* 63 64 65 Riviera Stereo Thread*

[gungeey]

Starting a thread regarding the title: 

Aftermarket Stereo Install. This thread is for all who care to join in so others can have easy access to sound related info. 

From mild to wild, 1st Gen Rivieras have limitations on speaker placement. Myself, a stock looking interior is preferred. Stealth is the goal for me. Front speaker.. stock location

 

 

Edited March 17 by gungeey (see edit history)

[gungeey]

I hollowed out the original radio so there would be enough depth for the woofer., also cut back the defroster duct for clearance. Had to keep that B U I C K button set up 😆.

So this system has front and rear channels as opposed to traditional L & R.

 

Rear Speakers.. same as front.. these are vintage Polk dB series 5.25" Woofer and 1" silk and titanium tweeter with adjustable crossover network. 

 

[gungeey]

Feel free to add your own. If there's interest we can get into amplifier CD Changer and head unit placement 

[Turbinator]

Well thought out installation. Polk made speakers in Baltimore. Will you have a defroster? And is the Kenwood a CD player that took a cassette filled with individual CD’s? Front and back balance works well. I replaced my stock speaker with another 10 ohm speaker the same size. I had the am radio cleaned oiled and adjusted and had an aux in added. I plug my IPhone in the aux and play “ Bob’s Radio” with selections made by Apple. I’m a one time performing musician and now a practicing musician. Now that I’m wearing hearing aids seems like the music sounds better. Whatever you play on your system will sound great.

[gungeey]

Yes defroster works (Though I don't know that other than heat will ever be needed) Steel wool is stuffed down the half I mauled 😇 The head unit is a Pre Amp only. It sends a signal to amplifiers in the trunk. The trunk also has a 6 CD Player. All is hidden for stealth effect. How a picture of your radio with AUX, Bob?

[Turbinator]

Not much in the direction of modern sound reinforcement, but sound of the single 10 ohm speaker sounds pretty good to me. Many of tunes I like in the

50’s were not recorded good, but good enough. I left the phone out with the connecting cable to input. Usually, i put the phonebin the console box and let the wire hang out until  Im finished.

Edited September 14, 2022 by Turbinator (see edit history)

[BrianM]

I picked up a Bluetooth 4 channel amp a 6x9 plate for dual 4" speakers and a pair of budget 8" subs. I only ran power and remote wires to trunk. The total I spent was abot $300 and sounds pretty good. Must use phone for all audio but that doesn't bother me 

[BrianM]

I was hoping the prefab box would fit against the back of the seat in the trunk but it is a tiny bit too big with speakers installed. I might be able to squeeze it in if I removed the insulation under the trunk carpet. Just figured I would build a custom box with carpet that matches the trunk when I have time.

 

Edited September 14, 2022 by BrianM (see edit history)

[Riv Eng]

Hi all, I had a quick comment/question. Since I'm not an expert in sound systems, I'm hoping someone with a bit of knowledge can shed some light. 

 

For my '64, I was planning on removing the vents in the front footwells. I'm converting my car to AC and I already know I will never use them anways. My wife has wicked dust and pollen allergies and unfiltered outside air will have her wheezing. I was thinking of building a custom fab'd backpan to seal the opening and adding some oval speakers. Looks like maybe a 6'x9' will fit. 

 

Has anybody done this already? Any thoughts on whether it will work as intended? 

[gungeey]

7 minutes ago, Riv Eng said:

Hi all, I had a quick comment/question. Since I'm not an expert in sound systems, I'm hoping someone with a bit of knowledge can shed some light. 

 

For my '64, I was planning on removing the vents in the front footwells. I'm converting my car to AC and I already know I will never use them anways. My wife has wicked dust and pollen allergies and unfiltered outside air will have her wheezing. I was thinking of building a custom fab'd backpan to seal the opening and adding some oval speakers. Looks like maybe a 6'x9' will fit. 

 

Has anybody done this already? Any thoughts on whether it will work as intended? 

