Anybody else see these bad boys yet?<img src="http://www.wakeworld.com/MB/Discus/messages/3183/749838.jpg" alt="Upload">

Yep, I'm waiting on a set to have on display/demo for the Feb boat show. Kicker is looking for an early 1st qtr release. No price info as of yet though. <BR> <BR>A package will consist of 2 mids and 2 horns, so will will have a 4 can setup. Each mid and horn will be a 4ohm load. You can also get an extra pair of the mid-bass drivers and have a six pack. This would be a 2ohm load, so no matter which setup you go with, a 2chnl amp is ideal. From what I under stand, these will really take the juice, but i'm still waiting on Phil to let me know what he will end up recommending power wise. They have a typical 6.5" speaker bolt pattern, so they should drop in just about anyone's cans that accept a 6.5" <BR> <BR>I'm dying to hear them! Hopefully Phil will post up with more info on them!

bout time

Thats awesome! So it looks like these are designed and are set to be sold as stand alone with no enclosure? This is really exciting to see a major player enter this arena. Interested to hear how these guys stack up against the current offerings. I assume they'll come with a crossover as well. <BR> <BR>I love the idea of being able to get these without an enclosure. You could get a 6 x 6.5 pod and do 4 mids and 2 HLCD's. <BR> <BR>Nice find J. Brenner

So...does the enclosure size have any effect on the sound?

Nice, looks like Kicker is bridging the gap again. I think the KTM6's have been the best bang for the buck setup on the market with very few compromises. These seem like the next step and it would be nice to pick your own enclosure.

HateN' <BR> <BR>You are correct, these will come from Kicker with out enclosures. These are great for a dealer such as myself. They can be loaded in an enclosure and sold as complete package, or sold just as the drivers for those with good cans but looking to freshen up the speakers. The X-over on the back of the horn if I remember right. <BR> <BR>I think these will hold their own in the 6"-7" pro audio arena. <BR> <BR>Murphy, <BR> <BR>Yes, similar to a sub, the enclosure size and shape can have an effect on the sound (mainly the mids) but not as dramatic as a sub.

I will be offering these in 2010... they are not out yet....

Hi Guys- <BR> <BR>Sorry for the late response; 'been at the National RV Manufacturer's Show in Louisville... <BR> <BR>Hate- <BR>Yeah, we are putting these out there with no enclosure. Dealers can package them with their own favorite enclosures, OEM's can use them in custom tooled boat-specific enclosures, and anybody that already has a can system can use these in their existing cans. <BR> <BR>They do come with their own crossovers, and we took a fresh approach to this. Typically a component set has one crossover that both the mid and the tweeter are connected to. That is fine for lots of applications, but is a definite pain for a tower can application. For the KM6500.2's we cut the crossover in half; the mid's crossover components are connected directly to the back of the mid, and the horn's crossover is connected directly to the horn. This greatly simplifies wiring; you just connect each part, (the mid and the horn) to the amp's speaker wiring directly. No weirdness figuring out where to put an outboard crossover, and how to get the wiring in and out from it. <BR> <BR>Murph- <BR>The size of the enclosure will have some effect yes. As with any speaker, the compliance of the air behind the mid will affect the resonant frequency of the midrange to some extent. Bigger enclosures will go lower, with slightly lower power handling. Too small enclosures will drive the resonance and the "Q" up producing a peaky sound. That being said, typical tower cans have an optimal volume of .15 - .2 cubic feet for the midrange drivers. So if you have some of the normal aftermarket cans that have been available out there for a while, you will be fine. <BR> <BR>Here is a pic of a development pair. See how the crossovers are attached... These boards are not conformal coated, but the production crossover circuits will be sealed for corrosion and moisture resistance. <BR><img src="http://www.wakeworld.com/MB/Discus/messages/3183/749880.jpg" alt="Upload"> <BR> <BR>The tweeter crossover is set up so that there are two "volume" or "loudness" settings. For those people who are using the KM6500.2's only in 4 cans, there is a black jumper wire that will be placed in the "0dB" lug for nominally flat response. Or, for those who like their hi's a little brighter and louder, you can move the black jumper wire to the "+6dB" lug. For a 6 can setup, where you are using the KM6500.2 components, with a spare pair of mids, (the mids are available as the KM6500; just leave off the ".2" at the end of the model name) you will set the tweeter crossover black wire to the "+6dB" lug. YOu can kind of see the black wire and the two lugs towards the back of the crossover in the photo. <BR> <BR>Hopefully this answers all your questions. <BR> <BR>Phil <BR>Kicker

