Audio Upgrades
 

Hello all. I have a little project I plan on tackling over winter regarding upgrading the stereo system in my 272 Baja. Currently the boat had some non marine speakers and subwoofers/amps which I ripped out. I would like to upgrade to 2 10" JL Audio Subwoofers with 2 6.6" JL Speakers and 2 7.7 JL Speakers.

Its has been a long time since I delt with audio components and was wondering if someone could chime in and recommended the best way to amplify everything? 1 amp? 2 amps?

Thanks!
Nick

Definitely 2 amps..........1 for the subs and a 4 channel for the other 4 cockpit speakers

Yep, 2 amps are better.

Enclosures for the subs usually make best sound compared to infinite baffle (free air)

If you have the room, go 8.8 speakers over the 7.7. MUCH better better speaker. (CAUTION: watch the depth of the speaker too. The 8.8 are deep)

What are you looking for with this set up?

Good clean "musical" sound I'd do JL Audio.

Good and loud sound, consider Wet Sounds.

Budget system I'd look into Rockford Fosgate, Kicker, or Polk .

If you're going to be cranking the tunes while anchored/beached you're going to need batteries to run the stereo. So make preps for adding. You don't want the engine to not start because you ran the tunes for too long, And you don't want to be hanging out behind the boat with it running to charge the batteries.

Quality RCA's, power and speaker wires go a long way with good sound also.

If I were you I would definitely look into the Bluave enclosed subs from Waves and Wheels @ LOTO. I have used them in the last 3 boats and they are way better than anything I've had before, even the Wet Sounds XXX. I had the JL M8 series speakers and JL amps throughout my current AT and changed everything over to Bluave. I've had Fosgate, Kicker, Wet Sounds, JL, etc and the bluave is top of the line right now.

Thanks everyone. 2 amps it is! I would like the cleanest sound possible but doesn’t have to be too terribly loud. 9 times out of 10 we get docked up next a couple of boats down from a wakeboat and you can’t out power those overhead speakers lol.
I already have a dual switched battery setup so should be good on power requirements.

I will definitely give Bluave a look at thanks!

BS on 2 amps......you do need to control the subs separate however the JL 900/5 is made to do EXACTLY what you are trying to do. Several of my buddies and I run a 900/5 and it powers your planned speaker setup perfectly.

I've got three amps on my 252, one for the subs, one for the cockpit speakers, and one for the front bowrider speakers. This is mainly due to space/mounting considerations, but I also find it a little easier to get the 'imaging' I want with multiple amps. Obviously a single amp is easier insofar as running power is concerned. The JL Audio 900/5 or 1000/5 (several versions available) are good amps...I've used Polk Audio in the past and have been very pleased as well. Good points noted in earlier comments about speaker depth/size...definitely something to check out first. I had the M3-770x speakers in another boat and loved them.
Are you putting anything in the cabin?

I don’t really plan to do much with speakers in the cabin as I have two young daughters that will be napping off and on while we are out. It does have the factory Clarion speakers down there still so I may leave them hooked up just to have something.

That's like asking if a boat should have 1 or 2 engines.
first off what was wrong with the old system, what did it do correctly, what do you want the new system to do better, how much physical space are you willing to devote to stereo subs and amps , can we cut the boat up to add speakers and what's your budget. Until you have a clear goal everyone is shooting from the hip.

My budget will be around the $2500 mark....

The old system was garbage. Old automotive speakers and non marine amps. They were corroded and all the fuses blown in them. Stereo was a cheap head unit that doesn't even have enough outputs for what I plan on doing.

The back seat frame already has holes cut for 2 10" subs. The factory cockpit cutouts are only able to hold 2 6.5 speakers so I do plan on cutting 2 additional holes in front of the passenger and driver seats to fit a 7.7 speaker.

With my budget I should be able to buy decent Kenwood head-unit, two JL Subs, 2 JL 6.5's and 2 JL 7.7s. My real question is what amps should I get to power this combo?