In boat cabin speakers....

What do you think of these speakers. Kicker KS60 looking at upgrading to this from some old kenwood speakers that are having issues. (Have only 4 in-boat speakers)

Any have any experience with these?

Will be adding an Amp also to push these. What would be a good option for an amp?

Thanks for your advice.

I don't believe those are marine speakers. If not, they won't last. If you want a good set of interior speakers that are made for the marine environment, check out the offerings by Wetsounds. I've used the ws650's in a bunch of boats, and I love them. They are a bit pricey, but they sounds amazing and will not need to be replaced. You get what you pay for sometimes.

Any speaker will benefit from some amp power.

For those that do not know, Kicker actually does have a full selection of marine speakers. If you watch, you will see their banner running here. New for this year is the 8" KM8. Come with both a white and charcoal grill and can also be had with an RGB LED option. It has a 1" dome tweeter and puts out tons of mid-bass and the tweeter has not problem keeping pace. I have heard these with 200W rms and they are SOLID! In addition to the new KM8, they have 2 6.5" options, the KM65 and the KM60.

If you are looking for a budget friendly marine speaker, the KM60 (replaced the KM6000) is a solid contender from what I have heard. Works great just off the head-unit and will also handle some amp power. Next step up would be the KM65 (replaced the KM6200). It too, has the LED and white/charcoal grill option. It has a larger .75" dome tweeter, so plenty of output and will certainly handle the power. Ive heard them driven with 100W rms on a tower.

I am very happy with my Exile SC65Ms. Good luck.

@chpthrill. It's funn you should mention that. It's on here right now as I write this.

In my experience, Kicker speakers don't have good highs, but they always deliver more than enough when it comes to the low and mid bass. They can get loud and sound good, but they can tend to sound slightly muddy because they emphasize the low end of the frequency.
A good pairing to kicker speakers would be if you could add some component tweeters to round out the sound. Of course you can tweak the sound to make them sound better by properly utilizing the crossovers on the amp.

Buy this and call it done. You'll be happy http://exileaudio.com/store/index.ph...package-2.html

The new 2014 Kicker marine gear is going to start shipping soon. The comment by Surf Addict about the tweeter not keeping up is probably unfounded with these new speakers. The line is totally re-voiced for 2014 and they sound completely fresh and new. Improved crossover transition and a gentle lift above 12K help to keep the tweeters bright and clear, while not being obnoxiously bright.

Other points:

We are adding a 4" coax in 2 and 4-ohms, also a slick set of 4" cans. You might say that 4" is too small, and I would agree for wakeobarding but a good marine speaker in a 4" can has a surprising number of other applications.

We are adding an 8" coax with a 1" tweeter

All of the coaxials, (except the value-line KM60-series speakers with integral grills) come with TWO sets of grills, a pair charcoal and a pair white. Use either or paint a set custom to what ever color you want

RGB lighting is standard on the 8" coax and the 6.5" come either with or without LED lighting

There is a new 2-ohm woofer this year. Both the 4-ohm and 2-ohm woofer come with RGB LED lighting standard

The KM6500.2 becomes the KMS674. It is available now.

The KMT60 becomes the KMT674. It will be available in a couple of weeks.

Lots of new stuff coming out of the KICKER barn soon, and you guys hopefully will appreciate the changes to the sound and the added flexibility.

Phil
Kicker

Originally Posted by wakebrdr94

Buy this and call it done. You'll be happy http://exileaudio.com/store/index.ph...package-2.html

For less, one can get 2 pair of Kicker marine KM654CW coaxial with LEDs, 2 grill option, UV protectant in the grill, surround and cone, composite basket, sealed magnet and leads, stainless steel mounting hardware, etc and a class-D marine amp that will deliver 100W rms to each of the 4 speakers.

And be happy!

If you want to go cheap. I have alpine SPS-M600, they are 6.5" and have a RMS rating of only 35watts. I have them being powered at around 45rms each and they are plenty good for what we do. You can get them online for around $60 a pair. I run in salt, my bow speakers have been drenched in salt and I have had no problems. Of course they are at the low end compared to wet sounds or JL but for the price, they are perfect.

Put some MB Quart 6x9s in our family's I/O this last summer. They sound great and are ran by an amp.
I got those specifically after my buddy replaced all of his cabin speakers with them in his Supra and I loved the way they sound. Real nice and clean, very full range. Never heard any distortion.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/MB-Quart-NKF...2b179d&vxp=mtr

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm yeah exile speakers suck. Welcome for the free advertisement.

Originally Posted by chpthril

for less, one can get 2 pair of kicker marine km654cw coaxial with leds, 2 grill option, uv protectant in the grill, surround and cone, composite basket, sealed magnet and leads, stainless steel mounting hardware, etc and a class-d marine amp that will deliver 100w rms to each of the 4 speakers.

And be happy!

The Kicker KS60 is going to have a nice top end because it has the good metal dome tweeter. The entry level Kicker coaxials of the past (often found in OEM) using the W-dome sounded erratic and harsh on the top end exactly like every other entry coaxial that used the W-dome, whether Alpine, Clarion, Infinity, JBL, Kenwood, and the list is endless. But again, the Kicker KS60 is using a different tweeter, a true dome, which will sound good on the highs.
I haven’t found a 0.75” or 1.0” metal dome that doesn’t exceed the realistic limits of human hearing, at least on axis and certainly when in motion.
I don’t get the comment about Kickers not having good highs. Just not true. Besides the obvious difference between hard and soft dome tweeters, tweeters don’t come with extreme bias toward one or the other end of their spectrum. They are basically linear. You don’t get a lot of sound shaping within the tweeter itself. The sound shaping mostly comes from the relationship between the midbass driver and tweeter. So if you show me a 2-way speaker with greatly accentuated highs I will show you a speaker with a major disconnect between the midbass driver and tweeter and very nasty midrange vocals….in every single case. Some are willing to make that trade-off and some are not.

