PDA

View Full Version : Kicker DS 650?



Eric Z
06-10-2010, 01:47 PM
Has anyone put these or the KS 650's in the stock holes of a Mobius LSV? How do the fit? How do they sound? I Saw these and the are cheap and was wondering if the would be a good upgrade over the stock Kenwoods.

jmvotto
06-10-2010, 02:45 PM
They are not marine rated, try the polk db651 best bang for your buck, bunch of threads on here on them.

Eric Z
06-10-2010, 02:52 PM
Do they have to be marine rated? If so why? My amp isn't marine rated and I have seen lots of discussion about if it needs to be also....

jmvotto
06-10-2010, 02:56 PM
THe amps i assume they are tucked away,
one roller over the bow and the bow speakers are toast. the cabins do have a tendency to get wet from waves windy days and kids .... as long as you are willing to replace a few a year, then go for it, but there is a reason so many have changes to the polks, not only on moombas but other mfg's as well.

philwsailz
06-10-2010, 03:33 PM
Eric-

The KM series marine speakers will be a better choice. They were designed from the ground up on a clean sheet of paper to be a true marine loudspeaker line. The midranger cones are completely sealed, so no water can get in. This actually makes them more efficient too, since there is mroe cone surface to produce sound. The basket frames are injection molded instead of stamped steel. Steel can rust either in a major way or a minor way. Rust streaks are hard to get out of gel coat.... The KM series speakers are also magnetically shielded; this is not real important for an in-land tow-boat used only on lakes, but there is a benefit, in that the magnetic shielding focuses the magnetic energy in the voice coil gap, resulting in greater efficiency. The motor on teh back of the speaker is totally sealed inside a protective cap so no water can get in that way either.

The KM6200 uses the same tweeter as the KS650 you mention, so they will sound quite similar. the KS6200 has an integral bolt-thru grill, while the KS650 grill is snap on. It is not easy to lose a KS650 grill but it can happen. You cannot lose a KM6200 grill.

Zat help?

Let me know-

Phil
Kicker

sandm
06-10-2010, 03:39 PM
follow phil's advice on the marine speakers. amps are tucked away and dont' succumb to the moisture quite as easy as the speakers in the cabin, although kicker does make a marine rated amp for a reason as well :)

have a buddy that has kicker speakers as the interior boat speakers. you won't be disappointed and a 10fold improvement over the kenwoods that come with the boats. much better overall sound, not as "tinney" and got a nice midrange to them..

philwsailz
06-10-2010, 04:40 PM
Oh, I should point out something else. The KS650 and DS650 have a 165mm mounting pattern, and the hole size is LARGER than a stock in-boat marine mounting.

The KM speakers have cones that are as big as the larger KS650, but the basket is designed to fit the stock in-boat speaker mounting holes, which is usually only 5 to 5-1/8ths in diamemter.

Phil
Kicker

Eric Z
06-10-2010, 05:04 PM
I thank you for all your help. Sounds like either speaker will be an improvement.

Eric Z
07-16-2010, 12:55 PM
So will the KM 6200 be a direct fit? I have an 06' Mobius LSV....

philwsailz
07-16-2010, 01:50 PM
Eric-

It should be a direct fit, at least for the cutout hole. Most boat plants use a hole saw to cut the speaker opening, at roughly 5-1/8ths inches. I know Moomba does currently and I don't think anything has changed since 06.

The screw holes might be in a different place. Do yourself a favor and mark and pre-drill new screw holes for any speaker you are considering. After you mark the hole location us a drill slightly smaller than your screws, but not lots smaller. Fiberglass will hold a sheet metal or wood screw prety well.

After you drill your holes, take your phillips bit and chuck it in your cordless screwdriver / drill and run it in all your drilled holes to make a generous chamfer. You can use a chamfering bit if you have one but a screw driver bit works fine. This will allow the screw to bite into fiberglass, and not the gelcoat surface, preventing gelcoat cracks at your screw holes.

Good luck!

Phil
Kicker

Eric Z
07-16-2010, 08:27 PM
I have looked at both the Polk and Kicker speakers. The specs are very close to the same. I see Kicker speakers are more money. I am trying to get the best speaker for the best price. I will be upgrading after payday. I was wondering what some opinions of each speaker were. Kicker KM vs. Polk DB...Where have you found the best price?

cab13367
07-17-2010, 10:09 AM
After you drill your holes, take your phillips bit and chuck it in your cordless screwdriver / drill and run it in all your drilled holes to make a generous chamfer. You can use a chamfering bit if you have one but a screw driver bit works fine. This will allow the screw to bite into fiberglass, and not the gelcoat surface, preventing gelcoat cracks at your screw holes.

Good luck!

Phil
Kicker

Nice tip Phil. I didn't think about using a Phillips bit to chamfer a hole. Will have to try that next time.

byronkoz
07-20-2010, 01:25 PM
So the KS650's arent marine rated? I have the KS650's in mine and did have to enlarge the holes a bit but am very happy with them, have had no problems in 3 seasons. I also have the KS630's on my tower and an L7, love the kicker stuff.

http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l216/byronkoz/Boat%20Stuff/CameraApril068.jpg