6.5 to 7.7 Speaker Upgrade

[NautiGirl]

So as you guys know we - and I think the majority of you know who I mean by "we" - popped a sub in the boat late this year. This of course has prompted me to go into full stereo shopping mode.

We have 6.5's in the boat, and yeah I can upgrade to JL M's or WetSounds Revo 6's but at the end of the day no matter how much power I push to the speakers its still just a 6.5in driver. We dont have to be the loudest in the cove but with the V8 and captains call it can be hard to hear the stereo while the throttle is pushed forward.

I am debating just going to 7.7's - advantages being two fold - at a given amp power they will be louder - and they can also handle more power than a 6.5. Problem is I dont think I can squeeze them into several of the cobalt openings, even /w a dremel. The space between the trim pieces in the bow seems too narrow and I dont think the opening on the starbord side in the pass through is deep enough to fit the larger speaker.

Have any of you guys done this? Or at least thought about doing it? We will most likely be at the boat next weekend and I will take all the cutout diameters w/ me to see how much we can make fit, but I figured I would ask first.

[Big Block Power]

Jeff skip the 7.7 and go to the 8. Dam I love helping you

[NautiGirl]

Katie is accustomed to 7.7in. I don't want to spoil her /w 8.

Take that as you will.

[Big Block Power]

Katie is accustomed to 7.7in. I don't want to spoil her /w 8.

Take that as you will.

I won't touch that with a 8 inch pole.

[Ytmsn]

Jeesh I won't go there either. Keep your mouth shut and just move along yt...

Speakers... okay.. focus... You have 6.5s and a sub. One amp or two? I have 10 speakers, 1 sub and two amps. One is 1000 and one is 2000, and I can hear crystal clear audio at 30 mph with the CC on. I have no idea how or what is bridged, shared, hooked up or spread out, because wiring is way over my pay grade. Maybe you just need more power?

Earlier in the year we spent the afternoon at the Liquid Lounge on TRL with gdane and his crew. He had just installed his system on his R7, and hands down the BEST system I have ever heard on a boat. 5000 watts. FIVe. I have no idea how many speakers he has, but MAN it sounds good. Every house light within a mile radius goes a little dim when he cranks it up, but it the fidelity was amazing. And he has 6.5s I'm pretty sure.

Maybe you just need more power to push it up and work the little stuff ya got? Take that however you want. Resistance is futile...

[tgrace98]

Yeah I am going to agree with YT on this one. I have 8 6.5’s and a sub in my boat powered by 2 wet sounds amps and I can easily hear the radio over the big block and CC. And that’s not even cranked. If anything I would look into adding a couple more speakers.

Only thing you would gain on going with 7.7’s is they are a larger driver so more bass. I don’t think the juice is worth the squeeze on upgrading to 7.7’s

[NautiGirl]

Cool thanks guys. Cobalt wired six speakers in parallel to a four channel amp. Its a 60x4 but the way it's wired two of the boat speakers see a full 60 the other four split and get 30. You can hear the difference as you walk around the boat. I will get the amp situation taken care of before we start talking about cutting larger holes.

I need to find the guy that designed the system when we do the tour in Kansas - I am sure things have changed since 07 but come on guys - not enough amp channels for the number of speakers in the boat? Running 8ga Power wire to the amps when the manual clearly says 4 is the minimum? Using automotive amps instead of paying for the marine grade? What is this a bayliner?

[tgrace98]

Cool thanks guys. Cobalt wired six speakers in parallel to a four channel amp. Its a 60x4 but the way it's wired two of the boat speakers see a full 60 the other four split and get 30. You can hear the difference as you walk around the boat. I will get the amp situation taken care of before we start talking about cutting larger holes.

I need to find the guy that designed the system when we do the tour in Kansas - I am sure things have changed since 07 but come on guys - not enough amp channels for the number of speakers in the boat? Running 8ga Power wire to the amps when the manual clearly says 4 is the minimum? Using automotive amps instead of paying for the marine grade? What is this a bayliner?

Yep when I did my stereo refresh back in August the first thing my installer said was we need to rewire the entire thing. Which I had him do and it was a night and day difference.

