speakers in place of mirrors

[Dubert]

i was just wondering if anyone knows if its possible to put speakers where those reverse mirrors are in the back. before i got my 4runner i had a 97 integra which had great speaker placement imo. the rear speakers were in the side panels as opposed to the rear deck so they were aimed more directly towards the front of the car. i noticed that with the jbl system in the 4runners, they have speakers where my mirrors are and i would imagine those 2 extra speakers make a world of a difference. anyone try this?

 

[Hitman]

I'm sure you could do it, but I find those mirrors very useful.

Don't you ever use them when backing up?

 

[TranceKrayz]

i've thought about the same thing, but i figured that it'd sound just as good if not better if i had a set of components in the front and 3-ways in the rear doors. the tweeters in both the front panel and rear door would give out pleanty of sound. add a couple of subs in the back and you've got the extra bass to back up those highs.

 

[iFORCE]

Canadian 4Runners don't have those back-up mirrors... well.. not on the limiteds at least. I have two speakers there instead so it is 100% possible for you to change them out.

 

[Hitman]

Canadian 4Runners don't have those back-up mirrors... well.. not on the limiteds at least. I have two speakers there instead so it is 100% possible for you to change them out.

Are you sure that none of the 4Runners sold in Canada have them? I always thought that 4Runners without the 10 speaker JBL stereo had the mirrors back there.

 

[Dubert]

i've used those mirrors maybe 3 times. i just can't get used to them. and they're useless at night, so... as far as just switching out the stocks to better aftermarket speakers, its not that the stock speakers sound bad (though i know i can get much better ones) its the fact that with the rear speakers being in the door panels and not really facing the front it seems as if theres really only front speakers and not a 'surround sound' ..sound.

 

[jharris2]

i've used those mirrors maybe 3 times. i just can't get used to them. and they're useless at night

Hmmm....I find them very useful, even at night. Remember that they are used for movement, not a clear view. So at night, you should be able to see lights coming. But they are still not a substitute for looking carefully, too.

 

[boston_kevin]

seems like a duplicate thread...

Same discussion in this thread:

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=7605

If you have the mirrors, you won't have the wiring for the speakers. You would need to run speaker wire back from the front of the vehicle (unless you plan on major stereo mods) to power these units. If you did do this, you might also have to add some bass (i.e. subwoofer) since the current 6 speaker system is lacking bass anyway. The extra treble and mid from that size speaker might make the system sound even worse.

 

[Hitman]

Hmmm....I find them very useful, even at night. Remember that they are used for movement, not a clear view. So at night, you should be able to see lights coming. But they are still not a substitute for looking carefully, too.

I find the mirrors very useful when backing up. I usually turn my head and look over my shoulder (instead of relying solely on my mirrors) and I'll always glance at the passenger side rear mirror to check for cars coming from my left side.

Another example when they are very useful is when you are backing out of a parking space flanked by two SUVs. The mirrors allow us to see both directions before backing up. This happened to me the other day. I had a Hummer H2 on my left side and a full-size cargo van on my right side. Without the mirrors, I would have had to creep backwards until I had a view of traffic.

 

[Bluto]

I use the mirrors. I'll probably add an aux light for parallel parking at night.


The purpose of rear speakers is to add rear fill (or for rear passengers). For the driver, whats up front is much more important. For the best sound stage, focus on upgrading the front speakers first. Then worry about the rear.



http://www.termpro.com/articles/doorspkr.html

 

[iFORCE]

The only mirrors i've seen are on the SR5s. I'm thinking that because the limiteds here come with the JBL, we get two more speakers. So far... I've only seen one 4th gen here with the rear pillar mirros.

As for the usefullness..... I guess they would be for backing up so that you don't hit the other vehicle behind you....

 

[jharris2]

As for the usefullness..... I guess they would be for backing up so that you don't hit the other vehicle behind you....

You can use them for this purpose, but the main purpose is to watch for traffic coming perpendicular to you as you back out of a parking space.

 

[Cleric]

You can use them for this purpose, but the main purpose is to watch for traffic coming perpendicular to you as you back out of a parking space.

That is correct, but I acutally use them to check my blind spot more than anything.