Which Outdoor speakers/

Check out the Niles speaker line - also Bose and Definitive Technology. All of them are designed to withstand the rigors of outdoor use as you describe. Oh, and if they're getting hit with a lot of sun, get them in white.

Because my backyard is rather shallow, I decided to put my speakers on fence posts, near the back fence line instead of under the eaves of the house. That way the music doesn't go to the neighbors yard as much. As a result, my speakers are fully exposed as well. I think they handle it just fine on thier own, but opted to leave the covered much of the time with cheap nylon drawstring backpacks. It helps keep the rain off them and the direct sunlight. I probably could get an actual speaker cover, but didn't want to mess with the higher price. They have made through 2 summers at about 2 bucks a bag.

I don't know if that's going to work for you if your speakers are mounted up high.

opted to leave the covered much of the time with cheap nylon drawstring backpacks. It helps keep the rain off them and the direct sunlight.
My speakers are now under shaded eaves, but when they were not, this is what I did as well. After 12 months, the covers fell to pieces due to exposure, but the speakers were cheaply preserved. UV from direct sunlight is a killer.

Thanks Ill check them out @Jec6613. @Kumar and @melvimbe...what speakers do you specifically use

Bose 251 pair...bought in 2003 and still delivering good sound.

I use Definitive AW6500, but I have them under eves so the bass radiator gets taken full advantage of.

Bose and Core Brands (Speakercraft/Niles) outdoor speakers are what Disney and Cedar Fair use at their theme parks and resorts because they hold up so well - though, custom models thereof, given their quantity order. Also, for UV protection, you can always just paint the speaker, as titanium dioxide does much better than cheap bags for long-term protection.

Klipsch AWR-650-SM rock speakers. Just throwing these out there as something to consider...I just ordered two along with a Connect:Amp. They seem to have good reviews on most sites I've looked at. Maybe someone out there has some experience with these?

The two possible hitches I see with rock speakers is that they will need longer speaker cable runs to them if they are to be placed among other real rocks in the yard. But if this is doable, their proximity to listening area ought to be a good thing.

The other issue that can then surface with them is the lack of a mono toggle on the Connect Amp, if these are placed too far apart from each other. People that are closer to one of the pair will hear the content of just one of the two stereo channels.

Uh Oh. Looks like I should have done a little more research...so Kumar are you saying that I cannot wire the two rock speakers to the Connect Amp as individual stereo speakers?

No, each will have to get just one of the two channels because as as far as I know, while you can wire both channels of the Connect Amp to one speaker, you cannot wire both speakers in this way from one Connect Amp.

But if listening distances in general are more than the distances between the two speakers, you should get better sound by using each speaker for just left/right channel.