I wouldn't normally trust the collars and mounting provisions of many factory and import pods with the weight of most HLCD drivers. Its long overdue for a neo magnet to be used on a tower speaker. Their midbass must be a fraction of the typical HLCD weight. Give Kicker credit. <BR> <BR>My guess is that a majority of boaters will only be satisfied with the surface area of using twin midbass drivers per side which means six total pods. Spending $500 for six polished import pods that are maintenance intensive wouldn't excite me. Also, six pods will get complicated with collar spacing on many towers in avoiding the interference of front to rear tubes. I don't see Kicker missing applications with this product for very long. I suspect they'll follow up with a supporting pod. <BR> <BR>I'd like to see a molded enclosure similar to the KMT6 layout but with a bass reflex port or slot directly under the center horn position. This could potentially place twin 6-inch drivers in the midbass realm of double 8s with lighter weight and lower cost. Just thinking out loud. <BR> <BR>David <BR>Earmark Marine

<a href="http://www.motodash.com/article/14215/KICKER-HCLD-Tower-Component-System-is-World-s-First/" target="_blank">http://www.motodash.com/article/14215/KICKER-HCLD-Tower-Component-System-is-World-s-First/</a>

<blockquote><hr size=0><!-quote-!><font size=1><b>quote:</b></font><p>By David_E_M (david_e_m) on Thursday, December 03, 2009 - 9:04 am: <BR>My guess is that a majority of boaters will only be satisfied with the surface area of using twin midbass drivers per side which means six total pods. Spending $500 for six polished import pods that are maintenance intensive wouldn't excite me. Also, six pods will get complicated with collar spacing on many towers in avoiding the interference of front to rear tubes. I don't see Kicker missing applications with this product for very long. I suspect they'll follow up with a supporting pod.<!-/quote-!><hr size=0></blockquote> <BR> <BR>Is Squid still around? I think he could build an awesome box. The one he built for me is still holding up five years later... <BR> <BR><a href="http://www.wakeworld.com/MB/Discus/messages/65921/278931.html" target="_blank">Squid Thread</a> <BR> <BR>(Message edited by wakeboardsam on December 03, 2009)

looks great, prices?!?

Kicker has not released the pricing yet. They will when they have the product to sell and release them.

Finally something I can put in my stock rosswell setup and get a pro audio sound. I'm am happly wait on this to come out. Phil I love how your company is heading in the right direction.

Phill deff has his own following..... he should probably start an audio cult or something <img src="http://www.wakeworld.com/MB/Discus/clipart/wink.gif" border=0>

Blair, <BR> <BR>I'm in the Charlotte area. I'm really hoping to have a set to display and demo in my booth at the Charlotte boat show in Feb. If you get down that way for the show, stop by and see me. Shoot me a PM with your contact info and I will let you know when pricing and a release date is announced. If you cant make it to the show, I'll see what I can do to meet up with you and demo a set.

pm sent <BR> <BR>Mike

I would like to see the price on these before I drop the money on wetsounds and phil if you need a tester I live in Edmond

They will be very reasonable....

Chis, <BR> Sounds like a good time for me to break out the drysuit and do some winter testing.

I'll be in Stilli tomorrow Phil. Would love to see these in person!

Interested in testing them. Should be good for the correct application.

any word on price range yet?

You will probably hear something bout price in Jan-Feb when it's closer to it's release date.

