Front and Rear spkrs - 07 Mercury Grand Marquis

thsmith

Looking to upgrade my front and rear speakers in my 07 Mercury Grand Marquis. I will be leaving the stock radio.

Looking for recommendations on replacement speakers that will work well with stock radio. I would like Polk Audio and have been looking at the DB series (?)

thsmith

Actually looks like MM571 is what I would buy.

One think I noticed in the trunk is the rear deck speakers are open meaning they are not enclosed. I would think they would sound better if they were enclosed. Is that possible.

I know nothing about car audio.

Jstas

Any 5x7 or 6x8 inch speaker will work in a Ford. Even if some sites specify a 5x7 inch size.

You can also get mounting plates that will allow you to put 5.25" components or coaxials in the 6x8 inch holes. So don't limit yourself.

As far as the rear speakers go, the trunk is the enclosure. It's very large but that just acts like a giant enclosure. that can help bottom end but if you don't have piles of power, and you don't with a factory stereo, you might not get the best performance out of them. If you wanted to enclose them though, you're talking alot of work. You can get pre-formed buckets but they will hamper performance more than help it. The other option is custom made enclosures but that's expensive and time consuming. If you want to bump up the gusto on the bottom end, the best option is a small, sealed sub in the trunk.

As for speakers, for the stock radio I would most definitely go with the DB's. Stock radios suck and they cannot adequately power aftermarket speakers. I would tell you to go with an amplifier for them as well and there are many options to connect an amplifier to the factory stereo if you so wish but, that adds cost and complexity. But at the same time it vastly improves your selection possibilities.

You can power aftermarket speakers off of an aftermarket headunit but don't expect extreme levels of performance. Then again, adding an amplifier to an aftermarket headunit is much easier and provides much better results.

But right now, if you just want to replace stock speakers I would go with the db5251 component set for at least the front doors if not all 4 corners and get your self a couple pairs of these:

http://www.amazon.com/Scosche-SA68-Convertible-6x8-Inch-Speaker/dp/B0007TJDFM



The DB's will be sensitive enough for the low power on the factory stereo and since they have external crossovers that are adjustable, you can do a bit of tweaking to get the sound you want.

If you want to install them yourself, I recommend Crutchfield.com. Their support documents and how-to install guides are unmatched, fairly comprehensive and very well written to be easy to read.

I'd tell you to talk to Cody (exalted512) but he's in College Station and Plano is like a 4 hour trip I think. I'd do it myself but Plano is much farther away from NJ.

thsmith

Thansk JSTAS, Been a long time since I am enjoying a car. I just picked it up today and I love it. I am changing work locations going from 6 miles each way to 22 miles each way.

The Merc factory system sounds pretty good for the moment.

Looks like you gave me some good food for thought.

Thanks again.


BTW, How is the 750 sounding ?

thsmith

SInce I just got the car I am going with just speakers for now. No real limit has been self imposed yet.

Appriciate the offer and may take you up on it. The rears are a no brainer but the fronts require removing the door panal but my son is a body man.

thsmith

Using db5251 where would you mount the tweeter and crossover box ?

Nevermind, I just watched Crutchfields component install video.

Really looking to just upgrading the stock speakers. Is the DB series still the way to go with stco radio.

I will probably call CF and pick their brains.

Thanks

arun1963

thsmith wrote: »

Is the DB series still the way to go with stco radio.

Thanks

It depends on how far you want to go. If you're just looking to swap the stock speakers for decent after market ones, then the db's are fine. That said, the db's are a bit on the bright side due to a low xover point on the passive cross over. Try auditioning some brands like polk, hertz, alpine, bostons to get an idea of what you like.

The MM's are good speakers, but would be a waste on a stock hu like John mentioned. However, if you're thinking of upgrading hu plus adding an amp down the line, then it makes sense to look at the MM's.

thsmith

Thanks guys. I never cared much for car audio but now that I have a 50 mile round trip drive to work and the Merc is quiet it makes sence to me now.

I do have to say the stock system sounds decent.

Jstas

You stuff the crossover inside the door somewhere.

I have older dB series speakers in my truck and the crossovers are velcro'ed to the inside of the door skin. I mounted the tweeters on the outside of the grille over the mid-range which are mounted on baffles in the stock locations. But you may not be able to do that.

However, if you are creative enough, there should be enough space on that adapter to mount the tweeter either flush or surface mount. I've never taken a Grand Marquis apart so I don't know what kind of space you are dealing with.

You can get yourself the coax speakers if you prefer. I would still go with the DB series. I'll reiterate. The stock stereo sucks. It puts out, maximum, maybe 8 watts. That's a peak value. RMS values are somewhere down around 2-4 watts. They say different but that's the reality. Therefore you need a sensitive and easy to drive load for your speakers. The DB's are between 92 and 97 dB of sensitivity depending on what speaker you get. The only way you are going to find more sensitive is an electrostatic speaker.

I recommended the components because the drivers are small and easy to drive. They will not be a difficult load for your stock stereo. So yes, the DB's are the best option for you since you are keeping the stock stereo.

Ideally I would say ditch the stock crap, get yourself a set or two of SR5250's and use the included mounting bracket for a 6x8" hole and a SR104 sub in a sealed box. Grab a stout 5 channel like Polk's PA1100.5 and be done. You would have a stereo in your car that can rival many home stereos. It would cost about $3K installed but you would be very pleased.

In a slightly less ideal setup, I would get a JL Audio CleanSweep

http://mobile.jlaudio.com/products_cleansweep_pages.php?page_id=94

and then get that same PA1100.5 and go with either the SR5250's mentioned above or the MM571 coaxs for ease of installation. You could go with the MM5251 components as well with the bracket above. Then either the SR104 or them MM1040 or MM840 in a small sealed box in the trunk.

Use either one of those two options and I promise you that you would not be disappointed.