# Silver Flutes?



## Arete (Oct 6, 2013)

2 days ago looking at reviews for drivers 10 times the price of these. Do these reeeeally contend higher end speakers? Ive always been of the thinking "you get what you pay for" but I can't ignore the comments I've read. I sent out a couple PMs to members of the forums that are using these so if you are check your mailbox. To those that have tried them how do they do IB? Some people are saying you have to put them in sealed pods for them to really sing.


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## Brian_smith06 (Jan 31, 2008)

I cant say anything about them being in enclosures but I love them in my car. I used them in place of the ID XS mid and actually preferred these. That being said it could have been the car that preferred them?

New car they seem to work just as well. As of right now they are lacking the low end impact but my doors have not been deadened/sealed yet. Next month that will happen


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## foamflyer (May 12, 2015)

I'm a big fan of mine, they are in deadened, sealed as good as I can get them doors. They are big though, I had to space mine out 3/4" to get them to fit.

I think they sound better than the woofer from the JBL p660c set that's been raved about around here.


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## Iamsmuts (May 24, 2015)

Arete said:


> 2 days ago looking at reviews for drivers 10 times the price of these. Do these reeeeally contend higher end speakers? Ive always been of the thinking "you get what you pay for" but I can't ignore the comments I've read. I sent out a couple PMs to members of the forums that are using these so if you are check your mailbox. To those that have tried them how do they do IB? Some people are saying you have to put them in sealed pods for them to really sing.


I've been wondering the same thing. I've got morel maximo components in my front and some flutes in the rear for band-passed, attenuated rear fill. All of my doors are sealed and deadened: cld, ccf, and mlv. I'm running active.

I'm not happy with the maximos. They get loud and are pretty clear, but they pretty much need to played loud to sound good. I don't think the tweeter can play low enough and the 6.5 can't play high enough. There's too much breakup around 3.5k. . . . 

So I'm looking for a replacement. I'm thinking about getting another pair of flutes or swapping the mids. The problem is that the flutes are a little big. I'll have to cut my door to get them in. (Honda's mushroom shape isn't welcoming of big baskets. A rotary tool can fix that. . . ) And I'll have to use a full 1" spacer in the front to clear the window. (The rear window doesn't go down that far. I could put something much deeper in the rear.) . . . I'd run Dayton RS180s if I could get them in the front. Oh well.

So I tried a listening test. I turned off the sub and cut the tweeters for a bit. I ran both off a PPI 900.4, front and rear with one RCA input. I turned the crossovers off on the amp. I used the head unit (80prs) to bandpass the signal from 80 to 4k. I would alternate rear and front gains to test the two. 

I played a bunch of different sounding music, from Death Grips to Fleetwood Mac to Yazoo to Siouxsie Sioux. . . The flutes have more mid bass. But I've got plenty of that. The morels an get a scratch louder, but not very cleanly. And the morels seem to have more of an upper end break up. When I brought the tweeters back, it was hard to tell the difference between the two. But they are both crossed too high. At 3k everything would sound better, but I'd need a better tweeter.

This wasn't a great test, since the flutes were in the rear, and the driver's side flute is occluded by the front seat. So the flutes were at a disadvantage.

From my test, the flutes sound a little better than a low end 6.5 that many people seem to like. That's something. It doesn't mean that they won't sound better then a high end 6.5. I just don't know first hand. And I don't know how good they will sound properly integrated with good tweeters crossed much lower. I'm going to keep looking for a while longer. 

I really would like to know how much better something like the SI TM65 would sound. I but it would be significant. But it would be good to know.


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## Brian_smith06 (Jan 31, 2008)

Id agree the flutes are pretty damn big. I forgot they weighed like 5 pound!


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## Arete (Oct 6, 2013)

Iamsmuts said:


> I've been wondering the same thing. I've got morel maximo components in my front and some flutes in the rear for band-passed, attenuated rear fill. All of my doors are sealed and deadened: cld, ccf, and mlv. I'm running active.
> 
> I'm not happy with the maximos. They get loud and are pretty clear, but they pretty much need to played loud to sound good. I don't think the tweeter can play low enough and the 6.5 can't play high enough. There's too much breakup around 3.5k. . . .
> 
> ...


