Saab 9-3 dash speakers upgrade

[dfb11]

The Kicker's are monsters. They don't even come close to fitting. I'd have to bend steel to make these fit...
The search goes on.

I was afraid of that. Well at least now we know for sure. I thank you for trying. I have not ordered the Kappa's yet, but if I do end up getting anything, it will probably be them. I am actually getting more and more dissuaded about replacing the doors since no one has been absolutely happy with their replacements.

P.S. Did you end up disconnecting the center speaker? I wonder if it's better to disconnect or try to find someone to split a BA pair and replace with that.

[DjTicojon75]

I was afraid of that. Well at least now we know for sure. I thank you for trying. I have not ordered the Kappa's yet, but if I do end up getting anything, it will probably be them. I am actually getting more and more dissuaded about replacing the doors since no one has been absolutely happy with their replacements.

P.S. Did you end up disconnecting the center speaker? I wonder if it's better to disconnect or try to find someone to split a BA pair and replace with that.

I did end up ordering a pair of 'Infinity 60.9CS' for the doors (cheaper on Amazon). I really hope they fit...I'm accumulating quite the collection of speakers. I did unplug the center speaker. My understanding is that the center/dash speaker and door speakers are connected to the amp. The mounting depth on the center speaker is less than 1.5”...don’t thing anyone has found a speaker that fits. I also read that the center/dash speaker is set up for mono. I remember the center speaker in the dash being a bit over powering compared to the left & right dash speakers.
I’ll let you know how the Kappa’s work in the doors. I read that they’re oversized 6.5” and will likely require spacers to allow them to fit.

[DjTicojon75]

I was afraid of that. Well at least now we know for sure. I thank you for trying. I have not ordered the Kappa's yet, but if I do end up getting anything, it will probably be them. I am actually getting more and more dissuaded about replacing the doors since no one has been absolutely happy with their replacements.

P.S. Did you end up disconnecting the center speaker? I wonder if it's better to disconnect or try to find someone to split a BA pair and replace with that.

I did end up ordering a pair of 'Infinity 60.9CS' for the doors (cheaper on Amazon). I really hope they fit...I'm accumulating quite the collection of speakers. I did unplug the center speaker. My understanding is that the center/dash speaker and door speakers are connected to the amp. The mounting depth on the center speaker is less than 1.5”...don’t thing anyone has found a speaker that fits. I also read that the center/dash speaker is set up for mono. I remember the center speaker in the dash being a bit over powering compared to the left & right dash speakers.
I’ll let you know how the Kappa’s work in the doors. I read that they’re oversized 6.5” and will likely require spacers to allow them to fit.

[dfb11]

I did end up ordering a pair of 'Infinity 60.9CS' for the doors (cheaper on Amazon). I really hope they fit...I'm accumulating quite the collection of speakers. I did unplug the center speaker. My understanding is that the center/dash speaker and door speakers are connected to the amp. The mounting depth on the center speaker is less than 1.5”...don’t thing anyone has found a speaker that fits. I also read that the center/dash speaker is set up for mono. I remember the center speaker in the dash being a bit over powering compared to the left & right dash speakers.
I’ll let you know how the Kappa’s work in the doors. I read that they’re oversized 6.5” and will likely require spacers to allow them to fit.

Gotcha, thanks for the info. I probably will end up disconnecting the center.

Hopefully all the hassle is worth it in the end and the 60.9's provide a much better sound.

Good luck and hopefully your next update is full of good information.

[DjTicojon75]

Gotcha, thanks for the info. I probably will end up disconnecting the center.

Hopefully all the hassle is worth it in the end and the 60.9's provide a much better sound.

Good luck and hopefully your next update is full of good information.

I installed the Kappa components set (minus the tweeters). The magnet is big so I had to do a little work to the plastic housing that is attached to the door. It could have been easily cut with a dremel or small modeling saw but I grabbed a small pair of pliers/cutters and snapped of as much as I needed to...it took about 60 seconds. These are high quality speakers...very nice! With that said...if you’re looking for a big impact you’re better off changing the dash speakers 1^st and adding an amp & quality speakers to the rear shelf/deck 2nd...which leaves door speakers 3^rd. If you need more bass then add a sub 3^rd and leave the door speakers for last.

[DjTicojon75]

For additional reference I'll continue...
I threw in some fair 4" speakers to the rear shelf/deck as a test; what a waste of time.
I bought some West Coast Custom's component 6x9's made by Diamond Audio a while back. They were 75% off at Best Buy so I figured I had nothing to lose. They surprisingly made a noticeable difference from the stock 4”, the 4” testers and chepo 6x9's.
So at the moment I have Polk Audio db351 in the left and right dash, Infinity Kappa 60.9cs in the doors and West Coast Custom’s WCC-690 in the rear shelf/deck. Once I’m amped I’ll add 4” to the rear shelf/deck and a sub. I have no clue about amps so I’ll have to spend some serious money to have an amp installed...which is why I’m putting it off. I’ve only spend a grand total of $250 on those 3 sets of speakers. The retail on the WCC or Kappa’s alone are close to $200. I’ve had great luck on Amazon and Sonicelectronix.

