I have been reading all these topics.....so my question is this, why are all you guys putting the speakers( not the subs, the speakers) in the back??????????? This seems so odd to me. The sound could not be all that great, with all the sound coming to you from the back of your heads! I know its " like headphones", but the spot for the speakers should be in front of you. *i.e. doors, kick panels, dash...etc. I know its hard on some cars, but come on you guys! you are hot rodders arent you!!!??? I always thought hot rodders were the mothers( not literally) of invention! We are the ones that made these cars original, not all just like the assy. line models. I think the front stage is what makes or breaks a system, and the car sound off shows will agree here. there is a co. named Q forms. They make custom kick panels for just about any car made, and they are really not that pricey if you look at the difference in sound quality you will gain.You guys who know the fiberglass stuff, just make em'! They are really cool looking, and inprove your sound, and keep your ears in check. The raging sound from behind you WILL sound better in front of you. the seats alone are blocking out the sound, mids/tweeters are greatly effected by objects being in front of them, an example, have you ever had door speakers that seemed muted a bit when your leg is in front of them? (try this example) The kicks are the best, but hell, even in the doors, will sound like a whole new set of speakers compared to having them in the rear. Add Dynamat to the door, and it will sound even BETTER, and handle more wattage too. OH! go to soundmove.com, they have kick panels with or without speakers for 2nd gen elkys, and they even have the vents intact! this is where i'm getting mine from. only run like $75.00 for blank ones( you add you own speakers) The rear speakers are for rear fill only on most systems, and they are great in the back sub wall area, but front sound is definitely needed to get all the sound right! 8)

C'mon now you can't be serious? A true stereo and high end audio system needs speakers both left and right, as well as behind. This is the only way to get true stereo and high quality sound representation! I have aftermarket speakers in the factory locations, as well as kick panels, and 6x9's, tweeters and 2 10" subs behind the seats. It may very well be the cleanest system I've ever heard. You've got to break up the bass coming from behind with both mids and highs otherwise the subs will overpower the system unless turned down. Just my opinion! -Matt
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May I suggest you READ what I put down here? You are saying the same thing my friend! I SAID the speakers in just the rear is NOT the way to do it! The rear is for fill, not the overall sound of a good system. The post I have made says that pretty clearly, and even gives 2 manufacturers of kick panels for cars. The main systems I have read on here are putting the mainstay of their gear in the back of their seats.I do however like YOUR system very much, and am soooo glad to hear of someone else in here that has a clue on speaker placement. The standard style I see here is 3 1/2 " or something similar in the factory locales, or none at all and 6x9's or others in the rear behind the seats, along with the subs. this works, but the larger speakers in the back will dominate unless the amp is gained way down to make them less pronounced, and you know how "well" the 3 1/2's perform.......not good most times. So I am saying the same thing. Like the system though. :cool:

Well as for my 74, it would take some doing to get anything up front other than what I've already done with the factory speaker location by using a pair of JBL 3 1/8's mounted in a custom carrier that bolts to the original center speaker cage. I set up the crossover to stop the lows from getting to them and just pass mids and highs. I've already tried the kick panels and without some major sheetmetal cutting I couldn't really mount anything there either because the space is so shallow behind them. I tried and all I got was speakers sticking out and a great soundstage for my feet. :P

I am one of the sinnners you mentioned with 6x9's behind the seats. I have found, however, that by mounting them firing up instead of forward I get better balance between front and rear with less stereo channel separation which is a good thing when your soundstage is so close to you. Kinda sucks to be sitting in front of one speaker and not hear the other at all. Which goes to your argument about stock locations. Behind the seats really isn't stock in my bodystyle anyway as they usually stuck the spare tire back there. We usually just stick speakers there because it just seemed the most convenient spot and a lot of us grew up believing that the rear of a car should have two speakers back there. :-D

My doors are huge but unfortunately have a whole lotta window hardware in the way inside and it don't give me much in the way of clearance for a 40oz or even a 20oz magnet on 6x9's. The best I could do would be small component speakers up toward the top and that would look goofy on my doors. Some cars just don't take well to modifications without a whole lot of reengineering.

I'm happy with the way my Elky sounds although it could use a sub. Now My 96 Camaro with the factory BOSE system with a sub sounds awesome to me. But that is a system that was designed for the interior space it's installed in. I also realize that for some it's woefully inadequate but then I would actually like to hear the approaching fire truck when I need to. :D

I like my music to be full not loud. 8)

Ok, I guess i must have misread what exactly you were saying. I have seen a lot of El camino stereo systems with 3-1/2" in the dash and loud subs in the back. Now that is a joke. I love clean, loud and well balanced systems. I think the 3-1/2's act as good tweeters and some mid bass, the kick panales are awesome highs and clean mid bass, and the 6x9's behind the seats are the fillers for the mid bass that kick panels can't produce. When everything is crossed-over properly it really sounds outstanding! Its is all about even, clean sound production with out overpowering bass. -Matt

i have a 3rd gen el co and it didn't take that much to put in an infinity component system. it didn't take me that long to install the speakers. granted they're not in factory locations and it took a little doing, but it wasn't that hard nor did it that that long. sounddomain customer service sucks and nobody ever ansewers the phone. i went with custom-auto sound, way better customer service.

but on the other hand a lot of people are more into keeping the interior look original, while still wanting a decent sounding system. so they're kind of force to hide and muffle amped 6x9's and 8"-12" behind the seat. it's a balance that every has to deal with some just tip it more, on way or the other according to their own loking.