Hi, I'm 16 and just got my first truck, a 1999 Chevy silverado 1500 z71 extended cab. I love it, its a great truck, American made tuff som-bitch! But, the driver side front door speaker isn't working. So I was thinking of replacing both of the front speakers. I have no idea when it comes to speakers, any help would be GREAT!

 

Well, it depends on what you want to do.

Are you planning on keeping the stock radio? Go aftermarket? Add amplifiers, subwoofer, etc.?

If you just want sound again, and want to keep the sound system stock, any old 4 Ohm speaker will do. Go to the junkyard, or buy a new set from Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Crutchfield.com, etc.

Here is what I would recommend.

First, check to see if the speaker is actually bad. Do you have a test light? Poke each wire going to the speaker plug and see if it lights up. One should. If not, you likely have a break in the wiring somewhere, or the radio is going bad. You could also swap the right speaker with the left one, and see if it works. If so, all you need is a new speaker.

Since most stock sound systems are..."ok" at best, just go on an replace all the speakers with aftermarket ones. They offer more sound clarity, and better high frequencies than your stock ones. They are an all-around improvement.

I have Boston Acoustics in my Sierra, and love the sound. On my old one, since it was a old beat up POS, I just went to Wal-Mart, got some $29.95 Sony Xplods and stick in there. Huge sound improvement from the crappy stock 4x6 speakers.

I think in yours, you will have 4x6's in the rear, and either 5 1/4" or 6.5" speakers in the front doors. You can replace all the speakers for under $100 with good quality aftermarket ones. If you want really good sound quality, the cost goes up. But for most people, any aftermarket speakers will be a big improvement.

If you do have

 

Hey thanks, do you think if I dont replace the speakers in the back it will be a problem? Cause I rarely have more than one person in the cab with me and i dont want to spend the money on that.

 

6.5 in the front and 486 in the rear...

 

Having worked in the car audio shop as an installer, I can say without a doubt when you upgrade your front speakers with aftermarket speakers you should replace the rear. Your speakers are already 13 years old. Factory speakers usually last 5-7 years becuase they use a foam surround and a paper cone. With moisture and extremes in temps reek havoc on factory speakers. If your rears haven't gone out yet, they will. I recommend a mid grade speaker with a rubber surround and a poly cone. I'll pay anywhere from $40-$100 for a pair. Even if your the only passenger, four speakers will give you a fuller sound. And right now my rear left speaker is going bad, at higher volumes it just buzzes, it really takes away from the music.

Tom

 

Get rockers. I jsut put some in my 01 GMC. Gonna get some 10 subs next