bighops213

Alrighty. Im getting ready to start installing new speakers in my car. But I have some questions. First off its a 92 300E with a six speaker system, and an aftermarket head unit(Alpine) installed. So...the thing thats sorta holding me back right now is...exactley how hard is it to get the door panels off. I know how to do it, but I dont really want to take something off I cant get back on. And, how hard is it to not break a panel clip. If I do where can I get some more?

One more thing, any of you all have a recommendation on a good speaker size. I plan on adding some subs in the trunk in the future, just to let you know

THANKS!

Jody

crr1612

its 4" up front i think, and 5.25 in the back, and 6.5" in the doors. as for subs, i would cut ports on the rear deck so as to let the bass flow through. im running 2 10" rockfords and still dissappointed by the bass. granted the subs are 200wrms and i only have 125wrms going through em now.

Bigpete123

The door panels are extremely easy to take off and put back on. 5 minutes each max. Before I did mine, I definitely was nervous about it but there's nothing to worry about if you follow the instructions.

Just make sure once you're ready to remove the panel that you slide it straight up. Don't pull it towards you.

There aren't really any "clips". They are more like hooks. Unless you pull the panel towards you, you aren't going to break them.

As for speaker sizes and subs. My absolute best recommendation is for you to only replace your front speakers, disconnect the rear speakers completely and once you install a sub, remove the rear speakers so that the bass can vent through the holes.

A good front sound stage (which you will have with a nice set of 3-ways) is all you need. Most car stereo gurus don't like rear speakers at all because it's unatural to have music coming from behind you. This way, you won't have to make any modifications to your rear deck, and you'll get a reasonable amount of bass into the cabin.

I went for a much more in-depth installation than that, but this is what I recommend to most people because its cheaper, less work, and doesn't cause any permanent modifications to your interior.

2PHAST

The door speakers are 5.25" and are used for bass only, they are fed a mono filtered signal from a small amp in the trunk of your vehicle.

You can fit a 4" in the dash and a 5.25" in the rear deck. To fit the rear deck speakers will require some minimal cutting. I wouldn't even bother with the door speakers, as you would need to use a 5.25" with a 2" or less mounting depth, these are not easy to find, then you would have to rewire them so you get something more than just low frequencies.

I run Infinity Kappa 4" in my dash, Infinity Kappa 5.25" in my rear deck. I have some Kenwood 5.25" co-ax in my doors and a small ADS amp (replaces the OE amp) running them. They get a low level signal from my Pioneer DEH-P80BT head and the deck powers the fronts/rear. For low's, I have a Basslink II, which does not require removing of the rear speakers for the bass to get into cabin.

JrJammin

its exactly 4 5/8 in the dash but it is an odd size to find so you will have to fabricate something to seperate the magnet from the rest of the speaker. 6.5''s will fit in the doors.

2PHAST

Anything will fit if you butcher it enough. Direct drop in for the door is 5.25", mute point though, as its a complete waste to even bother with the door speakers.

Don't worry about exact sizing for the dash, a standard 4" will drop in, but will leave gaps, you should be able to get at least two screws in, which is enough. Keep in mind that you should not be using the dash speakers for low frequencies, so cross them over around 125 hz, same for the rears.

Lancelot

On my W124 I used a Pioneer component system up front with the tweeters in the dashboard using custom made mounts, and mid/woofers (if you can call them 'woofers' at that size!) in the doors. Large oval Pioneer speakers cutout in the rear deck. Still disappointed by the lack of real bass but a major improvement over the stock 4" in dash speakers!

CharlestonN

My stock system still sounds pretty damn good

I might add a 10" or 2 in the trunk later though but i don't want to replace the deck, i don't like how the newer decks look specially in a 124,is it possible to use a stock 124 deck with an amp and a woofer just to smooth out the low end a bit?

Bigpete123

nakamichi CD-400, mang. It kills the other head units in its price range in terms of sound quality, and has a very very simple look to it. No cheesy graphics of race cars or swimming dolphins, no flashing lights, fake chrome or fake stainless steel. Just plain black. Most people would probably think it's old and out dated, which is fine by me. I like good sound quality, not components that catch the eye and give you seizures from all the flashing lights. The sound quality of the Nakamichi units is top of the line. Tough to find in the US though.

