The sad truth is, if you have a car with a factory sound system, you get a bad quality of the sound. The situation is different if you have a car that has the price of more than $200.000. In any other way, you end with speakers that cannot satisfy your need. But there is an option for you to get the best car speakers for your car.
In this short tutorial, i will also be showing you, the best guide for the car speakers installation. You can use the table format below, and easily read the most important information you need.
On some cars, you may get speakers that are made by a well-known manufacturer, at least the car manufacturer will tell you that. The fact it, you will get speakers that are made by some unknown company or someone that isn’t very good in making car speakers. For example, your speakers may be made by Panasonic.
Although, this is a well-known manufacturer, they don’t make the best car speakers on the planet. These, and factory car sound systems are designed for average owners. If you are not one of them and you want high end sound quality, you must replace the factory speakers.
Buying car speakers isn’t easy. You will have to fully understand, where they will be installed, what size you need, the power they need and how they will blend in the sound system. The situation is even more difficult if you know that each car is unique. On the other side, if you understand all points, you will get the best speakers for your car.
| Name | Car Speakers | Car Features | Car Sizes | Buying Option |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Rockford Fosgate R169X3 | 6 x 9 Inch 3-Way Coaxial Speaker | inches : 5 inches Size: 6 x 9 Inch |  |
 | Rockford Fosgate Punch P1462. | 4 x 6-Inches Full Range Coaxial Speakers | Starts From 3.5 inches to 6.75 inches |  |
 | Pyle PL63BL 6.5-Inch 360-Watt 3-Way Speakers (Pair) | Size Starts from: 4 in x 6 inches to 6.5 inches | |
|
 | BOSS AUDIO CH6530 | 6.5" 3-way 300-watt Full Range Speakers | 6.5" 3-way 300-watt Full Range Speakers | |
 | Rockford Fosgate R165X3 | Prime 6.5-Inch Full-Range 3-Way Coaxial Speaker | 4” 2-way full-range speaker rated at 30 watts RMS | |
 | Kenwood KFC-6965S | 400W Sport Series 6x9" 3-Way Speakers | 1/2" (12mm) ceramic super tweeter | |
 | New JBL GTO638 6.5" | 6.5" - 6.75" 360W 3 Way Car Audio Coaxial Speakers Stereo | 60 Watt RMS (120 Watt Total) Mylar/titanium Composite Dome Tweeters | |
 | Rockford P1650 | 6.5-Inch 2-Way Full Range Euro Fit Compatible Speaker | 0.75" (20mm) treated PEI dome tweeter | |
Best Car Speakers For Sound Quality and Bass
We recommend the following car speakers for you!
After numerous and time consuming testing, we managed to deliver the best speakers for your car. There are three of them and each one has its benefits, but still, only one can be the best.
In general, they offer the best sound quality you can get, from coaxial speakers, and they are affordable, so they are the best choice.
Pioneer A series
This is the loudest speaker that we tested. If this is important to you, then it is the best choice, However, it offers a lot of benefits. It is the best with mid and high end frequencies and the sound quality it offers is at the highest level.
In addition, this speaker has a lot of positive reviews and feedback on the internet. It is used by people who want to improve the sound system in their cars, but doesn’t want to pay the huge amount of money.
JBL GTO
It has the best power handling and the audio quality is at the highest level. Also, this is an affordable speaker, so if you want to save money, it is a great choice. In addition, this is a high-quality speaker that is durable and offers great sound.
Pioneer D-Series
Continuous power handling is very low. In fact it was the lowest on our test. However, it is loud and it offers great sound quality, so it is a great choice.
In addition
If you want something more affordable, a great choice is the Rockford Fosgate Prime series. The price is about $80 and they offer a great sound, but they are not very loud. Replacing them is simple and you will notice the difference. In general, there are more speakers with the same features and price tag.
This means that if you like listening to the music in your car, and you have a factory sound system, improving it with aftermarket speakers is a great choice. The best part, the fun never stops when it comes to car sound systems. You can always make modifications and improve the system.
how-to-choose-the-best-car-speakers-video
How a sound system in a car works
The most important component is the receiver. It is located in the dash and the main purpose of it is to receive signal, analyze it, process it and ten, amplify it to the external amplifier or speakers. The source of the audio signal can be different. It can come from a smartphone, CD, USB and etc.
Every stereo has channels that it uses to amplify the signal. Each channel gets the same amount of power. This is mandatory for equal sound. This also means that you will have to know about the rated power. It must be equally divided to the channels. You must know this in order to make sure, each speaker gets the same amount of power.
Almost all car stereos have 4 channels. However, some might have a few more or less. Each channel is linked to one speaker. Now, you can add an external amplifier, due to the fact the internal amplifier isn’t powerful enough.