I've done this with the plastic vents still in place but not a 6X9 this is a 5.25". If you take out the factory vents you would of course have more room...the soundstage is great but I love the vents 😄

Edited September 14, 2022 by gungeey (see edit history)

[Riv Eng]

13 minutes ago, gungeey said:

I've done this with the plastic vents still in place but not a 6X9 this is a 5.25". If you take out the factory vents you would of course have more room...the soundstage is great but I love the vents 😄

Thanks Gungeey, at least I now know it should work!! I was planning on re-installing the grills to keep the factory look 😁

[gungeey]

1 hour ago, BrianM said:

I was hoping the prefab box would fit against the back of the seat in the trunk but it is a tiny bit too big with speakers installed. I might be able to squeeze it in if I removed the insulation under the trunk carpet. Just figured I would build a custom box with carpet that matches the trunk when I have time.

 

What do you have in the back seat? 2 woofers?

[RivNut]

Just make sure that if you’re using your original radio that you use 10 ohm speakers. Otherwise you’ll be looking for a new radio quickly.

 

I saw a Riviera at the meet in Galena where the owner had installed an aftermarket radio in the tissue dispenser.

Edited September 15, 2022 by RivNut (see edit history)

[BrianM]

22 hours ago, gungeey said:

What do you have in the back seat? 2 woofers?

So in my 70 Riviera it had a single 10ohm 6x9 speaker between the rear seats. I replaced it with the 6x9 plate that has 2 -  4ohm  2 way 4 inch kicker KS series speakers. (rated for 75 watts RMS each)

The subs are dual 4 ohm wired to 2 ohms each and rated for 150 watts RMS. The cheap ($80) bluetooth amp puts out about 60 watts @ 4ohms and about 100 watts @ 2 ohms. I have a high pass filter set about 150hz for the 4 inch speakers and low pass set to 350hz on the 8 inch speakers. This sounded best to me as the 4 inch speakers have no low end and the 8 inch speakers do well at mid bass. This set up does not give me a front stage only music from the rear but was super minimal on the install (just power and remote wires ran to trunk). If I choose to fix my head unit I could rewire the dual 4 inch speakers in series to show a 8 ohm load to the head unit and it should work with the factory set up. 

Even only having rear stage and the speakers being so close there is no real left/right stereo separation it sounds much better than the bluetooth speaker I had been using. 

[gungeey]

1 hour ago, BrianM said:

So in my 70 Riviera it had a single 10ohm 6x9 speaker between the rear seats. I replaced it with the 6x9 plate that has 2 -  4ohm  2 way 4 inch kicker KS series speakers. (rated for 75 watts RMS each)

The subs are dual 4 ohm wired to 2 ohms each and rated for 150 watts RMS. The cheap ($80) bluetooth amp puts out about 60 watts @ 4ohms and about 100 watts @ 2 ohms. I have a high pass filter set about 150hz for the 4 inch speakers and low pass set to 350hz on the 8 inch speakers. This sounded best to me as the 4 inch speakers have no low end and the 8 inch speakers do well at mid bass. This set up does not give me a front stage only music from the rear but was super minimal on the install (just power and remote wires ran to trunk). If I choose to fix my head unit I could rewire the dual 4 inch speakers in series to show a 8 ohm load to the head unit and it should work with the factory set up. 

Even only having rear stage and the speakers being so close there is no real left/right stereo separation it sounds much better than the bluetooth speaker I had been using. 

Sounds about right.  8" subs are nice right bass. Kickers =good stuff 

I have one 8in sub in small sealed enclosure. That's plenty for me. Steve

[DShoes]

Good thread, gungeey. I’m also about stealth + quality sound. I’m running Morel speakers powered by a Kenwood amp. I’ve pulled the spare tire and the amp is fastened to the backside of the back seats. 10” sub in the trunk awaiting matching interior vinyl re-wrap. Two 6x9s have been placed in a redone shelf above the back seats. Two 6” speakers also sit in custom enclosures on the door kick panels. OEM dash speaker was pulled and upgraded. Radio is a Retrosound Hermosa, which I bought for the Bluetooth and decent look (still not as cool as OEM). Also converted the cigarette lighter to USB ports which connects to the sound system and charges your phone. 