What yesr Honda do you have? I've got an 07. The thing that gives me pause with the TM65 is that it doesn't extend up high. I was looking at the Clarus mids myself. I'd rather spend $60 though.


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## Iamsmuts (May 24, 2015)

Arete said:


> What yesr Honda do you have? I've got an 07. The thing that gives me pause with the TM65 is that it doesn't extend up high. I was looking at the Clarus mids myself. I'd rather spend $60 though.


I have a 2010 Fit Sport. 

Ya, $60 a pair is hard to ignore. 

I simply cut out the mushroom in the rear doors with a dremel like tool. It didn't take long at all The Black and Decker rotary tool is cheap and powerful. . . . I think most Hondas have had this mushroom thing for a while.

I too worry that the TM65 won't go high enough. But the big problem is that they cost $240 a pair.

I'm upgrading to some SB acoustic tweeters this week. I'm going to lower the crossover point to 3k or so and see if the maximos sound better. The nice things about the maximos is that they are shallow and have small spiders.


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## Iamsmuts (May 24, 2015)

Those Clarus sure are expensive! The C61s? Do you have to buy a component set? I think I'm done with component sets. And I don't want to pay for passive crossovers.

In any case, I think they would be a challenge to mount in my car. The basket is wide. And the mid level mounting flanges won't help. It might be as hard to mount as the RS180s, though the clarus aren't as deep.

http://12velectronics.com/docs/Clarus_Manual.pdf
- see page 9

On paper, the flutes kind of look better.


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## Arete (Oct 6, 2013)

Iamsmuts said:


> Those Clarus sure are expensive! The C61s? Do you have to buy a component set? I think I'm done with component sets. And I don't want to pay for passive crossovers.
> 
> In any case, I think they would be a challenge to mount in my car. The basket is wide. And the mid level mounting flanges won't help. It might be as hard to mount as the RS180s, though the clarus aren't as deep.
> 
> ...



No I'm not doing a component set. I was just going to buy the Midbass drivers from the set without passive crossovers. I will run active with my 80PRS deck until I get an external DSP down the road. The pair would run a little over $500. There is a site that sells all the Hybrid equipment seperate now called "audio intensity". Yeah unless I choose to run 3 way I doubt I'll use the TM65. I'm going to try the NVX tweeter I think which is very similar to the SB acoustics. Great price on it. Now I just need to decide on the midwoofer. I've decided on everything else. 

Pioneer Deh- 80prs
JL XD amps 
IDMAX 10 sub
NVX tweeter
Midwoofer - ???


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## Iamsmuts (May 24, 2015)

Looks like you've got a budget where $60 isn't going to matter much. You could pretty much try the flutes for free. I spent more on power wire. . . . 

Do you have the 80PRS yet? If not, be warned that the interface is just awful. It feels cheap and I'd love to have a dedicated volume knob! Someday. . . . At least the 80prs won't attract any thieves, not unless they are diyers.


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## Arete (Oct 6, 2013)

Iamsmuts said:


> Looks like you've got a budget where $60 isn't going to matter much. You could pretty much try the flutes for free. I spent more on power wire. . . .
> 
> Do you have the 80PRS yet? If not, be warned that the interface is just awful. It feels cheap and I'd love to have a dedicated volume knob! Someday. . . . At least the 80prs won't attract any thieves, not unless they are diyers.


Yes I have do have it. I used a metra kit to have it installed under my stock stereo. Actually doesn't look to bad. It does feel a little cheap but has the functionality that I need and want. Mainly 3 way active, time alignment, and I'm looking forward to giving the auto-tune a whirl. Its just right now all I have is the deck. Everything else is stock. Hence the research. I may be buying decent equipment for the rest of the install but it doesn't mean I'm ready to pounce on anything. Each area was researched quite a bit. I'm actually tempted to get the Oz Audio Matrix instead of the Idmax. Its a very similar driver. May save me a few bucks. They are discontinued but pop up on ebay and on here from time to time. As for the Xds well that 8 channel looks awesome. So many options! Its going to take some time to get everything together. It's not like I could go out today and buy everything. It's going to be a piece by piece deal. Right now I just want to get tweets, and mids. Already have a 4 channel I can use temporarily. I dunno... I really consider the midwoofer to be such a crucial piece. I know everything matters but the midrange is soooo crucial!


