buggs384

Guys
I just replaced the front speakers with a pair of these Kenwood KFC 1694PS:

They fit perfectly.

I have 2 concerns, 1) they are a 3 way speaker and they are only 4ohms.

Anyone have any insight?

Am better off with the popular Polk Audio DB651:

Not sure if the 2 way would be a better sound....

Lavrishevo

iTrader: (1)

Not sure what the OEM fronts are rated at. Getting the ohms wrong stresses the amp and will lead to failure.

jamsvet

I get a little (hell, a lot) scared when I change things around. I just sent my 4 door speakers and my sub to Orange County Speaker for repair. I've done that with both my other Lexi and it turned out great. I'll let everybody know what price all this is. They said 65 per speaker so we'll see.

buggs384

the shop owner put the stock ML front speaker on a meter and it read 7....the kenwood 3 ways are 4...so since I don't regularly jack the volume, Im hoping the amp will be ok.

Bocatrip

There are quite a few threads on replacing LS430 speakers with aftermarket. Be aware that your amp may be at jeopardy and replacement is quite expensive. I did not want to take a chance and replaced my subwoofer and front door speakers with OEM. Good luck.

Slvr surfr

iTrader: (1)

If you are handy with electronics, you can wire in an additional 4 ohm tweeter in a series circuit per channel to net 8 ohms. Having one more ohm will not hurt as much as having 3 less than what you need. Plus, having an extra tweeter will add clarity to your system overall.

rkw77080

according to the 04 LS430 repair manual, front speakers should be rated at 8 ohms on the ML system...

jamsvet

Got my speakers back and installed. Sounds great. 367 Dollars for all the door speakers and the rear sub.

Lavrishevo

iTrader: (1)

Agreed. You will most likely blow your ML amp unless you get the resistance back in check.

rkw77080

There are two key issues with the Kenwood speakers you selected, as you already suspected:

1. They are rated at 4-ohm which do not provide enough resistance to the current flow out of the amplifier. The over-current condition, if persists, can lead to overheating the amplifier and risk damaging it. Keeping the audio volume low will help, but the potential to fry your amplifier is still there (think Valet parking...)

2. They are 3-way speaker with built-in tweeter/mid's. The extra tweeters/mids not only take power away from the 6.5" mid bass speakers (lowering its dB), it will interfere with your OEM tweeters on the dashboard and actual distort the car's acoustic characteristics. Instead, you need what's called component speakers - something like this 8-ohm BOSS



The best solution is still to re-cone or re-form the OEM speakers. The problem with replacing component speakers with aftermarket products is that Lexus does not publish the frequency coverage of its audio components (tweeters, mid ranges, mid bass, sub-woofer, etc.) and their rated dB output curves. Without this knowledge, you select your speakers randomly and their frequency range will likely to have some overlaps (which can cause interference), some gaps (holes within the frequency range where maybe for example some portion of the vocal cannot be heard), and some discrepancies in relative loudness (for example, some portion of the frequency range dominates and drowns out the others, or vise versa) to other components.

buggs384

RKW
YOUR spot on!!. I have been running the speakers for a week and the 3 ways defiantly don't sound right.. And I'm going to reform the old speakers.

Your above statements cannot be more accurate from an NON- audiophile like myself I even notice the "OFF" sound coming from the speakers. There is sound, but its n whew near what the OEM delivered.

Again thanks for the help and advice. much appreciated.

rkw77080

You're very welcome!

Re-foaming is actually fairly easy to do. The hardest (dirtiest) part is to clean out the old foam. Checkout this video to get a feel for what is involved.

buggs384

Ok for whats is worth for others that may be in the same boat, I took the speakers to a local OLD school speaker repair shop... probably one of the last in the city and had him refoam both door speakers. after just having the amp fixed about 4 months ago I didnt want to jeopardize the amp.
Thanks to all those that replied above.

jamsvet

Had mine done by Orange County Speaker around 350 for 5 speakers and they
work perfectly.

Jabberwock

I love the LS430 dearly - think it is likely the best built factory car ever made. But the OEM speakers in the LS430 are a weak spot - very similar to bargain bin $5 dollar speakers found in very inexpensive audio sets. The OEM subwoofer in the LS430 is a particularly egregious example, everything about it - structure, basket material, cone and fragile foam surround, small generic magnet says bargain bin. Virtually any mid-fi quality 3rd party speaker like Polk, Sony, Pioneer with similar impedance (ohm rating) and sensitivity would be a huge improvement.