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Just a quick look with a flashlight and a ruler shows the current drivers in all four doors at just over 6" (edge of rubber surround to the opposite edge). that's good news, IMO.

I've heard recurring recommendations on all the speakers mentioned, in particular, the focal series. I've previously had polk mids/highs and a JL sub in a much smaller car, and it was "ok" but could have been better with some tuning.

Current mounts for the front tweeters are top of the door at the front, curved "inward" a bit so they really appear aimed directly at the middle of the opposite front door window. Sets a nice soundstage already. I'm looking to move from "good" to "excellent" SQ.

What's lacking in the current system is the bottom end of bass response, and dynamic headroom from being underpowered.

I figure removing the rear speakers just gives a sub in the trunk more room to breathe anyway. The sound deadening material even on the trunk lid/deck is > 1 inch thick.

I'm thinking first get the sub and amp in and tuned, then a 4channel (100w+ RMS/channel) amp and components for the front doors and coax for the rear doors.

Then we'll move to the head unit and all that. (perhaps the wife will less notice my spending $$ on this a piece at a time?)

As for the S80, dual turbo, it's fast as snot, gets zero attention by law enforcement, which is a big plus in my book.

thanks again,
andy
p.s. where in NJ? middletown, about 30 miles south of manhattan (NYC) as the crow flies.

Ok...the SQ God is here......and I am peeking out from the other room. SQ is a tough thing to do. First off, choosing a luxury car for a SQ vehicle is an excellent thought because of the stock deadner already in the car. I have found this to be true with my Mark VIII. Also the Volvo S80 T6 is one of my "must have" cars cause of the pure sanity it can give in an insane world. Excellent choice of car my good friend.

On to the problem at hand. Fusion I have heard is good stuff, but I haven't tuned my ears to it yet. So in that sense, your guess is as good as mine. AS for SQ components, Jeremy hit it on the head with the K2p Focals! Excellent sounds and Evanescence just shines in my car! Excellent sound. But also as Jeremy mentioned, the tuning is the key. The Tweeter is harsh out of the box, but with the right amount of tuning, sounds oh so sweet! As for Sub duties...look into the Focal 33V2 13" DVC sub. EXCELLENT sound, will get loud too, just not stupid loud. Besides, what SQ purist really wants super loud music anyway. I have hit 130db in competition, and to me, that is plenty loud enough. I have one, Justin from Detroit has one. We both have the Audison LRx1.400 powering the sub and just ask him if they don't sound awesome!

As for another option for amp, look at the slash series JL amps, even the new "E" series amps are outstanding and the money is right on them too. Also Joey on here sells Morel speakers with Lunar amps. I have had the recent joy to hear a Lunar/Morel setup at a shop here in OKC and let me tell you, those amps are on my short list for next season. OUTSTANDING clarity!

As for the rest of the thoughts, stay away from any kind of rear speakers, they just get in the way of your sound stage. Work on the midbass drivers in the doors and mount the tweeters midlevel (re...eye level) on the a-pillar. This will bring your stage up and give you a broader listening environment. I think that may just have to be my placement when the build happens this weekend and next.

Anyway, welcome to the forum, enjoy your stay. And keep rockin the Volvo and Harley!

Joe

I would recommend popping it open too, cause sometimes my reference catalogs are wrong... and yeah I Love the Fusion stuff... and that's not just dealer bias, cause I carry alot of other brands too.

Yea, ZZTop!
Yea, best way to find out for sure is to pop it open and find out. Door panels are usually pretty easy to remove.
Good to see another NJer in here too :) Where do you live?

Yup, tried that, among others. Either you get "we've never examined that vehicle" or something like that.

Folks who drive bigger volvos don't seem to do sound upgrades. (the typical S80 driver doesn't look anything like me; I also ride a harley, complete with beard, long hair, etc, you do the math;-) )

The grills look like they cover a 6.5", while I've also heard 5.25" as well(from Cargodz). Time to crack open the toolbox and just go for it ;-)

Gotta say, those fusion subs look very nice indeed. Gotta pull out the calc and see what creative enclosure I can guestimate for the trunk. I do travel a lot, so I need the trunk useful, but it is already big enough for two dead bodies (hey, i live in NJ, what can I say!). Just need to leave room for one at least.

Thanks again for all the informative posts. Really do appreciate it.

The way I found everything out about my front speakers was I went to crutchfield. http://www.crutchfield.com You can enter in your car with whatever options and it will show you what your speakers sizes are and etc. I had to email crutchfield though to get exact mounting depth.

Good points all. I'm gonna pull a door or two panel this weekend and see exactly what i have to work with space wise (I think there were several options on those cars over the years) and make sure i don't wind up with something too deep/etc.

I took a look this AM and i do have a couple secure mounting options in the trunk for a sub. If it's moveable, or just located to one side, i don't lose the trunk as a useful place to put stuff.

And would you believe my other ride is a Harley Road King? (i got the volvo because it depreciates faster than anything in it's class, and a 'cherry' off lease return can be had for less than 1/2 the original price). extended warranty recommended for sure ;-)

cargodz wrote:Side note: Come on you guys, he's looking for sq and you've got two Fusion dealers on here (Me and Smoker) and nobody mentions Fusion.

How about this. Send me a set, to listen to, and I will sugest it in the future. :happy055:

Its hard for me to sugest something I have never heard, or I would.

anomaly65 wrote: So, questions:
1- Anyone know what size the door speakers are in an S80?

The door speakers are 5.25"
and with your budget you've got plenty to choose from and a decent sq car for starters.
Another option for your rear deck would be to pull the 6x9"s and throw in a 6.5" adapter, then throw some mid bass in there.... that combined with on decent sub should be more than enough for you.
As for your fronts... If you don't want your highs to bright, stay away from anything with titanium tweeters. Silk domes are much softer on sensitive ears.

Side note: Come on you guys, he's looking for sq and you've got two Fusion dealers on here (Me and Smoker) and nobody mentions Fusion.

[quote="anomaly65"]
I didn't like a friend's MB Quart components, as the tweeters were just too bright (harsh]

I have never been a fan of MB tweets either. They make some nice speakers, but every time I hear a set installed they are just to darn harsh.

Ok back to the good stuff. My ideas still stand with the component sets. Seas, and peerless would fit your taste well. Same with the JLs, but I would put them next. The focals KP2s would do well in the mid range area, but the TN52 tweeter can be pretty harsh, unless your really carefull with the install and tuning.

I still think 1 sub will be better for you. IMO its better to spend your money on one really nice sub (better design / SQ / materials / build quality) than it is to spend the same amount on 2 cheaper subs.

And

It cuts down on how much power you need from your sub amp, giving you more money to spend on the front stage. :happy055: