I have a fiberglass tower enclosure to house 4-6X9's. Just wondering what speakers are going to push the most volume out 75' to the rider. Quality of sound isn't as big of a deal because the open environment takes a lot away from sound quality. The other option is to use 4-6.5" Pro Audio speakers, but i have no experience with PA speakers. I also already have 4 Sony 6x9's and a 12" sub inside the boat.

i have a pair of alpine 6x9s and they kick ass. hook them up to a amp to unleash their capabilities though

okay i have done some more research and see that i need to add more criteria (sorry for not searching thorough before posting a new thread). <BR> <BR>With recommendations please include brand, model, rms power running to them. <BR> <BR>Sensitivity: can this be directly related to volume level being pushed out or should i not weight sensitivity so heavy and consider more. (ex. Audiobahn AS69V rated at 95db vs. Sony XS-V6942A rated at 93db) <BR> <BR>Do they make PA speakers in 6" to 6.5" and would they accomplish my goal. Would designing a crossover be complicating.

Sensitivity matters. Thats why PA speakers can output alot of sound because they usually have a high sensitivity and have large power handling capabilities, but also cost a pretty prenny. <BR> <BR>95db vs 93db isn't that much but it will be louder. It just means that if each speaker is pushed with 1 watt and a microphone at 1meter distance from the speakers is used to calculate the output, one speaker will be 95db in volume where the other would only be 93. <BR> <BR>Thats how they rate speakers. <BR> <BR>Since its gonna be used on the water, make sure to get a higher sensitivity because every watt counts and you want the most energy from the cone to reach your ears.

You might want to add speaker weight into your criteria. I like the Infinity Kappa 693.7i speakers, they are 2 ohm so you can run them in series so you only have to run two pairs of wires through the tower and still have an optimal 4 ohm load on the amp. <BR> <BR>95db, 2 ohm, bright high end, lightweight, oversized cones, moderately priced (check e-bay about $140/pair shipped).

excellent advice Mikeski. <BR> <BR>Most people don't account for load on the amp and figure you can run a bunch of speakers, untill the amp clicks into protect and they have no idea why.

I will be buying the amp based upon the speakers i end up with. <BR> <BR>Right now i am contemplating whether to go with separate amps for the sub and the 4-6x9's or to go with a multi-channel amp to run both the sub and 6x9's. I'm leaning towards the 1 amp method due to price, more circuits to run, and precious storage space needed to mount another amp. <BR> <BR>Mikeski: it looks like with your suggested speakers (2 ohm load) i could go with a 3 channel amp. 2 channels dedicated to the 6x9's and 1 channel for the sub? <BR> <BR>thanks for your help guys... much appreciated <BR> <BR>I'm still curious about PA / HLCD speakers if anyone has something to add in that arena.

Kyle. <BR> <BR>Seperate amp are usually better, as its sometimes harder to design a good multi channel amp that is robust and has a good power supply to supply enough juice to run all those channels. Dont get me wrong, they do make good units with strong power supplies (sometimes even multiple power supplies to feed different parts of the amp (low end/high end)). <BR> <BR>The only downfall to a multi is that if you have an issue with it, you will be without tunes. But with a seperate setup if the sub amp acts act at least u have speakers to listen to. <BR> <BR>3 channel amp will work perfect too. I have an Xtant 403a that is just like that. Although mounting 2 amps isn't that bad, if space is an issue you could just build an amp rack that layers the amps on top of each other in a slanted view to allow heat to escape, but it is a more compact setup.

I always run the tower speakers on their own amp. This allows you to control them independently. I really dedicate my tower speakers to the rider, having seperate amps allows me to run the stereo around homes, marina's, docks, etc. without annoying anybody with my tunes broadcasting over the tower speakers.