Help w/ questions on my proposed setup - db651 vs. mm651 - and 8" sub

atbear

Hey everybody. First post.

I've got questions regarding my setup for my new 2006 Toyota Tundra Double Cab. Here's what I'm leaning toward currently getting to replace the stock system:

JVC Arsenal KD-A735BT Head Unit
Alpine MRP-F300 4x50W Amp (for speakers)
Rockford Fosgate P300-1 1x150W Amp (for sub)
Polk db651 or mm651 6.5" Speakers
Polk db840 or mm840 8" Sub

The only item above I currently own is the Alpine MRP-F300.

I listen to classic rock and hard rock mainly... with some blues thrown in.

My main question is what is the difference between the db651 and the mm651? Which speaker sounds better and how? How do they differ and how are they similar? Is the mm651 worth the extra money for the benefit you get? I don't want to pay for the mm651 just because they are a higher end model if I would get just as good of results with the db651. I have the same questions about the db840 vs. mm840 8" subs.

Thanks for any help you can give! Please let me know if you have any other suggestions or tweaks I should consider.

Drew

pentoncm

The DB drivers are ok but are not as transparent and detailed as the MM. There is more midbass/bass from the MM series as well. Go to onlinecarstereo.com, they have the MM for cheap. I would highly recommend the components over coax. Night and day difference.

atbear

Thank you for your reply. The mm6501 aren't in my budget, but I could probably go for the db6501. What would you recommend between the mm651 and the db6501?

Is the Alpine 4-channel amp I'm planning to use adequate enough to be able to tell a difference between all of these speakers? Thinking about where the weak link is... where would you say it is?

pentoncm

MM are $209, DB are $149. Its only 60 bucks and the MM's are well worth that difference. They will reach down lower and blend better with the sub. I have another idea for your amp solution.

Honestly, from a SQ standpoint I have to recommend that you try to spend some extra money for an amp that lets you go active. That is so you can get rid of the passive xovers and use the filters on the amp. By doing this you get up to 50% more power to your speakers. This is because passive xovers absorb tons of energy from the amp and turn it to heat. Also passive xovers are not as clean.

The polk audio PA D5000.5 is only $350 and and would be an all in one solution.

In this setup
Channels 1 and 2 would drive your woofers from the 6501 (100W because they are 2 ohm)
Channels 3 and 4 would drive your tweeters from the 6501 (70W because they are 4 ohm)
Channel 5 would drive the sub (400w RMS at 2 ohm)

I know that you may think that 100W going to the woofers alone may be overkill. It is definitely not, it gives you tons of headroom so that you never get close to distortion or clipping.

atbear

Thanks again. I'm a little confused about your channel assignments on the amp. Would channel 1 go to RFront, 2 to LFront, 3 to RRear, and 4 to LRear? In your scenario, what is powering the rear speakers?

Also, on the coax vs. components topic, my truck has the woofers in the lower door panel, and the tweeters up high on the pillar. Would that create a sound stage issue for the component vs. coax? Would the tweeter sound harsh in that position? I'm definitely trying to avoid sounding harsh.

pentoncm

I'm suggesting that you not power your rear speakers at all or at most power them a tad with deck power. Rear speakers are bad in car audio. Think about it. If you listen to music at home, even on a 5.1 system. Where do the vocals come from? They come directly in front of you and the music spreads from the left to right. You never hear vocals behind you in this setup and never hear vocals from behind you in a movie theater either. Competition vehicles rarely use rear speakers because they just mess things up. You'll get much better performance and imaging by just using fronts.

Its your choice whether you put the tweeters down by the woofers or up in the A pillar. In general A pillar tweeters will sound better if they are angled opposite headrest. If you do put them up high you will likely just turn them down a bit by adjusting the gain on the amp, this can help with harshness. Tweeters down low do have their advantages however by blending better with the mids but the stage will be a little lower without EQ to help out. There are trade offs either way. Going active how i suggested lets you fully customize your tweeter level compared to the woofers. When you use the passives, you only have a choice of 0db, -3db, or +3 db, which is limited. Plus with the active option you can play with the xover frequency to see where it sounds best.

atbear

Thanks.

What would you think about me doing mm6501 in the front and db651 in the rear? I could still use my Alpine 4x50W amp to push the mm6501 in the front, then use the JVC HU to push the db651 in the rear. I'd still get the RF Punch P300-1 to push the sub (likely mm840). Does that make sense? Would that be better than doing all four speakers or leaving the rears stock?

atbear

Here's what I think I'll ultimately go with (of course, my mind changes often):

1 JVC Arsenal KD-A735BT
1 Alpine MRP-F300 (4x50W @ 4ohms)
1 Alpine MRP-M500 (1x500W @ 2ohms)
1 Polk db6501 (10-100W RMS, 300W Peak)
1 Polk db651 (6-60W RMS, 180W Peak)
2 Polk db840 (50-180W RMS, 360W Peak)

Please let me know what y'all think.

atbear

One small tweak, due to the smaller space that I have for the sub in the compartment under the rear seat:

1 JVC Arsenal KD-A735BT
1 Alpine MRP-F300 (4x50W @ 4ohms)
1 Alpine MRP-M500 (1x300W @ 4ohms)
1 Polk db6501 (10-100W RMS, 300W Peak)
1 Polk db651 (6-60W RMS, 180W Peak)
1 Polk MM840 (100-250W RMS, 500W Peak)

atbear

What would you think of this set up? Is the D5000.1 suited to fully power the MM speakers? Would you get a SVC MM840 for 200W from the amp, or a DVC MM840 for 400W from the amp? Any idea why the MM6501 is rated for less peak power than the db6501?

1 JVC Arsenal KD-A735BT
1 Polk D5000.1 (4x70W RMS, 1x200W RMS)
1 Polk MM6501 (25-125W RMS, 250W Peak)
1 Polk MM651 (15-100W RMS, 200W Peak)
1 Polk MM840 (100-250W RMS, 500W Peak)

Thanks!