Hey all haven't had much of a chance to get on been bloody hectic at work with all the storms going on. So got home today and decided to look at my speaker problem in the car. The 2 rear speakers in the trunk are completely missing. i took off the dollar store aftermarket speakers on the door he had there werent even any wires connecting them. Also is there suposed to be a speaker under the dash? Is there any other speakers in the 70 442 that I'm missing? I'm also not to sure do all dashes have slots for the 8-track holder brackets like this repro:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1968-72-CUTLASS-8-TRACK-HOUSING-BRACKET-NEW-/270415995511?fits=Year:1970|Make:Oldsmobile&hash=i tem3ef60ca277&item=270415995511&pt=Vintage_Car_Tru ck_Parts_Accessories&vxp=mtr#ht_1342wt_1159

If not I was also looking at W70442s stuff probably send him a PM here. Also what are the proper speaker sizes for all the different speakers and I heard they have to be a 10 ohm speaker to work properly?

Here's some picks of the radios and 8-track I bought and also the trunk where I'm fairly certain the speakers should be placed.

 

One 4x10 in the dash, and two 6x9s in the rear deck - thats it. None in doors.
Speakers should be 10 Ohm each.

 

Rob gave you the speaker sizes. What I'd do though is check under the dash to see if the original 4X10 is still there. When shops put in aftermarket stereos, they usually left that one in and started putting speakers in the doors - like what you found.

Yes, for OEM radio to work you MUST use 10ohm speakers. They are pretty cheaply made by today's sound industry standards. You may need to re-cone any you bought if they're in rough shape. Check the Calgary pick n pull inventory. They have the same speakers in all Cutlass/Toro/98/88 for the years 1970-about 1987 I think. So you could score some for around 9.00/speaker, plus get the wiring. Ok, just checked. Calgary has some 98's but Edmonton has 3 Toros and 4 Cutlass that likely have them.

The repop you posted IS what the 8 track stereo fits into. I've dealt with Randy before and recommend him highly. You may have to drill holes in the lower metal of the dash to mount the 8 track pod.

The brown faceplate in that pic suggests you have something there for 71/72. The grain is different for 69/70 and it's silver for 68. The brown 'long u shaped' channel? DON"T LOSE THAT! It's the front trim that goes around the 8 track plastic case. It can be dyed whatever color your car interior is. None of those radios is the right one for OEM correct for 1970 though.

 

Hey Guys,

Just stumbled onto this thread.

Most everyone, myself included, installs two speakers in the package tray but I'm pretty sure that these cars(68-72 Cutlass') came from the factory with only the dash speaker and one speaker on the passenger side of the package tray. In fact, there is only one speaker plug/wire coming of the side of the factory radio and 8 track that goes to the rear of the car. Actually, the one rear speaker was an otpion.
It is true that the speakers were 8-10 ohm speakers but the radio will work with modern 4 ohm speakers. It's just not recommended because using 4 ohm speakers with an original radio or 8 track will overdrive the amps and possibly burn them up due to the lesser resistance of the 4 ohm speaker. The 4 ohm speaker will sound louder than the original 8-10 ohm speaker but it will damge the radio/8 track.
I wired my factory radio and 8 track to the front dash speaker just to prove they work if anyone asked. I put two modern 6x9's in the package tray along with two 4" round speakers up under the dash for my cd player.

69-72 cutlass should have the two holes for the threaded studs on the 8 track brackets already punched in the under dash metal. I can provide the dimensions if anyone has a 68 and needs to drill the holes for the studs.
If you want to install an 8 track, unless the car has had an 8 track in the past, you will also have to drill two small holes in the dash for the two small screws that go into the mounting brackets. If your car has a/c, you will also need to cut a section out of the center of the lower a/c vent to make room for the 8 track player or one of my stereo/gauge housings. I can provide those dimensions as well.

The repro 8 track housing plastic looks good but they used common pop rivets to mount the brackets instead of the correct semi-tubular rivets and you have to bend the brackets quite a bit to get the threaded studs to line up with the holes in the dash. There is also fitment issues with how the player mates to the plastic housing. I am replacing the brackets and installing the correct rivets on a repro housing for a customer right now and have found that the cups on the plastic housing that the shafts go through stick out almost 1/8" too far toward the rear of the housing. This keeps the player from mounting as far forward as it should. As a result, the trim around the tape door doesn't protrude through the wood grain plate like it should. With the repro housing, the ring around the tape door is actually recessed a little into/behind the opening in the wood grain plate.
Let me know if you have any questions about the stereo housings. If you'd like a stereo housing, I may be interested in trading a stereo housing for the 8 track pad and wood grain plate.
I also have 8 track players available.

 

The speakers and wiring are shown in the 1970 Assembly Manual.
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You can use 8 ohm speakers with a stock radio with no issues.

