Speaker recommendations: replace 6.5 in OEM / 2006 262

[groberts4]

Hey guys - I replaced the head unit in my '06 262 but the sound is still pretty weak. I'm going to replace all four 6.5" OEM Sony speakers. I'm looking for recommendations for anybody who's done this or tested a bunch out and can recommend the best sound - smooth deep base and bright crispi highs with relatively high efficiency would be perfect (of course!).
I'd also appreciate any thoughts on fit and if I can replace these undermounts with top mounts.
Big question: It looks like these are bolted through The undermount speaker, wonder if It's bolt and nut or just screws. I'd hate to unscrew the first one and lose the bolt down inside the boat. Any and all thoughts will be much appreciated - thanks!

[jhnmdahl]

I'm perhaps an exception in that I liked the sound of Roswell speakers better than JL Audio or the other usual suspects (Wet Sounds, etc.). I'll summarize my impressions of each below:

Roswell: I bought the R1 speakers. Smoothest sound, no noticeable frequency response problems, voices and instruments sounded the most natural. A bit of a surprise.

JL Audio: M6 line has silk tweeters and sound close to Roswell, but not quite as smooth, detailed, or natural-sounding to my ear.

Wet Sounds: Revo 6 were a bit harsh in the treble, but clearly better than a lot of Kicker, Polk, Rockford, etc. that are in the next tier down. Seem built to push a bit louder than the other two speakers. If you want "bright, crisp highs," you might actually prefer this one. Pairs well with their tower speakers, which have a great reputation for projecting well.

JL Audio is probably the most popular upgrade speaker, and forum members can get a nice discount on them and related items at creativeaudio.net (check out the forum discounts subforum).

[groberts4]

Thanks jhmndahl, that's great information! I'll definitely check out the Roswells and JLs. Any advice on installing them in the interior of a Cobalt, or are yours free-standing rack speakers?

[jhnmdahl]

I stuck with 6.5" because they would be a direct replacement for the current speaker in my boat. I only replaced the six speakers my boat originally had, and put in a six channel JL Audio amplifier to drive them. It wasn't quite a plug-and-play as I had hoped - I did have to grind out each hole that previously housed 6.5" Kicker speakers to be slightly larger to accommodate Roswell's 6.5" speakers, but it wasn't hard.

This thread covers the details pretty well, and has pictures: viewtopic.php?p=80039

[Big Block Power]

I'm a wet sounds guy. Love the way they sound with the tower speakers.
Depending on the boat on how much room you have behind the speaker they may have to get shimmed. My bow speakers had to. The higher end speakers have much larger magnets on them.
I would like to try Focal or other brands next Time though. https://youtu.be/0bpTL7SrJqM

[Dhooghe81]

Replaced every speaker in my boat with Wet Sounds. Including adding 3 Amps, 2 tower speakers, two 10" subs and all is controlled through Fusion head unit and wired controllers. I could not be happier, it's incredibly easy to operate and can be extremely loud. Best of luck!

[Krob1114]

JL came with our premium package and I love them. I have no comparisons, but if something sounds better, it must be really great.

[lespaulrob]

I'll second the Roswell setup. I have heard everything on the water and while the things like WetSounds and such are more popular, you absolutely can't beat the sound of the Roswells in terms of sound quality. it sounds like a full on concert hall in terms of frequencies that you hear coming out at you. JL's are VERY close but I've only compared the JL's on an R5 with the premium package which have 6.5" speakers for the cabin and a single 12" sub. They sound good and are really nice on the ears but all of my cabin speakers are 8" and I have a both a 12" (behind the driver) and 10" (under the passenger seat) sub setup in my cabin and it will absolutely slap you in the chest. I have had it dimed out and it doesn't distort, it's just LOUD and very very crisp/clear and you hear all of the highs and deep lows of every beat. When I crank the tower speakers up (also Roswell R1 Pro's) and you are sitting in the stern seats, it's unbelievably loud. When you are surfing, it sounds like you are listening to some really good sound at an outdoor concert.

Also, I should note that I don't ride around the lake as "that guy" with the loud music, but sometimes, when there's no one around and the song is good, I'll crank it up when no one is close to me.

Here are the links to the setup that's in my boat:
Speakers:
8 of these (cabin + swim step): https://store.roswellmarine.com/product ... ne-speaker
4 of these (tower): https://store.roswellmarine.com/product ... r-speakers
1 of these (under port seat by the head): https://store.roswellmarine.com/product ... -subwoofer
1 of these (behind the captains chair): https://store.roswellmarine.com/product ... -subwoofer

Amps:
3 of these for the cabin and tower speakers: https://store.roswellmarine.com/product ... -amplifier
1 of these for the subwoofers: https://store.roswellmarine.com/product ... -amplifier

Also...Cobalt didn't spare any expense with this system as you'll see when you click into each of the links above. It's ROCK SOLID, though.

I'm perhaps an exception in that I liked the sound of Roswell speakers better than JL Audio or the other usual suspects (Wet Sounds, etc.). I'll summarize my impressions of each below:

Roswell: I bought the R1 speakers. Smoothest sound, no noticeable frequency response problems, voices and instruments sounded the most natural. A bit of a surprise.

JL Audio: M6 line has silk tweeters and sound close to Roswell, but not quite as smooth, detailed, or natural-sounding to my ear.

Wet Sounds: Revo 6 were a bit harsh in the treble, but clearly better than a lot of Kicker, Polk, Rockford, etc. that are in the next tier down. Seem built to push a bit louder than the other two speakers. If you want "bright, crisp highs," you might actually prefer this one. Pairs well with their tower speakers, which have a great reputation for projecting well.

JL Audio is probably the most popular upgrade speaker, and forum members can get a nice discount on them and related items at creativeaudio.net (check out the forum discounts subforum).

[jhnmdahl]

Lespaul, I think I'd find myself hanging out on the boat just to listen to music with that setup. Now that I think about it, I already do that with my six Roswell R1 speaker setup. I keep thinking about sticking one of those 10" subs somewhere in the rear cabin, but haven't pulled the trigger yet. A new head unit may be in the cards first, or maybe a joint project.

As for Focal, I do like their car stuff, but the highs were never my favorite. If Wetsounds speakers don't sound a bit bright to you, you might find Focal to be perfect. I have never seen Focal marine products, but would probably put them on my short list if starting over again.