Sr6500 Help

tntw6ms

I have a question for you folks. I have a 97 Olds 88 4 door. I have the sr6500 in kick panels and Momo 6 x 9 in the rear deck. I have a Jl 300/4 amp. My Question is running the SR Bi amped will use the entire amp leaving the momo 6 x 9's running off the deck. Wil this be a better sound then amping the momos. I just dont know if Bi amping makes a real difference or not. I want the componets as loud and clear as I can. I wouldnt mind getting another amp to run the rears if it would make a difference. I am also wondering if adding a set of 6 1/4" in the door would help. Then use another amp to run the rears and these. I have read you loose some mid bass when using kicks but I dont know. what do ya think.

Pioneer Avic Z1 H/U
97 Olds 88
Polk audio SR6500 Componets
Polk Audio Momo 6 x 9's in the rear
JL Audio 300/4 Amp
JL Audio 13W7's (2) In Jl Boxes
JL Audio 1000/1 Amps (2)

Greg Peters

tntw6ms wrote:

I have a question for you folks. I have a 97 Olds 88 4 door. I have the sr6500 in kick panels and Momo 6 x 9 in the rear deck. I have a Jl 300/4 amp. My Question is running the SR Bi amped will use the entire amp leaving the momo 6 x 9's running off the deck. Wil this be a better sound then amping the momos. I just dont know if Bi amping makes a real difference or not. I want the componets as loud and clear as I can. I wouldnt mind getting another amp to run the rears if it would make a difference. I am also wondering if adding a set of 6 1/4" in the door would help. Then use another amp to run the rears and these. I have read you loose some mid bass when using kicks but I dont know. what do ya think.

Pioneer Avic Z1 H/U
97 Olds 88
Polk audio SR6500 Componets
Polk Audio Momo 6 x 9's in the rear
JL Audio 300/4 Amp
JL Audio 13W7's (2) In Jl Boxes
JL Audio 1000/1 Amps (2)

Considering what your new SRs have to keep up with, bi-amping them will give you more control over just using the supplied crossover alone as far as balancing the output of the mid and tweeter to blend with the rest of your system. It would also double the power you are putting into them, increasing output to a degree and help them better keep up with your subs.

The SR6500s are capable of very nice midbass output, but to do so would require a larger "enclosure" than kick panel mounting probably provides in your case. If your doors can accomodate the SR components, the doors would give you a larger enclosure to work with and would improve the midbass BUT would do so at a cost to the better imaging kick panel installation can give you.

A couple of options- you could install a dedicated midbass speaker in each door (depending on the amount of custom work you are prepared to do) and amp these and your Momo 6x9s with a seperate 4 channel, you could relocate the SRs to the doors, or possibly even buy another pair of SR mids as parts from Polk to use as designated midbass speakers in your door locations.

Installing something other than just a midbass speaker in your doors (such as a coax or additional component set) would mess up your imaging rather than compliment the SR6500 installation you have in your kick panels. Building an enclosure into the area behind the kick panels may help if it is possible with the space available.

tntw6ms

Thank you for the reply. I just got off the phone with Polk asking about exactly what you said. My thought was to have the SR in kicks and add another 300/4 for the mid base speaker in the door and the Momo's. The SR6500 are in the door now as the kick panels were not complete yet and they have dynamat in their also. What size should I go with in the doors 6 1/2 also? He also said not to bridge the amp for the SR's just run them Bi amped which is 75W x 4 is that enough power or should I buy a 450/4 for the SR's it is ch 1 and 2 (Stereo 150w rms x 2 @ 1.5-4 Ohm same with chanel 3 nd 4. I just want loud and clear and even though I have spent enough money already I need to catch up with my subs the best I can. Thanks again

Greg Peters

tntw6ms wrote:

Thank you for the reply. I just got off the phone with Polk asking about exactly what you said. My thought was to have the SR in kicks and add another 300/4 for the mid base speaker in the door and the Momo's. The SR6500 are in the door now as the kick panels were not complete yet and they have dynamat in their also. What size should I go with in the doors 6 1/2 also? He also said not to bridge the amp for the SR's just run them Bi amped which is 75W x 4 is that enough power or should I buy a 450/4 for the SR's it is ch 1 and 2 (Stereo 150w rms x 2 @ 1.5-4 Ohm same with chanel 3 nd 4. I just want loud and clear and even though I have spent enough money already I need to catch up with my subs the best I can. Thanks again

If money is no object, the 450/4 would be nice for the SRs but you wouldn't want the gains set very high. If you have to have amps that match, it's a good choice, but there are plenty of other amps that would do the job for less.

A matching 6500 mid would be very nice, but if room permits you could even go with an 8" midbass up front in the doors (and cross your subs over at a lower frequency). Those W7s are capable of some extreme output, and it's really up to you as far as how much/ what type of midbass you want in your front stage to compliment that.

Depending on how long you've had the SR6500 mids installed in the doors, they do produce some nice (but smooth and accurate rather than punchy and exagerated) midbass response after several weeks of break-in. If you find their midbass output to be agreeable to you after they break in, you could even consider the SR5250 midrange for installation in your kicks along with the SR tweeters, for a three-way front stage. It's really not fair to judge what the SRs are capable of until they're properly broken in.

