'09 Base Model Speaker Upgrade

[drrockandroll]

Got ya. I had also purchased a set of the universal spacers from Best Buy when I got the speakers, but I returned them because I thought they were pretty crappy, too. They are about the same thickness as the ones I got from Crutchfield, so I doubt that they'd work for the front speakers because they wouldn't clear the door panel. They'd probably work alright for the rear speakers.

[gdemander]

Got ya. I had also purchased a set of the universal spacers from Best Buy when I got the speakers, but I returned them because I thought they were pretty crappy, too. They are about the same thickness as the ones I got from Crutchfield, so I doubt that they'd work for the front speakers because they wouldn't clear the door panel. They'd probably work alright for the rear speakers.

Okay. Thanks. I think I will go into the place that is going to do the install and see if they have any experience with installing 6.5s in the WRX. Hopefully they have and they will be able to work around it. If not, I will look into ordering the spacers from the Outback 96-99s that someone mentioned working. I have used those before and they are a soft enough plastic that I don't think they will crack as your's did. Someone on here reported that those worked well for the fronts.

[nrpalm]

Im not being critical at all. Ive also done a total stereo install in my 09 ( I run a car audio store) just saying that you probably will notice them at certain frequencies.

I'm in the process of picking my equipment for my stereo upgrade. I bought Boston Acoustic Pro50se for the front and Pro60se for the rear. I have a Alpine PDX 100.4 to power them. I think I've decided on a Alpine 9887 for the headunit. I'm not doing a sub as I have a small child. Would you recomend putting second skin on the doors? Is it worth it and is it hard to do if the shop is already taking the doors apart to put new speakers in? Any input would be greatly appreciated.

[gdemander]

I'm in the process of picking my equipment for my stereo upgrade. I bought Boston Acoustic Pro50se for the front and Pro60se for the rear. I have a Alpine PDX 100.4 to power them. I think I've decided on a Alpine 9887 for the headunit. I'm not doing a sub as I have a small child. Would you recomend putting second skin on the doors? Is it worth it and is it hard to do if the shop is already taking the doors apart to put new speakers in? Any input would be greatly appreciated.

I am about to upgrade my system as well. I was driving yesterday with the stock speakers, not at a high volume, and the driver's side door started vibrating. When I replace the speakers I am definitely installing sound dampening of some sort. My only question is how much I actually need. One installed said that I would need one entire bulk pack, just to do the four doors. I thought that this was a little on the high side. Anyone have any thoughts about how much sound dampening material is required to cover the four doors? Thanks.

[BEETROOT]

I don't mean for this to be as obnoxious as it will sound, but I think you could have avoided a lot of hassle going with the Crutchfield spacers and a shallower speaker.

[drrockandroll]

Haha, I would have thought so, too. The depth of the speakers really isn't an issue, though--there's plenty of room in the door to accommodate the ones I purchased, as they only have a 1 5/8" mounting depth. I ran into problems with clearance between the speaker itself the front door panel. When I first bought the speakers, I also bought the universal spacers from Best Buy thinking they'd work just fine. They're universal, after all. It turned out that they were too thick to use on the front doors--the panel wouldn't even snap back into place with them installed. I went ahead and returned them. Later in the process I also tried the universal spacers that Crutchfield said would fit the '09 WRX, and they ended up not fitting at all. I tried every orientation possible and only two of the three screw holes would line up with the door at any given time.

You could easily use a universal spacer on the rear doors with most any 6 1/2" speaker and not run into any clearance issues. It's finding something that works in the front that I had problems with. Modifying the old spacers to accept the new speakers only took a couple of hours beyond what it would normally have taken to install the speakers, and it gave me something to do for a while. Plus, it saved a bit of money. None of that means it's the best or only solution, but I'm happy with it so far.

[BEETROOT]

Ahh ok I gotcha. Very good info to know, I'm shopping for replacement speakers right now myself. Thanks for the write-up!