for the front AND the rear, and then applied Dynamat to the inside of the external door skin and to the inside door skin.

All that said, buy the adapter rings and speaker wire harnesses to make the installation more simple.

I was going to order from Crutchfields and they supply the adaptors you mention. One quick question. Will the new speakers fit under the existing door panel grills or will I have to cut openings and use the speaker grills?

 

[sbreech]

I was going to order from Crutchfields and they supply the adaptors you mention. One quick question. Will the new speakers fit under the existing door panel grills or will I have to cut openings and use the speaker grills?

Mine fit perfectly behind the factory grilles. The tweeters in the A pillars required a little modification and some hot glue, but it was straight forward once you have them out.

 

[Porpoise Hork]

I was going to order from Crutchfields and they supply the adaptors you mention. One quick question. Will the new speakers fit under the existing door panel grills or will I have to cut openings and use the speaker grills?

Not sure of other brands but the supplied screws for the Kicker CS and DS 6.75" speakers are too small for the rear door adapters that Crutchfield sends out. You will need to either get larger diameter screws to bite into the plastic or use the supplied metal tabs on the back side to secure the speaker to the adapter rings. I used the locking tabs and some glue to prevent them from backing out.

 

[Mosey]

Not sure of other brands but the supplied screws for the Kicker CS and DS 6.75" speakers are too small for the rear door adapters that Crutchfield sends out. You will need to either get larger diameter screws to bite into the plastic or use the supplied metal tabs on the back side to secure the speaker to the adapter rings. I used the locking tabs and some glue to prevent them from backing out.

Can you hear a difference from the drivers seat with just the rears upgraded, or did you upgrade all the speakers?

 

[Porpoise Hork]

I did all 4 doors. When fading to the rear channel it does sound better, to a point at least. Ford's rear channel just sounds bad even in the B&O systems. The front doors and a-pillars do the heavy lifting where the rears seems to just add to the overall sound stage.


To give you an idea how weak it is, here are the backs of the OEM speakers. The magnets on the aftermarket fronts are slightly larger than the OEM fronts.

The OEM front

And the rear.

 

[tony72cutlass's']

I did all 4 doors. When fading to the rear channel it does sound better, to a point at least. Ford's rear channel just sounds bad even in the B&O systems. The front doors and a-pillars do the heavy lifting where the rears seems to just add to the overall sound stage.


To give you an idea how weak it is, here are the backs of the OEM speakers. The magnets on the aftermarket fronts are slightly larger than the OEM fronts.

The OEM front

And the rear.

Do you get a bit more low end depth with the new speakers you installed? I'd really like to change mine out from the factory 6 speaker system.

 

[Porpoise Hork]

Do you get a bit more low end depth with the new speakers you installed? I'd really like to change mine out from the factory 6 speaker system.

A bit, yes. It made the lows at least present where before they were practically non-existent. A few tweaks to the EQ in Spotify (all I listen to) helps bring the lows up a little bit more but too much and you get minor distortion from the app's EQ. The mids and highs saw the most significant improvement in clarity.

You're still going to need a small 8-10" sub if you want anything noteworthy below 100-120hz as the 6.75's running off the head unit only, well at least the Kickers kind of bottom out without an amp to drive the main coils any harder. If the main channels got a little bump in power like in the B&O to say 50-75w RMS the difference in low end would be much better. I'm just not wanting to tear into the system that far at this point.

 

[Graygoose2021]

Yes if they are bottoming out, your just running out of power.
A good 4 channel amp will really wake them up.

 

[Porpoise Hork]

Yes if they are bottoming out, your just running out of power.
A good 4 channel amp will really wake them up.

Since the OEM's are rated for 25w I'm figuring the RMS of the non B&O is probably 15-20w RMS at best. So yes a small 4 channel would be ideal.

 

[Mosey]

Thanks for the pics. It is interesting that Crutchfields only lists 6.x rounds for the front when clearly that look like 6x9. Unless they are some bastard size.

 

[Porpoise Hork]

I believe that they are 6x9's but Crutchfield only lists the 6.5 and 6.75's for the 21+ F150's. I had to go back to 2019 F150 to see that size option as selectable. I may measure the OEM's tonight and verify the size. If they are 6x9's I might order a set of those instead, or get a set of speaker mounting plates to see if the door mounting points are the same for the 21+ models.

Not sure if 6x9's would be any better than 6.75's on the factory system but it's worth investigating.


Edit:

So the 6x9 adapter for Ford is the Metra 82-5606. Interestingly when searching that part Crutchfield lists it as compatible for the 22 F150... However they only show the the 5607 for '21+ So I guess I'll be contacting Crutchfield about this to see if they will let me exchange the 6.75's for 6x9's.

 

[Mosey]

Please post back with what you discover.

 

[Graygoose2021]

Should be 6x9's.

I plan to use these.
https://www.crutchfield.com/S-X6ofb...HsujGA8spHgG5Rfxac8JiTAhM0BhsC3EaAijJEALw_wcB

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