Showcasing the Best in the Mobile Enhancement Industry
Social media conversations are often a great source of content ideas here at BestCarAudio.com. We were recently talking to someone about why loading down an amplifier isn’t an ideal solution. As we’ve demonstrated in our Test Drive Reviews, lower impedances result in more distortion in most cases. In all cases, lower impedance loads reduce amplifier efficiency. Let’s discuss Read more
Can you imagine if the inch or centimeter weren’t measurement standards? Nobody would be able to describe the size of anything. Standards are all around us. Distance, time and temperature descriptions are things we take for granted. Why, then, shouldn’t measurements of car audio components have measurement standards? Fortunately, they do, but you’ll still find many companies Read more
We had the opportunity to check out Sony’s Mobile ES monoblock XM-1ES, four-channel XM-4ES and five-channel XM-5ES amplifiers in 2022. All three amps performed well on the test bench and in our listening room. For 2023, Sony has introduced two new amplifiers: the eight-channel XM-8ES and the six-channel XM-6ES. Let’s dive into the XM-8ES in this BestCarAudio.com Test Drive Read more
AmsssssssPart Two of our series on the difference between car audio amplifiers will look at the topic of noise. Every amplifier, from every brand and at every price point, adds a little bit of noise to the audio signal that passes through it. Whether that noise is an issue depends on the amplifier’s design and the speakers you’re using. Let’s take a close look at noise and Read more
As much fun as it is to test and audition high-end car audio products, we all know that a massive amount of business happens with more affordable products. Rockford Fosgate sent up one of their R2-1200X1 Prime Series 1,200-watt monoblock amplifiers for us to check out. This amplifier isn’t bottom-of-the-barrel inexpensive, and once you’re done reading this, you’ll understand Read more
If we could send just one message to car audio enthusiasts, it would be to stop talking about wattage ratings. These numbers are irrelevant and often misleading in the context of quality, performance and value. Leave the reference to watts out if you want to sound intelligent when discussing car audio upgrades. What Are Watts? The SI Unit watt is used to measure power. One Read more
If there’s one thing that’s challenging for car audio manufacturers and retailers, it’s explaining the sonic benefits of higher-quality products. Based on our research, many consumers correlate the word “better” with more power production from an amplifier, more power handling from a speaker, or more features from a source unit. While these statements are often accurate, they Read more
We see a lot of questions like “My car audio amp can produce 800 watts; how much power does each of my subs get?” If you aren’t versed in the calculation basics of Ohm’s law, the answer might not be intuitive. Let’s dive into the math and logic that will let us calculate how the power from an amplifier is distributed through multiple speakers or subwoofers. How Much Power Does Read more
The other day I saw an interesting question on social media where someone asked if they should match their car audio amplifier to their speakers. I know they were asking about power ratings, but I think that’s the wrong way to go about the process. I realized again that many enthusiasts don’t fully understand how to quantify audio component quality. So let’s dive into the Read more
