Radio geeks :-)

[Thomba48]

Just out of interest:

 

I would be interested in understanding the difference between the Radio 603 vs. Radio 803. A manual would be fantastic :-)

 

Does anybody know what the speaker size of either radio is? Do you have any experience with new speakers that fit that radio without too much change requirements.

Please assume a 12 Volt system in the end.

 

 

Thanks

[meadowbrook]

I have the 803 and my father modified it to also play iPods.

He tried to replace the speaker with a modern one and it sounded worse. (Interestingly, the original speaker says 'FoMoCo' on it). I guess it makes sense since the radio is a Philco, which was owned by Ford.

Also, he tried to see if a modern, solid state vibrator would work better than the original...it did not.

I think the 2 main differences between it and the 603 were more preset station buttons and vaccum tubes on the 803. Not sure the reason for the additional vaccum tube but more is always better, no?

[jeffsunzeri]

The 603 and 803 radios were used in a number of cars and trucks (dealer installed) so the speaker size could vary, especially since you could get them as a dealer installed option in which case the dealer would choose the speaker location and size. However, I do recall that the specification for the speaker was that it would need to be an 8 ohm speaker. Modern speakers are usually 4 ohm. Most of the original speakers I've seen are oval, 3 x 7, 4 x 9, and some 4 x 10 custom jobs.

 

I'd be very interested in seeing a schematic for the 803 using an iPod input...

[casper50]

my 47 dodge is 7" round

[Ulu]

Mine (803) too was round but with a flat spot at the top of the basket to fit the instrument panel. don't recall the size.

 

I'll post a pic of my speaker later.

[fordkustom]

I am also interested in how it was modified to have an ipod input

[meadowbrook]

I'd have to ask my father. But in short, he simply made a connection between the signal and the amplifier and placed a switch there with a terminal. So all I have to do is plug in the ipod, flip the switch, which then sends the iPod signal to the radio's amplifier instead of the tuner's signal. Works well.

[fordkustom]

I suspect I need to perform a dissection

[Ulu]

BTW, speaker selection has nothing to do with the car being 6v or 12 v or pos ground. The speaker won't know any of that.

The radio will care a lot though...

 

 

A stock speaker is an odd shape witn an asymmetrical screw pattern.

 

I traced the pattern on masonite, painted the face black & cut a hole for this 6", 8 ohm speaker from RadioShack. I screwed the speaker to the masonite and screwed the masonite behind the dash.

 

If this looks a bit worse for wear, it's been in there for 30 years.

 

 

 

Edited December 3, 2014 by Ulu

[Dan Hiebert]

These folks have the right speaker for our cars.  On my wish list this for this winter.

 

http://www.turnswitch.com/speakers.htm

[Young Ed]

These folks have the right speaker for our cars.  On my wish list this for this winter.

 

http://www.turnswitch.com/speakers.htm

 

Dan thanks for posting that. I don't think they were making those back a few years when I was looking. I ended up with a random speaker someone gave me. Its now on my wishlist too! FYI these guys are just down the street from me and their shop is great!

[Thomba48]

Dan great :-)

 

Ulu - you are showing a 1948 example. I did it almost the same way just not with such an easy access to the dashboard :-)

[Ulu]

These folks have the right speaker for our cars.  On my wish list this for this winter.

 

http://www.turnswitch.com/speakers.htm

 

Actually, no they don't.

 

The stock speaker is 7" and it's offset toward the top of the dash, so the bolt pattern on the basket isn't symmetrical.

 

They did exactly what I did. They put in a 6" speaker with an adaptor (of steel instead of masonite.)

 

That's not to say the have a bad speaker. It looks quite adequate.

 

The thing to consider if you substitute a speaker is that it should be 8 ohm impedance and should have adequate power handling.  Most any good quality speaker of 6" or 7" will be adequate, as the power handling has generally improved over the years.

 

If the power handling is adequate, you can put two 4 ohm speakers in series, and that makes the impedance 8 ohms. Many other combinations are possible.

 

Using less than 8 ohms will let the amplifier overheat. Using a bit more, like a 10 ohm is OK, & will run cooler, but the radio may sound slightly less powerful at full volume.

 

But 8 ohms is the most common by far & you can find all types in that spec.

Edited December 4, 2014 by Ulu

[Ulu]

Dan great :-)

 

Ulu - you are showing a 1948 example. I did it almost the same way just not with such an easy access to the dashboard :-)

 

Mine's supposed to be a '47 Special Deluxe.

It's easy for me because the dash is sitting on a bench. 

[Frank Elder]

I have the 803 and my father modified it to also play iPods.

He tried to replace the speaker with a modern one and it sounded worse. (Interestingly, the original speaker says 'FoMoCo' on it). I guess it makes sense since the radio is a Philco, which was owned by Ford.

 

Mine is a Motorola.....no ford product in my dash. Google owns motorola now..lol!

Edited December 4, 2014 by Frank Elder

[White Spyder]

I put a 12volt riding toy battery from Interstate in the trunk and ran a wire to power my IPod, IPhone. Made a custom bracket to hold a modern high end 8" speaker to sit behind the original speaker location. Sounds excellent and is all out of sight.