hoping someone can help me out here

currently in the process of making up some door pods and planing out where the midrange and tweeter will go in my design

however i have found a possible problem!

i was intending to install everythig as shown in pic #1, however i am worried that the tweeter will be muffled/covered when someone is sitting in my passenger seat - due to the fact that its positioned quite low. i chose to do it this way as im trying to make the pods look as factory (stealth) as possible. this will include a grille covering both mid and tweet, as well as grey vynil to match the door trim

pic #2 shows my dodgy attempt (with a pencil sharpener and T-shirt!) showing at what they will look like when fibreglassed

however i have seen a number of installs with the tweeter positioned like shown in pic #3, where the tweeter sits above the midrange - and therefore beng out of the way of peoples legs etc etc. i also think this layout wont look as good as the first option in this situation.

so yher, just hoping someone can tell me if this is going to be a problem

although a stealth as possible install is important to me, id rather have the speakers sound their best

sorry about the long post - any suggestions welcome

thanks in advance, dan

oh forgot to say

car is a 94 corolla

speakers are DLS 6.5" reference splits (80WRMS)

some replies would be a great help guys...

personally i think pic3 looks better than the first 2. Have you thought about making up some kick panels too? It is best to have the tweeters as far forward as possible. If the tweeters have enough power and are angled enough (which yours seem to be quite well) you shouldnt have to much trouble.

I think anywhere you place them, a passenger can block them, unless you put them in the A pillar, which also has its own drawbacks

If you install the tweeter in the door trim, i am afraid it will effect the staging... why don't you build a pod just for the mid and angle it up and install the tweeter in the A pillar or on the dashboard...

well in pic #2, I get the feeling that the tweeters may fire straight into the side of the seats at times, which ain't a good thing, and I can't quite figure out where the tweeter goes in #1? Although out of #2 or #3 i'd go #3, (alhtough I dunno about #1).

well that would solve all my troubles, its just that alot of people say to keep the tweet as close to the mid as possible for the best sound so ill stick to that...

im leaning more to the option that ****nutz and micha31 said

thanks for the suggestions guys

It is true to keep the tweet as close to the mid as possible for the best sound... the sound should blend very well... i was just worrying about the effect with the staging... IMO, in the home audio, the tweeter sit at the same level (or almost) with audiences' ears... so far i never seen any home audio speakers place on the floor... if you build a pod and angle it up and the tweeter on the dash board or A pilar, i can guarantee that you still can get the best sound with better staging... i dare to say this because I have experienced that tweeter on the dashboard is the correct way to go...

Maybe with the tweeter like the one that you are decided to go with is easier in installation wise... cost alot cheaper than make another custom housing for the tweeter on the dashboard... and it is not easy and ain't worthed in terms of time consumption and the cost to make a custom housing on the dashboard... that's probably one of the reason why most of car audio workshop ain't keen to make a custom housing on the dashboard...

well the tweeters came with two lots of mounting hardware, one for flush mounting and one for mounting on dash/a-pillar etc etc

it would certainly make my life a hell of a lot easier, but im still to be convinced that it wont affect the sound

im so sure i read somewhere that as a general rule, you should mount them together - can anyone else back this up?

i might do a search and see what i come up with...

thanks so far...

According to IASCA, it's true to get the tweeter and mid as close as possible.
They are suggesting to put them on kick panel. Only good for USA car, which are usually automatic and left steering wheel.
And they say, the mid and tweeter are supposed to be positioned on top of each other. Facing with right angle to the listener. Mid and tweeter positioned next to each other (left-right) is not OK.
The simple thing is to draw an imaginary line between mid and tweeter. At the center of the line, get another line which is 90degree to the first line. This second line supposed to aim to your ear (or cabin light).
But I read that there were 3 rules :
- put them as close as possible
- put them as far as possible (this will make the distance proportion -between left and right speakers to ears- more balance)
- put them as high as possible
Correct me guys.

Most speaker are designed on axis. They usually put close to each other. But I guess 80-90% of us will not be able to differentiate between those 2 position. So, why bother?

in a "perfect" install, where you sacrificed everything for sound quality, all the speakers should be at ear level and as far away as possible. that would be base of A-pillar.
now, most people can't put a 6" and a 1" at the base of the a-pillar, so you always have to compromise.
since the tweeter is the most "directional" then it is the most important to have at ear level. the lower the frequency the less directional, hence stick your subs wherever you like.
a speaker will sound more like the manufacturer intended if it is "on-axis", facing the listener directly. this is why we angle door pods.
as for distance apart... closer is better -the sound waves from the 2 separate speakers are less likely to clash with each other. but, unless you can solve the 6" mid in the a-pillar problem, mounting it down on the door is the acceptable solution.
b.t.w. I did like pic 3 if i had to choose.

Well in some ways, the tweeter is less directional in regards to pathlength differences. (it is more directional in regards to the difference between the on and off axis frequency response)

At high frequencies, the location cues are not based on time differences (because the wavelengths are too short), but rather volume level and frequency response differences. In a perfect car (one with no reflections/resonances) it is quite possible to correct for the difference in pathlength by fixing the frequency response and level differences. However, this is only possible for one location - if you were to correct it for the driver, it would sound worse for the passenger. Of course more problems arise once you start to include the reflections around the car interior into the picture.

When a tweeter is located away from the midrange, it can cause problems at the crossover point. If the tweeter is located some distance from the midrange, but you are able to tune the crossover etc so that there is a smooth transition between the midrange to the tweeter at the crossover point, then there will be no problem.

install them and leave a gap that can be cut/drilled out later for the tweet in the door then position the tweets in different location to see what sounds best to you.
and b4 i forget!!
Go the rolla!