2002 290 Bowrider Stereo System Upgrade and Where to Buy Swim Platform

[Liquid-Therapy]

Getting ready to take delivery of a 2002 290 Bowrider. My first question is about the stereo system. I'm guessing I'll probably want to upgrade it. I'm looking for some general advice on how to go about doing it. 15 years ago when I was in college, I installed stereos at Best Buy, so I'm probably a little more familiar than most about car audio, but I'm completely clueless about boats. I have some general question to start off with like, Do you need to buy a head unit that is a "marine" head unit. Since it's completely enclosed and away from water, is this necessary? What about the speakers? Again, should they be marine speakers? And how about installing other components like an amp? Is it best to leave it to a professional installer?

This boat is coming without a swim platform. The boat broker we bought it from said it is pretty expensive to get one from Sea Ray and recommended buying a custom fitted aftermarket one. Has anyone here done that? Do you have a recommendation? Is it possible to get an aftermarket one with teak board? I really like that look.

Thanks everyone!

 

[SteveRuss]

I doubt if you could still get the swimpatform from Sea Ray. Next best thing or maybe even better is the aftermarket platform from www.swimplatforms.com. These are not cheap. I paid about 2K for mine but you will not find a better custom fit platform anywhere. You deal directly with the owners who could add extra customization to your platform but I don't think teak is an option. These are moulded fiberglass like the factory platforms. go to the website. They have plenty of photos of before and after shots and probablt have some of your model boat. I understand one of the owners was a long time employee of Sea Ray. As for the stereo, since you are in Missouri you don't have the salt air to contend with so you don't have to worry about corrosion but condensation couls be an issue if you leave the boat in the water for months at a time. I'll let others opine on that one. Whichever way you go, if you are comfortable doing the install yourself then go that way of it means saving money or if you don't trust the local installers. the wiring diagram for your boat if you don't have one can be downloaded from the Sea Ray archives. Good luck with the new boat.

 

[cain]

Boats stereos are easier than cars, IMHO. Much easier to run wires and no trunks to crawl in. Big thing with boats is making sure you have enough juice (read: batteries) to run the system. Minimum is 2 with a switch.

Car decks are fine to run in boats in a non-salt water environment. Plus you will get more options and better outputs/tweaking than most marine decks.

I usually use marine speakers mainly because they match the interior better. On certain boats I've even used home outdoor speakers since they are designed to project sound and are completely waterproof.

Subs you will find better options with car over marine but either work well. Just do not use paper cone drivers or any other materials that will deteriorate. Also ported boxes work better than sealed.

Amps just make sure they can stay dry and cool.

My 200 BR I used two pair of SpeakerCraft outdoor speakers for the front and rear, Fosgate marine 6.5s in factory locations, Kenwood DVC 12" sub, PG 5 channel amp, and Kenwood car deck. I have two batteries on a Perco switch so I don't get stranded. Sound is great and can be heard at cruising speed and on the beach.

 

[Liquid-Therapy]

Thank you both. Great information! That should get me off and running.