Page 1 of 2
Tower Speakers on ‘19 R5...8” or 10”
Posted: Fri Apr 05, 2019 7:06 pm
by WarEagle2003
Hi Everyone,
I’m contemplating adding tower speakers to my R5. A few questions for the audio experts.
1. Is there any improvement to the in-boat sound with the addition of tower speakers, or is the perceived benefit mostly to the riders behind the boat?
2. With the 2019 JL Audio speakers, is there still need for a sub upgrade?
3. The tower speakers I’m currently considering are the Wet Sounds Rev 10 and Rev 8. Tallest person in the boat on most days will be 6’1”. Which size would be the best fit?
4. Price not being an issue...Two or Four speakers?
5. Amp that I’m considering is the Wet Sounds SDX4 with 185W x 4 channels....opinions?
Re: Tower Speakers on ‘19 R5...8” or 10”
Posted: Fri Apr 05, 2019 7:53 pm
by Big Block Power
You should really find a boat with them on. The 8 and the 10 will sound diff. To me it's about the sound behind the boat. I didn't think I needed a sub last year but I did. Added this year. The 8s need 300 watts each. 10 will need more. Lots of good threads on the web on the speakers and what amps to use. But if you have jl inboats I would run jl towers just me and jl amps .
Re: Tower Speakers on ‘19 R5...8” or 10”
Posted: Sun Apr 07, 2019 9:32 pm
by tkrahn
I have installed the REV 10 tower speakers with the sinister six amp. Great sound. I used the first two channels for the subwoofer's. I also installed the BT220 four zone controller. Could not be happier
Re: Tower Speakers on ‘19 R5...8” or 10”
Posted: Sun Apr 07, 2019 9:58 pm
by jhnmdahl
Some tower speakers are simply the same as in-boat speakers mounted in a tower enclosure (e.g., wetsounds Icon series), while others are horn-loaded and designed to project sound backward (e.g., wet sounds Rev series). Horn loaded are best if the speakers are for your skiers or boarders or whatnot, while traditional speakers are fine for swimming off the back of the boat or other things where wider dispersion with less projection is desirable. Or so say the manufacturers, anyway
Re: Tower Speakers on ‘19 R5...8” or 10”
Posted: Sun Apr 07, 2019 10:26 pm
by AsLan7
tkrahn wrote: Sun Apr 07, 2019 9:32 pm
I have installed the REV 10 tower speakers with the sinister six amp. Great sound. I used the first two channels for the subwoofer's. I also installed the BT220 four zone controller. Could not be happier
.
Hey TKR, would love to see pics of that. Sounds like a great set up!
Great to see you posting too. Hopefully your R5 fuel gauge will work a little better this year.
A formal welcome aboard mate to you my friend.
.
Re: Tower Speakers on ‘19 R5...8” or 10”
Posted: Sun Apr 14, 2019 9:36 pm
by tkrahn
AsLan7 wrote: Sun Apr 07, 2019 10:26 pm
tkrahn wrote: Sun Apr 07, 2019 9:32 pm
I have installed the REV 10 tower speakers with the sinister six amp. Great sound. I used the first two channels for the subwoofer's. I also installed the BT220 four zone controller. Could not be happier
.
Hey TKR, would love to see pics of that. Sounds like a great set up!
Great to see you posting too. Hopefully your R5 fuel gauge will work a little better this year.
A formal welcome aboard mate to you my friend.
.
Re: Tower Speakers on ‘19 R5...8” or 10”
Posted: Mon Apr 15, 2019 7:34 am
by AsLan7
That is sick looking tk.
Re: Tower Speakers on ‘19 R5...8” or 10”
Posted: Wed Apr 17, 2019 11:00 am
by WarEagle2003
tkrahn wrote: Sun Apr 07, 2019 9:32 pm
I have installed the REV 10 tower speakers with the sinister six amp. Great sound. I used the first two channels for the subwoofer's. I also installed the BT220 four zone controller. Could not be happier
Those two look great. Did you use two channels per speaker for a total of 370 watts for each speaker? From a space standpoint, do you think four speakers would be too many? Right now I have 4 Rev10s and one SDX4 amp, so I would have 185w per speaker.
