Icom: External speakers Icom ID5100

[SirJ]

I'm stuck at which speaker to chose based on the specs of the ID-5100A.
I am browsing universal radio and I like the Icom SP-35 & Yaesu MLS-100.
Now according to Icom the ID-5100A is 8 ohm with 2w or higher. So not really sure which of the two speakers will give me the best audio in a mobile setting? I will be getting two speakers since the radio can use one speaker for both VFO or two for each side

I would really appreciate some feedback/input

 

[WB9YBM]

I'm stuck at which speaker to chose based on the specs of the ID-5100A.
I am browsing universal radio and I like the Icom SP-35 & Yaesu MLS-100.
Now according to Icom the ID-5100A is 8 ohm with 2w or higher. So not really sure which of the two speakers will give me the best audio in a mobile setting? I will be getting two speakers since the radio can use one speaker for both VFO or two for each side

What sounds "good" to one person may not mean the same thing to someone else, so it's hard to recommend something specific. For cheap/simple improvements I've had good luck using "bookshelf" type speakers typically used in stereo applications. A few of my friends upgrade that a bit by feeding the audio through an equalizer/amp then to a speaker, although I'm not sure if such an equalizer comes in small enough size for convenient use in a mobile environment...years ago I also saw an item sold by Radio Shack that would switch a car stereo speaker between the vehicles' stereo and the CB whenever a signal was received.

 

[AK9R]

I would not spend extra money for Icom- or Yaesu-branded speakers. Both Icom and Yaesu take off-the-shelf mobile extension speakers, add their logo, and jack up the price.

Pretty much any extension speaker intended for mobile installations will work fine as long as it has an 8 ohm speaker. You will probably get the best sound out of a mobile extension speaker that's roughly 5 inches by 5 inches by 2-3 inches deep. They have about a 4 inch round speaker and the enclosure has enough volume to provide some enhancement of the mid to lower frequencies. There are other mobile extension that are roughly 5 inches wide by about 3 inches tall. They have an oval speaker, but still work well.

 

[SirJ]

Okay I'm sorry I wasn't more detailed
I much rather hear mids and lows over treble.

Btw I have a ton of Motorola speakers but wanted to try something new

 

[AK9R]

Have you tried the Motorola speakers? Depending on the noise level of your vehicle, you may have better intelligibility if your speaker has a little enhancement around 2500 Hz.

 

[WB9YBM]

Okay I'm sorry I wasn't more detailed
I much rather hear mids and lows over treble.

humm....I've noticed that, in certain instances, the lows (especially) get muddied quite a bit when there's a lot of background noise. That reminds me of when the Air Force started using a computer voice in their fighter jets: they went with a female voice because it penetrated the background noise better than a male voice.

 

[WB9YBM]

They have an oval speaker, but still work well.

That reminds me of an old rock-bound rig: the Midland 13-509 (220MHz) & it's two-meter equivalent (other companies used the same PCB & Etc. under their own name & different face-plate on the radio): they had oval speakers that sounded pretty good compared to round speakers of the same relative size. One ham I knew speculated that the larger, middle section of the speaker reproduced lows better than the smaller ends of the speaker, while the smaller ends reproduced the highs better.

I haven't done any Official tests that would either confirm or deny this, but his explanation kinda sorta maybe sounds slightly plausible...

 

[SirJ]

Can some links be added to some decent speakers. It seems universal radio along with other sites just want to push sales with a "name brand". I have used the bearcat speakers with the mids and lows that I like maybe I'll just go with that speaker

 

[AK9R]

Here's a no-name rectangular speaker on eBay. There are several more like this from various sellers:

MOTOROLA STYLE HAM MOBILE BASE HT CB Communications Extension Speaker | eBay

MOTOROLA STYLE EXTERNAL SPEAKER. FEATURES COMPACT SIZE AND GREAT AUDIO REPRODUCTION. INCLUDES 6 FT CORD WITH 3.5 MM AUDIO PLUG AND ADJUSTABLE MOUNTING BRACKET. A COPY OF THE HI QUALITY. 400 hz - 12kh.

www.ebay.com

And, here's a square Midland speaker on eBay. There are several more like this from various sellers:

Midland LMR Land Mobile Radio Extension Speaker Model 70-2353a for sale online | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Midland LMR Land Mobile Radio Extension Speaker Model 70-2353a at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

Here's square Uniden speaker for $20 on Scanner Master's site:

Uniden 3'' External Speaker (BC7) | Scanner Master

Uniden 3' External Speaker (BC7)

www.scannermaster.com

 

[SirJ]

Here's a no-name rectangular speaker on eBay. There are several more like this from various sellers:

MOTOROLA STYLE HAM MOBILE BASE HT CB Communications Extension Speaker | eBay

MOTOROLA STYLE EXTERNAL SPEAKER. FEATURES COMPACT SIZE AND GREAT AUDIO REPRODUCTION. INCLUDES 6 FT CORD WITH 3.5 MM AUDIO PLUG AND ADJUSTABLE MOUNTING BRACKET. A COPY OF THE HI QUALITY. 400 hz - 12kh.

www.ebay.com

And, here's a square Midland speaker on eBay. There are several more like this from various sellers:

Midland LMR Land Mobile Radio Extension Speaker Model 70-2353a for sale online | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Midland LMR Land Mobile Radio Extension Speaker Model 70-2353a at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

Here's square Uniden speaker for $20 on Scanner Master's site:

Uniden 3'' External Speaker (BC7) | Scanner Master

Uniden 3' External Speaker (BC7)

www.scannermaster.com

Ah yes I like the smallmoto speaker.i was going to get two of those because they'll fit where I plan on installing them, anything bigger and I'll have to change my game plan

 

[WB9YBM]

...or for really low-cost & simple there's also taking a loose speaker and use an empty kleenex box as a baffle. (I actually tried this and got better than expected results...)

 

[AB4BF]

My son changed the OEM speakers out of his 2001 Ranger for higher wattage ones. The speakers sat on a desk in my shop for years and I saw them one day right after I had got my technicians license. Looking at them I saw they were 25 Watt, 4 Ohm speakers, roughly 6"x 9" oval. Hmmm I said to myself, since the output of my 2 meter was less than five watts, I hooked them up and tried one. It sounded very good and the loudness for my aged muffled ears was great. I told a good ham friend that was more into electronics than I am.
He said the speakers should be OK as long as I didn't exceed 12.5 Watts. None of my radios put out more than 6 watts, so its OK there.
That was 4 years ago, and I have since have put both speakers in a plastic box I got from Hammond Mfg. and placed them on a shelf over my FT-2900 and FT-991A. Excellent sound!
I made the mistake of taking one to field day about a year and a half ago and hooking it to an IC-7300. Three hams there offered me a substantial amount for it. I didn't need the money so I turned them down, but, I did tell them how to make one and where to source the parts.