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## miniSQ (Aug 4, 2009)

Flutes are biotch to install...very deep and very large magnet. Its a well made speaker, and a bargain for the cost. If i had to choose between $60 for the flute or $600 for the clarus, the flute is a no brainer. 

But...there must be a dozen better choices in the under $300 class.


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## Iamsmuts (May 24, 2015)

miniSQ said:


> Flutes are biotch to install...very deep and very large magnet.


I know. I've done it. I was just looking back at some pictures of that giant magnet! Those are some heavy speakers.



miniSQ said:


> Its a well made speaker, and a bargain for the cost. If i had to choose between $60 for the flute or $600 for the clarus, the flute is a no brainer.
> 
> But...there must be a dozen better choices in the under $300 class.


Any specific suggestions?


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## tjswarbrick (Nov 27, 2013)

PM replied.
To sum up:

In my opinion, the Flutes do very well IB. I haven't tried sealed. I'm giving 'em 100W a piece and they go plenty loud, and run full-range (for testing) were strong down into the 40 Hz range. I cross 'em around 80 to the single 10. They do much better in a solid HDPE baffle than they did when I tried to utilize the stock speaker rings for mounting. It could very well be my tune, but it is still my contention that they are better on long, low stuff than on the quick & punchy. I really enjoy them for Rock, but they perform quite a bit better on jazz, classical & most and hip-hop. All-in-all, they simply devastate the Polk db6501's and JL C5-650's I tried before them in this system for extension, impact and realism. The flutes are deeper (mounting depth) than any of those, however. 

I have them crossed to the tweeter, passively, at 5K because that's what I had available when I did the install and I hate ripping apart my doors. I'd recommend a lower crossover point, but they're good enough in this configuration that (with slightly messed up T/A) I took second in a local competition and they sound great enough to me that I have no desire to make the change.

If you've got the time and talent, try 'em out - you can't beat the price. In my opinion, 4-5x the price is the level you'll need to be at to find a better all-around driver of that size.

To my ear, male vocals are one area where they excel. From country, to folk, to swing, to rock; crooners, mumblers, and screamers - they all sound quite fantastic - smooth, present, and realistic - and though not quite as clean and open as my home-speaker references this, to me, is easily their best quality. I've had problems with female vocals on them (hollowing out as they go down a little, then thickening up as they go down even more), but that was more an issue with my tuning than any fault of the speakers. 

Sometimes I think they are fault-free and perfect - and I just listen to the music. Other times, there is a slight lack of detail in the presence region, and slight excess warmth in the lowed mids, that I'd like to ameliorate. But it really depends on the volume, the source, and my mood. You also have to consider I have a pretty limited processor so the tune isn't 100% optimized.
I don't listen to much electronic music. They do as well as my past Bostons and A/D/Ss did on New Order, Depeche Mode, and Nine Inch Nails.


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## Iamsmuts (May 24, 2015)

Arete said:


> Yes I have do have it. I used a metra kit to have it installed under my stock stereo. Actually doesn't look to bad. It does feel a little cheap but has the functionality that I need and want. Mainly 3 way active, time alignment, and I'm looking forward to giving the auto-tune a whirl. Its just right now all I have is the deck.



Under your stock head unit? I haven't seen that before. 

I've been running the 80PRS for 6 months or so. I got it for the features too. . . I didn't find the auto tune very useful.

My complaints are these: 

The flimsy selection bar next to the master control knob sometimes gets stuck down. I'm certain it will break in a year or so.

The fact that there is a master control knob! No volume knob. Nor is there a pause, except for on the remote control.

It doesn't play flac files. And the SD card reader is flakey.

The file and directory browsing is awful. Why can't I be in a folder and get a list of the files? If I'm listening to something and want to choose a different song and I don't know exactly where it is, I have to exist back to the base directory and navigate my way back up. That's awful.

