Polk DB3065
by Andrew Krause. 
| PRO’S | CON’S |
| Widely Available | Limited Install Options |
| Well Designed | Expensive |
Features:
The DB3065 consists of a 6 1/2" midbass woofer, a 1" tweeter, and a two way crossover with a switchable tweeter emphasis which gives you a +/-6db increase, or a flat setting.
Polk's Dynamic Balance technology is found in the 3065's, with the exception of the basket frame. While the frame is painted to match the casket basket found in dB subwoofers, they are in fact not casket baskets.
Polk is nice enough to provide you with crimped wires in the proper gauges for woofers and tweeters, and plenty of hardware.
Installation:
The vehicle selected for installation was a 1989 GMC Suburban. The vehicle was a bare bones vehicle purchased from military surplus (DRMO) for $500. The dash locations were empty, but allowed for 3 1/2 speakers. The doors were initially selected as the mounting location, but it was discovered that the drivers door contained a 1/4" thick steel plating (can't have our driver shot, now can we???), so the kickpanels were chosen. Custom panels were fabricated out of 1/4 plywood, and were built out with 3/4 Russian birch we had laying around the shop, and smoothed off with wood putty, then covered with beige vinyl to match the desert camouflage paintjob of the exterior. The actual kick panel area was deadened with an asphalt undercoating spray purchased from Wal-Mart for $3 a can, before the kick panel pods were attached using upholstery clips which lined up with predrilled 1/3" holes. This allowed for easy removal of the kick panels for later body work.
The tweeters came with flush, surface, and angled surface mounts. Flush mounts were used. The emphasis was set to +6 dB.
Total Impression:
Initially, we powered the 3065's off of the Alpine radio, which had a high power 40 watt output. However, we found midbass to be lacking, and the highs were fragmented. Despite several bottles of Killian's Red, four shots of AfterShock, and three shots of Wild Turkey, the 3065's continued to sound like ass. We decided that an amplifier of more power may help, so we selected the Alpine MRV-T300 to run them. After the installation, some Gorditas, Mountain Dew, and a few shots of Jack Daniel's Old No7, we passed out. In the morning, when we woke up, we put the fuse in the battery line, and listened. The amplifier made all the difference in the world. The highs were clean and smooth, with no peaks or harshness in spite of the 6 dB hump. The midbass was still a tad weak, but when later augmented with a subwoofer, the 3065's performed well as a "team player". Midrange response was quite pleasing, which near flawless reproduction of Alanis Morissette's vocals on "Without Permission". Eddie Van Halen's guitars sounded real and present on "Finish What You Started", and Rush Limbaugh sounded very present and conversational on WJNC.
Manufacturer info: