Customer Reviews

Alpine SPR-17C 6-1/2" 2-Way Speaker (Pair)

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

These speakers are awesome! They have excellent clarity. I have them installed in an S10 with Alpine Type S 4x6 speakers in the dash, two 12 inch subwoofers behind the seats, and an Alpine IDA-x001 head unit. I have passive crossovers installed on these speakers, so I can't comment on the bass response of these speakers, but the mids and highs are excellent. I have them powered by the in-deck amplifier, and these speakers could certainly handle more power than is being supplied. An external amplifier would probably be a good choice with these these speakers, but it is not necessary. They sound loud and clear just the way they are. They sound better than several component speaker systems that I have heard in the past, and I would definitely recommend these speakers to anyone wishing to upgrade their sound system.

The first thing I'd like to address is that most brand new speakers require a break-in period. A large percentage of negative speaker reviews you'll see are from people that hooked them up out of the box, played them for a few minutes, and decided they sounded awful. And it's true that most speakers will have a hollowness to them and that they'll lack punch and clarity when they're new. In order to really gauge sound quality, new speakers need to be played at a moderate to high volume for several hours.

These Alpines are no exception to the break-in period. They did sound a bit hollow and muffled when I first played them. But after a few hours of drive time, they really opened up and gained some punch and lucidity. I'm truly impressed with the sound quality for the amount of money these cost.

In my previous vehicle I had a Dynaudio System 220, which sounded absolutely beautiful. While I can't say that these Alpines are as good, I can definitely say they get close, and that's a lot to say for a coaxial speaker. I purchased these Alpines because I wanted something simple and easy to install, and also something that would handle a lot of power. One thing I've found with coaxs is that the tweeter size makes a huge difference in power handling. I was attracted to the fact that these Alpines came with 1" tweeters. Many coaxes will only come with 1/2" or 3/4" tweets. In the past, I've blown quite a few small tweeters, and with clean power. So the fact that these have larger tweeters is a major plus.

Another big plus to these speakers is the filter components. Most cheap coaxes will only have a small cap, acting as a high pass filter for the tweeter. Those tiny caps can get fried, even with clean power. These Alpines use large high quality capacitors which help them handle higher power levels. Also, they have inductors on them acting as low pass filters for the woofers. This is something you won't usually find on cheaper coaxes. By sending only lower frequencies to the woofers, you're going to gain better separation and clarity in your music.

As for the magnets, these speakers are beefy. Alpine did not skimp on the magnets, and that's always important if you want to get tighter midbass.

Overall, I'm quite pleased with these speakers and I would fully recommend them as far as sound quality and power handling go.

Now, for installation. I purchased these because Crutchfield's website said that they fit the front doors of my vehicle. I currently have a 4-door 1994 Honda Civic. The civic has stock baskets which will only accomodate shallow depth speakers. I knew that these would have to be removed, which is no big deal. The Alpines come with two sets of mounting rings, one set of which I assumed would bolt right up. Wrong.

The shallow set of mounting rings has various tabs on it that you can break off, depending on your particular vehicle. The only way to make these rings fit my civic doors was to break off almost every single tab. Unfortunately, even with that done, they're a bit too shallow. The backs of the speakers will hit the window glass. This left the deeper rings to try. With the deeper rings, there are no tabs--just an odd array of plastic clips and extensions that make it impossible to lay the rings flat against the metal speaker holes in the doors. These clips and extensions do not break off easily by any means. I had to get my dremel out and cut all of them off in order to get the rings flush against the doors. After that, I used some black silicon to seal them to the metal. Unfortunately, the only holes on the speaker rings that allow for mounting to the metal are the same holes that you must screw the speaker into. What this means is that you'll have to drill out the plastic holes so that the included long screws are free to move inside. I used a 3/16 bit to do this. After that, I used a 1/8 bit to drill into the metal. I connected the speakers and then hand tightened the screws into the doors. With that, installation was pretty much complete.

Generally, when Crutchfield says something will fit, they mean it will bolt right up without any modification. This is certainly not the case with my car, so if you plan on installing into a similar vehicle, be prepared to do a little work.

I was pretty pleased with the factory Bose speakers in my car. Unfortunately, one of the back speakers finally blew out after 14 years. I auditioned three other sets of speakers -- a pair of Pioneers, a pair of Kenwoods, and even a pair of Alpine S-series -- before finally settling on the R-series. They were the only pair that could handle the power put out by the factory amp, and they were the only ones that came close to replicating the bass put out by the Bose speakers they were replacing.

Compare these side-by-side with just about any "commonplace" 6.5-inch speakers and they're much deeper and have a much bigger magnet. Take that as a clue. The reason these speakers cost twice as much (or more) as many 6.5" coaxial car speaker sets sold here is because they sound twice as good and put out at least twice the bass. If you want truly good sound from a 6.5" speaker and you're not dealing with an unusually shallow mounting space, don't cheap out -- don't even get the less expensive Alpine S-series. Go for the R-series. Spend the extra money for these speakers because they are completely and totally worth it. But I want to reiterate that these are for systems with an external amp, so make sure you've got the power to move 'em -- the 20-some watts per channel coming from your head unit won't be enough.

I LOVE these speakers! They come with two mounting kits, which saved me a lot of trouble when putting them in the shelf. When UPS brought them (I bought two pairs) the box was quite heavy. These are substantial speakers! They are very deep! Be ready for some hiccups when installing, as they gave me a little bit of trouble fitting properly.
I have got them in and they sound simply AMAZING! It's like frikin' surround sound in there! I was considering adding a sub, but I don't think I need it now...

I have these installed in the rear on my 2008 GMC Sierra 1500 Crew Cab and they sound fantastic!. I have them powered by the Alpine PDX 5 which has a lot of functionality and does not take up a lot of space. In fact all my components appear to be factory, just to keep the peering eyes away. I also have the Alpine SWS 1223 D sub in a custom box from subthump. Looks stock, sound great!

I just got these installed earlier today. The sound is very bright, has punchy mid-bass, and these babies can get really, really loud. I was amazed of the clarity at high volume levels with different genres of music that I listen to. I have them hooked up to a 400watt 4ch amp to go along with the type r component set as well.

I went searching for 4 speakers for my 99 pathfinder. Went to circuit city after they announced the closing, not impressed with the inventory or the price. I found these, installed them with a slight mod. to the speaker mount. They sound great for their size, and yes THEY DO HAVE BASS!

Originally, I added these alpine speakers to four other stock speakers and a stock subwoofer. They sounded pretty good. Then I added an amplifier, equalizer, and better subwoofer - still, they sounded good, really clear. But it wasn't until I unplugged the dash tweeters and removed the rear stock speakers (replacing them with these alpine speakers) that their quality appeared. The sound is soo much better; crisp clear high and mid ranges and a powerful bass. Next? Replace the front stock speakers with another set of alpine speakers, maybe another pair of SPR-17C's.

Quite possibly the best speakers I have ever installed. Type R is now my choice speakers! Great lows, mids, and highs. Will surprise you.

As I've suggested in other reviews, consult Crutchfield to ensure that any speakers you plan to purchase actually fit your car. These worked in my 06 Accord EX, but not without some minor reconstruction to the interior of the door with a saw. :-) That said, they sound great. Paired them with a Pioneer P5100UB head unit and a Pioneer GM6400 amp. The sound is killer. Without a strong system to push them you might do better with another set, but for kicking sound, you can't beat them.