Help! Speakers for 1999 996

[nene503]

So I've looked around and I cannot find for the life of me speakers that will fit my car (CDR-220 with speakers on the dash, door, and rear). I was told to contact the person over in Cali and although I see he is well versed in 911 it is really expensive (hertz coaxial that barely handle any power for $150?!?! - paper pressed cones). So I am wondering if any has the exact measurements for the depths of the speakers in each of the 3 locations. I am interested in these speaker CDT Audio: CL42 or CL4EX, and QES670. All help would be extremely appreciated. Also does anyone have have a complete removal and install (with pics) for the 996? Step by step instruction with pics (or has a link to a youtube video showing this or something similar).

[HGGuate]

Go to Crutchfield.com and look for the "Outfit my car" section. After entering your vehicle brand, model, year and type, the Crutchfield page will give you alternatives for speakers, head units and other equipment that fits your car. The speaker recommendations will all have a note that states that "Some modification is required", as the speaker covers need to have some modification to serve as speaker mounts.

go to

or search Porsche Speaker Replacement on youtube (best page is for Boxster S) for a video of the work you have to do for these modifications.

Please post info on how you did...

[nene503]

Crutchfield doent work they are horrible for this. I had already tried that this is why I asked the question.

[Doug996InKC]

Car Audio Innovations -- specializes in Porsches

[nene503]

Called them and they didn't want to say if the CDT speakers fit or not... they seemed more interested in making a sale than helping out a fellow 996 owner.

[Marsella]

I just used Crutchfield and am pretty happy with my set up. All I changed was my HU but I am in the process of doing my speakers. I would have done speakers first but I lost my code and HU was not working. Yes I know I could have gotten the code, but it was good motivation for change and install a bluetooth setup and Crutchfield next day'd the stereo for free.

I had pretty much settled on a radio when the sale man suggested, JVC ARSENAL KD-A925BT. It came with all the wiring harnesses necessary and removal tools. Luckily I did not have to search for a switched power and did not have to do any wire splicing, basically plug and play. I guess I have the upgraded stereo in my car.

Though I am definitely more impressed with the better sound coming from the new HU, I will be changing speakers. I don't require anything crazy volume wise and I like things to look stock, so I will changing out speakers with speakers that fit the current look and keeping the stock amp.

C.

[HGGuate]

Has anybody fitted after market speakers easily? I was about to order some speakers on Crutchfield, but comments on this thread made me doubt if they will fit without having to make important modifications.

I understand i will have to modify my factory grills, but it would be a pain to go through the trouble for the speakers to "not fit"

comments appreciated.

HG

[logray]

I fitted Infinity Kappa's (or betas maybe) component series in the front (5 1/4" IIRC). They fit perfect and didn't require any mods to the factory grills. The fronts were easy. I picked these speakers for the depth (they are neodymium magnet and therefore not as deep).

Properly sealed (dynomat in the door and seals around the bezels), they put out PLENTY of sound!!! With the subwoofer off they put out some serious bass thanks to the custom factory baffle.

The tweets went in the dash grills, I think I had to mod the mounts but not the grills.

In the rears I also put Infinity Kappas, the square looking ones with integrated mid and high.

In the back mounted just behind the rear seats I put a "pro version?" bazooka.

And a nice rockford fosgate amp to power everything.

Also pioneer AVIC Z3 (custom dash) and their auto eq add-on.

I can make the car deafening loud and it only sounds better the louder it gets.

But lately I've been enjoying the sound of the engine and exhaust than the music.

I recommend removing the door panels (there are some DIY's here) and measuring if you are looking at a particular speaker size. I've had CDTs in the past in my Jeep and they tend to run shallow like the Infinitys. JL audio or anything else and you might have a problem.

Running speaker wire around this car is a nightmare, I ended up splicing the rears into the factory wiring and had a nasty ground loop, solved by a few isolators.

[mjp111569]

This should fit perfectly and retain stock look.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Porsche-Bose-Speakers-Subwoofer-996-Boxster-986-_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQhashZitem20b89cf7ceQQitemZ140536248270QQptZCarQ5fAudioQ5fVideo

[logray]

I'm not sure if this is an optional audio system or not, but at least in my 1999 C2 996 car in the door fronts (most important for good sound), there are really nice factory plastic baffles behind the door panel.

