Cockpit speakers - B&W, Sonos

[PooleBoater]

Anyone out there with experience of the following speakers?

B&W Marine series 8 or 6

Sonos (Sonance) - branded as in ceiling and not waterproof but I’ve heard of people using them in a cockpit under a hard top.

I’ve had Fusion signature 7.7in before and was very happy with them. Just wondering if there’s an even better option?

Any other recommendations? I want something unobtrusive and without lights and bling.

Thanks!

 

[rlw]

Fitted some non marine JBL speakers on a softtop T52 a few years as they were the only ones I could find that would fit the hole. They seem to hold up pretty well. 4 years now and no visible signs of corrosion. Not sure I would bother with Marine versions again unless in a rib or so.

 

[QBhoy]

Fitted some non marine JBL speakers on a softtop T52 a few years as they were the only ones I could find that would fit the hole. They seem to hold up pretty well. 4 years now and no visible signs of corrosion. Not sure I would bother with Marine versions again unless in a rib or so.

Second the JBL idea. I only have 2 of them in the cockpit and the sound, bass, treble and quality of sound is incredible.

 

[Zing]

I’ve got Bose. Pretty happy when cranked up.

 

[colhel]

Are these speakers connected to a head unit or do you just stream your music? Can they be run off 12v?

 

[Montemar]

The risk with non-marine speakers is corrosion of the flexible leads from the connection terminal to the coil. They should be protected from the salty atmosphere to prevent corrosion - it could be a flexible sleeve or a coating.

 

[PooleBoater]

Are these speakers connected to a head unit or do you just stream your music? Can they be run off 12v?

This is actually another very good question which a couple of options I’m considering. Boat currently has an older Fusion unit in. I’m unsure if I should replace it with a new Fusion unit + external amplifier (12v). Alternatively wondering if running Sonos amplifier via an inverter is a better solution? No inverters on the boat at the moment and I have no experience with them so not sure how well this would work? Generator is very quiet and will be run much of the time on board but I would rather not be 100% reliant on it for 240v to play any music. Any thoughts on this?

 

[PooleBoater]

The risk with non-marine speakers is corrosion of the flexible leads from the connection terminal to the coil. They should be protected from the salty atmosphere to prevent corrosion - it could be a flexible sleeve or a coating.

Thanks for this. If this is the most vulnerable part I will absolutely look into how to do this.

 

[ashtead]

If you have an older Fusion unit you might find it freezes of its own accord -we had to replace ours after 5 years or so and there are numerous reports of Fusion freezing -I think they have an inbuilt Circuit board issue -whether this has been solved in newer units only time will tell. Personally I don’t believe it’s that good good kit but it’s standard fit in many new boats nowadays. If you are able to find other marine units I would be looking at them provided they integrate into your existing systems.