Also check this link for speaker wiring info and the effect on impedence:

http://www.usspeaker.com/speaker%20wiring-1.htm

 

[QUOTE=W70442;433445]Hey Guys,

Just stumbled onto this thread.

Most everyone, myself included, installs two speakers in the package tray but I'm pretty sure that these cars(68-72 Cutlass') came from the factory with only the dash speaker and one speaker on the passenger side of the package tray. In fact, there is only one speaker plug/wire coming of the side of the factory radio and 8 track that goes to the rear of the car. Actually, the one rear speaker was an otpion.
It is true that the speakers were 8-10 ohm speakers but the radio will work with modern 4 ohm speakers. It's just not recommended because using 4 ohm speakers with an original radio or 8 track will overdrive the amps and possibly burn them up due to the lesser resistance of the 4 ohm speaker. The 4 ohm speaker will sound louder than the original 8-10 ohm speaker but it will damge the radio/8 track.
QUOTE]

Randy is correct with this info. I spoke at length to a radio restoration shop and they told me that the factory radio in these Oldsmobiles were designed for 1 speaker in front and 1 in the back. Adding an extra rear speaker can damage the output drives. Also changing to 4 ohm speakers can also lead to radio failure. There are correct reproduction speakers in 8-10 ohm in both 4x10 and 6X9 sizes available. Here is a link to one company that offers them.
Brian

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

 

If one really wants two speakers in back, two 4 Ohm units can be wired in SERIES, to give an effective 8 Ohm impedance that the radio can tolerate.

 

Thanks for all the amazing help guys. So to not wreck my radios i should stick with one front and one back. Replacing the speakers in the doors with 10 OHM speakers probably isnt a very good idea then eh if a double in the back could cause damage. I guess ill probably just fill in the door panel with show speakers that don't do anything. I went to visions electronics and they said if i hooked up my radios to an amp then wired all the speakers to the amp tat could work what do you guys think or is the 17 y/os working there not the most informed? Allan Ill be in edm on my next days off for a day or 2 maybe ill check out the pic a part there for some radios and see what kinda condition they are. maybe go for a lunch or something. Ill probably end up going with Randy when I get some money saved up. I found a shop in Calgary that can test all the radios for me but i wont be able to bring them in till Thursday right now I'm not even 100% sure the radio and 8-track even work. And Randy would it be possible to make an 8track housing with the slot for the gauges under neath the 8-track i just dont know if it would look to busy or even interfere with the stick possibly.

 

I would refrain from hooking an amp to the stock radio just to avoid any possibility of damage. These old ones are different then the late 70's-on units.

 

Rob, I'm not an electrical guy. But what if you hooked up the extra speakers in parallel? Wouldn't they all then get the proper current and not have to worry about the resistance?

For the cars that had 2 rear speakers, it looks to me like they are hooked up in series?

 

Scott,
Did you really mean that you want a housing that would hold an 8 track player along with gauges below the 8 track in the same housing?

I do build custom housings that can combine a modern cd player and gauges or other equipment. But I'm not sure how I would do a housing with the 8 track player over top of gauges.

When you said that you would have to put dummy speakers in you doors, I thought to myself, why don't you put the factory radio and even 8 track on the dash and hide a modern cd player and hook it to the speakers in the doors. I had my cd player in the glove box for a long time with a wired remote ran up through the console so that I could control the cd player with the remote. Only time I had to open the glove box was to change cd's. They make cd players with UHF remotes that would be wireless and control the stereo with out having to open the glove box door like you would with an infrared remote. They require line of sight in order to work.
I'd be happy to work with you on a custom housing though. Sounds like an interesting challenge.

 

Well i was looking in a couple other forums and some guys were saying they had dual rear in there convertables if hooking up 2 can cause damage why would they have put 2 slots in? i was driving along on the HWY on a Emerg Call to wetaskiwin and i found a 1970 cutlass sitting in a field. with a number on the windshield i phoned her up and requested a bunch of pictures and inquired about the radio and speakers and trim in it. Ill put a post up with pics and info on the car after I get some. Also Randy im not to sure do you think it would be a better idea to move the gauges onto the pillar maybe instead of having it in the same housing? I saw you do it with a newer CD player where you have the gauges underneath in the housing. I love the sound of the old 8-Tracks thats why im trying so hard for it CDs just cant compare and I'd only listen when im parked with a girl. So i wont get much use out of a new CD player and speakers anyway.

 

If you want the 8 track, then yes, I'd probably put the gauges elswhere. Having the gauges and 8 track in the same housing would be unique but it would lose the factory appearance of the 8 track by itself which might hurt the value of the unit if you ever decided to sell it. By the way, if you did put them together in one housing, I'd put the heavy 8 track player on the bottom with the gauges above it.
Most guys here including myself would say, "It's your car, do it the way you want it". So I'd be happy to work with you to design a housing that you would like. That said, I also have several 8 tracks to choose from ranging from driver quality to show quality.