No mods required, the factory grills are on the door. No cutting of anything and use any aftermarket speaker you would like to (check depth FIRST before you buy).

You remove the door panel (easy, just search how to do it) and behind the panel are the plastic baffle/woofer/box that attaches to the door.

In that nice "mid range" box/baffle/bandpass pictured below that came with the car (below pic with red arrow) , remove the old speakers, and then you insert any 5 1/4 speaker you want to (assuming is is the right depth, which you should measure first). Measure the speaker size as well but I'm pretty sure it is 5 1/4". I cut a micro fiber cloth around the outside of the speaker to ensure a perfect air tight fit. You'll notice in the lower right of the factory box is an air port, which is why the seal is important for bass/midrange. #7 pictured below is really unneccessary, and as you'll see the speaker attaches to the box, and not the grill on the door (covering whatever you have underneath).

I used to work for JBL (harmon/kardon, becker, infinity, etc.) and the president of engineering there drove a boxster. BOSE might have been an option for the speakers at the time if I remember right, and I can clearly recall the expletives he used to describe how terrible it sounded, the quality and number of speakers was not designed well.

I recommend using component speakers, and put the tweeters in the dash below the windshield.

For the rears you just need something to fill the space, doesn't really matter.

For a sub, the front door baffles do a pretty good job, but if you want some really deep bass you're going to need something custom behind the seats (the under seat subs won't fit).

Edited April 23, 2011 by logray

[HGGuate]

Quick update and recommendations from my personal experience with a "speaker only" upgrade on a 996.

I recently Installed 4 inch replacement speakers in my stock factory locations (dash and rear quarter) on an early 996 with stock head unit. The stock speakers were very simple, single driver, cardboard cone speakers, obviously not high fidelity. My intention was to make a small upgrade and decide if I needed to go any further after some time listening to the new sound. I was not interested in a louder sound system than stock, just better fidelity.

My initial choice was to go with 2 way, coaxial speakers in the original factory locations, using the factory grills, so as to not have any visible modifications inside my car. My key concern was that replacement speakers fit into the factory locations with no great modification beyond making the speakers fit in the factory grills.

Using the procedure illustrated on Youtube (search for "Boxster Speaker Replacement") I modified the factory grilles so they would hold the replacement speakers. If you are to embark on this project, I recommend you have a rotary tool available to cut the grills and sand down whatever you need to on the grill back and "speaker basket", you will need a torx head driver and a small wrench to turn the torx head for the screw placed closest to the windshield. You will also need a soldering iron and some quick epoxy or fast drying glue (superglue). Also, I would recommend you have some fast hardening silicone to seal the speakers into the grills once you modify them. I dont remember this last part being specified on the Youtube video, but it makes a big difference on the reproduction quality of the speakers once the job is completed.

The space below the dash speaker grilles is large and deep enough for just about any 4 inch speaker to fit (I did not check to see if 5.25 inch speakers would have fit, I would imagine they would, but would require much more modification or replacement of the factory grills, which I did not want to do). The space on the rear quarter speaker locations has less leeway. Although my replacement speakers (JL Audio C2 400x) have much larger magnets than the original speakers, they fit without having to cut any material out of the firewall insulation or further modification behind the grills.

I was initially tempted to not replace the rear quarter speakers, as the space was tighter and I usually listen to my sound faded slightly toward the front (2). I am very happy that I changed all 4 speakers, as the sound baffling created in the rear quarter is much more effective than the one created in the dash location and the sound quality for Bass reproduction is much better from the back (no crossovers were installed or changes in the wiring, just the physics of sound reproduction with a well sealed speaker grill and sound insulating material that acts as baffling behind the speaker). I now fade my sound a bit to the back (-2) and have better Bass reproduction than I did before.

The replacement speakers I used are not extremely expensive or particularly cheap; however, having better quality midrange cone material and a separate tweeter drivers, definitely makes for a great difference in sound fidelity. In my opinion, this "speaker only" upgrade is definitely worth the time and effort.