[Driller]

Cool thanks guys. Cobalt wired six speakers in parallel to a four channel amp. Its a 60x4 but the way it's wired two of the boat speakers see a full 60 the other four split and get 30. You can hear the difference as you walk around the boat. I will get the amp situation taken care of before we start talking about cutting larger holes.

I need to find the guy that designed the system when we do the tour in Kansas - I am sure things have changed since 07 but come on guys - not enough amp channels for the number of speakers in the boat? Running 8ga Power wire to the amps when the manual clearly says 4 is the minimum? Using automotive amps instead of paying for the marine grade? What is this a bayliner?

Yep when I did my stereo refresh back in August the first thing my installer said was we need to rewire the entire thing. Which I had him do and it was a night and day difference.

Same here. My installer pulled all the original wiring and replaced with a separate run to every speaker. That and the new amp and speakers made a ton of difference. Even with the old head unit.

[Bfun220]

+1
Remove old speaker wire and replace with larger/quality wire going to each speaker. Then add an amp and larger power wires.

[NautiGirl]

Question for you guys that ran new wire - did you run new power wire for the Amps as well?

The JL amps all spec a 50A breaker and 4GA wire. Cobalt used a 40A and 8GA wire in our boat. In the real world there are very few times the amps are going to pull over 40A, but I also would hate for us to suffer the embarrassment of having the fuse blow while we are providing entertainment for the party.

I think the right thing to do is to run all new wire and replace the 40A w/ 50, the 50A fuses are cheap, but damn copper is expensive. Additionally I am sure the hourly rate of the midget I am going to have to hire to to get to the perko switch in the bilge to switch out the wire is going to be extravagant. Midgets are hard to find after all.

What do you guys think?

[tgrace98]

Question for you guys that ran new wire - did you run new power wire for the Amps as well?

The JL amps all spec a 50A breaker and 4GA wire. Cobalt used a 40A and 8GA wire in our boat. In the real world there are very few times the amps are going to pull over 40A, but I also would hate for us to suffer the embarrassment of having the fuse blow while we are providing entertainment for the party.

I think the right thing to do is to run all new wire and replace the 40A w/ 50, the 50A fuses are cheap, but damn copper is expensive. Additionally I am sure the hourly rate of the midget I am going to have to hire to to get to the perko switch in the bilge to switch out the wire is going to be extravagant. Midgets are hard to find after all.

What do you guys think?

I replaced the power wire as well.

[NautiGirl]

Question for you guys that ran new wire - did you run new power wire for the Amps as well?

The JL amps all spec a 50A breaker and 4GA wire. Cobalt used a 40A and 8GA wire in our boat. In the real world there are very few times the amps are going to pull over 40A, but I also would hate for us to suffer the embarrassment of having the fuse blow while we are providing entertainment for the party.

I think the right thing to do is to run all new wire and replace the 40A w/ 50, the 50A fuses are cheap, but damn copper is expensive. Additionally I am sure the hourly rate of the midget I am going to have to hire to to get to the perko switch in the bilge to switch out the wire is going to be extravagant. Midgets are hard to find after all.

What do you guys think?

I replaced the power wire as well.

I figured. Where did you find the midget lol.

[Ytmsn]

Question for you guys that ran new wire - did you run new power wire for the Amps as well?

The JL amps all spec a 50A breaker and 4GA wire. Cobalt used a 40A and 8GA wire in our boat. In the real world there are very few times the amps are going to pull over 40A, but I also would hate for us to suffer the embarrassment of having the fuse blow while we are providing entertainment for the party.

I think the right thing to do is to run all new wire and replace the 40A w/ 50, the 50A fuses are cheap, but damn copper is expensive. Additionally I am sure the hourly rate of the midget I am going to have to hire to to get to the perko switch in the bilge to switch out the wire is going to be extravagant. Midgets are hard to find after all.

What do you guys think?

I replaced the power wire as well.

I figured. Where did you find the midget lol.

In Wisconsin.

[NautiGirl]

I replaced the power wire as well.

I figured. Where did you find the midget lol.

In Wisconsin.

Calling in the big guns huh? Shipping him in could be cost prohibitive - plus he talks a lot - but you are right he could most likely stand up inside our bilge with the engine cover closed. We will see.