Forum Discussion

howardrya's avatar
howardrya
Explorer
Jun 21, 2014

outdoor speakers

I want to replace the outdoor speakers on my keystone laredo. It already has outdoor speakers, but they sound terrible. Absolutely terrible. They're an odd size, and I cant find any that will fit in the existing plastic housing. What is the name of the housing that they get mounted on? Does anyone know where I could buy a bigger one to accommodate 6.5 inch speakers? I attached a picture so you will know what I'm talking about. It's the plastic thing in the picture. The speakers sit on top of them. BTW, has anyone installed an outdoor sub woofer?
  • The speaker mount is called a "baffle" in the audio world. There are not a lot of them made in the type pictured above. There are definitely better speakers in the size needed than came stock with your RV. I would suggest a "full-range" or "extended-range" speaker for this application. You will also want a speaker with a cone material that can withstand weather, polypropylene or kevlar are two.

    A different solution for better sound may be to replace the baffle and crummy speakers with a jack and plug in a small pair of boxed speakers when at camp. They will sound better and you can locate them to fit your listening needs. If you want a subwoofer, start thinking about an additional amplifier or a subwoofer with internal amp that will also need power. IMO, it's a fool's errand for campground listening but some folks have to have big bass. It will either make you some friends or a lot of enemies in a hurry.
  • I believe you are going to find it easier to locate the 5.25" marine speakers than a different adaptor. Stepping up to a larger diameter speaker typically means a deeper speaker, therefore a deeper mount. You can find it all on Crutchfield dot com.

    I would avoid an outdoor subwoofer. They are very inefficient at low volumes... you know the rest about volume. The power demands for a subwoofer can be significant. There are some neat models that plug into 110volt outlet and use wireless audio. If you are going to do it, this is the route I would take. Goes from the patio to the cabin to the RV.
  • Ask your neighbors in the campground what they think of your outdoor speakers , NOT MUCH !
  • Many if not all external speakers seem to be recessed mounts in the sidewall. Outside of contacting Keytsone to see if they could help out, not certain where you might find those mounting rings.

    FWIW: I wouldn't be too hopeful the sound quality will improve. Remember it's an RV audio system.
  • Just remember to be a nice RV neighbor and keep the volume low. One of many reasons why we don't camp in State parks hardly anymore.

    Happy trails,
  • I also noticed how bad our indoor and outdoor speakers sound and was wondering the same thing
  • I want the plastic housing. Not the speakers, there's plenty of them around. I can't find the housing on camping world. I already have Bluetooth speakers. I want a permanent install.
  • RoyB's avatar
    RoyB
    Explorer II
    I was watching a DEMO of the BLUETOOTH speakers the other day at our LOCAL WALMART store. These were very portable and sound great... Might want to check into this idea ??

    You can see my two stereo speakers just above my wheel well in my profile photos shown here. They are appx 4-inches in diameter...

    Roy Ken
  • Camping World sells them. Ditto Amazon.com. I found Jensen speakers, with or without the plastic ring, several places on the 'net by searching for "RV outdoor speakers."