I would imagine a good sound shop will recommend you install an amplifier, crossovers, and a sub-woofer for the best quality sound. While this is absolutely true, I am not sure if I the investment in cost and modifications would be worth it (who really blasts the sound in a 911?).

Your time to make the modifications and the risk of damaging the dashboard and speaker grills are probably something you should consider before trying to do this on your own if you don´t have DIY experience. If you do not, bring the Youtube video to your local car stereo shop (this mod may not be intuitive to them) and let them have a go at it.

I hope this helps you guys out there considering this mod.

[gu9cci]

Called them and they didn't want to say if the CDT speakers fit or not... they seemed more interested in making a sale than helping out a fellow 996 owner.

THAT IS HOW I FEEL WHEN I CALL.NO HELP JUST SELL.I END UP DOING MYSELF EVERYTHING GOING 3 WAY FRONT PASSIVE WITH SUB.3 AMPS AND PROCESSOR.

[gldraper]

Idk If you ever solved your problem I'm reading this months after your post. Focal 4 in separates for the dash and 5 1/4 in woofer for the doors and 4 in separates for rear then add a sub and amp. There are no better speakers than Focal and those people rock there they actually built me the speakers for the doors custom for my 996.

[1dmurrray]

When looking to upgrade my 2001 C4, I quickly discovered that getting aftermarket speakers to fit the stock dash and rear seat grills was non trivial due to the non standard mounting points. I didn't want a solution that involved butchering the old speakers and copious amounts of glue. I addition, I didn't want to invest the time required to fabricate my own mounting adaptors. No need to reinvent the wheel here: I found a vendor in the UK that makes an adaptor kit for certain aftermarket speakers, JM Garage. They also list these adaptors on ebay from time to time. The adaptor kit works for the dash and rear seat covers. The kits are a bit (i.e., very) pricey (about $90 per pair of speakers); but for me it was well worth the savings in time and effort.

I decided to go with the kits for US Alpine speakers (SPS-410 - less than $50/pair on Amazon). Installation with the adaptor kits was a breeze. The Alpine speakers are a tremendous bargain. For mids and highs, they sound fantastic in the 996. A huge upgrade over the stock speakers. As 4 inch speakers, however, they do not reproduce lower frequencies. Moreover, the hifi amp sends the lower frequencies to the 5.25 inch door speakers anyway.

Replacing the door speakers was, therefore, next. The good news: almost any standard 5.25 inch speaker will fit. The bad news, you have to take the door panels off to get to the speakers. There are good online tutorials here and elsewhere to get the door panels off. It turns out to be a relatively easy task.

Speaker selection for the doors is a matter of price and functionality. If you use the stock amp, you want a component speaker since the stock amp sends only lower frequencies to the door speakers. A lot of folks seem to like focal speakers. Given the high price, I'm sure they are great; but most installations that I saw online a used a lot of glue. I prefer to avoid glue.

After looking around for something with stock amp compatible power and the best low end frequency response, I decided to try the 5.25 inch speakers that come in the Pioneer TS-D1320C component set. The set runs about $90 and includes component tweeters and bulky crossovers, which I did not plan to use (unfortunately, I couldn't find the 5.25 inch speakers for sale by themselves). Selling points for me: "deep basket for better bass reproduction" and frequency response down to 35 Hz. Of course, the proof is in the pudding, and these speakers sound great. Very nice base response for a 5.25 inch speaker. They are not 10 inch subwoofers by any means, but you can definitely feel the base in the car, and it rounds out nicely the excellent sound produced by the Alpine speakers.

[koolkat1973]

I am looking to do the same on my 2001 996tt which came with the 10 speakers Hi-fi package. I have already replaced the head unit with a double-din Kenwood player. Right now - I am in the process of replacing the door midbass speakers with the Pioneer TS-D1320C component set as used by 1dmurray above. Question I have is with the resistance of the Pioneer speakers. They are rated at 4 ohms while my OEM speaker are rated at 2 ohms. I am not planning on replacing the amplifier. Do you guys noticed any issues (or lower sound output) with these aftermarket 4 ohms speakers running with the 2 ohm stock amp? I'm also thinking bout replacing the dash speakers as well and pretty sure they are 2 ohms rated as well. Thanks.

