I just ordered a Bluetooth stereo off of crutchfeild and now I’m looking for a good set of door speakers and wondering what a good speaker is and also needing a wiring harness for the doors and need to know where a good place to get one.

 

Dunno if a premade speaker wire harness is available for these trucks. But you could get one from a later truck in the junkyard, or just get some wire and run it where it needs to go. You will need grommets where the wire passes through sheetmetal. There are pics on this site of where the wire passes through the A-pillar and through the door.


Sorry, I didn't get a pic of where I drilled the door. The holes in my cab were already there.

 

I just put Pioneer TS-A1670F 3way speakers in my doors. They sound excellent. I had to drill one hole, the other three lined up. Then I purchased foam surrounds which really added some bass believe it or not and it also stops any rattling against the door panels. There is no harness for the doors, simply run the wires from the back of your new stereo through the A-Pillar into the door. BTW the speakers came with wire but I didn't use it.

 

There is a harness reproduced, and it has the grommets...https://www.dennis-carpenter.com/tru...0aAlNSEALw_wcB

 

The reproduced harness with the factory connectors wont plug into your new stereo or new speakers so unless I am missing something there is no need to buy it?

 

Correct, if you are using an aftermarket stereo and speakers, just use quality wire/connectors (solder not crimp) and get some grommets and go for it.

 

If you look on the door jamb and the door itself you will see largish dimples about 1/4-3/8"ish diameter, right about the same height above the top hinge. Those are where the wires run. If you are careful and take precautions like taping around the drill chuck drilling these with the door on the hinges is easy (now if you are using something like a 1" hole saw, all bets are off.) Grommets are available at hardware stores like Ace. Use a good heavy speaker wire with thick insulation and you do not need any further protection for the wires than the grommets.

Gonna have to try the speaker surrounds Jetfixer mentioned. Make sure you try to match your speakers to the stereo, like if it calls for 4 ohm speakers try to buy 4 ohm speakers. In general, most units will sound better through better speakers so if you have a choice, a high end unit with mediocre speakers will sound mediocre, while a mediocre unit through very nice speakers will sound much, much better. The speakers control the actual sound production- don't skimp on them.

 

Crimp is fine (arguably better) if it’s done right. However, you need quality crimpers and terminals, which nobody ever buys.

 

I would add, run the wire in small flex conduit to protect it from the repeated bending, getting squashed in the jamb and chaffing. Aftermarket street rod suppliers have such items, easy to install...plus it looks a lot better than a piece of wire in the door jamb.

 

I ordered the complete Dennis-Carpenter set of wires, (I am using a modded OEM AM/FM Stereo that is converted to Bluetooth) And the DC product is great, Everything lines up, and lots of slack for any mistakes. Well worth the money, grommets and little tabs are included!

These are photos from doing the install, So not perfect, but does give you and idea!

 

X2 on the crimps. As an example, you will be hard pressed to find a soldered connection on an aircraft as the vibration makes the connection brittle and soldering if not done properly will also contaminate the joint, that and you can't pull over on a cloud and fix it. Age old debate but I'll stick with the crimp.

 

i will add, most of my truck door window seals are not waterproof, i have had speakers fail prematurely because of this. next time, along with window seals, i will be installing quality marine speakers.

 

Think they still make plastic speaker shields you screw behind the speakers. My doors stay pretty dry since I replaced the seals.

 

I bought the DC harness. It’s really well made. My thought is a manufactured harness is typically going to ensure its going to fit right, look good, and be durable; I’m also trying to save time by not manufacturing things I don’t have to. Time is money. In short, better than me throwing something together that will get the job done.

If I have to splice together an adapter of sorts to connect to the radio I’d prefer that to making the entire harness. Granted, this is an comparatively expensive option, but for my build, it’s the right choice.

That’s my 2¢.

 

First off crimp lugs are subject to the elements and over time and will degrade. Second a single path with no obstruction will provide the best results. Third longevity is the purpose to do anything worth doing.