Jl audio M 7.7's or Fusion 7.7's speakers in cockpit 340 sundancer

[Sdancer9040]

Calling all audio experts here...
I am upgrading my stereo and debating between this 2 brands of speakers, planning on installing 3 sets of 7.7 coaxials and 2 10" subs powered by 2 alpine 5 ch amps( which i was told deliver great power).all in the cockpit area...

i like the led lights on the fusion but i would go that route only if the sound is comparable to the quality of JL Audio which is a proven brand of quality sound...
Has anyone compared this 2 brands ?
how much should i pay for labor installing this?
Thanks in advance for your opinion , this is a major investment for me and dont want to mess it up...

thanks

 

[Wylie_Tunes]

Which Alpine 5 chnl amps? Compare the cost of 2 to a single Wet Sounds SD-6. 600W rms available for a pair of 10's or a single 12" woofer and 145w rms for your 6 in-boats.

Have you considered the Kicker KM-8? Nearly identical size wise to the 7.7. Comes with RGB LEDs and your choice of a white or charcoal grill. I do not know what the fusions sound like, but I can say the Kickers are impressive.

If you are going to have this professionally installed by a shop with marine audio experience, then I would work with them in the design stage. See what products they offer and suggest. They will likely offer a better package deal for parts and labor, as opposed to you carrying in your own gear and just wanting it installed. They tend to stand behind the entire install as well, when they install what you purchased through them.

 

[Fly'n Family]

Probably only 1/2 of a help. Huge music fan and have the best in every environment, I run 7.7 M series throughout my boat in essentially 3 zones - each driven by a dedicated amp. Have never had Fusions, but I'd be hard pressed to think there's much cleaner speakers than JL's M series.

 

[JimT]

This is where someone will chime in about Polk speakers winning a stereo sound off at some marina.

 

[Stee6043]

Do you care what they look like? I personally think the JL's look cleaner, more classy. I assume at this price point the JL's should sound better? But as JimT has pointed out there is quite a following for the Polk speakers these days at sub $100 per pair. I wonder if a better comparison would be the Polks to the Fusions? Hmm...

 

[chrishick]

AFAIK Polk doesn't make an 8" marine speaker.

 

[Sdancer9040]

Which Alpine 5 chnl amps? Compare the cost of 2 to a single Wet Sounds SD-6. 600W rms available for a pair of 10's or a single 12" woofer and 145w rms for your 6 in-boats.

Have you considered the Kicker KM-8? Nearly identical size wise to the 7.7. Comes with RGB LEDs and your choice of a white or charcoal grill. I do not know what the fusions sound like, but I can say the Kickers are impressive.

If you are going to have this professionally installed by a shop with marine audio experience, then I would work with them in the design stage. See what products they offer and suggest. They will likely offer a better package deal for parts and labor, as opposed to you carrying in your own gear and just wanting it installed. They tend to stand behind the entire install as well, when they install what you purchased through them.

I am considering 2 Alpine Pdx 5M (4 channels + 1 ch for sub )at around $425 a piece, this was advised by my installer( who is very reputable 18 yrs exp in marine set ups) as well as the 7.7's M Jl Audio , and as head unit he wants to do the Fusion 750 series AV ($750) . I like the fact that fusion speakers have the blue led light but again unless i get great feedback from these speakers i am going with Jl Audio ... (Which are tough to beat)
I heard great things about Wet Sound and of course Kicker has good reputation as well...

 

[Do Over]

You should throw Wet Sound speakers in there to compare also.....I have 4 with a Wet Sounds 10" Sub driven by a MB Quart amp.....absolutely incredible sound.

 

[Sdancer9040]

Do you care what they look like? I personally think the JL's look cleaner, more classy. I assume at this price point the JL's should sound better? But as JimT has pointed out there is quite a following for the Polk speakers these days at sub $100 per pair. I wonder if a better comparison would be the Polks to the Fusions? Hmm...

