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View Full Version : Pics of Stereo and Speakers in a 16



tjags
02-21-2011, 12:52 PM
I need some help determining where to put the stereo and speakers in my 16 w/ the wraparound seating. I read through all the old posts, but I there weren't any pics.



If anyone has pics of their setup could you please post?
With space for only 1 battery in the 16, how long can the stereo run before the battery is drained to the point the boat won't start?
What would be the optimal stereo setup (watts, speaker size, etc)? I don't need anything crazy, but would like to hear the music clearly.

Thanks for the help.

jstrahn
02-21-2011, 01:50 PM
I can't speak for placement in the 16 but I would suggest going with DC Gold speakers. They were previously known as Babb speakers. They are by far the best boat speakers on the market.

The nice thing about them is that they are waterPROOF. Not water resistant like every other speaker. You can actually rinse them off with the hose or play them under water.

The other nice thing about them is that they are very efficient meaning that they play loudly with little power driving them.

Normally, I'm not one to try to peddle a particular brand but occasionally you come across a product that blows you away. They are expensive speakers but they will last the lifetime of the boat.

If it were me, I would go with a nice pair of speakers and power them with a 2 channel external amplifier. The amplifiers that are built into head units are junk. I know they all claim 50 watts and so on but they don't produce nearly that much and begin clipping the signal far before that which can damage speakers. It is always good to have some head room on power.

As for running on one battery and how long it will last, it will depend on the reserve capacity of the battery you are running.

Reserve capacity is the number of minutes a battery at 80 degrees F can be discharged at 25 amps and maintain a voltage of 10.5 volts for a 12 volt battery. If you are running a small amplifier you will not be drawing anywhere close to 25 amps. So reserve capacity should give you some indication of how long the battery will stay charged.

tjags
02-21-2011, 02:41 PM
jstrahn- thanks for the quick reply. I'll check out those speakers you mentioned.

DannyK
02-22-2011, 08:36 AM
I'm wondering about placement in my '90 Sweet 16 myself and would like to see pics of head unit installations also. The curved dash and limited space has me considering a mounting pod from WestMarine, perhaps mounted vertically just ahead of the passenger seat by the ski locker.

glashole
02-22-2011, 09:06 AM
if you are going to mount it upright make sure your head unit will play cd's in that position

DannyK
02-22-2011, 10:01 AM
Good point Glashole, however I'll be using my Ipod,not CDs, so that's not a problem for me. As for speakers, I'm thinking a couple of marine 6x9s mounted below the rear seat (need to dig out foam etc) and just a couple of 6s forward somewhere. One under the passenger seat and one near my right knee maybe. Just a simple system, no fancy amps and stuff. Gonna hate cutting the 'glass for speakers on a virgin boat though.

Okie2
02-22-2011, 10:18 AM
In my C-16 the 6 1/2" speakers were in the kick panel forward of the seats & that was okay...the head was also cut out there on passenger side (that way when I got it)...hated that location...finally pulled the head as I wouldn't use it....I vote for the pod you showed & put in easy location...not really many on such a small boat. I resigned myself to the fact that I would rather hear the sound of 377 ponys more than music...can listen to music anytime...but not that engine! ps...just down from Beaver Lake 100 miles on Tenkiller...like your lake better...40 feet of visability for diving! Scott

DannyK
02-22-2011, 10:24 AM
Hey Okie, I'm a diver too. Let me know if/when you're heading to Beaver Lake !

Okie2
02-22-2011, 10:49 AM
Don't get up there that much...boats on lifts in dock at Tenkiller...easier to leave them there than tow them around.... Though...I sure liked staying in Eureka & going to Beaver in the daytime! Tenkiller is pretty fun...lots of people to play with!

Fishermanjm
02-22-2011, 12:52 PM
40 FT of vis sounds like caribbean area

tjags
02-22-2011, 01:04 PM
It would be great if someone made a product to plug an IPod directly into the speaker system, without going through a head unit. Almost like free standing AUX input...

If you have pictures of your system in a 16 please post.

tjags
02-22-2011, 01:24 PM
I spoke before I Googled...
From what I briefly read, it seems you can hook your IPod directly to an amp, via a headphone jack, thus bypassing the need for a head unit. I'm assuming this will also allow me to use my Sirius app on the blackberry too.

