Showcasing the Best in the Mobile Enhancement Industry
Consumer reception of the new Sony Mobile ES speakers has been incredible. These solutions were designed to offer benchmark performance at very accessible price points. A while back, we looked at the 6.5-inch component set and coaxial speakers. In this BestCarAudio.com spotlight, we’ll check out the features of the XS690ES 6-by-9 and the XS-680ES 6-by-8-inch speaker sets. Sony Read more
ARC Audio has offered class-leading amplifier and speaker upgrade solutions for Harley-Davidson touring motorcycles for more than a decade. Their experience and obsession with sound quality have led them to create a new generation of high-performance speakers that balance output capability and efficiency, bass extension and accuracy. The latest evolution of their motorcycle and Read more
In the car audio world, terms like subwoofer box rise and power compression are relatively familiar to those who push their sound systems to the limit. So, after extensive research (three minutes) and a detailed planning session (another two minutes), we decided that it would be worth doing an experiment to explain and quantify these elements. Let’s Talk About Speaker and Read more
In the first week of May 2021, Sony Electronics introduced its new Mobile ES series of speakers and subwoofers. If you’ve been into the car audio industry for a while, then you’ll recognize the Mobile ES (Elevated Standard) name from classic products like the CDX-X90 CD player. The new Mobile ES speakers include 6.5-inch coaxial and component sets, a set of 6x8 and 6x9-inch Read more
Few items are as immediately relatable to car audio enthusiasts as those wedge-shaped 6x9 speaker boxes. The image of a pair of them in the rear window of an ’81-84 Monte Carlo is something that industry veterans joke about constantly. If you recall our article about speaker installation, you know that a certain volume of air needs to be in the enclosure or in the space behind Read more
Dash pods, kick-panel enclosures and sealed enclosures in doors might look cool, but they aren’t always an ideal solution for a speaker that will attempt to produce bass. In this context, when we talk about bass, we are discussing audio frequencies below about 300 Hz. In this range, most drivers with a cone diameter of 4 inches or more can play down to around 125 Hz or lower. Read more
Over the years, car audio speakers have been installed in seemingly endless combinations of panels, pods and baffles. Some look great, some sound great and some offer both. Sadly, not everyone understands the physics involved in choosing the ideal installation locations for speakers. This article will cover a few of the vital installation criteria that need to be considered Read more
Welcome to the BestCarAudio.com 2020 Car Audio Speaker Buying Guide. If you’re shopping for new speakers for your car or truck, the information in this guide will help you choose a solution that offers the best performance for your budget. If you’re an avid reader of BestCarAudio.com, then you know we consider speaker design and performance as the most important elements in Read more
Have you ever purchased something, then regretted your decision a few days later? We recently ran into a situation regarding car audio subwoofer amplifiers where the answer to “Which is better?” became a complicated discussion. We’re going to look at two amplifiers – one is a consumer-grade product that’s extremely popular, the other seems to offer too much bang for your Read more
If you’ve browsed any of the online car audio forums or Facebook groups, you’ve inevitably run across someone asking if you have to upgrade the speaker wire in a vehicle to support a new car audio system. Unlike a sure-fire upgrade like new speakers or adding an amplifier, the answers to the benefits and drawbacks of speaker wire upgrades are far more complicated. Please don’t Read more
Though it seems contrary to what I’ve preached, sometimes it’s better to avoid purchasing car audio speaker upgrades based on specifications alone. The information most manufacturers provide does very little to describe the actual quality of the product. A prime example of this are speaker Xmax specification numbers. Does this linear measurement tell us how loudly a speaker Read more
Match, the OEM audio system upgrade brand from Audiotec Fischer in Germany, has several speaker upgrade options that are designed to make it easy for your local specialty mobile enhancement retailer to upgrade the sound system in your Mercedes-Benz. These speakers and subwoofers fit right into the factory mounting locations and include OEM-compatible connectors so your vehicle Read more
