Car Audio Speakers Review: JBL GTO638 6.5-Inch 3-Way Speakers (Pair)

Product Details

Product Dimensions: 10 x 9 x 8 inches ; 6 pounds
Shipping Weight: 15 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
ASIN: B003KN2TF8
Item model number: GTO638

By : JBL
Price : $69.34
You Save : $80.61 (54%)

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description
The 6.5-inch GTO638 is a perfect replacement for those factory speakers, delivering smooth, accurate audio thanks to technologies like JBL's Plus One woofer cone, edge-driven mylar-titanium tweeter and supertweeter, and a built-in crossover network.

The GTO tweeter is both strong and light weight while being adjustable

The Plus One woofer cone increases bass output and efficiency
Why JBL Sound?
For more than 60 years, JBL products have been bringing home the impact and excitement of the world's best recording studios, movie theaters and concert venues. Now, JBL engineers are creating these world-class listening experiences in the car. Thanks to advanced technology developed in the professional arena, JBL mobile products simply sound better than the competition. High output, superb bass response, long life and smooth response are all things you can expect from any speaker that wears the JBL badge. So join enthusiasts who know audio, and don't settle for anything but JBL in your vehicle. Bring the sound of the show on the road.
Listen LoudThe last thing you want to worry about is the quality of your speakers. We understand. All new JBL mobile products have to go through nearly 500 hours of environmental testing. We put them under temperatures fluctuating between -35° C and +90° C with up to 90 percent air humidity for more than 200 hours. We expose speakers to UV light for more than 150 hours to simulate a mounting location on a car's rear deck. We even shake things up, as all of our new mobile audio products have to pass extensive vibration testing before we release them for production. We've made unparalleled efforts to ensure the best possible quality so that you can listen long and loud when you crank up a JBL speaker.
Edge-Driven, Mylar-Titanium Super TweeterThe JBL GTO638 uses a 1/2-inch (12-millimeter) Mylar-titanium (My-Ti) super tweeter with a large voice coil--much like a voice coil found in high-end home audio speakers. The benefit of the Mylar and titanium blend in making a tweeter is that it is lightweight and has remarkable strength. At the same time, its large voice coil increases power handling and reduces distortion at high output levels. This tweeter design also helps create more seamless integration with the woofer. The GTO638's tweeter is even adjustable, so you can modify it to optimize the sound. The result? Crystal-clear, extended high frequencies for true, high-end, audiophile-quality performance.
Edge-Driven, Mylar-Titanium TweeterFor extra smooth and detailed sound, the JBL GTO638 speakers use a one-inch (25-millimeter), Mylar-titanium (My-Ti). The addition of this dedicated driver allows the GTO638s to deliver rich sound through the midrange frequencies where most of the vocals in music can be found. This extra detail in the midrange, paired with the �super� tweeter and woofer, means that the GTO638ss deliver true, audiophile-quality performance worthy of even the best home speaker.

Look for the True 4 ohm logo for the best real world performance

Intermount III makes installation into any factory location simple Click to Enlarge
Built-in Crossover NetworksTypical entry level mobile loudspeakers use low performance bass blockers to keep bass from going to the tweeter. Well, the JBL GTO638 is not your typical entry-level loudspeaker. By using a built-in crossover network with advanced high and low pass filters, the GTO638 creates a smooth transition between the woofer and tweeter. The result? Midrange vocals that sound so natural and lifelike you think you the artist were right in the car with you.
Bass that Booms
Plus One ConeThe JBL GTO638 uses a 6-1/2-inch (160-millimeter) woofer with the patent-pending JBL Plus One cone technology. Plus One technology gives the GTO638 more cone surface than competing models of the same size--up to 30 percent more in many cases. With a larger cone area, the GTO638 speakers provide higher efficiency and better bass response. Add a low-Q woofer design for higher bass output from the typical mounting location and 180-watt peak power handling, and the GTO638 will really get your car booming.
Powerful Performance
True 4-Ohm Topology Low-impedance speaker voice coils extract more power from your amp for more powerful performance than high-impedance coils do. JBL GTO638 speakers use a lower-impedance voice coil than a typical 4-ohm speaker to extract the most power possible from all amplifiers engineered to drive loads of 4 ohms or less. And the GTO638's are compatible with both aftermarket head units and factory-installed systems. Since many factory-installed systems incorporate 2-ohm speakers and include amplifiers designed to drive 2-ohm loads, replacing those reduced-impedance speakers with a typical 4-ohm model will reduce the power output from the amplifier. For the most powerful performance, the GTO638's make the best use of any amplifier by providing an optimum 2-ohm load.
An Easy Install
Intermount III (Patent Number 6,505,705) Mounting SystemDoing it yourself? Installing GTO638 speakers in nearly any factory-built location is a breeze. Designed as replacements for factory-installed OEM speakers, they easily install into nearly any factory-built 6-1/2-inch location without requiring any special tools or modifications. To make installation even easier, the GTO638s use JBL's patented Intermount III mounting system. Depending on the vehicle, the factory-built 6-1/2-inch location can actually vary in size from 6 inches all the way up to 6-3/4 inches, thanks to the GTO638's included installation rings. Even if you are upgrading an older set of aftermarket speakers, the GTO638 makes replacing them easy. And with such easy installation, you'll be listening to your new JBL speakers in no time at all.