[gungeey]

I wanted to put amp up on trunk shelf but was too tight. So in keeping with a hidden system (plus I have lots of crap in the trunk):

[DShoes]

1 hour ago, gungeey said:

I wanted to put amp up on trunk shelf but was too tight. So in keeping with a hidden system (plus I have lots of crap in the trunk):

 

 

Clever! Can’t get cleaner than that! 

[atencioee]

Does anyone have this in their car, and if so, what is it? It appears original to my 1964 Buick Riviera, it's located inside the trunk, close to where the spare tire goes, and is associated with the radio.

[atencioee]

On 9/16/2022 at 10:11 AM, DShoes said:

Good thread, gungeey. I’m also about stealth + quality sound. I’m running Morel speakers powered by a Kenwood amp. I’ve pulled the spare tire and the amp is fastened to the backside of the back seats. 10” sub in the trunk awaiting matching interior vinyl re-wrap. Two 6x9s have been placed in a redone shelf above the back seats. Two 6” speakers also sit in custom enclosures on the door kick panels. OEM dash speaker was pulled and upgraded. Radio is a Retrosound Hermosa, which I bought for the Bluetooth and decent look (still not as cool as OEM). Also converted the cigarette lighter to USB ports which connects to the sound system and charges your phone. 

@DShoes and @gungeey, by adding an amplifier, did you have to upgrade your alternator or anything? Did you go with a different fuse?  My original sonomatic in my 64 Riviera runs on a 5 amp fuse. What are some changes I need to do if I'm planning to upgrade my sound? I want to keep the original looking radio while upgrading the components by adding blue tooth, am/fm radio, auxiliary port, usb. I really only want to put speakers in the original factory locations (front speaker in the dash, and rear speaker between back seats). Also, there is a box located in my trunk...I don't have a clue what it is. I posted a pic of it above this post...looks like maybe the original amplifier? Do you guys know what that is? Any helpful info would be appreciated.

[telriv]

That component, looks to me, is a factory installed reverberator.

 

Kinda rare.

 

I installed a Motorola reverberator in my Riv. in '64 & it still works.

 

Tom T.

 

 

[atencioee]

2 hours ago, telriv said:

That component, looks to me, is a factory installed reverberator.

 

Kinda rare.

 

I installed a Motorola reverberator in my Riv. in '64 & it still works.

 

Tom T.

 

 

Thanks Tom,

I'm probably going to sound not very smart... What is a reverberator and what is its purpose? I've never heard of one of those.

Gene

[Chasander]

Reverbertor adds an echo effect to enhance your sound. People used them when auto radios sound wasn’t very good. 

[RIVNIK]

I sent my original '65 dirty rusty radio to Tayback Electronic in Sarasota. Came back looking brand new, with modern blue-tooth electronics. They also provided me with dual-cone speakers that fit the '65 perfectly front & rear, wiring & installation instructions, &. Once you learn the commands necessary to operate the different functions its a breeze. The sound quality is excellent. Not that of a modern multi speaker system of course, but better than anything available in '65.     Highly recommended, & best of all, no cutting! 

[RIVNIK]

correction: was just reminded by NTX in another post, that is (Gary)Tayman Electronics.

[gungeey]

15 hours ago, atencioee said:

@DShoes and @gungeey, by adding an amplifier, did you have to upgrade your alternator or anything? Did you go with a different fuse?  My original sonomatic in my 64 Riviera runs on a 5 amp fuse. What are some changes I need to do if I'm planning to upgrade my sound? I want to keep the original looking radio while upgrading the components by adding blue tooth, am/fm radio, auxiliary port, usb. I really only want to put speakers in the original factory locations (front speaker in the dash, and rear speaker between back seats). Also, there is a box located in my trunk...I don't have a clue what it is. I posted a pic of it above this post...looks like maybe the original amplifier? Do you guys know what that is? Any helpful info would be appreciated.