Has anyone done this? It may be a good compromise for those of us with limited space.

jstrahn
02-22-2011, 02:10 PM
I wouldn't advise plugging a device directly into an amplifier. While it will work, the amplifier gain needs to be set to match the output voltage of the source unit.

On something like an ipod, they output very low voltage which fluctuates. The other problem is that you would have to have the amplifier on a toggle to power it on and off unless you tied the remote in from something with switched 12 volt power. My suggestion would be to run a standalone equalizer with a master volume control and an AUX input. Audio Control makes a nice one called the Three.2 but there are a lot of other companies that make them as well. The nice thing about the Audio Control is that it has a line driver in it which boosts the output voltage on your RCA lineouts.

The downside to this compared with a head unit is that you won't have remote control ability but if you were going to mount the head unit vertically, the remote most likely wouldn't have worked anyway.

The other option is that they do have a lot of head units now that do not have built in cd players. They are strictly AM/FM/AUX/IPOD. This might work well for what you want to do as well.

joseph m. hahnl
02-22-2011, 05:44 PM
http://www.sailgb.com/Thumbnail.aspx?w=325&h=325&f=/pi/MarineAV/RF02_blk.jpg
http://www.sailgb.com/p/black_steering_wheel_radio_frequency_remote/


http://lh3.googleusercontent.com/public/6lqJSCM81_yg6xFosSyN12WFnxK4gys2Zi5oK5QJPgMb3sjE9F Eh0VERwRXarVYvQYjlCkKTTuMeGD7PKYe1ALqkQol-uDbf1wMrlXUSox9JFFKscHC_HQDcc4HGX4JcBkG7OfdG7Q
http://www.google.com/search?q=CLARION+CMRC2-SB&sourceid=ie7&rls=com.microsoft:en-us:IE-SearchBox&ie=&oe=#q=CLARION+CMRC2-SB&hl=en&rls=com.microsoft:en-us:IE-SearchBox&prmd=ivns&source=univ&tbs=shop:1&tbo=u&ei=8UlkTe3wOcXPgAeNyNXUAg&sa=X&oi=product_result_group&ct=image&resnum=3&ved=0CEEQzAMwAg&biw=1058&bih=598&bav=on.1,or.&fp=d0dc410bca72fadb

DannyK
02-22-2011, 08:11 PM
" if you were going to mount the head unit vertically, the remote most likely wouldn't have worked anyway." Why not ? I don't think an infra-red remote cares whether the head unit is vertical or horizontal ! :lookaroun:

xedmoc
02-22-2011, 09:41 PM
Hey - I have a new stereo with a cd/fm/am and ipod in, installed in my 90 sweet 16 - also have a regular marine radio installed - both the head/vhf are just under the center dash - head has a wireless remote -

Got into a spot on a windy day last summer in WI, when I towed it up something in the boat bumped the radio on, and mostly drained the battery. Was out in the middle of a big lake and could not start it - was a long day. Now I carry an extra battery with me. It would be cool to mount it somewhere with a switch so when you stop to rest you can have the radio on then switch back to the other starting battery.

Best,

Eric

jstrahn
02-22-2011, 11:35 PM
" if you were going to mount the head unit vertically, the remote most likely wouldn't have worked anyway." Why not ? I don't think an infra-red remote cares whether the head unit is vertical or horizontal ! :lookaroun:

Just meant that you need line of site and if you are outside the boat, the seats, etc may be in the way. Really just depends on where it would be mounted.

tjags
02-23-2011, 06:54 AM
Hey - I have a new stereo with a cd/fm/am and ipod in, installed in my 90 sweet 16 - also have a regular marine radio installed - both the head/vhf are just under the center dash - head has a wireless remote -

Got into a spot on a windy day last summer in WI, when I towed it up something in the boat bumped the radio on, and mostly drained the battery. Was out in the middle of a big lake and could not start it - was a long day. Now I carry an extra battery with me. It would be cool to mount it somewhere with a switch so when you stop to rest you can have the radio on then switch back to the other starting battery.

Best,

Eric

Eric- I agree that an extra battery would be ideal, but where would you install it?