I would like to upgrade the speakers in my 2000 4X4 4 door Blazer LT because my rear door speakers are cutting in and out and probably ready to go completely.

I would like to upgrade the dash speakers (Tweeters) to 4X6 2 ways if is possible to just drop in a pair of Polk Audio DB461 speakers.

Here is what I have in the dash right now.



I'm curious as to what is in the black shrink wrap tube (capacitor maybe?). W
ill I need it when I drop the 4X6 speakers in or do I cut the wires behind it and "bug" on a pair of wires and connectors for the new speaker?



Pic 3



Anybody upgraded these before? I'm going to add Polk Audio DB651S to each of the four doors as part of the upgrade and plan on using the stock head unit for now.

Thanks in advance for any help, input and suggestions.

 

The "black shrink wrapped tube" is a bass blocker, it prevents the tweeter from being destroyed by low frequencies. As far as whether the 4x6 will fit, it should but i'm not certain. I have an older model Blazer so the configuration is a little different. I find Crutchfield.com to be quite useful in determining if something will fit. In theory, you should be able to snip the wire below the bass blocker and drop in the new 4x6.

Btw, if you get the Polk Audio install finished, please let me know how it sounds. I'm considering doing pretty much the same install with my '96 Blazer this summer.

 

I'll be sure to post back with pics and results. I tried Crutchfield but according to their website and a phone call to sales, they don't have anything that will fit without modification.

Thanks for identifying the "bass blocker".

 

The 'bass blocker' is also known as a high-pass filter.

A 4x6 might fit (that is the opening size at least) but the depth might be an issue. I squeezed a pair of 4" infinitys in mine without too much trouble, but like I said, they need to be fairly low profile.

 

Depth is always the limiting factor on those dashes. Between brackets and duct work they're kinda tight.

If I may be so bold as to suggest you forget the 4x6 speakers all together and try this. Assuming you've already upgraded the speakers in your front doors, put them in the back doors. Then go get yourself a nice set of 6.5" components. Install the tweeter in the factory tweeter location (remove the factory one from the plate, install the new one), drop the mid into the front door, wire them up to the crossover and it to your HU or amp and you'll be another step closer to a much better sounding speaker system.

Using all these different speakers in these different locations creates havoc in the overall sound you hear. With all of them playing the same frequencies from all those places ruins imaging and staging and can often times cause bad cancellations, beaming and different kinds of harmonic distortion.

A single set of components lends a machete to the audible thicket. There's far less chance of problems with cancellations, beaming and distortions. It also tends to open the sound stage up, letting the music sound as though it's coming from it's intended locations.

In my Jimmy I ran a set of Phoenix Gold RSD 6.5" components off the HU for quite some time before I upgraded to my Bravox's with the custom baffles and Sundown amp. I got a lot of comments on how good it sounded and how loud it got. A lot of people commented on how "alive" and "natural" the music sounded. What they heard was the difference between a jarbled mess of a bunch of different speakers and single sources for each range of frequencies played by the mid and the tweeter on each channel.

A lot of people think that just because they have ALL those speaker holes filled that it's louder and sounds better than a much simpler setup such as a set of components in an ideal installation. Truth is that the simpler the arrangement and the better the installation the better the overall output is. Depending on the level of equipment you buy and the kind of installation you can do, it may or may not be cheaper than buying all those seperate size speakers too. Whether you belive it or not is up to you.

 

get a high end component set and install them in the factory dash/front door locations. amazing results for about the same amount of coin as full range coaxial speakers in both front locations. co-ax speakers work well in the rear, but not the front..

 

For the system I'm planning to put in my Blazer, I was going to use component sets in both the front and rear doors. Would you recommend co-ax in place of the rear components?

 

MBunk 007
i wouldnt spend the money on rear components. when was the last time that you sat in the back seat of your own vehicle? i would just buy a bi*chin set of coaxial speakers.

 

ohiolefty

i talked to my stereo shop about doing the same thing. 3 out of 5 guys said to drop in a 4x6 with a bass blocker. they said that you can change out the blockers pretty quick with the way that they wire them up; which is what i dont know about. i was thinkin it would be better to do components but after talking to them it makes more sense to drop 4x6's. the mid speakers are in the bottom of the doors, right where your legs and passengers legs are, IN THE WAY!! so when i get the money, im doing 4x6's. but thats just me.
good luck.

 

I agree with Twip to a point. Components are absolutely useless in the back. That's a waste of money for something you're not going to be able to properly listen to from the driver's seat. In all honesty so would a set of "bi*chin" coax's. You're money is better spent focusing on the quality of the installation of the front speakers than it is on almost any part of the equipment.



That doesn't make any sense at all. Why would you ever want to change the bass blockers? There's no good purpose in doing so, not one. It makes sense for them to recommend buying both new speakers for the doors and the dash, they're making more money from the sale. There's a bigger margin for markup for a two sets of cheap coax's than it is for one nicer set of components.


I'm an out and out SQ guy and always have been. Ever since I attended my first audio competition I was hooked on making things sound good. There's nothing like listening to the music the way it was intended to be heard. There's no part of the music that's recorded on the opposite side of the microphones. All the musicians and the singer are on that side of the microphones, like a personal performance right in front of you. Listening to them play you can HEAR the lead guitar on the right, the bass guitar on the left, the drummer in the center behind the singer and the singer front and center. All that really is recorded and CAN be played back faithfully, but doing so requires some work, dedication and attention to detail. The SQ competition vehicles could do it, in AMAZING detail. Anyone can do it but not with a hodge-podge of different sized speakers all creating a mish mosh of sound from all their different locations. All those different speakers, in all their different locations playing the SAME frequencies will ruin the imaging, sound stage and effect of the recording. Many times there will be cancellations and odd order harmonic distortions that are simply nasty to hear. Most people are oblivious to it since it's the only thing they've known, but honestly, does anyone really WANT that? Why not spend a few extra dollars, spend a few extra hours planning, and a few extra hours on the installation and make it the best it can be? Sure, making it sound like it was originally recorded in the studio is a bit of a stretch, but you'd be very surprised how close you can get for a few hundred bucks.

Hell, spend a couple of weeks with the fader adjusted all the way forward for listening to just the front speakers. Be honest and leave it alone the whole two weeks and afterward center the fader back up. It's going to sound VERY off, and maybe then some may understand.

/RANT