Just Fyi the Fusion speakers are now at $399 a pair while the JL Audio's are $325, so what i am thinking is that Fusion's must sound pretty good if they want to compete with JL's being more expensive...

 

[MarkCrusei]

I am also in the market of trying to find a new speakers to replace the Sea Ray factory Polk speakers. I would like to do this without having to modify the existing hole. I actually found an marine audio place in Seabrook and was able to compare several of the popular brands of speakers. I thought both brands of speakers sounded great. I personally don't care if they are back illuminated or not.

I actually thought the Fusion had a better bass response than the JL but in the end they were close enough in sound that I decided to go for the cheapest of the two. The Polk on the other hand were the cheapest but would not fit the existing holes. I did not think the Polk sounded as good as the others but seemed to require less watts volume wise.

 

[hd2002hd]

Just Fyi the Fusion speakers are now at $399 a pair while the JL Audio's are $325, so what i am thinking is that Fusion's must sound pretty good if they want to compete with JL's being more expensive...

Which JL's are you speaking of for $325 and where did you find these prices?

 

[Stee6043]

Just Fyi the Fusion speakers are now at $399 a pair while the JL Audio's are $325, so what i am thinking is that Fusion's must sound pretty good if they want to compete with JL's being more expensive...

Shoot, I did a quick search on Amazon and the 7" Fusions were $109?? Perhaps I was not looking at the proper model.

 

[brewster16]

My JL's sound RIDICULOUSLY good! By the way, anyone concerned about the hole size for 7.7's....it takes 45 seconds and a simple jig saw to increase the hole size.

=Bob

 

[skunkman]

I am ordering the JL M7.7s to replace the 4 cockpit speakers. I am also getting the 10 inch sub and will power it with a MDH 900/5 JL amp to get 100w/channel and 500 w to the sub. I heard great things about the JL speakers.

 

[JimT]

I am ordering the JL M7.7s to replace the 4 cockpit speakers. I am also getting the 10 inch sub and will power it with a MDH 900/5 JL amp to get 100w/channel and 500 w to the sub. I heard great things about the JL speakers.

The 10" sub M10IB5 is rated for 75w- 250w. You will have to dial the 900/5 down. You could go with the M600/6 and bridge two channels for the sub. I initially installed the 900/5 but couldn't get acceptable sound from it. A friend had similar problems with that amp. We both went to 600/6.

 

[skunkman]

The 10" sub M10IB5 is rated for 75w- 250w. You will have to dial the 900/5 down. You could go with the M600/6 and bridge two channels for the sub. I initially installed the 900/5 but couldn't get acceptable sound from it. A friend had similar problems with that amp. We both went to 600/6.

Thanks for the heads up. I'll check the 600/6 or maybe go to the 800/8 incase I want to add another pair of speakers. for some reason I thought the 600/6 was 75w/channel. I see it is 100w.

 

[skunkman]

Just Fyi the Fusion speakers are now at $399 a pair while the JL Audio's are $325, so what i am thinking is that Fusion's must sound pretty good if they want to compete with JL's being more expensive...

Where can you get M7.7s for $325? I can only find them for $429

 

[OllieC]

I too installed JL M7.7" and a single JL M10" Sub with a JL M400/4 (Sorry all - I'm the midget cousin of your cruisers so my set up's smaller). It sounds fantastic.

For those who want lights, on ebay they sell JL 7.7" speaker LED rings. I have blue ones installed on mine and they look great in the evening. I run them to an independent switch.

 

[Sdancer9040]

Where can you get M7.7s for $325? I can only find them for $429

Senor stereo in Miami

 

[Sdancer9040]

I too installed JL M7.7" and a single JL M10" Sub with a JL M400/4 (Sorry all - I'm the midget cousin of your cruisers so my set up's smaller). It sounds fantastic.

For those who want lights, on ebay they sell JL 7.7" speaker LED rings. I have blue ones installed on mine and they look great in the evening. I run them to an independent switch.

Do you have any pics?