Car Speakers or Marine???
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Joined: Sep 2012
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From: Central ILL
Car Speakers or Marine???
Hello, I am going to upgrade my speakers this winter and was wondering if anyone had used car speakers with bad results due to the unexpected shower and washings. anything to look for such as mylar vs textile tweeters ect...
I am looking at infinity kappa 6.5 speakers.
or do i just need to get marine speakers and be done with it....
Just cant see the cost of j&m when it tops the list of worst upgrade.....
I am looking at infinity kappa 6.5 speakers.
or do i just need to get marine speakers and be done with it....
Just cant see the cost of j&m when it tops the list of worst upgrade.....
Extreme HDF Member
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From: East of the Sun, West of the Moon
don't get anything with paper cones and you're good. don't go crazy washing the bike.
the POLK MM651s are a great speaker.
You won't find a decent sounding marine grade speaker to put on a bike.
the POLK MM651s are a great speaker.
You won't find a decent sounding marine grade speaker to put on a bike.
Cruiser
Joined: Apr 2008
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I've been running Polk db525 speakers for a few years now with no problems. I don't take any kind of special care of them (they get wet when I wash the bike or it rains, and I play the stereo when riding in the rain) and they've held up well so far. Most car speakers these days use synthetic material for the cones and repel the water. Like UltraNutZ said, just avoid any speaker with paper construction and you should be good. I'd also add to look for something with a rubber (or other material that won't absorb water) surround.
Stellar HDF Member
Joined: Aug 2012
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From: Indiana, USA
I have used Polk Tweeters but they were marine approved. Use motorcycle or marine grade speakers only. Auto applications will not stand up to moisture. There are many speakers available for motorcycles. Check Harley online, J&P Cycles, etc.
Extreme HDF Member
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From: East of the Sun, West of the Moon
I completely disagree. Somebodys been sippin the koolaid! 
Last edited by UltraNutZ; Dec 21, 2012 at 08:14 AM.
Outstanding HDF Member
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That is absolutely false. Look at your stock speakers. They are dry paper and as cheap as you can get.
Many speakers today are made of better material or have one kind of coating or another, any of which makes them much more water proof than stock.
Outstanding HDF Member
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From: Michigan
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Most modern day speakers are constructed of synthetic paper fibers and butyl rubber surrounds. Paper cones/foam surrounds more affected by UV rays vs. elements. Can't see any harm coming to speakers installed in the batwing. Think I'd look a bit closer at speakers used for speaker lid applications tho ...
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Road Master
Joined: Jan 2008
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From: Oswego, IL
Like the others have said the Polk Audio speakers work great. They have the butyl rubber surrounds and even the standard MM series are marine rated (not certified). I would be more concerned with the speakers in the bag lids or speaker pods as the ones in the bat wing are mostly protected. For example the Polk MM651 tweeters are mounted on posts that go thru the woofers. This is a place for water to travel through and get inside the bags or speaker pods. The marine certified version (MM651UM) of the MM651 has the tweeter mounted the the grill so the woofer is sealed from water going thru the center of the speaker.
The problem with the Polk Marine speakers is the grills are silver and would require some painting (only if you are looking to hide them like stock speakers) and you have to use the grills because the tweeters are mounted to them. One advantage of the MM651UM set up is that the crossovers are mounted to the speaker basket so there is no need to find a mounting place for the external crossovers.
A little know fact is the cover in the center of a speaker isn't needed and the speaker will work just fine without it. It is called a dust cover. Sometimes the glue on the dust cover does not hold well or is broken down by the sun (depending on the mounting location) and will vibrate and mimick a blown speaker.
The problem with the Polk Marine speakers is the grills are silver and would require some painting (only if you are looking to hide them like stock speakers) and you have to use the grills because the tweeters are mounted to them. One advantage of the MM651UM set up is that the crossovers are mounted to the speaker basket so there is no need to find a mounting place for the external crossovers.
A little know fact is the cover in the center of a speaker isn't needed and the speaker will work just fine without it. It is called a dust cover. Sometimes the glue on the dust cover does not hold well or is broken down by the sun (depending on the mounting location) and will vibrate and mimick a blown speaker.
Last edited by Tinman265; Dec 21, 2012 at 11:49 AM.
Extreme HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 14,670
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From: East of the Sun, West of the Moon
Like the others have said the Polk Audio speakers work great. They have the butyl rubber surrounds and even the standard MM series are marine rated (not certified). I would be more concerned with the speakers in the bag lids or speaker pods as the ones in the bat wing are mostly protected. For example the Polk MM651 tweeters are mounted on posts that go thru the woofers. This is a place for water lot travel thru and get inside the bags or speaker pods. The marine certified version (MM651UM) of the MM651 has the tweeter mounted the the grill so the woofer is sealed from water going thru the center of the speaker.
The problem with the Polk Marine speakers is the grills are silver and would require some painting (only if you are looking to hide them like stock speakers) and you have to use the grills because the tweeters are mounted to them. One advantage of the MM651UM set up is that the crossovers are mounted to the speaker basket so there is no need to find a mounting place for the external crossovers.
A little know fact is the cover in the center of a speaker isn't needed and the speaker will work just fine without it. It is called a dust cover. Sometimes the glue on the dust cover does not hold well or is broken down by the sun (depending on the mounting location) and will vibrate and mimick a blown speaker.
The problem with the Polk Marine speakers is the grills are silver and would require some painting (only if you are looking to hide them like stock speakers) and you have to use the grills because the tweeters are mounted to them. One advantage of the MM651UM set up is that the crossovers are mounted to the speaker basket so there is no need to find a mounting place for the external crossovers.
A little know fact is the cover in the center of a speaker isn't needed and the speaker will work just fine without it. It is called a dust cover. Sometimes the glue on the dust cover does not hold well or is broken down by the sun (depending on the mounting location) and will vibrate and mimick a blown speaker.