Changing the volume introduces a bit of noise at each notch. I only notice this when using test tones on the sub though.

The high pass crossover points are too few: 3.15 then all the way to 4k, nothing in between.

When you switch from passive to active you have to switch out the rcas. The front becomes the mid, not the high. (This is obviously a minor complaint.)

Overall I'm not very happy with the head unit. It is nice that I don't need a dsp right now.


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## Arete (Oct 6, 2013)

Iamsmuts said:


> Under your stock head unit? I haven't seen that before.
> 
> I've been running the 80PRS for 6 months or so. I got it for the features too. . . I didn't find the auto tune very useful.
> 
> ...


Eventually I'm getting an external DSP. It should work for now. Check out the pic. I didn't like the kit that replaced the stock unit. I think this looks better.


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## smgreen20 (Oct 13, 2006)

I've been running SF's longer then most I know that are running them. I've always ran mine sealed and with more rms power then rated for. I've had mine for just over 4 years, maybe 5 by now. I first powered them by an Audison LRx5.1k "B" channels. (160w @ 4 ohms) They're in aprox. a .15cf sealed door pod in my 2000 Sierra, 50Hz to 4k Hz both slopes at 12dB/oct. Full tilt on the volume and not an ounce of distortion. 

Today I'm still running them in the same truck/pods but with different power. Currently at 50w (Clarion APA4200) but soon to be 100w (Clarion APA4400). They're only playing from 60Hz to ~ 750Hz, both slopes at 12dB/oct. Still going strong after all these years. I've tried other mids since I've had these and I keep coming back to them. At the price point, they can't be beat.


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## Alrojoca (Oct 5, 2012)

Another Silver Flute thread


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## Iamsmuts (May 24, 2015)

Alrojoca said:


> Another Silver Flute thread


Ha. I never got enough info on them from other threads. . . . But for $60 and some install sweat, I thought why not. 

The big question, at least for the budget conscious (i.e., poor), is how do they really stack up against more expensive 6.5s. I still don't have a good sense.


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## smgreen20 (Oct 13, 2006)

Scott B is a good guy and I like him a lot, so take what I say how you want.

But I would put these up against the Hybrid Audio Legatia L6's.


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## Alrojoca (Oct 5, 2012)

Iamsmuts said:


> Ha. I never got enough info on them from other threads. . . . But for $60 and some install sweat, I thought why not.
> 
> The big question, at least for the budget conscious (i.e., poor), is how do they really stack up against more expensive 6.5s. I still don't have a good sense.


Many happy users. Very few complaints with SQ.

One issue I would have is weight and I would like to see how they look after 5 years being wool drivers, being $35.00 maybe no need to bother trying to re sell them when doing an upgrade. Just get a new set.


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## edzyy (Aug 18, 2011)

Flutes are great IMO

Another great candidate is the SB SB17MFC35


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## Arete (Oct 6, 2013)

edzyy said:


> Flutes are great IMO
> 
> Another great candidate is the SB SB17MFC35


Erin's test didn't show great results are a midwoofer but maybe as a midbass only. Efficiency and power handling are on the low side as well. 50 watts I think. That's what looks good about the flutes.


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## YukonXL04 (Mar 6, 2014)

smgreen20 said:


> I've been running SF's longer then most I know that are running them. I've always ran mine sealed and with more rms power then rated for. I've had mine for just over 4 years, maybe 5 by now. I first powered them by an Audison LRx5.1k "B" channels. (160w @ 4 ohms) They're in aprox. a .15cf sealed door pod in my 2000 Sierra, 50Hz to 4k Hz both slopes at 12dB/oct. Full tilt on the volume and not an ounce of distortion.
> 
> Today I'm still running them in the same truck/pods but with different power. Currently at 50w (Clarion APA4200) but soon to be 100w (Clarion APA4400). They're only playing from 60Hz to ~ 750Hz, both slopes at 12dB/oct. Still going strong after all these years. I've tried other mids since I've had these and I keep coming back to them. At the price point, they can't be beat.


