Car audio advice needed

[skategoat]

Guys:

I replaced the door panels in my old car and chose not to cut out the speaker holes for a cleaner look. However, the sound from the rear speakers alone is pretty bad (no bass due to non-sealed enclosure) so I guess I'll be installing door speakers after all.

The holes are 5.25" and I'm thinking about avoiding separate tweeters by using two-way speakers. A couple of questions:

- the location of the door speakers would be about knee level. I know high frequencies are highly directional so will it make a big difference in hearing highs if the tweeters are pointed at my knees?

- are component speakers really that much better for sound?

I am only pushing 40 watts per channel with my amp and the cabin is very small. It's also an old, non-insulated convertible which means the road noise is overwhelming and makes hi-fi an impossibility. I'm just looking for mid-fi here.

[Jack Michaud]

Yes, separate tweeters up high make a significant difference. However I would think you'd be able to start with 2-ways in the door and see how you like it. Then add the tweeters later if you want. At that point, if having 4 tweeters became a problem, you could just snip the wires feeding the tweeters in the doors. For the money I think Boston Acoustics are a great value.