I have one in mine and it looks factory, down to the orange backlit display.

bighops213

alright well. like i said i had a alpine head unit put in my car by a pro...because the audio/electrical system is a little over my head...to some degree. I understand american made cars a lot better, but mercedes has a way of makin everything harder, but better as well. anways, the guy that put it in, i had him bypass the fader switch by my window controls. and he chose to bypass the factory amp in the trunk. little bonus as well, i had him put an ipod cable in the glove compartment, even tho i didnt have an ipod, i HIGHLY recommend this to anyone getting a new head unit, i know have an ipod an its great but anyways. Sooo, keeping in mind that the amp is bypassed, an the speakers are running on my head unit...is it still not worth messing with the door speakers? And I would like to put some tweeters up front...is it to difficult to fabricate a mounting plate to install them on?
Thanks

ZedStyle

i put 6.5" speakers in the door, and put the tweeters in the dash. i cut out pieces of cardboard for the tweeters to 'mount' to, works fine since they don't vibrate or anything, and took about 5 minutes of work. i put in rear speakers, but like was mentioned earlier, i will probably be removing them soon to allow bass from the subs to come into the car, since they don't really do much for me right now. that way you can save the money on the rears and put it towards better front speakers.
if your speakers are already running off the head unit, replacing them should be a matter of just unplugging what's in there now and putting in aftermarket speakers.
i broke two or three of the hooks for the door panel because i knew there were hooks, but did't know where, and i tried to pull 'upwards' and... anyway. the panel still fits pretty snugly though.

this link might help you:

http://www.mercedesshop.com/Wikka/W124DoorPanel

ShanMan

I was all set to slap a Nakamichi in my car around Christmas time, because I too think it looks the best (by far) in these cars. But, while trying to do my homework on the net I read over and over again that the Nak's quality has gone waaaay downhill and there is little support here in the US. I wound up going with the least flashy Kenwood CD/MP3 unit I could find. The Kenwood sounds very nice, but I really liked the look of that Nak.

BTW: is the box on the left side of the trunk the amp that you guys speak of? Also, anyone know who makes the OEM speakers? I was all set to buy a bunch of MB Quarts and then I heard the stock speakers with the new Kenwood head unit and decided I could go a long time before another set of drivers would sound significantly better. I'll probably just add a sub to finish off the sound balance and take some pressure off those mids in the doors.

2PHAST

Stock factory amp is in the trunk on the passenger side, remobe the fender carpet and you will see it.

Door speakers are mono woofers, not mids.

Bigpete123

Yeah, I have heard that Nakamichi has been having some quality problems. The sound quality of the CD-400 will kill anything else in its price range. I think the quality issues are more with longevity than anything. We'll see. Mine has yet to exhibit any problems.

rooney2006

I have an alpine head unit and it hasn't given me any problems. It isn't flashy, it just has green buttons, which look kind of stupid.

rooney2006

I would say that one 12 in the trunk is a good amount of bass for most people for sure. That's what I have and it's fine for my tastes. I'm not a huge listener of rap except for Three 6 Mafia and I have plenty when I want it. My head unit has a sub control that makes it simple to switch from Dave Matthews-quality bass to Three 6-quality bass.

bjay51d

You might appreciate rap more if you didnt listen to them bozos...Prenty of other groups that actually have something to say.

JrJammin

if you cant get all screws to a speaker in because of drill size or something gorilla glue can come in handy.. it bonds nearly everything and will secure a speaker. Its a good idea if you have alot of bass because if you only have 2 screws in the spots where there arent any screws will work their way up from vibration and allow too much space around the speaker taking away from its quality.

JrJammin

IMO getting aftermarkets in the doors is not a complete waste -- a quality set of midbass drivers can add generously to the sound imaging.

2PHAST

Yes, but not aimed into the bottom seat bolster, poor position for mid/mid bass to say the least.

ShanMan

not great for a mid...I agree. Not all that bad for a mid-bass though. The sound wave length gets longer as the note gets lower. Longer sound waves mean less importance on direction. Having ANY mids and highs in the rear make the least amount of sense of all if an accurate soundstage is your ultimate goal, IMO.

rooney2006

That's false. I love three 6. My favorite by far. I love the beats. Also Lil Waye.

2PHAST

Know all about the "Haas Effect" as I used to be a audio engineer and have built many IASCA winning sound systems. Agree about the rear speakers, but signal processing can easily turn the rears into "ambiant" sources, thus providing the effect of late reflections, not unlike a concert hall.

Time alignment in a W124 would be best achieved by placing your point source drivers on-axis and as far away from the listerners ears as feasible (kick panels). But in reality, these types of audio configurations are not optimum for daily driving, so we make due.

The newer heads on the market today allow for more precise time alignment, case in point, my DEH-P980bt, which includes a microphone to automatically adjust the output volumes for optimum listening experience (driver), they even manipulate the rear speakers so as to mute and/or diminish the output.

ShanMan

CDP

HAHAHAHA @ your avatar ShanMan.