Got any pictures of these pods? I have a 04 yukon, would like to see how others are creating sealed pods in these


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## Brian_smith06 (Jan 31, 2008)

YukonXL04 said:


> Got any pictures of these pods? I have a 04 yukon, would like to see how others are creating sealed pods in these


I second this. I even have an extra set of doors I can cut/weld/do whatever I want to.

The perks of a dad who owns a tow lot and well over 100 cars at any given time. Its amazing how many cars he gets to keep!


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## WifeyHatesMyHobby (May 27, 2015)

Brian_smith06 said:


> I second this. I even have an extra set of doors I can cut/weld/do whatever I want to.
> 
> The perks of a dad who owns a tow lot and well over 100 cars at any given time. Its amazing how many cars he gets to keep!


I third this. My Silverado doors may need some door pod love soon. Thinking of moving the Hertz to some kick panels or downfiring under the jumpseat, and adding some silver flutes as upper mids in the doors.


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## Brian_smith06 (Jan 31, 2008)

WifeyHatesMyHobby said:


> I third this. My Silverado doors may need some door pod love soon. Thinking of moving the Hertz to some kick panels or downfiring under the jumpseat, and adding some silver flutes as upper mids in the doors.


I know they make these but they are not sealed and look a hair goofy to me but who am I to judge what others like?

Truck Speaker Pods


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## YukonXL04 (Mar 6, 2014)

Brian_smith06 said:


> I know they make these but they are not sealed and look a hair goofy to me but who am I to judge what others like?
> 
> Truck Speaker Pods


I had those in my last sierra. Honestly they looked pretty decent. Had alpine 6.5 type r mid and 5.25 type r coax in them. Tweets were in the pillars. 120w to each speaker, that sucker got loud lol. But I lost alot of mid bass with those pods. 

Think you can spare a set of A pillars? I need a set lol. People on ebay think they are freaking gold or something... $80-100 for a pair lol


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## WifeyHatesMyHobby (May 27, 2015)

YukonXL04 said:


> I had those in my last sierra. Honestly they looked pretty decent. Had alpine 6.5 type r mid and 5.25 type r coax in them. Tweets were in the pillars. 120w to each speaker, that sucker got loud lol. But I lost alot of mid bass with those pods.
> 
> Think you can spare a set of A pillars? I need a set lol. People on ebay think they are freaking gold or something... $80-100 for a pair lol


I wonder if it would be possible to get the ones with holes for 6.5", 4", and tweets, then cut a hole behind the 6.5 to open it back up to the door for better midbass and use that plastic to seal up the rest of the pod for the 4"? Hmmmmm


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## YukonXL04 (Mar 6, 2014)

The 6.5 ends up right in front of the stock location, so it is open to the door, but I believe you would have to either seal the pod up, or seal the pod up to the inside of the door.


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## Brian_smith06 (Jan 31, 2008)

YukonXL04 said:


> I had those in my last sierra. Honestly they looked pretty decent. Had alpine 6.5 type r mid and 5.25 type r coax in them. Tweets were in the pillars. 120w to each speaker, that sucker got loud lol. But I lost alot of mid bass with those pods.
> 
> Think you can spare a set of A pillars? I need a set lol. People on ebay think they are freaking gold or something... $80-100 for a pair lol


Yeah they are crazy on ebay. Sadly he only has one Silverado I will be to get parts off of. If he ends up getting another I would be happy to hook you up though.


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## Alrojoca (Oct 5, 2012)

OP
I would not over analyze it, simply buy what you want or flip a coin,  to get either these or the HAT, HERTZ HSK XL, SI TM65 , since you also considered those , then try them and if you don't like them, sell them and try something else.


That's what most do here, test use enjoy a driver for a while, then upgrade or change them, the more time you spend looking at specs reviews, opinions or selecting a set, the more enjoyment time will be missed on the commute to work etc.

Or meet locals to hear different systems, sometimes a good sound processor, proper install, and a decent sub is more important to tune and get the most from whatever you choose.

I'm sure none will disappoint,  some may play more bass some may be smoother some will lack in certain type of music, or sound better with other music.