 Your reverb unit should have a chrome bracket and knob, I believe, that installs on the lower dash above the gas pedal ( great spot for patella slices in an accident🥸) If it's complete you can help subsidize your stereo project...

 

As far as what your current electrical charging system will tolerate, well, there's not a lot of headroom. Like you said, there's 5 amps allotted for the factory radio. You can likely upgrade to 7/8 amps no problem. So, a run of the mill modern stereo unit would pass muster. You probably have a 61 A alternator. enough for a radio, headlights, A/C, and a momentary power window adjustment or brake light to all make it simultaneously. That's what the factory allotted for.

 

Getting into amplifiers, a subwoofer etc. will require modifications. A more powerful alt will require a solid state regulator and upgraded charging wire at a minimum. 100Amps and above will have an internal regulator, then some rewiring so your ALT light works properly. No big deal, we can offer guidance if you choose that route.

 

There has to be a run of battery cable to the area of the amplifier and an inline fuse at the beginning of the run in case of an accident. See pics below. The 6g wire is my alternator. The 4g Brown wire runs to the trunk for a 4 channel amplifier. L R and 2 channels are bridged to power a small 8in subwoofer. The inline fuse tucks up under the fender lip with industrial velcro. As you can see the junction block is pretty stuffed at this point

 

You also have to plan where to route the wires depending on your ultimate placement of the components. If done haphazardly you can create a lot of ground noise in the system.

 

Here's a retailer that will have a lot of good tutorials and insight in planning you project:  www.crutchfield.com

 

PS I like the idea of the factory unit with upgraded guts, I think you would need an electrical engineer background to build it though 😆 

 

 

Edited March 18 by gungeey (see edit history)

[Craig Balzer]

10 hours ago, RIVNIK said:

I sent my original '65 dirty rusty radio to (Gary) Tayback Electronic in Sarasota.

I Googled the above and came up empty.

I did find Gary Dahle in Sarasota

Is this your guy??

 

http://garydahle.com/

Gary Dahle Pro Audio Repair

507 Hancock Ave.                                                   
Sarasota, Florida 34232                                                   
(941) 379-2O77 

Edited March 19 by Craig Balzer (see edit history)

[DShoes]

On 3/17/2024 at 4:21 PM, atencioee said:

@DShoes and @gungeey, by adding an amplifier, did you have to upgrade your alternator or anything? Did you go with a different fuse?  My original sonomatic in my 64 Riviera runs on a 5 amp fuse. What are some changes I need to do if I'm planning to upgrade my sound? I want to keep the original looking radio while upgrading the components by adding blue tooth, am/fm radio, auxiliary port, usb. I really only want to put speakers in the original factory locations (front speaker in the dash, and rear speaker between back seats). Also, there is a box located in my trunk...I don't have a clue what it is. I posted a pic of it above this post...looks like maybe the original amplifier? Do you guys know what that is? Any helpful info would be appreciated.

@atencioee, @gungeey answered with more detail than I ever could but I'll tag on that I did not upgrade my alternator. Also, I'm not sure how you're going to keep an original radio face (mechanical) to use with digital components like Bluetooth. Maybe I misunderstood what you wanted to do. I've been very happy with my RetroSound Hermosa and you can customize it to your liking:

 

https://www.retromanufacturing.com/collections/vehicle-search/1965+Buick+Riviera?rq=yr_1965~mk_Buick~md_Riviera

 

Also, don't forget your sound dampening. I put the adhesive sound deadening material on most of the bare metal in the trunk before recovering. It improves the bass response 10X and it knocks out any metal rattle that might occur between the panels. Good luck!

