Stereo upgrade for 185 Sport

[hblock72]

I think I'm due to make some upgrades to improve my listening on my 2007 185 Sport and looking for advice from those that know more than me about this stuff. I may not get around to it until this winter, but may as well have a plan ready. My boat came with the wakeboard package which included a stereo upgrade. So my stock system as delivered was a Clarion M445 head unit, 2 x 50 watt amp, 4 speakers, and a wired helm remote. I later added a Y-splitter, extension cable, and 2nd wired stern remote so I could control the volume while lounging in the water off the swim platform. The problem I have is two fold: 1) I don't get good sound quality outside the boat when floating in the water and 2) If I turn the volume up loud enough to hear in the water, it's too loud for anyone still on the boat.

So what I'm thinking of doing is replacing the amp (JL M600/6 maybe???), replacing the existing 4 speakers (JL MX650's maybe???), and adding some rear facing tower speakers (JL Vex's ???) I was not planning to upgrade head unit (yet), but would if it makes sense to get the functionality i'm looking for. What I'm not sure about is how or what control I need for the tower speakers. I assume I don't want them playing all the time (such as when underway) and would like to be able to adjust the level between the tower and other speakers (fader maybe???) and idealy be able to control the volume of the tower speakers from the stern remote. I know there's an optional wired remote level control available for the JL amp but not sure if that's what I need or not. Looking for recommendations to see if i'm even on the right path and how to configure a setup like this. Thanks in advance to all the audio guru's on here.

 

[Wylie_Tunes]

So the boat does have a tower? If so, then yes, tower speaker are far better at getting music outside the boat.

There are some ok ways to due zone control, then there are better ways. FADE can work, but its crude and can only be accessible through the head unit. Simple line level POTs are ok, but can require long RCA runs. Something like the Wet Sounds WS-420BT or 220BT will give you 3 or 4 zone control PLUS blue tooth and you retain the existing head and remotes. The 3 zone could give you a woofer or bow zone and the 4 zone would give you woofer AND bow zone, in addition to the main cabin and tower that both offer.

In order to control zone volume from a transom remote, you would need a new head unit and remotes with zone control thats accessible from the head. Wet Sounds, Fusion, JL are 3 that do.

Best advice, purchase from a reputable source if you plan to do this DIY. They can help you with system design, layout, configuration, setup and tuning. They can help with all the question you dont yet.

 

[hblock72]

Thanks for the info. Yes, the boat does have a wakeboard tower. I'm attracted to the JL audio Vex speakers due to their relative small size (i'm concerned about headroom) and the low profile of the mounting attachment. I'll need my canvas bimini top to be able to go over the mounting hardware and I beleive it will with the vex.

 

[Stee6043]

I'm of the opinion there is nothing you can do to your cockpit speakers to get any kind of meaningful volume while swimming behind the boat. A $20 bluetooth speaker sitting on the swim platform is more effective than a $2,500 cockpit speaker upgrade

Wylie is probably giving you the best advice you can get. If you want to go a little cheaper you could simply add an amp for your tower speakers and use a switch at the helm to control the on/off of that amp independent of the head unit. You wouldn't have the volume control flexibility...but it's a start.