[dfb11]

For additional reference I'll continue...
I threw in some fair 4" speakers to the rear shelf/deck as a test; what a waste of time.
I bought some West Coast Custom's component 6x9's made by Diamond Audio a while back. They were 75% off at Best Buy so I figured I had nothing to lose. They surprisingly made a noticeable difference from the stock 4”, the 4” testers and chepo 6x9's.
So at the moment I have Polk Audio db351 in the left and right dash, Infinity Kappa 60.9cs in the doors and West Coast Custom’s WCC-690 in the rear shelf/deck. Once I’m amped I’ll add 4” to the rear shelf/deck and a sub. I have no clue about amps so I’ll have to spend some serious money to have an amp installed...which is why I’m putting it off. I’ve only spend a grand total of $250 on those 3 sets of speakers. The retail on the WCC or Kappa’s alone are close to $200. I’ve had great luck on Amazon and Sonicelectronix.

Interesting note about adding the 6x9's. I had figured the stock setup would not have been powerful enough to make 6x9's a reasonable option.

Do the Kappa 60.9's improve the bass sound quality over stock?

I do not plan to add additional amps, etc. so I was looking for the best bang for my buck in replacing the stock speakers with replacements. If the Kappa's don't make a huge difference because of the crappy amp I might just suck it up and just do the dash and rear shelf.

Thanks again for all your information! It has really been helpful.

[DjTicojon75]

Interesting note about adding the 6x9's. I had figured the stock setup would not have been powerful enough to make 6x9's a reasonable option.

Do the Kappa 60.9's improve the bass sound quality over stock?

I do not plan to add additional amps, etc. so I was looking for the best bang for my buck in replacing the stock speakers with replacements. If the Kappa's don't make a huge difference because of the crappy amp I might just suck it up and just do the dash and rear shelf.

Thanks again for all your information! It has really been helpful.

You'll be surprised at what a decent set of 3.5" in the dash will do...I was. Absolutely do the 3.5" first. Grab a torx bit and remember that you'll be competing with the windshield for space so a small ratchet with a torx bit will make life easy.
Those stock 4's in the rear shelf are absolute garbage. Look for 6x9's that will sound ok without needing too much power. Don't spend too much money on these because you won't get much out of them.
The stock 6.5" door speakers are without a doubt the best speakers in the system (pretty low bar though). The cones are not cheap paper...they have more of a durable plastic feel.
I wanted to give the 6.5" Kappa's a few days to "break them in". I've heard people mention that in regards to speakers but I'm not totally sure what that means. With the previous set of 6.5" Infinity's I was starting get the feel of where the settings needed to be depending on type of music and volume. So I attributed the improved sound to 'familiarity' rather than the speakers "breaking in"...who knows? Likewise with the Kappa's. Depending on quality, volume & type of music I can get pretty decent base out of the system. So in my opinion the Kappa's are a slight improvement...but nothing earth shattering. You'll be much more impressed installing high quality 3.5's in the dash. At this point, depending on the type of music, I can turn up a high quality song up to max volume, with a little adjustment to bass, treble & fade, and get reasonably loud sound with no distortion. Honestly, my girlfriend drives an 06' Impala which I believe has a stock 4-speaker (6x9) system and from a loudness standpoint (not quality) it is easily equal to my upgraded system.

[dfb11]

You'll be surprised at what a decent set of 3.5" in the dash will do...I was. Absolutely do the 3.5" first. Grab a torx bit and remember that you'll be competing with the windshield for space so a small ratchet with a torx bit will make life easy.
Those stock 4's in the rear shelf are absolute garbage. Look for 6x9's that will sound ok without needing too much power. Don't spend too much money on these because you won't get much out of them.
The stock 6.5" door speakers are without a doubt the best speakers in the system (pretty low bar though). The cones are not cheap paper...they have more of a durable plastic feel.
I wanted to give the 6.5" Kappa's a few days to "break them in". I've heard people mention that in regards to speakers but I'm not totally sure what that means. With the previous set of 6.5" Infinity's I was starting get the feel of where the settings needed to be depending on type of music and volume. So I attributed the improved sound to 'familiarity' rather than the speakers "breaking in"...who knows? Likewise with the Kappa's. Depending on quality, volume & type of music I can get pretty decent base out of the system. So in my opinion the Kappa's are a slight improvement...but nothing earth shattering. You'll be much more impressed installing high quality 3.5's in the dash. At this point, depending on the type of music, I can turn up a high quality song up to max volume, with a little adjustment to bass, treble & fade, and get reasonably loud sound with no distortion. Honestly, my girlfriend drives an 06' Impala which I believe has a stock 4-speaker (6x9) system and from a loudness standpoint (not quality) it is easily equal to my upgraded system.

Ok, I suppose that is consistent with all of the other info available.

I am about 99% sure I am getting the Boston Acoustics (dash and rear) for Christmas. Because they will be gifts with no $ out of my pocket, I will probably just leave the 4" in the rear since the rear shelf doesn't get much power anyway.

I will try out those four, possibly disconnect the center and see where I stand. I can always add on later.


Once again, thank you for all your input. It has been enormously helpful to have someone one or two steps ahead of me provide me with this info.

[simpleaz]

I just put in the Boston Acoustics SE35 in the front dash. Best $35 bucks I spent on the car. I have the 2006 so with the fiber optic stuff I don't plan on upgrading anything else. I do need to fix a vibration in the driver door from bass at higher volume. I wouldn't mind adding an amp to power the rear seat speakers as they just don't seem to deliver much sound thru the factory setup.

Thanks for the info. I did the tear out, solder, and install in less than an hour.