Tweeters

Hello all! Question... I installed some coaxial speakers in my front doors and now I'd like to replace my factory tweeters. I have a 2020 off rd Tacoma which I've heard this model shares the signal between the tweeter and door speakers. My amp is 100 rms per channel and my speakers are 100 rms so it worked out. My question is if I get new tweeters, will I need a bigger amp or door speakers with a lower rms or would it work just fine? The amp pushes all 4 door speakers. I kept my factory stereo so I used a harness.
Also.. if I were to get component speaker, would I have to run new wire to each speaker and need a bigger amp so I can run it to the tweeters individually?
Thank you all!

 

the way the factory speakers are wired, each respective side of the radio output goes to the dash tweeter via a 2-wire connection. at the tweeter, there's a 4-wire connection. the extra 2 wires are the door speakers, and the tweeter plug completes the circuit and makes the door speakers work.

the method is good and bad. it makes a lot of things possible, but it also requires a slightly different technique.

your current amp is fine, there's really no reason to upgrade it.

as far as running a component set, it's entirely possible as-is, it just requires the appropriate adapters to connect to the tweeter plug to make it work as needed.

you'd need an adapter harness like this:

$14 RED WOLF Car Front Dash Tweeter Speaker Wiring Harness for 2008-2022 Toyota RAV4 Camry 4Runner Highlander Scion, 2010-2019 Subaru Forester Factory Speaker Replacement Adapter Connector Non JBL System

https://www.amazon.com/RED-WOLF-2010-2019-Highlander-Replacement/dp/B07RMZ4CR6

after cutting the loop of wire so you have 2 negative and 2 positive wires, you'll need to figure out which two are the radio input, and then the other two will be the door speaker. from there, you just need to wire the plug to add the crossover unit from the component set:

 

Thank you! That helps a lot. What would you say the benefits of component speakers are over coaxial? Is it better sound overall? I can run it like the diagram and not run new wire to each speaker or is it better running new wire or would it matter? Thank you again!

 

coaxial speakers are a bit like swiss army knives. their intent is to do as much as possible with as little work as possible. but just like a swiss army knifes combination knife/screwdriver/tweezers, it's knife isn't at all the same quality of a benchmade knife, the screwdriver isn't at all as great as any $10 screwdriver, and the tweezers is about as good as the splinter you want to remove.

component speakers allow for better individual parts, which can make for a better performing speaker that can be a lot better. is it noticeably better? that's entirely subjective to each individual--my grandfather has been extremely happy carrying around a swiss army knife for the last 60 years. but i much prefer a 'real' knife, the same as i prefer component speakers for the improved components.

the factory speaker wire is more than adequate for at least 90w rms to the speakers. electrically, there's not really a great reason to need to change the wiring.

that said, i always run my own new speaker wire when i do my own audio systems. it makes me feel better knowing the quality of my speakers isn't relying on any unknown issues with the factory wiring.

 

I kinda like coax setups personally. Generally you do give up a little cone area to accommodate the tweeter, and woofer cooling might be compromised a bit resulting in lower power handling. Most manufacturers keep price points low on coax compared to component setups, and you may have fewer choices among brands compared to components.

But beyond that, there some glaring benefits. Install is far easier with coax. Issues in the time domain are reduced as you have both drivers aligned on the same axis (still have a time difference from left to right, so the best experience in a passive setup is dead in the middle of them where nobody sits). Imaging is surprisingly good. And for most people, they make sense for a simple setup - especially when only doing a 2-channel thing or fading most to the front. I'd argue that you could expect better sound in a simple setup out of coax than components. You'll probably lose a little on the low end compared to a dedicated woofer simply because of cone area, but if that's not a big deal, then coax can be a great solution. It's worth noting that not all coax send the high frequencies through the woofer, but most of the better options do.

Components give you more choices, and for higher-performance setups, most go this route. It lets you move higher (more directional) frequencies up and get those drivers on-axis as that generally gives a better frequency response. It's hard to get the larger woofers in your face and still be able to drive, but you can get most of the frequency range in front of you that way. Also as mentioned above, they don't sacrifice cone area to accommodate a high frequency driver.

Backing up to your first comment though - you're talking about 4 tweeters up front if you install another set of tweeters. You sure you wanna go all treble rebel? I think you could hate it. Are you just not getting the high end you need out of the coax even with EQ? Maybe the stock door woofers don't pass the higher frequencies and those go on to the stock tweeter? That would explain why you're missing high frequencies. Not sure of that topology - maybe someone can clear that up. Is there a crossover at the woofer that runs up to the tweeter? Or is that a separate amp channel?

 

scroll up, the diagram i posted, the left side is the stock setup. each speaker gets a full range signal, with the stock tweeter having a built in capacitor for a simple 6db/oct crossover.

 

So yeah, that would be 4 tweeters up front. ooftah

 

That's how the factory speakers were also. It was coaxial in the door with tweeters I'm the dash. What would be your best opinion on the front setup if you don't mind me asking?

 

It's not a coax in the door. Just a mid-woofer