It's probably best to wait until everything has had a chance to properly break in and identify what is lacking at that time, rather than spending more on speakers right away. The additional amp is a great idea, as the SRs would benefit from additional power and help to keep up with the W7s. If sound quality is your goal, you may want to think about cutting the gains on the sub amps to balance your overall frequency response in-car.

MacLeod

tntw6ms wrote:

Thank you for the reply. I just got off the phone with Polk asking about exactly what you said. My thought was to have the SR in kicks and add another 300/4 for the mid base speaker in the door and the Momo's. The SR6500 are in the door now as the kick panels were not complete yet and they have dynamat in their also. What size should I go with in the doors 6 1/2 also? He also said not to bridge the amp for the SR's just run them Bi amped which is 75W x 4 is that enough power or should I buy a 450/4 for the SR's it is ch 1 and 2 (Stereo 150w rms x 2 @ 1.5-4 Ohm same with chanel 3 nd 4. I just want loud and clear and even though I have spent enough money already I need to catch up with my subs the best I can. Thanks again

Bi-amping is the only way to go for maximum control over your tuning. This way you can tune the tweeter independantly of the mids and this is a huge advantage.

If you bi-amp with the 300/4 make sure you set the gains properly and watch it with the volume control. That thing makes a bunch of power, much more than its 75 watt rating. The SR's are very effecient speakers and it doesnt take much to bottom them out but with proper crossover, gain and volume settings theyll crank out plenty of volume just fine.

As for midbass speakers, I actually recommend you sticking with the 2 way setup for now. 3 way systems are a pain in the balls to tune right plus the extra expense of an additional amp and speakers. If youre having your kicks custom built by a reputable shop, they should be plenty strong and you may like the midbass response you get from them just fine.

These speakers are amazing and Im running no midbass speakers in my system and can usually keep up pretty well with guys running 6.5 and 8" dedicated midbasses.

Bottom line is Id recommend waiting on midbass speakers for now. Try the SR's in the kicks and after they get good and broken in, start tuning on them and if you still arent happy with the midbass response then you can look to upgrage but Im willing to bet youll be pleasantly suprised.

Thom

If you're set on a three way front stage I'd go with the SR5250 mid in the kicks to make it easier. The kick panels won't be as large as they would need to be for the 6500. But two way is much easier.

Will you rely on the amps' crossovers, or do you have an external piece?

tntw6ms

Great Info guys I appericate it. Right now I am going out to try and figure out what is going on with them they sound real bad right now. I am running them in Stereo bi amped just the componets. I have hp set on the Tweets and none on the mids havent done anything to the crossovers other than the jumper with just under 85 hz on the amp and they sound like a stock speaker. I have check the install so far to make sure everything is tight but they are very stock speaker sounding mid bass and distort badly and any kind of volume. I am new to adjusting them but something has to be real wrong. Is there anyone that can walk me through what to set everything on to get started. Thanks.

MacLeod

My first guess would be that youve got the gain set too high on the tweeters. Try turning it down a notch or two below the mid's and see how that sounds.

Also, make sure youve got the jumper on the right hand side of the crossover pulled out. You have to do this to bi-amp them.

tntw6ms

I do have the jumper out and the tweeter sounds good it's the mid bass sounds bad blingy I have the filter off now it was on high pass at 85HZ its not clean and tight it is distorted I know this is a stupid question but is the senesativty input the gain

MacLeod

Yes. The input sensitivity on the amps is also the gain.

The SR's are extremely effecient and it doesnt take much to push em to their suspensions limits.

Try this. Take a CD track that is pushing the mids into distortion. Turn the gains all the way down (tweeter's too). Now turn up the volume on your HU to about 75%. Now start turning up the gain til you get the distortion. Once you hit that point, back it off til it stops. Now adjust the tweet's gain til it sounds right.

Also, dont forget that these speakers really need to break in. More than any speaker Ive ever owned actually. Trust me that the midbass response on these things will start improving in the next week or two.

tntw6ms

That is a big help thank you. should I have the filter off on the mids? Also is there someplace that I could order kicks that are made for these that can be custom made for my car or am I better off getting them done local. Before they are broken in do they sound blingy or could it be something in my door? Last question is should I have the high pass filter in my deck on also or is that not necessary it is a Pioneer Z1

MacLeod

I would set the high pass filter on your mids to about 80 Hz to start off with. You can adjust from there until you find the best spot. While they can play with authority below 50 Hz, they do start to get boomy at that frequency so I wouldnt go below that.

They dont make premade kicks for 6.5" speakers (which is stupid) and even if they did they wouldnt be as good a quality as you could get from a local shop. However, youll pay about $400-500 for them but they will be much better made.

Before theyre broke in they do sound a little thin due to the lack of midbass at first. Also, you could have your tweeters playing too loud which would brighten up the sound quite a bit. That would be the first thing Id check.

Also it is a very good idea to invest some money in some Dynamat. Get some and slap it all over your door panels, inner and outer. This will cut down on a lot of vibration and resonance that is likely interering with your speakers. This is true no matter what kind of speaker youve got in your doors.

tntw6ms

Thanks I will start with that tomorrow. I have dynamat throught the doors not just the kit. I am thinking there is something wrong with the install because they are very rough sounding at any level so I will retrace there work. Then I will set the filter. Thanks again for the help