The JBL GTO638s deliver high output, superb bass response, long life and smooth response. Highlights

Great JBL Sound Quality
3-way design delivers true audiophile sound quality
Plus One woofer cones for the high output and deep bass
True 4-Ohm design pulls the most power out of your system
Easy to install

What's in the BoxOne pair of JBL GTO638 3-way loudspeakers, one set of installation hardware, one set of Intermount III rings
JBL 6-1/2" 3-Way Loudspeaker

JBL GTO638 6.5-Inch 3-Way Speakers (Pair)

Technical Details

6-1/2 / 6-3/4-inch three-way loudspeaker
Plus One woofer cone with rubber surround
Mylar-titanium tweeter and adjustable supertweeter with level control
180 Watts peak power handling; 2 ohm impedance
Two-inch mounting depth

Customer Reviews

The speakers, themselves, are terrific! They are solidly built and the sound is great considering their size. Also, and as always, Amazon shipped these speakers to me quickly and inexpensively. The package arrived in pristine and factory-sealed condition in just a few days.
The problems that I encountered were with the lack of viable directions and the speaker mounting systems. One could forgo the directions and simply use the holes in the frame of the speakers and mount them directly--without the included mounting system plates and hardware. The old Audiovox ones that I replaced were so mounted. But, after watching the JBL video, I decided to use the JBL mounting plate system. That's when the troubles began.
The instructions consist only of a number of unlabeled drawings on a fold-out sheet that are exploded views of a large variety of JBL speakers and their various mountings. Trying to figure out which drawings went with my speakers and in what order and orientations the parts went together was quite a challenge. But, more importantly, there was NOT ONE written word included on the instruction foldout regarding how to identify and orient the parts or how install the speakers. There were no written directions at all! In other words, the instructions were virtually useless. A step-by-step set of instructions should have been included, but weren't.
The mounting plate idea is a good one and the plate, itself, went on easily (though I had to supply the sheet metal screws to mount it to the door panel). There were tiny little screws included which would have mounted the speakers to either the metal mounting plate or the plastic plate (if that option was chosen). But, the speaker covers (grilles) must use the same mounting holes as in the frame of the speakers and the speaker frames, themselves, must be oriented to use the four raised and threaded holes in the mounting plate. Long story short, two screws cannot share the same hole. So the short screws could not be used at all, unless the grilles were left off. Also there were no included longer screws that would go all the way through mounting holes in both the grilles and the speaker frames and into the mounting plate. So, I had to make a trip to the hardware store with one of the short ones and a grille and mounting frame to find some long screws. They turned out to be metric. While the eight long screws weren't expensive, a trip to the hardware store was a pain. Then, when I went to mount the speakers and the grilles to the re-mounted plate, I ran into more trouble. The holes in the grilles were slightly off line with the holes in the mounting plate. Any one screw could be started easily but, unless that one screw was barely into the threads on the plate, no other screws could be threaded in. It took quite a long time (and some additional help) to get all four of the long screws forced into the threaded holes in the plate at the same time. I ended up using a heavy string as a kind of band clamp to pull them in. The differences in the hole alignments was not great, but the very fine threads of the screws (matched to the threads in the plate) kept the screws from starting unless the alignment was perfect. I could have enlarged the speaker side of the grill holes, too, I guess, but didn't want to tear them up.
Lastly, the grille sides are not deep enough to go flush to the surface on which the mounting plates are mounted. About a 1/4th-inch gap between the surface and the grilles was left after all the screws were finally fully tightened. I suppose that if one was mounting through padded door panels that this would be okay, but I was mounting on a hard surface.
In conclusion, while the JBL speakers, themselves, are obviously highly engineered and robust, the lack of any instructions and proper mounting screws, coupled with poor fitment of the mounting system really turned me off. I've installed a lot of speakers in my vehicles in my 62 years, but have never encountered such difficulties before. JBL could easily correct these problems and should do so.

Replaced MPV stock speakers and they really do rock. 3-way makes treble/highs sound amazing. Great deal