This will give you a better and louder sound. On the other side, if you have a subwoofer, this upgrade is mandatory, simply because the original amplifier cannot satisfy the need of any subwoofer. The next step, are the vibrations. In essence, they make the sound and they occur when the aforementioned audio signal reaches the speakers in a car. It has the same effect on the tweeter and a subwoofer.
Simply said, all devices make vibrations that make waves. We hear those waves as sound. However, not all devices make the same type of vibrations. The subwoofer makes low and mid-range sound frequencies and tweeter makes high frequencies. Now, we have sound.
However, it is important to have speakers on both sides of a car, so you get the stereo feeling. Now, the quality of the speakers comes to action. If you have bad speakers, they cannot produce the high-quality sound. That’s why you need the best speakers for your car.
Best Car Speakers Installation and Guide
Determine which speakers are the best
Before getting your new car speakers, you must know all about the quality of sound they produce. What’s the point of getting speakers that cannot satisfy your need for great music. Keep in mind that a great speaker must provide the best quality, no matter what song you listen.
Both, low and high frequencies should be at the highest level and the main goal is to hear a song as it sounds in the original version. A secret is to use a well-known song, you have heard countless times, in order to determine the quality of the sound those speakers make. You should pay attention to combined range and other three (low, mid and high). However, this step requires practice.
The first step is to listen to the low frequencies. These frequencies are better known as male vocals, guitars, drums and etc. The main point it to hear them perfectly, but not ‘’blurry’’. Also, make sure the bass isn’t too dominant or it will have a negative effect on the sound quality!
Now, you move to the mid frequencies. Listen to the instruments and words. If that speaker has a bad quality, you will hear the bass and high frequencies more. This also means that you should avoid that speaker.
Treble, or high frequencies are the next step. You should listen and try to find the difference between the instruments. The best speaker gives you the ability to know where and when a specific instrument is used. This is also a very difficult step, so don’t expect to master it quickly.
After you have listened to the song and compared all three frequencies, move! Sit to the passenger seats, or to the rear seats. If you are outside, walk around a car and just listen. Make sure there is no distortion. Keep in mind that some speakers have great sound, but on some spots, the quality is ruined with some issues. If everything you gear is great, these may be great speakers.
The power
Every speaker is different, but not just when it comes to the sound. Every speaker uses power differently and require different amount of it. The point it to get a speaker that don’t waste the power. In order to get an idea of this, you need to know the sensitivity and impedance. A speaker will require 1 watt if it has the impedance of 8 ohm.
If the impedance is 4 ohm, the speaker requires 2 watts. On the other side, with the increasing or decreasing of the dB, the amount of power is changing as well. The higher sensitivity of a so speaker requires less power and makes louder sound. Keep in mind that you need an increase of 10 dB in order to get an impression that the sound is two times louder.
Coaxial and Component speakers
You can choose between component and coaxial speakers. Coaxial speakers have one tweeter and one woofer built in. The tweeter is designed for high frequencies. On the other side, the woofer makes low and mid-range frequencies. A good thing is the fact you can get coaxial speakers with several tweeters.
The best side of these speakers is the fact they can be replaced in a few minutes. All you need to do is to unplug the old ones and replace them with new ones. A bad thing is the fact that all frequencies are formed in one place. Which may have a negative effect on the sound quality. Although, these speakers can give you a good quality of the sound, they are not the best alternative, especially if you demand the best quality.
The best choice is components speakers. The name suggests that all components are separate. So, the woofer and tweeter are going to be wired separately. They are connected to the crossover unit, which divides the signal. This means that you will get a much better sound quality without any distortions.
A drawback is that these speakers must be installed by a professional and they are up to 3 times more expensive than the coaxial speakers. They are the best choice for people who want the ultimate sound quality and they are ready to pay for it.
Due to the fact component speakers are too expensive and they must be installed by a professional, a reasonable choice are coaxial speakers. They can provide good sound quality and they are easy to replace. So, if you are not a sound enthusiastic, these speakers are perfect for you.
Now, the best manufacturers, when it comes to car speakers are: Alpine, Sony, Polk, Kenwood, Pioneer, Infinity and Rockford Fosgate. Although, there are a few more, these have the longest history and they are well-known for making high-end speakers. On the other side, they are well-known for the high price as well.
In general, you cannot make a mistake if you buy a speaker made by these manufacturers. This applies when you are replacing your speakers only. If you want to replace the whole sound system in a car, the situation is different. You must add amplified and a subwoofer (provides better low-end tones) and replace the car stereo as well.
Even when you replace the whole car sound system, you may get a bad sound. This happens due to the fact the interior of a car is complicated to the speakers. Simply explained, some parts of the car interior will absorb the sound and some will reflect it. In order to get the best sound, you must try to improve the car interior as well.
