Kicker CSS69 (40CSS694)

Great Speakers

I would recomend the kicker cs series to anybody wanting a factory upgrade or someone who wants a loud system

Money well spent

I bought these because of the value and there are not many choices for 6x9 components . They sound great to me and they are better then the stock speakers.

Lots of Potential

I've got these speakers installed in the front of my Nissan Xterra powered by a Sony XM-GS400. The woofers are in my doors and the tweeters are in the dash firing upwards. They're paired with some Polk db651s 6.5" speakers in the rear with a separate amp. I also have the doors fairly well sealed and deadened with a layer of Dynamat Xtreme.

Out of the box, the Kickers seemed edgy and surprisingly somewhat bright to me even with the tweeters set to +0 dB on the crossovers. The mids are nice and detailed, but there's some sibilance that I find fatiguing above normal listening levels. The imaging is decent, but there's definitely some room for improvement. I've read that aiming tweeters into the windshield could be to blame for some of these short comings, but I like to keep the factory look. At the other end, the bass is tight and respectably extended for door speakers. Seems to roll off below 50 or 60 Hz and is still slightly audible at higher volumes down to 30 Hz or so.

Luckily the amplifier and my JVC NSX600 provide some decent equalization options and headroom. It took a lot of tinkering, but ultimately I used the Sony amp to boost the sub bass at 40 Hz few dB and set the EQ on my head unit to pull back some of the mid bass and highs . Oh man, what a difference! These speakers sound amazing. They still have some color, but the balance is much better. They're warmer; the highs are sweeter, the mids are fuller, and the bass is much more present down to 30 Hz or so. You can feel the low notes at higher volumes. The bass might also be a slightly looser, but I'd still say it's well controlled. Occasionally they can sound a little congested too, although never enough to ruin my enjoyment.

I can't comment on how these would sound without a dedicated amplifier, but properly powered and sealed, these speakers have a ton of potential. To get the most out of them, you'll probably want to play around with tweeter placement or an equalizer too. You can't expect them to rattle your plates, but I don't feel the need to add a sub. I'm sure these would sound even better crossed over at 80 Hz with a good 10" or 12" sub.

A general note on the install.. I wasn't too excited with by the provided speaker wire. I needed to run long wires to reach my amp, so I wanted to use 14 AWG. The included wire is only 16 AWG and permanently attached to the crossovers. I would have preferred if it were more easily replaceable.

Kicker rocks

Fit my vehicle like a glove! The sound quality is really good with awesome highs.

By Lou on December 31, 2016 Verified purchase

Great Speakers

I replaced the front speakers in my Dodge 3500 with the Kickers. They really sound great even without an amplifier.

Depends on your preference

If you are looking for more treble then this is a good product, but if bass is what you're looking for, I would recommend a different product. I had a pair of cheaper pioneers that packed more way bass.

Great product and easy to install

I installed this stereo myself in my sons car for Christmas using Sonic select tonics website and products. It was not difficult and it works perfectly! He loves it-and will enjoy it everyday! Thank you.