Replacing original speaker mesh-covering...

[Osiris_x11]

I was thinking of replacing the original speaker-mesh covering w/ some perforated ultra-suede (lightweight upholstery/furnishing grade; anthracite/charcoal in color). Would that affect sound-quality (I know, an asinine question, considering the OEM Bose sound-system performance as-is)...

With the years passing, the original speaker-mesh covering on the door-mounted speakers has seen better days as it's a bit weathered & faded. The rest of the interior (carpets, seats, dash, trim, etc) are not showing wear-&-tear age, so I'm compelled to redo the speaker-covers.

Here's what another Prime member did: cleaned speaker covers (before and after shots)

 

[Nero Tenebre]

I was just looking at replacing this too. Found some so called premium stuff on eBay I was going to order to try out

 

[robbiedawg]

how do you get the speaker cover off?

 

[RYU]

Osiris - Any acoustically transparent speaker grill cloth will work fine. You will need to use some type of adhesive on the back side of the inner part of the OEM speaker grill BUT don't use too much or it will bleed thru the grill cloth on the other side. For a quick job you can use the 3M spray adhesive but I prefer a small brush and a bottle of rubber cement for more precise work.

I'm secretly hoping one of the vendors will produce metallic speaker grills the new Audis have. They might look gaudy in this pic but they look very nice in person.

 

[shawn110975]

RYU,
wow I love that look, I would pay top dollar for those grills.

Science Of Speed if your listening HOOK US UP .... fabricate some

either brushed alum or black or gunmetal

list of people that want them

1...shawn110975
2...Ryu
3...
4...
5...
6...
7...

 

[shawn110975]

robbiedawg you need to remove the door panel, then look at the backside of the speaker grill and you will see where you bend the tabs and it will pop out.

replace using one of Ryu methods to glue the new cover on pop it back in
bend the tabs back real tight, reinstall door panel and your done. I did mine took about 15 minutes each door.

you can get speaker fabric from anywhere I got mine from a fabric store

.13 cents a foot so you need about 2'X2' square to be safe and can make 2 covers

 

[pgilliam1]

Any stretchy nylon material will work (my wife HAD a black nylon shirt that worked perfectly :wink. Nylon breathes easily and won't restrict air movement or sound from the speakers. You don't have to glue anything. If you stretch the material over the metal tabs that hold the grill in place it holds fine and fits perfectly.

 

[hofffam]

A suede-like material would indeed hurt the sound, especially at high frequencies. I replaced the tan covers on my door speakers with black. Normal speaker grill fabric is available from places like Parts Express. It is stretchy and you can find it in lots of colors. I replaced my tan fabric with black. Shows less dirt and the contrast is nice.

Remove the door panels.

The speaker grills are punched sheet metal and held in with bent metal tabs. Gently bend them so they can be removed.

Pull off the old material. They are glued on so they may leave a bit of residue but unless it is a lot you can probably ignore.

Cut new fabric 1 inch larger all around than the grill

Spray metal grill with spray adhesive

Set on the new fabric; stretch new fabric around the grill metal wrap it over the edge. Use spring clamps or similar to hold fabric until glue sets.

Trim excess fabric with scissors.