The Wats and Hows of Marine Speakers

Most people assume that car speakers and marine speakers are pretty much the same, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. While car speakers are designed for enclosed spaces and controlled environments, marine speakers are built to perform out in the open, exposed to sun, saltwater and constant moisture. The reason you should get marine-grade speakers instead of regular car speakers is that the former are made to withstand salt water, strong winds and UV rays, as well as to produce powerful enough sound that won’t be silenced by the sound of the engine.

What Matters in Marine Speakers

Sound

The sound quality of speakers should be one of the first things you check. Make sure that there’s plenty of power and also no distortion. The latter will depend on the materials used in modern boat speakers, and the former makes for a quality set of speakers, either with or without an amplifier. If there are not enough watts, then an amplifier will definitely accompany your new marine speakers.

Durability

A good-sounding set of speakers isn’t the main goal of marine speakers. Their durability is also an important factor. Mainly, marine stereo speakers are made of aluminium since it’s a corrosion-resistant material, but you can also find speakers made of Nylas. This is a combination of fibreglass and nylon that makes both a lightweight and rigid design.

Single vs Double Barrel

The difference between single and double-barrel speakers is that the latter comes with a swivel mount. This helps you direct the speakers in whatever area of your boat you want in order to improve the listening experience. You can also have a double-barrel speaker set to have each speaker facing a different direction.

Anodised

In order for the speaker cans or the chamber, as it’s also called, to be safe from rust, it should be anodised. No matter the material it’s made of, an anodised marine speaker is not going to be as vulnerable to oxidation, and it will thus last longer. Also, anodising materials is an environmentally friendly way of making a long-lasting product.

Frequency

The audio quality of a speaker is going to be affected by another factor, and that is its frequency response range. This range is what determines the number of frequencies the speakers are able to produce, and the wider it is, the better the sound quality of the speakers is going to be. Typically, a range between 60 Hz and 20 kHz is okay, but if you want something better, a speaker set with a range between 40 Hz and 20 kHz is what you should consider.

Power

The speakers need to be compatible with your Bluetooth stereo system in terms of watts, and the peak power of a marine speaker is going to determine the loudness of the sound it can produce. The higher this measurement is, the louder the boat’s marine speakers are going to be. For instance, a marine speaker with 150 watts of output is going to be a standard option, while those with 200 or 250 watts of peak power are going to be the more capable solutions.

Size

The size of the speakers will also tell you how powerful they’re going to be. The bigger the speakers, usually, the louder they can get and the heavier they are. Heavier boat speakers are also often able to produce better-quality sound since they have bigger magnets. Unless they use neodymium magnets.

Numbers

Numbers aren’t just important when it comes to peak power and speaker size. They also matter when it comes to the number of speakers you want to have on your boat. The more there are, the better the sound you’ll get throughout the whole vessel. But keep in mind that having multiple speakers is going to make it a lot more difficult to set up your sound system and sort out all the wiring.

Types of Marine Speakers

Dual Cone

If you want a low-cost solution for your vessel, look no further than dual-cone speakers. These have a small high-frequency cone in the centre of the woofer. This makes them have only one coil, which doesn’t make them as good at producing good sound quality as any of the above speakers. Unlike coaxial speakers, dual cone boat marine speakers have the voice coil convert electrical signals coming from the receiver into mechanical vibrations that then drive the cone of each speaker.

Three-Way

Also known as coaxial speakers, these marine stereo speakers have a separate tweeter. The tweeter is found in the woofer, and it’s used to handle high frequencies and deliver them within the range of the music being played.

Two-Way

Often called a triaxial speaker, a three-way speaker has a midrange driver added to a separate woofer and tweeter. This helps them reproduce sounds fully and with as much clarity as possible.