Replacement Speakers for Peugeot 407

WetDaddy

I'm considering getting this set grok eBay (I've someone in the US who can ship it out to me as the seller ship internationally and this price is very good!):

http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=291075480695&alt=web

Am I correct in assuming these should be a straight swap for my 407 saloon and am I correct in assuming that just replacing the stock speakers (and not messing with the radio etc.) will still yield me an improvement in sound? I don't really want to go investing in an extra amp and I'm not replacing the head unit either.

Thanks in advance guys!

WetDaddy

Just a polite bump in case folks in the know missed this thread first time around - I won't bump again!

WetDaddy

Anyone have any idea about this?

JohnBoy26

They should fit but some modification may be needed.

WetDaddy

Quick update for anyone interested: I've purchased those above speakers and should have them in the next few weeks. If anyone's interested, I'll let you know how I get on installing them.

93Cab

Do tell how you get on! I've a set of JBL's sitting in their boxes and I'm a bit unsure how to wire them in to wifes 407!

WetDaddy

Will do!

Although, I plan on just using the stock head unit (RD4) with my new speakers. I think the JBL system requires / recommends a new or more powerful amp...?

Will let you know how I get on, anyway. I think the toughest part will be getting at the speakers themselves. I found a small guide on the pioneer site for replacing the stock speakers, hoping that will come in handy. Stretching my own "expertise" (haha) with this, but it's a good way to learn

93Cab

I'm not fitting the JBL system which was a costly extra with multiple speakers and amp but simply replacing all the speakers in the car with aftermarket JBL's. I'm keeping the RT3 stereo which has nav etc. I'm curious as to whether the speakers are a straight swop for the factory ones and in particular do you wire in the crossover that comes with the front components?

WetDaddy

93Cab wrote: »

I'm not fitting the JBL system which was a costly extra with multiple speakers and amp but simply replacing all the speakers in the car with aftermarket JBL's. I'm keeping the RT3 stereo which has nav etc. I'm curious as to whether the speakers are a straight swop for the factory ones and in particular do you wire in the crossover that comes with the front components?

Ah, understood. I'm not 100% sure, to be honest. I'm only researched the most basic compatibility of them. They're currently with my folks in the US (that seller wouldn't ship to Ireland but my parents are on holidays over there at the moment, fortuitously) and they'll be returning to Ireland on November 1st. Then I'll be digging a little deeper into it and will let you know!

JohnBoy26

93Cab wrote: »

I'm not fitting the JBL system which was a costly extra with multiple speakers and amp but simply replacing all the speakers in the car with aftermarket JBL's. I'm keeping the RT3 stereo which has nav etc. I'm curious as to whether the speakers are a straight swop for the factory ones and in particular do you wire in the crossover that comes with the front components?

Jbl's usually have a high RMS power rating which means they will require an amp to work properly. A regular head unit usually wouldnt have enough power on it's own to get the best out of them. Now it will power them but they won't sound the best tbh.

What RMS wattage are yours?

93Cab

JBL GTO 6508c 2way components in the front, 70watts RMS 2ohm 92db sensitivity. Rears JBL GTO 6528 55watts rms 92db.

93Cab

Just to add I did take into account the limited power of the original head unit. thats why I went for 2 ohms and 92db sensitivity! Anyway this is for her car!

JohnBoy26

You will need an amp to properly power those. A head unit usually has an RMS rating of 18-25 watt RMS.

WetDaddy

JohnBoy26 wrote: »

You will need an amp to properly power those. A head unit usually has an RMS rating of 18-25 watt RMS.

Thanks - do you mean mine (I'm the OP) or 93cab's (he has the JBLs)?

bmstuff

WetDaddy wrote: »

Thanks - do you mean mine (I'm the OP) or 93cab's (he has the JBLs)?

Any car speakers needs an amp really to function properly without distortion, especially at higher volume. 2 ohms is a serious load, no aftermarket radio supports 2 ohms, usually 3-4. You should always match the radio/amp load capacity otherwise amp or radio will blow or go in protect mode.
Maybe the 407 radio can handle 2 ohms load no idea.

WetDaddy

So, I've received the speakers and have installed the two rear coaxes. What I have left is the components, that is the woofer / midrange speakers for the front doors and 2 tweeters for the dash.

Apart from Peugeot's pain in the ass, non-standard proprietary wiring (I had to buy adapter looms online as I would like to reinstall the original speakers when I sell the car so I didn't want to cut into existing wiring if possible), it was straightforward enough. The door cards are the "tough" part, but once you've done one, the rest are straightforward.

However, I've an issue now and I'm hoping someone can help! The components come with a passive crossover cable. Typically, I understand that this would run in series with the midrange / woofer in the door. I tested this setup and it works fine, just resting on the passenger seat. But in the 407, the wiring diagram shows the OEM tweeters going straight into dedicated pins on the head unit's quad lock. So it's not like they're "on" the same channel / wire as my new components.

Does this mean that if I put my tweeters on the same channel as the door speakers (using the crossover cable), it will somehow be "bad or worse" than putting the tweeters directly into the head unit a la the OEM setup?

Here's what I think: OEM tweeters have the capacitors built into them which PROBABLY means the signal going from HU to tweeters and from HU to midrange / woofers is PROBABLY the same identical signal. My new tweeters don't have a resistor but instead the capacitor is on the crossover cable.

Any ideas? I'm thinking I'll just using the setup I've proved to be working and effectively make the "tweeter" channels in the HU redundant. If I do that, my next step will be trying to figure out how to get wiring from the door speaker position up to the tweeter position in the dash. That'll be fun

Any input or advice at all is very welcome. I'm totally new to this and learning as I go. Happy to take my time as long as I don't break anything!

MobileAudio

A lot of factory radios now have separate outputs for different ranges of frequencies. It sounds like yours has a dedicated high pass output going directly to your tweeters and probably a mid range bandpass output going to your mid range speakers.

If you connect your new cross over input to your mid range ( door ) speaker outputs you may not have any high frequencies getting through and likewise if you connect your new cross over inputs to your tweeter outputs you may not get any low range what so ever.

The only way to know for sure what signal is coming from each wire will be to connect each output to a real time analyser to check the frequencies being output.

JL Audio do a signal summing device for such head units, I'm sure there are others available also. What these do is combine the output frequencies from the tweeter, mid (and sometimes woofer outputs) of a car stereo and combine them into a full range signal. These would normally be used in amplified systems though.

EDIT..

On re reading your post it sounds like you just have some in line capacitors for the new tweeters , am I correct ? And if as you say the capacitors are on the old tweeters then running your new ones direct should be fine.