Got my Pricing today! <BR> <BR>For a set of the Kicker KM65002 (2 mids/2 horns) MSRP is $599.95 and for an additional pair of the KM6500 mids it's $299.95

hols s*** <BR> <BR>those better slam

Sounds about the same as everyone else price wise once you figure in and enclosure. Performance will be where it is at I guess.

so this price above is with enclosure?

^^^ No enclosures, but these are designed to drop into most anyone's tower can that is currently loaded with a 6.5" driver with little to no modification. There are tons of factory and aftermarket cans out there that these will fit into, so if the customer already has a set of cans and just want to upgrade the sound, these are for him. Other wise, the dealer can offer these as a package with cans of thier choosing.

Would be really nice if they fit into Kicker's KMT6 enclosures, but my guess is they won't. Any info on this?

Jason- <BR> <BR>The KM6500.2's will not retrofit into a set of KMT6's. The KMT6 is screwed and glued together, and the horn on the KMT6 is molded in. The KMT6 horn is different, with a different flare rate, dispersion pattern, cutoff frequency, throat diameter, etc. when compared to the KM6500.2. <BR> <BR>I do not recommend trying to "kit-bash" the two together; you are better served using the KM6500.2's in a more traditional-styled can or enclosure. <BR> <BR>Phil <BR>Kicker

so you will need 4 cans, 2 for the speakers and 2 for the horns is that correct?

correct

Yup, sean is correct! <BR> <BR>Phil <BR>Kicker

I thought these were going to be a 'price point' HLCD speaker setup. By the time you add enclosures your just as much as everything else on the market. Bullet sells their HLCD speakers separately for $449

kinda stinks for those of us with just 2 stock cans. My 09 centurion has quick connect speaker connectors. So I could buy 2 cans that wont match, or just get 4 new cans. <IMG SRC="http://www.wakeworld.com/MB/Discus/clipart/sad.gif" ALT=":-(" BORDER=0> <BR> <BR>Will be interested in seeing some reviews on these though!

Patrick, <BR> <BR>Not sure what thread you read that these where going to be a "price point" setup. Before you put too much praise on the Bullet Lines price point speakers, you may want to search some threads here about the Bullet Lines HLCD's. <BR> <BR>Oh, just so there is an apples to apples comparison on price, Bullet Lines MSRP is $549.99 for ONE pair of speakers. <BR> <BR>Just to clarify, i'm not making a comparison of the 2 speakers, just making a comparison of price using MSRP, since that door was opened.

but aren't you essentially buying one "pair" of the kicker speakers for the price as well, it just requires 2 cans?

From what I under stand your are buying four speakers total for 599.95. Two mids and two tweeters I think.

Scott- <BR> <BR>The KM6500.2 is technically a component system, so a "pair" consists of two horns, and two mids. The horn has the same OD and bolt-circle diameter as the mid and therefore shares the same mounting method, which is typical of most aftermarket and OEM cans. <BR> <BR>So... simply put, a pair will go into 4 cans. <BR> <BR>Phil <BR>Kicker

Saw these up on the kicker site today in the marine section.

Phil, <BR> <BR>Will Kicker be at the Tulsa Boat Show next weekend and will you have these there?? Don't know that I am in the market for these, but am thinking about upgrading speakers and would like to stick with an OK company if possible (even in you guys are in Stillwater... <IMG SRC="http://www.wakeworld.com/MB/Discus/clipart/happy.gif" ALT=":-)" BORDER=0>) <BR> <BR>Thanks,

I will be there, hopefully cruising the show on VIP night, but we do not have a booth there, and nobody will be showing the KM6500.2's. <BR> <BR>As an update, I think we will hopefully start putting these into the warehouse for shipping availability the first of March. <BR> <BR>Phil <BR>Kicker <BR> <BR> <BR>(Message edited by philwsailz on January 29, 2010)

Hey, any update when these are going to be available? I ordered them from a dealer in SC a few weeks back. He called me a few days after the purchase and said it could be the end of April. Anxious to get my hands on them!