Now you know why high-end cars with the best sound systems on the planet have rough and solid interior. Keep in mind that you may get a speaker that sounds awesome in a shop, but in a car it sounds bad and dull.
All facts about the best speakers
The best speaker must provide the best sound quality, no matter what frequency you chose. It shouldn’t use too much of the power and it shouldn’t cause any distortions. The main goal is to listen to a song as the artist wanted you to. Keep in mind that if you give less or more power to a speaker, than it requires, it will produce lower quality sound.
The most important fact you should know is that you and the passenger cannot experience the same quality of the sound. Our ears absorb the sound and send it to the brain, but there is a difference from where that sound comes. You probably know that people on the front seats and those on the rear seats don’t hear music evenly. The situation is the same between you and the passenger and people around your car.
How we test speakers
In order to find the best speaker, we used blind test, reviews and the accuracy of the frequencies. The blind tests are the most interesting test on the planet. They are done, when different people listen to the same song, with their eyes covered. They should evaluate the sound quality. The reviews are collected from the owners of the tested speakers. Many people claim that this is the most important part when it comes to speaker testing.
The frequency testing is far more complicated. We played tone, between 20Hz and 20 kHz and measured the records. This frequency is treated as the optimal hearing range of people. However, adults usually cannot hear higher frequencies from 15 kHz. Then, we analyzed the spikes, dips and decibel levels in other all three ranges (high, mid and low). Each speaker is generating different records, so it makes a different sound. This is important when you are deciding which one you want.
The accuracy of the test had to be at the highest level. We used the same location, the same air humidity and the microphone was placed at the same distance, in all tests. Even the smallest variations in any of these can have a negative effect on the sound quality or the collected data.
The biggest issue is the landscape. It had to be the same for all speakers, so we avoid possible fluctuations in the sound records. Also, all speakers must be set at the same volume. If you use these tricks, you can test speakers by yourself. Although, it is a time consuming process, it isn’t very complicated. However, keep in mind that the results are always similar and in some cases almost the same!
How speaker uses energy is important as well. In order to determine this, we tested all speakers on the peak power, continuous power and the sensitivity. The sensitivity is the most important part in this case, because it tells you how good a speaker is in using the power it gets from the sound system.
On the other side this is the hardest test to achieve and the results don’t have to be accurate. Every manufacturer test speakers differently and there are other, factors that affect on this test. This also means that most speakers have similar specifications, but they make completely different sound.
A loudness test is another test we use. You can use it by yourself. The main goal is to determine the difference in the loudness of the sound speakers make. You place decibel meter, 1 meter away from the location of the woofer. Then, increase the volume and measure different tones and frequencies.
At the end, we increase the volume to the max and measure the records. The goal is to get the average volumes. Usually, we get the difference between the loudest and the quietest speaker to be around 7 db. This means that the quietest speaker wound require 3 times more power than the loudest speaker to achieve the same record (3 db increase requires 200% more power).
However, the most important test is those that replace the everyday purpose of those speakers. You should listen to their sound while driving, in a garage or through the city. There are a lot of differences, so if you can get help from the friends, it will be great.
Other factors when choosing the new car speakers
As you already know car sound systems aren’t very simple. They have a lot of components and they work in different ways (not all systems are the same). Speakers are very important as well, and they can make the difference between great and bad sound. That’s why, there are more factors that affect on the speaker evaluation.
All about the impedance
The electrical resistance of a car speaker is known as impedance. It isn’t very important, but it may affect on the sound quality. On the other side, it definitely affects on the power consumption.
If the impedance is lower a speaker will need more energy form the amplifier. Simply said, it will overheat or eventually blow. In any case, the impedance is an important factor when you are choosing your new speakers.
The size
The most popular size for a car speakers are 6×9 and 6.5 inches. The 6×9 inches speakers have big woofers so they are usually found in the rear seats or in the rear part of a car. On the other side, the smaller, 6.5 inch speakers are perfect for door panels.
However, as you know, each car is unique so may need to check the size of the speakers in the car, before you order your new speakers. This is an important step and if you are not sure in your choice, you should get help from a professional. If you make a mistake, you risk to ruin the whole sound system and get very bad sound quality.
Another problem, that occurs if you replace your speakers by yourself are the holes that keep the speakers in place. The factory speakers may have holes on different places that the aftermarket speakers. This happens even of both speakers have the same dimensions. Luckily, it can be solved with the universal brackets. This is a simple and cheap addition that makes speaker installation very simple and quick.
The warranty
The warranty is an important part of a car speaker. It usually last one year and it is something you should have. Keep in mind that speakers are high-end equipment and there are a lot of things that can go wrong with them.
The situation is even more severe if you get the component speakers, due to the fact they are very expensive. Having a warranty means that you will be protected if something happens to a speaker and it will be replaced. In addition, speakers with a longer warranty period are a better choice.