Good luck and let us know what you decide to get.


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## Brian_smith06 (Jan 31, 2008)

Exactly. Id go with the cheapest driver and if you don't like it you can turn around and flip them for minimal lose. I paid 50 shipped for my flutes since somebody had already purchased them.


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## smgreen20 (Oct 13, 2006)

Alrojoca said:


> Many happy users. Very few complaints with SQ.
> 
> One issue I would have is weight and I would like to see how they look after 5 years being wool drivers, being $35.00 maybe no need to bother trying to re sell them when doing an upgrade. Just get a new set.


Mine are 4 to 5 years old and when I had them out last (about 6 months ago) they still look as good as the day I bought them.


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## Alrojoca (Oct 5, 2012)

smgreen20 said:


> Mine are 4 to 5 years old and when I had them out last (about 6 months ago) they still look as good as the day I bought them.


That's good to know, on every silver flute thread I come across something good and new pops up like the comparison with the JBL p660c.

Not being a driver for use in a car, it's good to know they are holding up after some time, I guess YMMV and region, rain and car storage conditions play a roll with them. Paper carton cones tend to sound better, but car speaker manufacturers choose other materials that may hold longer in some possible extreme conditions cars can be exposed to.


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## sqnut (Dec 24, 2009)

Alrojoca said:


> *Paper carton cones tend to sound better*, but car speaker manufacturers choose other materials that may hold longer in some possible extreme conditions cars can be exposed to.


I'm intrigued by what you're claiming there. Care to expand?

To the OP:

Good sound in a car is 70% tune, 20% install and 10% equipment. You don't need a $2,000 amp or a $ 1,000 speaker to get good sound. That doesn't mean you should buy junk. Stick with well reputed brands and look at the specs. Specs on reputed brands products tell you a lot. Junk brands have junk specs.

On both fronts the Flutes are excellent. Yes the Flutes will do slightly better in pods due to the low Qts, but seal the door well and you won't miss a thing. The flutes are solid in a sealed door down to 50hz. I would take the Flutes over the HAT and Hertz and whatever else has been mentioned in the thread. Not because they are cheaper, but because they are better, specially in a 2 way like yours. This is the beauty of raw drivers. Sometimes you come across a gem which will outperform more expensive options. 

Buying equipment should be a one time fill it, shut it and forget it kind of thing. Remember it's only 10% of the equation. If you feel the constant urge to swap amps and speakers for better SQ, the basic fact is your tune is out. Swapping an amp to double the power is a good idea. But to buy a $1000 amp that gives 20% more power is meh. Doing it to get better SQ is a complete waste of time. If you feel the need to upgrade your equipment, solve your tuning issues first. 

TLDR: Get the Flutes.


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## Alrojoca (Oct 5, 2012)

sqnut said:


> I'm intrigued by what you're claiming there. Care to expand?
> 
> Maybe paper cones are just a preference for some? Not always will sound better than other materials.
> 
> ...


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## Iamsmuts (May 24, 2015)

Alrojoca said:


> sqnut said:
> 
> 
> > I'm intrigued by what you're claiming there. Care to expand?
> ...


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## sqnut (Dec 24, 2009)

^^ you're quoting me for something I didn't say.


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## MetricMuscle (Sep 16, 2013)

Iamsmuts said:


> These wool fibers help reduce cone resonance, and give the woofers a slightly warmer sound than traditional paper cones.


Wool makes them sound warmer. 
I just think that's funny for some reason.


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## Iamsmuts (May 24, 2015)

sqnut said:


> ^^ you're quoting me for something I didn't say.


Ha. No, I was just noting that you are right. They are made from both wool and paper according to the site.


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## tjswarbrick (Nov 27, 2013)

MetricMuscle said:


> Wool makes them sound warmer.
> I just think that's funny for some reason.


Always got me too. I bought em anyway. ?
One thing they are not is cold and analytical.


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## Arete (Oct 6, 2013)

sqnut said:


> I'm intrigued by what you're claiming there. Care to expand?
> 
> To the OP:
> 
> ...