Re: Tower Speakers on ‘19 R5...8” or 10”
Posted: Wed Apr 17, 2019 12:50 pm
by Big Block Power
WarEagle2003 wrote: Wed Apr 17, 2019 11:00 am
tkrahn wrote: Sun Apr 07, 2019 9:32 pm
I have installed the REV 10 tower speakers with the sinister six amp. Great sound. I used the first two channels for the subwoofer's. I also installed the BT220 four zone controller. Could not be happier
Those two look great. Did you use two channels per speaker for a total of 370 watts for each speaker? From a space standpoint, do you think four speakers would be too many? Right now I have 4 Rev10s and one SDX4 amp, so I would have 185w per speaker.
I was reading last night you really don't need more than 1 pair of 10s. You need to send power to them though. Bridge them.
Re: Tower Speakers on ‘19 R5...8” or 10”
Posted: Wed Apr 17, 2019 4:34 pm
by tkrahn
I bought a sinister 6 Amp. I have two separate sub woofers and I run them through channels one and two. I then bridged channels three and four and five and six to power each tower speaker. That gives them nearly 600 watts a side which is a little bit over their capacity. I spoke with technical support at Wet Sounds and they basically told me for the first season to gently use them and don’t power them up too much. After that it’s basically like breaking them in and they should be good to go. I see no reason why you would need four of these speakers. They sound phenomenal. I also really like the BT 220. Are used the first zone for the tower speakers, second zone for the cockpit speakers, third zone for the bow and transom speakers and the fourth is for the sub woofers. It really lets you control the sound system. Not very difficult to install. If you have any questions let me know.
Re: Tower Speakers on ‘19 R5...8” or 10”
Posted: Wed Apr 17, 2019 7:44 pm
by WarEagle2003
tkrahn wrote: Wed Apr 17, 2019 4:34 pm
I bought a sinister 6 Amp. I have two separate sub woofers and I run them through channels one and two. I then bridged channels three and four and five and six to power each tower speaker. That gives them nearly 600 watts a side which is a little bit over their capacity. I spoke with technical support at Wet Sounds and they basically told me for the first season to gently use them and don’t power them up too much. After that it’s basically like breaking them in and they should be good to go. I see no reason why you would need four of these speakers. They sound phenomenal. I also really like the BT 220. Are used the first zone for the tower speakers, second zone for the cockpit speakers, third zone for the bow and transom speakers and the fourth is for the sub woofers. It really lets you control the sound system. Not very difficult to install. If you have any questions let me know.
Thanks! Do you have some close up pictures of the BT220 install? Looks clean under the steering wheel.
Re: Tower Speakers on ‘19 R5...8” or 10”
Posted: Wed Apr 17, 2019 8:24 pm
by tkrahn
sorry, I do not have anymore pictures. I will probably be over at Heber Springs in two or three weeks and I can get more. Where it is located is perfect when you’re driving the boat. You can turn the volume down instantaneously with the left button or you can control the zones. It is so much easier than using the head unit which is present in the cobalt because you have to turn the knob so many times to turn it down. Because they mount all of the amplifiers In the compartment right in front of that it is easy to run the wires and set things up. You really cannot see any of the RCA cables is they go from underneath there to the front compartment. It is very clean his stall and I really like it a lot.
Re: Tower Speakers on ‘19 R5...8” or 10”
Posted: Wed Apr 17, 2019 8:27 pm
by tkrahn
By the way if you have any interest in buying Wet Sounds audio equipment creativeaudio.net is the best place to purchase it from. James Taylor is the gentleman I always work with and he by far and away has the best prices in the country.
Re: Tower Speakers on ‘19 R5...8” or 10”
Posted: Wed Apr 17, 2019 8:53 pm
by Big Block Power
Yea James took care of us and the nauti's very well.
I was going to go with the eq and zone controller too but I couldn't find a good spot for it and didn't want to mount it under anything. I'm sure I'll regret but buying one.
Re: Tower Speakers on ‘19 R5...8” or 10”
Posted: Wed Apr 17, 2019 10:18 pm
by WarEagle2003
James is who I purchased from. Great service and the best pricing!
