Tweeter placement questions, & SQ issues

I installed some components up front a while back and I'm having some issues with SQ. I put my tweets in the factory location as well as the 6.5's, but they are way too bright for me. I have the crossovers set at -6dB for the tweets and it sounds alright but I'm wondering if there is anything else I can do.  They're in a 2dr yukon and the tweets are about 1ft. above the mids in the door panel. How much difference would it make if I put them in the door panel RIGHT next to the mids? I'm more than willing to cut out the door panel but only if it makes a difference. Could the speakers just plain be designed to be that bright? They are Polk mmc6500 components

Also, the components dont sound as good at low volumes. I have about 75w rms to each set and they are rated for 125rms. Do I need more power for better quality at lower volume or less power? They sound GREAT when you crank it up, by the way.

One more question, I'm looking into temporarily installing some "bass blockers" in line to the mids until I get my JL 300/4, how do I interpret the ratings on the capacitors so I know exactly what frequency the cut off is at. Also what frequency do you recommend for 6.5's?

First, I wouldn't worry about attenuating, tweeters are naturally more efficient, bright, hot, whatever, than the drivers.  Moving the tweeter close to the midrange will have a positive effect on sound quality.  How much?  Who knows.  The further apart the tweeter and mid are the stranger the phase relationship near the crossover point can get.  Further, this can cause some frequency response problems.  You decide whether it is worth it. 

Secondly, how much attention did you pay to the midrange install?  A solid install can help "bring up" the midbass and clean up the midrange.  i.e.  MDF mounting ring, good seal between the door and the driver, dynamat behind and around the speaker location, maybe dynamat all over the door.

This isn't a power issue.  75 is enough for components.  Can you describe the "dont sound as good" part?  Do they distort?  Lose midrange / bass / detail, what?  We might be able to help with more information.

150hz at for bass blockers (6db/octave).  Most are rated just like this.  However, if you want raw caps, check out the Passive Crossovers link to the left of this page.  Find the value for 6db/octave 1st order high pass xo. 

Once you have an active crossover, at 12db or higher, remove the bass blockers and bump them down to 80 or 100hz.

Hope this helps

Thank you for the response.

As for the tweeters, I am going to hold off on moving them until I have the time to improve my mids, and then I'll decide.

The midrange install was done using the mounting ring that came with the speakers. It was good solid plastic about 1" thick. Also, because of the depth of the new speakers, I was unable to mount them to the door itself and mounted them to the door panel. I hadn't put too much thought into the effect that it would have on sq when I was installing, actually it didn't hit me until right now. I now think that it was a big mistake. When I get to sound deadening I will have to inspect everything closer and see what can be done. Man I feel dumb for that one.

As for sound deadening, I didn't add any and I plan to do so asap. I do things in phases, as my finances allow. Any suggestions on sound deadening brand?

As for the "don't sound as good" part, the sound at lower volumes is very shallow. It seems like some frequencies dont come out very well. The detail can still be heard but it is withdrawn, not vibrant like it is at higher volume. I experience these problems at a normal listening level, not at extremely low volumes.

I found the link for the passive crossovers just after posting the topic. Thanks for the help though.

Well after reading back through this post and your post I have a feeling that a big source of my problem is the midrange. I think that I am having to turn the volume up in order to hear the detail in the midrange, and because it is so muttled, the "brightness" of the tweeter is magnified. I can hear the tweeter get louder but I cant hear the mids get louder?  Does that sound right?

Hey at least I knew that something wasn't right! haha

Yes they are right on the door panel. The mounting ring is on the back side of the panel and the speaker and grill are on the outside. They aren't unstable by any means but I'm sure you are right about the seal being bad. What is backwave?

I think I know how I can mount them to the door itself, but honestly I cant remember what caused the problem with doing that in the first place so I wont know until I pull it all off and start over. I was really excited about my new speakers and I obviously wasn't putting enough thought into the install. If nothing else I am learning from my mistakes.

Ok, new question. On the bi amping, can I do away with the polk crossovers if I set the crossovers on the amp correctly? Should I use two seperate amps or would the jl 300/4 be ok? The manual for my speakers says that I can do away with the crossovers if I use the polk c400.4 amp and engage some type of automatic crossover feature on the amp. Is it really important to use the polk amp or is it more important that I set the crossovers on any amp correctly?

People say that JL is overpriced, but I want the quality that they offer. Do any other high end companys make an amp similar to the 300/4 for a better price?

Thanks again.....

Well, as the driver is moving in and out to radiate sound out the front of the woofer, it also radiates substantially the same sound behind the woofer.  

I like this little quote from Xtant's website:  "When a speaker moves forward, air in front of the cone is compressed. At the same time, air in back of the cone is rarefied (stretched). If there is a pathway for the compressed air to get behind the cone, it will do so. This process reduces the amplitude of the soundwave. It is therefore necessary to use some type of enclosure, in order to keep the soundwaves from cancelling each other out.

Further, check out the pictures about 1/2 way down the page under the section, "Making a driver work efficiently" here: http://www.ht-audio.com/basics.htm

Lots of times mounting depth is the issue.

No, it is not necessary to use the polk amp.  You can use any electronic crossover system that will give you the right slope + xo point adjustability.  It is fine to bi-amp with a 4-channel amp, I do.  I use the crossover features on my head unit for this.  Not all amps will have the adjustability you need.  If you set the xo on the tweeter too low you'll quickly blow it.

There are many fine quality amplifiers out there.  We frequently discuss this to the point of exhaustion.  Everyone has a different opinion.  In my opinion, however, once you reach a certain quality threshold, returns diminish very quickly for extra dollars spent on very expensive amplifiers.  Look for an amplifier with the power and features you want from an honest reputable company, and I don't really think you can go wrong. 

Ok, here is my problem, i got into the same issue as dirtydreams4x4 with regards to splits. i had to mount my splits in my front doors, but used a mdf ring to raise them. I also had to make a 'extra panel' of sorts to raise the speaker out a little more. So it sits bout 3/4" higher than the door panel. When i giv the system a bit of juice, all i can hear in the front is the vibrations in the plastic panels, especially wen the songs hav sum bass. How can i fix this?

Sorry for not starting a new topic, i thought it would be easier to stay in the same thread.

Cheers