Neil,

Personally, I like the Boston Acoustics both soundwise and for longevity
(actually, I'm a B&W guy, and although they now have an automotive line
- soon to be available here in the US - you're likely looking at a few
grand so....).  Second is probably Kenwood IMO.  Just be aware though
that with a 4" speaker, the difference between say a $100 pair and a
$200 pair is likely to be very small, if noticeable at all.  You just
can't move a whole lot of air with that small of a cone.  I've installed
5 1/4" speakers in the lower portion of the front doors in Marvin, and
the difference in sound is quite significant (the 5 1/4" has almost
twice the cone area as the 4").  If you want the best in sound - without
significant modification - you might want to go with separate
components, with a 5 1/4" woofer in the lower door, and the tweeter
installed in the stock speaker location.  And, of course, a subwoofer
would really fill out the sound field, but I personally haven't found
any space that I want to give up to install one.  We typically have the
back bench seat jammed to the gills when camping, so I don't want to
give up any of that space, or any of the other cubbies.  YMMV.

Keith Hughes
'86 Westy Tiico (Marvin)

Neil2 wrote:
> Excellent data.  Thanks!
>
> I'm about to install new speaks in SaVannah and have been wondering
> about these details.  The front lower mids in me Saab (convertible, if
> that makes a diff) are trashed.  Think they're paper ('99) and have
> been told speaks don't last long in doors.  Funny, they sound fine
> unless I pump them up.  They also sound MUCH better than SaVannah's
> factory mids.
>
> Don't ask me why I'm replacing Savannah's sound instead of the
> Saab's.  Must be a Vanagon thing.
>
> So, can you folks (Keith/Mike) list some good speaker Makes/Models for
> our Vanagon doors or otherwise, for us'n's who just like the sounds
> and don't do details?
>
> I know a sound eng here but he looks down on me Def Techs (the bestest
> speaks I've ever had) so I defer to you this time.
>