Hello Everyone,

I'll start by saying that I haven't wired an audio system since I was a teenager and installed a cassette deck in my 68 Buick LaSabre Convertible. That was a LONG time ago.....

Last year I bought a Hoppes Fairing off a member here on there forum. It came with a 200W Eclipse stereo with CD, Bluetooth and satellite ready as well as 4 5" coaxial marine grade speakers. This is the unit.

http://www.eclipse-web.com/us/downlo...dio/index.html

I really like the fairing on my RKC and having Sirius radio is great on long rides. But as with anything I'm now at the point of wanting more out of the system. By more I mean better sound quality and greater volume. While highway driving I can hear the music fine, but do you know that feeling when a great song comes on and you want to turn it up? Well this system just can't do it. Plus when I get to the upper range of the volume I get a popping sound coming from one of the speakers.

So for my winter project this year I'm going to take the fairing apart and install something new. But I have some questions I'm hoping to get some direction on. They are:

1. Is this Eclipse stereo something that is still a quality unit that can be used as a base to upgrade? Or would I be better off getting a new stereo base? If new would be better, what would you recommend?

2. The speakers indicate coaxial 5" marine grade. I need to keep the marine grade type speakers as i find myself riding in the rain much more often then I like too and I don't want to install something that will just get ruined in the first rainfall. As I look for speaker replacements they all indicate 5 1/4th" marine grade. Did Hoppes just get lazy and not list the 1/4th on their information sheet? Are 5" and 5 1/4" mutually swappable? I contacted Hoppes, but they never directly answered the question. I basically got the " Send it back to us and we'll do the upgrade for you" response. I think these speakers are the weak point of my system as they seem to be no-name units. Any recommendation on a brand that you like in this size range?

3. I know absolutely squat about amplifiers. Other then to say it probably makes sense if I'm going to do all this work that I should add this into my install. In a 4 speaker setup is it better to get one single amplifier for all 4 speakers or install two so that each pair is running off of one? What would you recommend that would work well with this setup?

Before I get the usual "search is your friend", I've spent the last two weeks reading every post in this forum and I have some good ideas on HOW to do the work. I didn't find direct answers to my above questions or came away with a solid answer on components. I did ready a very good post on the difference between series and parallel speaker setups as well as formulas on figuring out how well your system will perform. Still not sure which process I should use though on my setup though...

If there is any other recommendations or gotchas I should look out for, I would really appreciate a heads up. I appreciate you help!!!!!! If anyone ever needs to know something about telecom, Avaya, VoIP and affiliated networks and bolt ons, I'm your man!

Thanks!

 

Talking about amplifiers, stereos, speakers here is like talking about oils. Everyone has an opinion and no one's opinion is more important that your own.

1. If it still works then I would stick with it. It's easy to replace in the future if need be. The amplifier will make the difference for you.
2. Being that I don't have any hands on experience with the Hoppes fairings, and their website doesn't give any "specs" per say, I would make a phone call to them and see what they say about dropping in 6.5" speakers in place of the 5" (?) and if they say it can be done, I would move to that size for much better sound quality. The speakers you choose will also be an integral part of what amplifier(s) you can work with.
3. There are a number of manufacturers out there that make both 2 channel and 4 channel amps. The biggest thing to watch out for is speaker integration. A 2 ohm speaker can only be run with an amp capable of handling a 2 ohm load. On the other hand a 4 ohm speaker can be run using an amp that is stable at 4 ohms as well as 2 ohms. What you'll lose by doing the 4 ohm speakers on a 2 ohm stable amp is a little bit of volume.

With all this said, here comes my opinion;

Find out first from Hoppes whether their fairing will accept a 6.5" speaker. If not, you're stuck with 5" or 5-1/4" (which I'm fairly certain the size you speak of is). If 6.5" will fit with a little trimming as I think they will, get you a couple of sets of Polk Audio MM651s. They are 2.7ohm speakers so you'll need either a 4 channel amp such as J&M, ARC, etc that will handle a 2 ohm load or 2 - 2 channel amps that will handle the load such as the Rockford Fosgate PBR300x2. If you can find a good performing set of 6.5" 4 ohm speakers then you might want to try the Rockford Fosgate PBR300x4 amp.

I mention the polks and the rockford fosgate stuff because it will not break the bank for you and you'll be very pleased with the outcome. There are much better quality speakers such as Focals but they will cost you a small fortune as well, there are much higher priced amps that do the same thing.

 

Thanks for the information! I'll have to check on whether I have room to expand out the 5" to 6.5" speakers. I'd probably have to dremel the fiberglass, which I'm not to confident on, but willing to try if I can get better performance out of the system.

 

a dremel can be your best friend or your worst enemy. With fiberglass, make sure you draw out the hole you want to cut, then take masking or painters tape and tape that hole off so it doesn't splinter or crack on you. Take your time and be patient with the tool. It's actually really easy to do. Oh yeah.. Wear at least a dust mask and eye protection when cutting fiberglass. you don't want that stuff in your eyes or your lungs.

 

Here are some pictures of the Hoppe Quadzilla setup. The way its designed I doubt very much it will accept 5 1/4 inch speakers, there just isnt room. Take notice of the outer speakers and how close they are to the edge of the fairing and there wont be enough space in the back of them for the outer fairing to be put on without hitting the magnet area.