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A Guide to Choosing the Perfect Audio System for Your Car

Are you an ๐€๐ฎ๐๐ข๐จ๐ฉ๐ก๐ข๐ฅ๐ž unsatisfied with the factory, built-in sound system?

Cars now come with a nearly-perfect audio system, producing an ideal sound quality, fit for that specific vehicle. But in exceptional cases, thereโ€™s always an option to replace!

Hereโ€™s a guide to picking the right one for your all-important, commute companion.

๐“๐ฒ๐ฉ๐ž๐ฌ

Car speakers are divided into two main categories; Components and Full-range/Coaxial. Each type uses various drivers (devices that convert electrical energy into sound waves) to produce optimal audio quality.

๐ƒ๐ซ๐ข๐ฏ๐ž๐ซ๐ฌ

Both Compact and Full-range speakers use these 3 basic drivers for producing sound;

Tweeters โ€“ High-frequency sounds

Mid-ranges โ€“ B/w high-low frequency sounds

Woofers โ€“ Low-frequency sounds

And each driver operates within the frequency range it is designed for.

๐’๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ ๐…๐ซ๐ž๐ช๐ฎ๐ž๐ง๐œ๐ข๐ž๐ฌ

Tweeter produces high-frequency sounds (2000 to 20,000 Hz) like voices, high notes, cymbals or instruments.

Mid-range produces leftover, mid-frequencies that a tweeter and woofer cannot handle (250-2000 Hz).

Woofers/Subwoofers handle low-frequency sounds (20-200 Hz) like bass.

๐‚๐จ๐ฆ๐ฉ๐จ๐ง๐ž๐ง๐ญ ๐’๐ฉ๐ž๐š๐ค๐ž๐ซ๐ฌ

The components (drivers) of a sound system are installed separately in various parts of the car. They produce high-quality, in-depth sound individually with clarity but in harmony. Plus, a โ€˜Crossoverโ€™ is required to diverge the frequencies and send them to the right driver.

๐…๐ฎ๐ฅ๐ฅ-๐ซ๐š๐ง๐ ๐ž ๐จ๐ซ ๐‚๐จ๐š๐ฑ๐ข๐š๐ฅ ๐’๐ฉ๐ž๐š๐ค๐ž๐ซ๐ฌ

In a sound system, the drivers (woofer and tweeter), and all other speaker elements are joined together in one piece. So, these sounds (of all frequencies) originate from the same place.

P.S. It requires no crossover since the drivers are joined.

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A component system requires professional customization when it comes to placement in your car. The drivers must be placed accordingly for perfect synchronization.

For example: Woofers/mid-ranges are placed onto the door-ends, tweeters near the dashboard or above the woofers, and subwoofers in the trunk.

๐๐ซ๐จ๐ฌ ๐š๐ง๐ ๐‚๐จ๐ง๐ฌ ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐‚๐จ๐ฆ๐ฉ๐จ๐ง๐ž๐ง๐ญ ๐’๐ฒ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ž๐ฆ

a. Superior Sound Quality

b. Highly Customizable

c. More Expensive

d. Need Separate Crossovers/Amplifiers

e. Difficult to Install

๐๐ซ๐จ๐ฌ ๐š๐ง๐ ๐‚๐จ๐ง๐ฌ ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐…๐ฎ๐ฅ๐ฅ-๐ซ๐š๐ง๐ ๐ž ๐’๐ฒ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ž๐ฆ

a. Easier to Install

b. Very Affordable

c. Low Sound Quality than Component Set-up

d. Low-quality Build Material

๐…๐ž๐š๐ญ๐ฎ๐ซ๐ž๐ฌ ๐ญ๐จ ๐‹๐จ๐จ๐ค ๐…๐จ๐ซ

a. Sensitivity: Sound-producing capability of speakers i.e., based on stereoโ€™s power rating. Match your low-powered stereo system with speakers that have a high sensitivity rating and vice versa.

b. Pivoting/Swiveling or Super Tweeters: Tweeters are further classified for real sound enthusiasts. Pivoting/Swiveling are placed near listeners for greater depth and sound clarity while super tweeters handle ultra-high frequencies (over 20 kHz).

c. In the component system, โ€˜External Crossoversโ€™ are used for a cleaner separation of frequencies between drivers while preventing them from producing extra sound and energy which theyโ€™re not supposed to.

๐’๐จ๐ฆ๐ž ๐…๐š๐œ๐ญ๐จ๐ซ๐ฌ ๐ญ๐จ ๐‚๐จ๐ง๐ฌ๐ข๐๐ž๐ซ

When figuring out your speaker choice;

a. consider the speaker size that matches perfectly to your vehicle make/model,

b. consider speakers that match the stereo system,

c. consider your sound tasteโ€ฆ

Since vehicles vary, we suggest making an informed decision by having a comprehensive discussion with our โ€˜Vehicle Expertsโ€˜ at www.autofortrade.com. And, for more insights on various aspects of an automobile, subscribe to our Blog.