Thanks! I'm definetly ordering these. I am curious though how difficult they will be to get in the doors of my 07 Accord. I think I may try the NVX tweets with them. Nice little budget build. Other than my 80PRS deck I'm running completely stock right now. I'm hoping the deck will suffice for tuning until I have an external DSP. I've never tuned before but I've done a lot of reading on here so I'm confident I have a good starting point. I'm sure a lot of it is learning by doing though. If what you say is true about these sounding much better than the Hertz (never head HAT just read reviews) I'm going to be VERY pleased and a true raw driver convert. My last set was the Hertz Hsk set. It sounded very good to my ears. Good midbass and midrange. The tweets were bright At first but I dialed em down a bit around 10khz and they sounded great. That setup was actually the first time I didn't use rear fill and set time alignment and truly understood what imaging meant. After that I was hooked! I kind of miss that deck I was using... the ALPINE CDA117. If I didn't want the tuning abilities (mainly active) of the PRS I would've bought that same deck. Felt much more solid then the PRS and IMO easier to navigate. 

I'll do a review/comparison of the speakers once I get everything installed.


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## Iamsmuts (May 24, 2015)

Arete said:


> Thanks! I'm definetly ordering these. I am curious though how difficult they will be to get in the doors of my 07 Accord. I think I may try the NVX tweets with them. Nice little budget build. Other than my 80PRS deck I'm running completely stock right now. I'm hoping the deck will suffice for tuning until I have an external DSP.


I got the SB tweeters installed in stock locations in my Fit. They sound great (to my ear). I have them high passed at 2.5 khz and a 24 db/o slope. The Maximo tweeter is awful in my setup.. . . I'm going to pull the Morel 6.5's. They sound much better now that they are only having to go up to 2.5 k with the same slope. But I don't trust them. . . .

I fear that the flutes are going to be a pain to install in the front. I might have to use a full 1" mounting ring. That's going to be tough with the door card. The rear was easier. The glass in the front is the problem. 

In the rear I used a 3/4" mounting ring. I just trimmed the plastic kit adapter and reinforced it. But I had to cut the door. Even then, the connectors are uncomfortably close to the metal. I had to cut out some space and cover the metal with tape after I painted the cut edge. (I plan to make better rings soon. . .. )

I wonder how much depth you have in the Accord. In any case, I think it might be worth measuring before you buy the flutes. They are 75mm!

Someone estimates that you can get 77mm speakers in the fit. 

Maximum mounting depth on Fit = 77mm - Unofficial Honda FIT Forums

I couldn't find anything like this for the Accord.

I recall that keep_hope_alive has an accord build log. He had to cut the door cards to install the flutes. I think this is in a 2001 Accord. 

KHA 2001 Accord EX V6 Build Log

I don't know how much the 2007 differs.


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## Iamsmuts (May 24, 2015)

Here's a link to the post about the flute install.

KHA 2001 Accord EX V6 Build Log


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## Iamsmuts (May 24, 2015)

Iamsmuts said:


> I fear that the flutes are going to be a pain to install in the front. I might have to use a full 1" mounting ring. That's going to be tough with the door card. The rear was easier. The glass in the front is the problem.



I managed to get the flutes in the front doors with a 1" baffle and some weather stripping. There is probably about 2-3mm between the magnet and the glass.

http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/2664138-post2.html


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## Arete (Oct 6, 2013)

Iamsmuts said:


> I managed to get the flutes in the front doors with a 1" baffle and some weather stripping. There is probably about 2-3mm between the magnet and the glass.
> 
> http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/2664138-post2.html


How do you like them? What tweets are you using with them... wait I think you mentioned you had the SB tweets. I'm tempted to pull the plug on them soon. Very soon. Is it possible to get grills to cover these?


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## smgreen20 (Oct 13, 2006)

Sadly grills are not easy to come by for these, they're actually a 6.75" mid. I have a damaged set of Clarions SSS601 comps which is an oversized 6.5" mid, with some trimming of the grill mount, I was just able to get them to fit. The cast basket is another reason making it hard to find grills that fit.