Edited March 19 by DShoes (see edit history)

[RIVNIK]

Sorry Craig! I am still looking for his card, but I was corrected on the name by another member. It is Gary Tayman, & might be listed as Tayman Electronic. Also check out the current thread "Looking to improve my Radio/Sound". Member dr914 gives an alternate source for radio conversion that may be closer/less expensive, but sounds like the same treatment. They may both be Aurora dealers. good luck. Drew

[EmTee]

15 minutes ago, RIVNIK said:

It is Gary Tayman, & might be listed as Tayman Electronic.

https://taymanelectrical.com/

[gungeey]

24 minutes ago, EmTee said:

https://taymanelectrical.com/

Am I wrong or with a couple options does that tally up to about 800 smackers with round trip shipping and 2 new speakers? 

[RIVNIK]

twern't cheap

[dr914]

there is no substitute for power if one wants good sound.  The original factory am fm radio does not hack it in any way, nor does the fm hold as early fm technology could not control the drift of the frequency.  Hence one HAS to modify the original radio for it to be effective.  Here is the info on the place we have used in the past for conversions of the original radio (and again you cannot tell that it is not an original factory radio. 

 

s&m electro-Tech inc.

8836 xylite st ne

 

blaine, mn 55449.   763 780 2861.   turnswitch@turnswitch.com

[Craig Balzer]

1 hour ago, dr914 said:

Here is the info on the place we have used in the past for conversions of the original radio

DR914 - unfortunately, buried at the bottom of their "Contact" tab: No longer accepting radios for conversions.

And, sadly, if you click on "Radio Conversions" on the home page:

AS OF 12/1/2021 WE DO NOT CONVERT OR REPAIR RADIOS. Due to the death of the owner, Greg Thompson, we are no longer able to provide this service. Website is being left for now to allow access to the information it provides as a resource.

[XframeFX]

9 hours ago, dr914 said:

The original factory am fm radio does not hack it in any way, nor does the fm hold as early fm technology could not control the drift of the frequency

George, so says Gary Tayman but I did not take his advise and stuck with my Delco AM/FM #980659. Along with a modern 4-Ohm 3-Way 6X9 speaker in the rear seat, it must be the best part of my Riviera at the moment!

The problem with 1960s American Electronics was significant distortion in final stage amplifiers.

12-Watt  A-Class Amplifier is plenty good. Distortion almost non existent even at WOT, LOL. More powerful mono amplifiers up to 40W

https://www.taymanelectrical.com/

 

 

 

Edited March 21 by XframeFX (see edit history)

[RivNut]

I posted a picture of a reverb with wiring and under dash switch in a separate thread asking for help establishing a value for my 64 AM/FM radio, speakers, and complete reverb unit. There’s a picture of the reverb switch attached to the wring harness.

[XframeFX]

Re-Verb, rare

Edited March 22 by XframeFX (see edit history)

[Turbinator]

Gents, our listening pleasure can be whatever we want it to be. I like the original sound with one speaker in my 63. I took the radio out and had some items fixed and I had an aux input installed in the original radio. The original sound from the little speaker takes me back in time. I like that a lot.

For serious listening I have Sansui, Bang & Olufson, Thorens, SME tone arms with the Shure cartridges. I inherited most of the gear and some of the stuff is over 50 years old. Works good. 

[dr914]

the placement of the riviera front and rear speakers actually makes for excellent sound with the right speakers and power.  If you listened to my radio (exact factory look) you would be amazed, and without any modification to the body, everything bolts right in. factory  original but modified  Buick am fm radio, front 4x10 speaker three way, rear 6x9 speaker three way

[RivNut]

1 hour ago, dr914 said:

the placement of the riviera front and rear speakers actually makes for excellent sound with the right speakers and power.  If you listened to my radio (exact factory look) you would be amazed, and without any modification to the body, everything bolts right in. factory  original but modified  Buick am fm radio, front 4x10 speaker three way, rear 6x9 speaker three way

Which radio did you install in your Riviera?   The Vintage Air unit I installed prevents the factory radio from going back in.  Because I won’t be driving the Riviera that much, I won’t need Blue tooth, or Sirius.  Just an AM/FM stereo to which I can attach a RediRad.  http://redirad.com/