Let's get serious here - the guy is basically wanting 4 speakers and no sub to replace some worn out stuff. That's pretty clearly a budget replacement, not some high end stereo system. Why is everyone recommending Exile, Wetsounds, etc.?

Budget marine grade speakers:
Polk DB651 @ $70/pair shipped

He can get 4 speakers + amp for under $300 easily.

Infinity 612M @ $60 shipped

Kicker KM6LC @ $80 shipped

I have experience with the Polks above and I felt they were a good speaker for the money.

As for an amp, that's easy: PPI 600.2 @ $138. This amp will be way more power than you need, yet will sound great and you aren't going to find anything better for the price.

Nitrous has a point. I have a buddy running the Polks and swears by them.

The PPI amp is really great bang for buck!

I know a ton of people are really happy with their polks.

Why is everyone hung on "Marine Grade" I have had four "car" cabin speakers in my boat for 8 years and 2 of them are facing upward on the dash. Rain and water up over the closed bow and on to the dash and never had an issue (theses have been hit with gallons of water).

Next, you can spend half as much and replace them if they go bad and stop working. Which is nice because you can get the newest technology. You can get more bang for your buck going non marine. I think my truck speakers have seen more water than the one is my new Outback V. I would not have any clue how I would get them wet.

Am I missing something???

Originally Posted by obriengotwake

Why is everyone hung on "Marine Grade" I have had four "car" cabin speakers in my boat for 8 years and 2 of them are facing upward on the dash. Rain and water up over the closed bow and on to the dash and never had an issue (theses have been hit with gallons of water).

Next, you can spend half as much and replace them if they go bad and stop working. Which is nice because you can get the newest technology. You can get more bang for your buck going non marine. I think my truck speakers have seen more water than the one is my new Outback V. I would not have any clue how I would get them wet.

Am I missing something???

Yes, you are missing a little something.
First, let me say that I have put thousands of non-marine automotive speakers in boats (one season was over 250 pair on the tower alone). So I'm not against it. It was in a fresh water area though. On the other hand, I would use nothing but a true marine speaker in coastal, salt water or brackish areas.
I have seen countless automotive speakers stain the in-boat surfaces. I have seen the open midbass voice coil gap around the tweeter post get filled with debris that you cannot get out. I have seen the cotton spiders dry rot and while the speaker still played it sounded awful. I have seen naked tensil leads rust. There are numerous other legit benefits of a true marinized speaker.
So I would point out the differences and let the individual with his budget decide. Some people are going to always be driven by low cost as the primary value. I'm more quality driven as are many others. I enjoy buying and building anything the first time. Failures, purchasing the replacement, and the unnecessary maintenance is a grind for me. So each to his own.

Originally Posted by chpthril

For less, one can get 2 pair of Kicker marine KM654CW coaxial with LEDs, 2 grill option, UV protectant in the grill, surround and cone, composite basket, sealed magnet and leads, stainless steel mounting hardware, etc and a class-D marine amp that will deliver 100W rms to each of the 4 speakers.



And be happy!

LEDs do make the speaker sound better.

I have nothing against kicker. My first boat was a new wakesetter that was all kicker, towers and all, just wasnt happy overall. I do love the kicker L7 however, but different topic.

What is the ops budget? He may be looking for the best setup using preexisting holes and not wanting to go big. Budget amount will help people guide you on the right path. But nitrous usually gives sound advice if you are going "budget" route

Originally Posted by tampawake

I know a ton of people are really happy with their polks.

Geez, why all the hate toward Infinity?

Originally Posted by wakebrdr94

LEDs do make the speaker sound better.

True, and putting an "M" in the model number does not make it Marine, either.

Originally Posted by chpthril

True, and putting an "M" in the model number does not make it Marine, either.

I would agree with that across many brands. However, I don't believe it needs to be "marine" to sound good or last. How many amps and speakers are in boats that are not marine and have not issues

Hey guys thabks for the response looking to spend arround $250 for 4 speakers. And about $150 for Amp.

Thanks for all the great info so far.

I have 4 Polk Audio DB651's on my tower and am quite pleased with them. $120 for all four from Polk on eBay (refurbished). 50 watts going to each and they sound great.

JUT-

Hey, I goofed and did not respond directly to your question. Bad on me! IF you want Kicker, and since the new 2014 product is coming on-line, the older stuff is on closeout. Look around to see if you can find any of the 11KM6200 or 11KM6LC. Longer term you will be happier with those than the KS60 you pointed out originally. Both the 11KM6200 and the 11KM6LC are similar, but the non-lighted KM6200 has a better 3/4" dome tweeter like you will find on the KS60. Both of the two marine speakers have sealed motors, sealed tweeters, the grills have drainage channels built in, they come with stainless hardware, and all the steel parts that can rust stain your gelcoat are sealed inside.



I bet you can find them out there at some good pricing.

Hope that helps with guidance to your original post!

Phil
Kicker