Car stereos...

[demoncore1031]

I have blown the speakers in every vehicle I have owned. Just looking for some recommendations as to what I should buy to prevent that. What are the best speakers? Should I get an amp? I am not interested in bass, I need to be able to crank metal at extremely high volumes.


Thanks in advance.

 

[ISUinOR]

Blaupunkt!! 80s car audio could never disappoint!

 

[ruflosn]

Kraco

 

[Dr.bannedman]

get some ear buds.... blow your ears not the speakers. 299IQ

 

[CoachHines3]

With a user name like demoncore I’d expect nothing less

 

[Farnsworth]

Try Fusion Auto Sound on Douglas. They'd be able to help you out.

 

[Cyclones_R_GR8]

Try Fusion Auto Sound on Douglas. They'd be able to help you out.

I think he lives in the South West

 

[Pat]

1)That is insane. I guess I’m officially old, but… turn in down. The ringing in my ears agrees.
2) Blown speakers are usually a result of too little amp as opposed to the speakers themselves. It is LIKELY the case that you’re blowing speakers because the amp (stereo) is distorting and sending square waves. If you need more volume, a more powerful amp (or receiver) is the place to start.

 

[Drew0311]

I always go to Ford and Garland. They are downtown Des Moines. They always give me good advice.

 

[CYDJ]

1)That is insane. I guess I’m officially old, but… turn in down. The ringing in my ears agrees.
2) Blown speakers are usually a result of too little amp as opposed to the speakers themselves. It is LIKELY the case that you’re blowing speakers because the amp (stereo) is distorting and sending square waves. If you need more volume, a more powerful amp (or receiver) is the place to start.

Agree with Pat here. the square waves it is sending is also called clipping. That is incredibly hard on the speaker as it's natural in and out vibration is supposed to be smoother than the abrupt changes in direction that cause heat and pretty much welds the coil to the magnet. It's more technical than this, but that is why the larger amp may be the solution. I know it sounds counter intuitive, but it is true. You can also overdrive a speaker with too much amp and drive the voice coil out of its slot in the magnet, but that is much more rare than damaging it due to clipping. Good luck fixing your system.

I will say that I ALSO agree with Pat in that I ran relatively large (to the normal citizen) sound systems for right at 30 years. I tested my set ups with my ears and now I get to wear these cool things on my ears that help me actually hear my wife. They double as earbuds, so that is cool, but I do wish I had my real hearing back. Be careful, your ears will appreciate it.

 

[NorthCyd]

In the 90s I use to have thousands of dollars of audio equipment in a car that was probably worth around $800 dollars. Good times! I don't remember much, but I doubt any of my knowledge translates much to cars today anyways. Stock systems are so much better now than they were back then and probably much more difficult to swap out with aftermarket components. Although I did just Google Crutchfield, and that's still a thing. And it looks like many of the same names are still relevant: Alpine, Kicker, Rockford Fosgate, JBL, Pioneer.

One thing I would say is to echo what others have said, don't sleep on the amperage. It will improve sound clarity and it's actually easier on your speakers. I wouldn't ignore bass either. I used to listen to a ton of metal when I was younger, and being able to feel the bass when those kick drums are firing is huge IMO. If you build a well rounded system with improved amperage and more balanced treble and bass you may find yourself enjoying the music at lower volumes because you'll have a richer fuller sound that will sound louder at lower volume

 

[Clonedogg]

I was into car stereos back in my youth, I did blow a 12" sub out of its cone once in a competition (still came in 3rd in my category).

My hearing could be worse, but I do have some issues. Main one being during sporting events or concerts, my left ear will crackle during loud moments, its somewhat uncomfortable when it happens. I'm sure it will only get worse as I age.

 

[SwirlyBird]

turn the volume down

 

[AdRock4Cy]

get an amp that goes to 11.

 

[Gorm]

You likely need more headroom.

The amp you require will be based on how your current speakers are setup in your car. Most modern cars have amplifiers somewhere in the line. Usually, these have to be bypassed in order to properly install and integrate a new amplifier into the system. Also, a lot of car manufactures use 2Ohm speakers instead of the "industry standard" 4OHM. This can and will cause complications on an install.

Personally, I've always been a fan of Memphis Car Audio for amplifiers. However, I haven't bought any aftermarket car audio equipment in 10+ years now.