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Thank you everyone for your input. I called a few manufacturers and what I am going to do is disconnect the speakers every night and keep them inside. Everyone seems to think the problem is going from very cold to full volume. I blew a set of 150W rock speakers that I had for over 10 years in just a few weeks last season. This season it took me 2 weeks to blow 2 new TIC GS3 speakers which apparently are used in theme parks all over the world. So I just ordered a pair of PYLE 250/500 WATT waterproof speakers and I intend to run a warm up at low volume for 15 minutes before the show and probably take them inside each night.

Go to eBay to get that kind of stuff though - pretty big markup in stores.

Polk Audio makes some nice marine rated 3-way 6x9s.  Cut a hole in the side of a cooler, mount them.  Toss in a battery and an amp - you'll be able to use it for more than just Christmas lights.  The cooler really helps with the bass response.  Look on teambadmonkey.com under Misc - you'll see a quick and dirty howto.

Car speakers are typically 4 ohm, but be certain before buying.  Some out there are making 2.63 (or some other odd number) ohm speakers which they claim are "4 ohm safe".  Don't even think about putting one on a home amplifier.

A lot of home stereo amps will handle 4 ohms now, but do check the specs to make sure.  As noted, two 4 ohm speakers in series will work. 

It has been years since I've seen an amp with the setting in the back.  Do they still make those?  Next thing you are going to ask about 70V transformer systems.

If all you want is the quality of the local car lot paging system, then there are plenty.  I presume you want more than one octave of music range though...

To do it right and still have full range music will cost about 2x to 3x more than what an equivalent non-weather rated speaker will cost (this applies all the way on up into the pro world).

That isn't to say you have to do it right...

Moisture is most likely more of a problem than temp extremes.  Direct sunlight would be a close second.  As mentioned, for cheap ones anyway, avoid paper cones.  Also, make sure the crossover board (inside the cabinet) isn't going to get wet. 

On the cheap DIY side, maybe you could try car speakers?  I've seen several with poly woofers and mylar tweeters (no paper).  Car speakers are designed for higher humidity, sunlight, and temp extremes.  You would still have to keep them out of direct contact with water of course.  A pair of 6x9s and boxes shouldn't cost too much if you aren't looking for perfection in sound quality... just don't expect much bass below the 100Hz area.



Edited by LightsOnLogan - 17 Dec 2009 at 8:31am