Audio System | Full Reboot

[BCoch]

The stereo in my older Malibu is uh....crap.    Obviously, you can spend as much as you want on stereo equipment, but I want to keep this cost down to something somewhat reasonable.  Here's what I'd like to do - new deck, amp(s), 2 tower speakers, replace existing (4) 6.5" speakers, and add a single 10" sub.   Any suggestions of a good system that won't cost 1 million dollars?  I'm pretty crafty when it comes to fixin' but not well versed in boat audio equipment at this point.

Thanks!

Brent

[MLA]

Deck; standard single DIN?

Woofer; If you can fit a 12", do it. A 12" in the same brand/series is typically not too much more cost then the 10", but offers more output and deeper bass. Free-air, sealed ported? How is the woofer going to be loaded? This will impact the amp choice for the cabins and woofer. 

Towers; Whats the goals? Surf/party cove? Wake range? Both? Loud and Sound quality? 

[Skithemidwest]

I recently updated the speakers in my 07 Malibu and ended up going with the Skar marine. I used a pair of 6.5’s in the boat and replaced the 4 6.5 tower speakers with 2 of their 8in speakers in krypt cans. I kept my original amps and head unit since they seem to be working fine. I bridged the amp at the suggestion of @MLA and @hunter77ah. The added energy and depth of the sound was very noticeable when surfing a few days ago. 

You can kind of get a bit of an idea of their sound from the video below. Obviously the iPhone video doesn’t do justice to the bass. Side note: I let the surfer choose the song.

 

 

Edited May 13, 2023 by Skithemidwest

[BCoch]

@MLA - the deck is in the glove box now, so I'm pretty flexible on the size.  I bet a 12" woofer would be fine - there's nothing today so I'll probably be cutting in the driver footwell and can do open or sealed there.  For the tower, I'm not looking to make the whole lake party - just a little more sound when you're not sitting in the boat.  I would say clean would be the goal over loud.

[BCoch]

@Skithemidwest- you have links to the ones you bought?  I'll need to purchase the mounting hardware for the tower as I don't have any hanging there now - looks like there are lots of options for the G3 though.

[MLA]

A woofer designed for a small enclosure is probably going to be the way to do. You will likely find that the helm wall is is open at the top. So it would not do well with an infinite-baffle/free-air woofer. 

[Skithemidwest]

Speaker link:

https://www.skaraudio.com/collections/marine-speakers

 

Below is the link for the empty cans, these are specific for the illusion tower but I am sure you could find some for your tower or their customer service could help you.   

https://www.bulletlines.com/Malibu-Illusion-X-tower-speakers-p/800.htm

I don’t have any experience with the skar subs but I am guessing that one of those would compliment your system well without breaking the bank.  I have a 10in kicker sub in my passenger storage compartment that makes a big difference.