power rating for stock speakers

[dennyrex]

Anybody got a clue on the power rating for the stock in-door speakers? I am getting an amp only (no radio) for the iPod and want to see if I can get decent sound w/o replacing the speaking right away.

plain old school, not thump! thump! audio required; for routine highway listening and referencing mixes in a car environment.

I know the stock speakers are not great, so I'm just trying to get what I can out of them by matching as best I can the power rating.

Don't want to pay for 125 watts when I only need 40 or whatever.

Thanks.

[oldbike]

I do not know what the power rating of the stock speakers is, but the speakers were an area Smart used to help keep the cost down. I have replaced mine and feel comfortable in saying that I feel you will be disappointed with the results of ANY power increase with the original speakers. I would suggest replacing the speakers first to see if you get the result you desire.

[dennyrex]

I don't have a radio of any kind; I ordered a Pure without radio. So hard to judge... I know what you're saying but I don't want to get both amp & speakers at the same time, if I can help it. At any rate, I'm getting an amp which will act alone with speakers and there will be no radio/CD/ etc. unit involved.

Hopefully I can get something to turn the empty space where the radio would have gone into, erm... empty space. for additional storage.

Sound crazy ... ?

[bucketboss]

Today I replaced my speakers and the sound was vastly improved (just before I replace the head unit). If you take a look at the stock speakers you will realize what a POS they really are. Spend the $$ on the speakers first and you may not need an amp. IMHO.

[SuperGeek]

On my configuration, I selected the "smart sound system" option for an extra $350... six speakers (1 pair x 3 range split) and a subwoofer. Does anyone have a 2008 Smart with the same? I can't imagine a car that small needing a lot of raw power, but is the speaker quality low-end enough that I'll want to go out and buy JBL's? What about the head unit... does it have RCA-outs or something to hook up an amp if I want a larger sub?

[chrisdfw]

Originally Posted by SuperGeek

On my configuration, I selected the "smart sound system" option for an extra $350... six speakers (1 pair x 3 range split) and a subwoofer. Does anyone have a 2008 Smart with the same? I can't imagine a car that small needing a lot of raw power, but is the speaker quality low-end enough that I'll want to go out and buy JBL's? What about the head unit... does it have RCA-outs or something to hook up an amp if I want a larger sub?

I had the normal radio-9 that comes with the passion and to hook up a sub the installer just sent the normal speaker wire output into a $20 line level converter and sent that out to the amp and then to the sub. This allowed me to still control the sound and volume from the stock head unit. I do have a seperate knob near the sub if I want to tweak it a little louder or softer in comparison to the other speakers but once I get the sub where I like it, I just use the radio volume and the sub changes volume along with it.

[brian r]

Originally Posted by SuperGeek

On my configuration, I selected the "smart sound system" option for an extra $350... six speakers (1 pair x 3 range split) and a subwoofer. Does anyone have a 2008 Smart with the same? I can't imagine a car that small needing a lot of raw power, but is the speaker quality low-end enough that I'll want to go out and buy JBL's? What about the head unit... does it have RCA-outs or something to hook up an amp if I want a larger sub?

You will be a lot happier if you remove the stock speakers and replace them with a pair of very efficient (92db/m or higher) 4 ohm (not Infinity Kappas-the stock radio won't support a 2 ohm load) brand name speakers. JBL, Polk Audio, Boston Acoustics, JL Audio, Infinity Reference, Alpine...and whatever I've missed. Tossing all of the stock speakers and replacing them with a 6.5"-6.75" coaxial will sound light years ahead of the crap in there.

I can't wait until my sound deadening material arrives so I can take it apart and have something worth listening to.

[bucketboss]

The stock speakers are really,really winky. Even the radio 10 does not sound up to what I've come to expect from factory radios especially with a sub (and for what they charge). I put in Infinity 6 1/2s cost me $109. Made my way up the learning curve of removing the doorskin. Piece of cake. Interesting that it is only really held on with 1 screw.

Anyone interested in a radio 9 head unit for their pure?

Dave