Need help with speakers

[Abulldog08]

Hi all, I'm a newbie, picked up my first RV this past weekend, 2017 Cherokee Grey Wolf Limited 26bh. Overall, I am extremely happy with everything. However, as ungrateful as I sound, the speakers are awful. They crackle and sound brutal. I'm going to contact the dealer to see if they think it's normal for them to sounds like that, but I'm hoping to just replace them with some better speakers.

I don't need a bass thumping sound, I'm not going to add an amp or replace the furrion dvd/cd/radio/blutooth head unit, but it annoys me everytime I turn music on.

Has anyone replaced their speakers? Do I need to know anything special? I'm hoping I can just buy a pair and swap them out, plug and play, does anyone know if it will be that easy? My biggest fear is that the opening for the speakers are shallow (thickness between bottom of ceiling and top of room).

Any help or experience would be great!

[FamilyCamper296]

Speakers are the easiest mod, the difficult thing is to find the right speaker to fit the existing hole. Replaced stock speakers in our HW296 with Rockford Fosgate 3 way 6", then added two 4" Rockford's (channel B) towards the front under the lights off switch. Also added a 2nd speaker outside to match the lone speaker outside.

[FamilyCamper296]

Channel "B", not channel ☺

[FamilyCamper296]

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1. 6.75"

[FamilyCamper296]

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1. 4"

[Abulldog08]

Thanks for your help! My question is mostly whether I'll have room height wise to buy just a normal speaker or if Ill be under restriction depth wise

[FamilyCamper296]

Easy route, but you will pay about 10% more is measure your dimensions and call crutchfield.com and speak to a specialist. Their tech guys can walk you through entire process. Good value.

[Archicamper]

I used these speakers:

5-1/4 Inches Kevlar 2-Way In-Ceiling Speakers (Pair) - 50W Nominal, 100W Max - Monoprice.com

I had to cut the opening in the ceiling a little larger and had to add some additional thickness to plywood ceiling but it was worth the effort. The first thing you need to do is pull the unit from the wall and verify that all the connections in the back are correct. Most of these come out of the factory miss wired.

Next pull one of the ceiling speakers and see what is the diameter of the cutout and how much space you have from the ceiling to the roof. This will help you determine which speakers to use.

[camaraderie]

Abulldog....
1. Go with a 6.5" coax speaker for the best results and easy swapout in the future. The 3 ways are gimmicks. The Rockford Fosgates listed above are a good choice but I'd get the coax ones in 6.5". There are many more excellent 6.5" speakers available and I'd go with a name HOME speaker brand for the best sound...Infinity, BostonAccoustics, JBL etc.

2. Depth can be handled with spacers like these:
Metra 82-4300 Speaker Adaptors for Universal 1" Plastic Spacer Rings

3. The first thing to do is remove the existing ones and probe around to see how deep you can go and if there is any obstruction to installing larger speakers. 6.5" is ideal...but the other sizes...5.25" and 4" can also give major improvements with quality brands over the crap that comes pre-installed.

You can re-use the existing wiring easily...so it is simply a matter of figuring out what will fit and the mounting process. Good luck!

[FamilyCamper296]

We bought our highwall 296 used but one thing I noticed was the second speaker of Channel a was not working. So I traced it back to behind the main console and during installation staple had pierced the speaker wire. This must have happened during Manufacturing. Just something to be aware of.

[pdqparalegal1]

I went with the cheapest sound bar I could get at Best Buy, optical cable. All the volume I need and decent sound. To each his own.

[dan-nickie]

I also use the adapter rings shown in Post 9.
I bought 2 sets and double stacked them to provide 2 inch

[Abulldog08]

That's a great idea if I can't fit it depth wise in the ceiling, so it just sticks down a bit from the ceiling? Just not flush?

[dan-nickie]

Originally Posted by Abulldog08

That's a great idea if I can't fit it depth wise in the ceiling, so it just sticks down a bit from the ceiling? Just not flush?

Exactly. I did how to post with pictures about a year ago if I can find it. Actually from my phone now I know I can't find it but could from my laptop. You may find it before I do.

[dan-nickie]

Here it is.
http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...ad.php?t=75694

[camaraderie]

Originally Posted by dan-nickie

Here it is.
http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...ad.php?t=75694

Heh...I remember that thread and being impressed with how you painted the rings for a good match to your overhead! I've still done nothing with mine since all my wife wants to do is listen to talk radio...I get the ear buds!

[Abulldog08]

Originally Posted by camaraderie

Abulldog....
1. Go with a 6.5" coax speaker for the best results and easy swapout in the future. The 3 ways are gimmicks. The Rockford Fosgates listed above are a good choice but I'd get the coax ones in 6.5". There are many more excellent 6.5" speakers available and I'd go with a name HOME speaker brand for the best sound...Infinity, BostonAccoustics, JBL etc.

2. Depth can be handled with spacers like these:
Metra 82-4300 Speaker Adaptors for Universal 1" Plastic Spacer Rings

3. The first thing to do is remove the existing ones and probe around to see how deep you can go and if there is any obstruction to installing larger speakers. 6.5" is ideal...but the other sizes...5.25" and 4" can also give major improvements with quality brands over the crap that comes pre-installed.

You can re-use the existing wiring easily...so it is simply a matter of figuring out what will fit and the mounting process. Good luck!

This is EXACTLY what I was looking for. Thank you!

[Abulldog08]

Just wanted to update anyone who was curious...I took the speakers down from the ceiling and found that both INSIDE speakers were FILLED with crappy foam and rubber insulation. Don't get me wrong, the speakers still SUCK, but at leas they're not blown.

There's a big differense between BAD sounds quality and Broken sound quality lol.