Euro spec FL5 sound upgrade strategy

[DailyDrive_R]

Hello world,

as many of you may be aware most non North American FL5 Civics do not feature the Bose sound system. While I agree in principle that a light car is a better one, for my daily driver at the price of 60.000€ some better sound would be nice.
One of the differences is that the european FL5 does not feature the trunk subwoofer and while a subwoofer would of course extend the range to lower frequencies, it is mostly the upper frequencies that sound muted. In addition, the VW I had previously with his Dynaudio System also did not feature a dedicated subwoofer and had base in spares. In addition the factory boot housing to "hide" a subwoofer alone costs !500€!.... As I never put the factory system any louder than "14" it might be ok to put less "sensitive" speaker in trade for clarity.
So I am considering to start my journey with a little bit of sound deadening to the doors (I know, all those kilos) and some better speakers.
There is a plug and play option available in Japan, but the shipping cost make it an unfeasable option.

To explore locally sourced options and being a total noob in terms of car audio my questions are:
- What kind of plugs do I need to get in order to connect the new speakers with the loom
- What type of / kind of diameter / speakers / tweeter do I need to source, are the rear ones any different than the front ones?
- Anything to consider to avoid ending up in a worse situation that where I started?
- Any brands proven to be a great option?
and most importantly, has anyone done that before me? I know there are already threads regarding sound system upgrades but they go way beyond what I am planning to do.

For example, I wonder if these would do the trick

Best regards
Jarob

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[DailyDrive_R]

Dear all, one follow up, are the stock speakers 16.5 cm (6.5") or 17 cm (6.75") in diameter?

 

[DailyDrive_R]

And another question, will these fit my Honda?
https://www.ebay.de/itm/335102639255
https://www.ebay.de/itm/235085099998

 

[Zavage]

Most questions are answered here:
https://www.crutchfield.com/car/outfitmycar/mycar.aspx
Select 2023 Honda Civic Hatchback. For EU, in this case German FL5 Type R, choose without Bose (no image) sound system.

Don't forget speaker mounting brackets and please consider to use sound deadening foils. It is beside better quality speakers the other important part to improve audio quality.

" What kind of plugs do I need to get in order to connect the new speakers with the loom "
You can also solder the wires. Honda used on the 11.gen different connectors (not the same like 9. gen/10. gen), there is a thread here related to this.

For the european market i can highly recommend the brands Gladen, Eton and Helix (Audiotec Fischer). Great quality, good price and if you choose the right model: Made in Germany.

 

[DailyDrive_R]

So after some research I bought for the tweeters some Hertz Centro Pro CP 25 Tweeters. They do not fit right into the slots of the A-pillar due to a lip on their front. That lip is normally used to secure them in the provided mounting material but I will keep the mounting solution from Honda. I removed the said lip which is just made of plastic. This is possible without damaging the speaker part of the speaker.

As the connector to the Honda harness is integrated into the factory speaker I could not transfer that to the new speakers. Instead I cut off the connector and soldered the new speakers in.

Attached you will find a picture of the tweeters before and after modification.

 

[DailyDrive_R]

Now I also did the large speakers. I could not find the name of the plug used to connect the speakers so I just removed the factory plug and replaced it with a generic cramp.

The bracket to put the speakers is seems to be the same as the FK Civic. As I could not find anything about FL speaker brackets I rolled the dice and they fit. One has to replace the screw with a shorter one though.

I also did some sound treatment to the door and the door cards. I forgot to make a picture when I was finished but you get the idea.
The speakers are Hertz Centro CPK 165 and have considerably more power than the old ones, but my Civic just got quite some bit heavier....

All in I paid 500€, totally worth it. But there is one problem I still have, I will make a new post about it. But I think I made a mistake with +/- when connecting them.

Does anyone know the colour coding for +/- for the speakers on the FL Civic?

 

[Yorkman1]

if you have a multi-meter you can find the polarity



go to 2:32 seconds shows you how to do it.

Looks good hows the mid woofer sound with a small airspace?

 

[DailyDrive_R]

if you have a multi-meter you can find the polarity



go to 2:32 seconds shows you how to do it.

Looks good hows the mid woofer sound with a small airspace?

Thanks again for the video, it is a really easy guide.
Indeed my front left speakers were not connected correctly.

I have to say, my initial impressions were really good, the sound is a lot clearer not. However, the stereo is now lacking even more punch than before. I was warned that it will happen, as the new speakers need an amplifier to work properly. But honestly, the more I think about it, I assume a subwoofer will need to follow. I still find it hard to swallow the 500€ for the trunk cover from Honda but I think an under seat installation might not be wise for a car that sees occasional track work...

 

[Yorkman1]

With the Bose system in US the front door 6.5 inch mid woofers are 2ohm. Not sure what yours are across the pond, but gotta stay at 2ohm if you are replacing them. I’ll be posting some information in the coming days about this as well.

 

[DailyDrive_R]

Yes, that is the mistake, I changed them with a 4 Ohm system...
That is really really unfortunate because I specifically asked the seller a recommendation for my car.
A quick search on the most common online shops show that 4 Ohm speakers are really rare. So would that mean I should consider installing an amplifier now?

 

[Yorkman1]

well I’m not a speaker guru but a lower impedance speaker generally is louder. But as each watt of power increases the difference becomes less. But is lower power systems like the stock amp if makes a difference. There are videos about it.

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