tch7's Full Review: Alpine SPS-170A Coaxial Car Speaker
Despite not wanting to put any money into my Tercel, there’s only so much of listening to the radio on speakers that were outdated in the 60’s that a person can take. As such, I went out and looked for some cheap, but relatively high quality speakers along with a CD player. Not knowing much of anything about what all to look for in a speaker, I went with the oversized 6.5” Alpine SPS-170A coaxial speakers based purely on how they sounded and how much they cost.
The Installation
My Tercel came with two cruddy speakers in the front, but also allowed for the ability to add speakers behind the rear seats. However, this still meant that parts of my Tercel needed to slice and diced, and given my very limited knowledge and tools, I left it to the professionals to install everything. Looking at it afterwards made it look like quite the simple job if you’re just replacing speakers though, with not much more than connecting the wires and screwing it into place. If it’s a bit more complicated than that, the box has patterns engraved into it if you have to cut holes, as in my case, and there are also two black adaptor rings if there issues with screws lining up (I gather). The instructions are on the back of the box, but for some stupid reason they’re on the part of the box where the templates are that you might have to rip out.
The Sound
The polypropylene woofer is not only nice to the touch, but it handles lower frequencies quite well and often brings out the bass. Being the way I am, I’d like if they could bring out even more bass, but considering they are coaxial speakers they do quite well in this area. In the center of the speaker is the tweeter, which swivels around to a max of 15°. Supposedly this swivel action helps to direct certain frequencies in the right direction for better sound quality, but I haven’t noticed anything of the sort. I suspect the main reason I don’t notice any difference is due to the location of the speakers, being behind the rear headrests.
Given that I added the CD player at the same time as the speakers, it’s hard for me to determine exactly what should be attributed to what. Whatever the case, I’ve been impressed by the overall sound quality of the speakers - in many cases they have brought new life to songs that always seemed dead before. The speakers don’t seem to like the Beatles though, as almost every one of there songs I’ve listened to with these speakers has been far too high pitched (altering settings on the CD player doesn’t make an appreciable difference). Most of the time the sound is clean and clear, with nice levels all around for a variety of music types.
Le Caracteristiques (because it’s all a foreign language to me…)
The speakers have a puissance maximale of 200W (peak), and a puissance nominale of 40W (RMS). These haut-parleurs are quite the sensitive little fella’s, with a range of 35Hz to 30kHz. Fortunately, they’re not sensitive about their weight, with a poids brut of 2.1kg. Also, they aren’t impotent, but they do have an impédance of 4 ohms.
The Quality
I’ve been using the speakers quite regularly for around 7 months, and they still perform and look like new. Given their location, they get blasted by the sun’s rays, but the heat-treated materials, including an aluminum coating over the woofer, prevent any real damage from occurring. Their location also prevents them from ever accidentally being hit like they could be if they were in a door. If, however, you were to put them in your door, the grill leaves a fair bit unprotected – but I don’t think it’s anything to be concerned about. Altogether, the speakers have held up wonderfully and look brand new, encouraging me to be loyal to Alpine in the future.
The Cost
I purchased the pair of speakers for $118 (CAD), which was close to US$80 at that time. Browsing around, prices tend to vary between US$50 to US$100, making these speakers an excellent value. Both the sound and build quality are astounding for that price. The speakers also come with a one year warranty in the event that something does fail.
Should you take Highway 170A?
Why take the toll highway when you’ve got the scenic byway of the SPS-107A’s just sitting there? Yes, that’s a terrible analogy and I should be shunned (just as I should be for my French skills)… but there’s no question that I’m delighted with these speakers, and highly recommend them to anybody looking to make the most basic of upgrades. They’re inexpensive, but still of relatively high quality and meet my needs. I’m not an audiophile, but I like my music all the same, and I feel the Alpine SPS-170A speakers deliver it quite well without costing an arm and a leg, or a chicken.
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
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