Kiet

[Wausau 911]

I went thru all the above. I have an '04 996 coupe w/Bose system. I just want to upgrade the dash speakers to obtain better high frequency

sound. I would appreciate input on available speaker / tweeter options that do not entail mounting difficulties. Basically plug & play (if thats possible). Also interested in replies to Koolkat's question on the 2 ohm issue as that is what Bose uses. Thx for replies.

[1dmurrray]

In my car with the 6 speaker hifi setup, I am pretty sure the stock dash and rear speakers were 4 ohms, and the Alpine SPS 410s are also 4 ohms. The stock door speakers were 2 ohms, but I didn't find any 2 ohm speakers with the frequency response I was looking for. I am sure changing from 2 to 4 ohms creates some balance issues with less power going to the Pioneers than went to the stockers, but I use the equalizer on the new head unit to dial in the sound I like. The max volume is not ear drum crushing, but it's plenty loud for listening even with the windows down at highway speeds.

[li911]

Quick update and recommendations from my personal experience with a "speaker only" upgrade on a 996.I recently Installed 4 inch replacement speakers in my stock factory locations (dash and rear quarter) on an early 996 with stock head unit. The stock speakers were very simple, single driver, cardboard cone speakers, obviously not high fidelity. My intention was to make a small upgrade and decide if I needed to go any further after some time listening to the new sound. I was not interested in a louder sound system than stock, just better fidelity.My initial choice was to go with 2 way, coaxial speakers in the original factory locations, using the factory grills, so as to not have any visible modifications inside my car. My key concern was that replacement speakers fit into the factory locations with no great modification beyond making the speakers fit in the factory grills.Using the procedure illustrated on Youtube (search for "Boxster Speaker Replacement") I modified the factory grilles so they would hold the replacement speakers. If you are to embark on this project, I recommend you have a rotary tool available to cut the grills and sand down whatever you need to on the grill back and "speaker basket", you will need a torx head driver and a small wrench to turn the torx head for the screw placed closest to the windshield. You will also need a soldering iron and some quick epoxy or fast drying glue (superglue). Also, I would recommend you have some fast hardening silicone to seal the speakers into the grills once you modify them. I dont remember this last part being specified on the Youtube video, but it makes a big difference on the reproduction quality of the speakers once the job is completed.The space below the dash speaker grilles is large and deep enough for just about any 4 inch speaker to fit (I did not check to see if 5.25 inch speakers would have fit, I would imagine they would, but would require much more modification or replacement of the factory grills, which I did not want to do). The space on the rear quarter speaker locations has less leeway. Although my replacement speakers (JL Audio C2 400x) have much larger magnets than the original speakers, they fit without having to cut any material out of the firewall insulation or further modification behind the grills.I was initially tempted to not replace the rear quarter speakers, as the space was tighter and I usually listen to my sound faded slightly toward the front (2). I am very happy that I changed all 4 speakers, as the sound baffling created in the rear quarter is much more effective than the one created in the dash location and the sound quality for Bass reproduction is much better from the back (no crossovers were installed or changes in the wiring, just the physics of sound reproduction with a well sealed speaker grill and sound insulating material that acts as baffling behind the speaker). I now fade my sound a bit to the back (-2) and have better Bass reproduction than I did before.The replacement speakers I used are not extremely expensive or particularly cheap; however, having better quality midrange cone material and a separate tweeter drivers, definitely makes for a great difference in sound fidelity. In my opinion, this "speaker only" upgrade is definitely worth the time and effort.I would imagine a good sound shop will recommend you install an amplifier, crossovers, and a sub-woofer for the best quality sound. While this is absolutely true, I am not sure if I the investment in cost and modifications would be worth it (who really blasts the sound in a 911?).Your time to make the modifications and the risk of damaging the dashboard and speaker grills are probably something you should consider before trying to do this on your own if you don´t have DIY experience. If you do not, bring the Youtube video to your local car stereo shop (this mod may not be intuitive to them) and let them have a go at it.I hope this helps you guys out there considering this mod.

Does your car have door speakers?