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## Iamsmuts (May 24, 2015)

Arete said:


> How do you like them? What tweets are you using with them... wait I think you mentioned you had the SB tweets. I'm tempted to pull the plug on them soon. Very soon. Is it possible to get grills to cover these?


I like them a lot. They replaced Morel Maximo 6.5's which weren't bad (though I didn't care for Maximo tweeters). My initial impression is that the Flutes are much better. 

The RTA doesn't show much of a difference. (Something about my car is causing a dip at 600Hz and a spike at 1.25kHz. . . ) But they sound clearer. The passive crossover on the Maximos had them crossed at 4.5k. That was way too high. I was running them crossed at 2.5 and I still got some distortion here and there. I can't detect any with the Flutes. I listened to them free air before putting them in the door. They are very precise.

And the Flutes are definitely louder than the Maximos. They are slightly more efficient, 1db. I'm not sure why there is a worry about loudness. On a short drive I was getting over 105db. They get louder than is comfortable. I'm powering them with a PPI 900.4.

I'm running the Flutes with the wonderful SB tweeters. I have them both crossed at 2.5kHz with 24db slopes. I'm high passing the Flutes at 80Hz with a 24db slope (I think). The midbass is fine, better than what they replaced. I've cranked them up with the sub off and they don't seem bothered at all with bass heavy music. You could probably cross them a bit lower, but I have no need. 

I have a 10" sub in a sealed box low passed at 80Hz with a 12db slope. It gives me more than I need below 160 or so. This is one reason why hatchbacks are nice. 

I have another pair of the Flutes in my rear doors, bandpassed at roughly 400-1200. I've never listened to them properly. They are turned pretty low. You can only hear them distinctly if you lean down behind the front seat. I might shut them off. But I could run them 80-200 if I wanted more midbass. I don't think it would affect the stage much. But I'm not sure. I don't have the ability to time align the rears. I'm running the middle channel into the PPI 900.4 and using it for both front and rear Flutes.


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## smgreen20 (Oct 13, 2006)

I've run mine down to, and still do, 50Hz @12dB/oct. I had 160 watts on them at the same xover point. Currently I'm only giving them 50w until I resolder the input Jack to the board on my Clarion APA4400, then they'll receive 100w, but I don't run them as high as I did in the past. I used to run them up to 4k Hz w/o issues. Due to new speakers, I only run them up to 500Hz now. Love them.


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## therapture (Jan 31, 2013)

sqnut said:


> *Good sound in a car is 70% tune, 20% install and 10% equipment. *
> 
> ... seal the door well and you won't miss a thing. The flutes are solid in a sealed door down to 50hz. I would take the Flutes over the HAT and Hertz and whatever else has been mentioned in the thread. Not because they are cheaper, but because they are better, specially in a 2 way like yours. This is the beauty of raw drivers. Sometimes you come across a gem which will outperform more expensive options.
> 
> ...



THREAD REVIVAL, sorry...

*I second that! *I had a friend a few years back that ran freaking radio shack speakers in his car. He never told anyone until after they listened to the system and were SHOCKED. 

I am back in the tuning game! Well...almost. I have all the parts coming in next week to start my install in my "new" 2005 Acura TL. I have wanted to try these 6.5's after running the Hybrid Imagines as midbasses for 3 years in my old car. I like cheap AND good stuff haha.

The stock TL system is actually reasonable, hell, if it had time alignment I might even leave it stock. The stock sub is even ok but is am unknown brand and only gets 40-50 watts from the stock amp. I'll be bypassing the stock amp except for the center nav/phone speaker and feeding signal to my processor.

Equipment list:

Head unit: stock Acura DVD-NAV with a nice aux input kit
Processor: RF 360.3
Amp: Alpine PDX V9
-CDT ES 02" on dash in stock location (firing into windscreen)
-Silver Flute 6.5" into a well sealed/deadened door
-Peerless 830667 8" woofer in a modified rear deck location, infinite baffle

Being that I am staying with a single IB 8" sub, I needed to get the front doors to handle reasonable midbass. I plan on crossing the Flutes no higher than 2500 as the CDT 2" are quite happy to be crossed ~1200-1500. This is going to be an "SQ system with a little beef".


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