Has anyone tried upgrading their rear speakers?

I'm just curious on how it is to get back there and remove them?

Reason I ask is that I seem to have an annoying rattle coming from back there but am not sure as I can't pinpoint it. Seems like the passenger side. If it is indeed coming from there, I'm curious on how the plastic grill thing comes off.

 

I'd sure like to! If you go to 'full back Fader', those big BOSE speakers in the way-back sound like crap.. really bad, and I'm talking awful.

- How can two 6x9's w/chunko magnets sound this bad? (I know the answer.)

If we could replace these with anything decent it could be MAJOR improvement in sound.

With my head in the trunk, I can see there are bolts holding the speakers from above, apparently simply under the shelf covering in the back window. But how to get that covering off?? Anyone done/tried pulling that shelf stuff out yet. Anyone found the right pry points?

Be brave someone... hack away at you new car!! Tell us the answer.

 

I tried... but it doesnt want to budge. I would surely hate to rip it out on accident and it dont go back in hahahah...

Will warranty cover it? Hahaha..

 

The back speakers alone aren't meant to have a full sound. Different speakers and locations are for different frequencies. The system is meant to work as a "system". You don't judge it by how each individual speaker sounds on it's own.

I must say, I'm pleasantly suprised by the Bose system. It has an extremely "flat" sound... no overly hyped low end or highs. In audiophile terms, flat is your goal. I think many people are just so used to super compressed audio with pumped lows and highs because of what's been pushed and marketed to the public for the last 10 years, that they're no longer used to a natural sounding, accurate system.

The RX-8's Bose system sounds very good to me, and I'm no novice to audio... I own and run a Pro Tools based commercial digital recording studio, and have been involved in music performance, production and recording for many more years than I care to reveal.

 

IMO compression adds the needed oomph that music has been missing all this time. Who wants to hear those eyeball straining, headache causing midrange frequencies at 400db? Not me, my friend, not me. Just give me the good stuff... bass and treble as loud and as accurate as possible.

 

javahut quote "The back speakers alone aren't meant to have a full sound." WHAT!!!

Hey, each to his (her) own is OK by me (you like flat, others like over-equalized, some like highs, some like thumping bass, whatever... pleasuring your ears is personal)

BUT, and this is technical, you gotta admit... listen to the backs by themselves... they are worse than sucky, they are just sad sad sound. And for TWO 6x9's to sound SO BAD!!!!!

So yes, the whole IS important, and together the Bose WHOLE sounds ok, not great, small ok.

BUT I do not agree that it is OK for the rears to sound as bad as they do and it doesn't impact the overall sound. Rather it is a testiment to the front systems that it sound decent AT ALL.

Bottom line, improve the rear... the WHOLE improves along with it!

 

Listen to any top of the line home audio speaker... if you listen to the low end driver by itself, it sounds like crap. If you listen to the hi end driver by itself, it sounds like crap. When you put the two together, you get the whole picture. The way the drivers for the different frequencies work together is what determines the quality of the "sound". The separate drivers are not meant to sound right by themselves. If each one on it's own sounded "perfect", there would be no point in having seperate drivers (unless your goal is just to have it louder, with more phase incoherency).

On top of that, you can't expect two 6x9s mounted at the back of the car, faced up towards the rear glass, to sound right by themselves. If you do, then you don't understand how audio, crossovers, multi-amping, frequencies, and spatial placement work.

I'm not saying the Bose system sounds as good as going out and purchasing a high end after market system. But unless you think you know more than the Bose engineers about designing an audio system for this particular car, you risk doing more harm than good by randomly replacing individual components of a system designed to function as a whole.

 

Javahut, I'll agree you have good points in much of what you say. I certainly am not able to judge objectively the design of the systems individual parts as I don't know the parameters that BOSE used to create what they did. I wish I did, I wish BOSE shared such info but they don't. If they did, one might reasonably replace what they did with higher quality components that match their design.

My original comments arise from the fact that "normally" 6x9 rear spkrs ARE "full range". But your response got me listening to them again, and I discovered smtg interesting. Fading totally to the rear does NOT affect the volume of the front 9" spkrs, only the 2" tweets, so some of my unhappiness has come from the overpowered bass when the front tweets are not there to compensate....

So like you say, it is a system, not separate spkrs. I'll let your other criticism pass, you don't know anything about my level of understanding of audio.

Unless we are able to obtain more information on the system, I imagine (short of ripping it out and starting over as some have suggested), we are just stuck w/it and it good/bad points plus or minus.

However, your comment on 'risk' doesn't make much sense. If I 'risk' making it better and I do, I'm better off. If I 'risk' making it better and I don't, I just put it back the way it was. How can I do more 'harm than good' if I like the result whether it meets their design criteria or not?

Anyway, enough of this, time for sleep.

 

You're right that it's possible you could come up with a speaker combination that sounds better. But in putting it back "the way it was", you're assuming that you haven't done any damage to the hardware... from damaging the mounting system trying to remove and replace components (even if it's just a new rattle after reinstalling the old system), to damaging the amplifiers or other components from mismatching component impedances. There's definitely some risk, though it may not be great.

Another alternative might be to take it to a professional who has experience upgrading individual components of Bose systems.

 

I think I have that same stinkin rattle in the back seat. Initially I thought it was the pass through door. But now I think it is indeed coming from one of the rear speaker grills. Also, I have noticed that I only hear it in the morning prior to my car sitting out in the heat and by late afternoon it no longer makes the noise. It will be interesting to see what other squeaks and rattles will pop-up as we get into the cooler months and plastic parts start to contract.

 

Glad to see I'm not alone.. let me know if you try to fix it.. :D

 

test

 

Tank,

Did you ever get an answer to your question about how to get the rear speaker covers off? I have the same rattle and have been interested to trying to find a fix.

 

https://www.rx8club.com/series-i-do-yourself-forum-73/diy-how-replace-rear-6x9-speakers-9991/

Click the link above. You have to remove the rear seats to get to the rear speaker plastic off.

 

that sucks

 

Try changing the microfilter in an M3 sometime...

 

I am having the same problem. It all most sounds like the glass is ratteling!!! I took the seats out and tapped around on the speaker grill and I can hear the vibration but cannot pinpoint where it is comming from (I know it is in the back.

 

So that's where it is, I think I have heard it also.

 

Just remember that if you replace the back speakers they are 2 Ohms not 4 Ohms. 4 Ohms will be about 3dB quiter than stock so try and find 2 Ohm speakers if you can.

As a reference the front tweeters are 4ohms and I am pretty sure the front center speaker is as well.

The 9" woofers are a very custom job. They are 0.5 Ohms and that is one reason the why the woofer amps are in the door. (cut down on wiring distance.)

-Mr. Wigggles.