Speakers Buyer’s Guide
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Buyer's Guides
With so many different types of speakers available today you may need some guidance finding the ones that meet your needs. Let us help.
Speaker Designs
Looking for speakers that fit in your backpack, briefcase or luggage? Portable speakers are convenient, compact and lightweight -- perfect for making sure you don’t miss out on your tunes while enjoying the great outdoors, taking a trip, or at work. And these days, they’re able to connect to a number of sound providers, from CD/cassette players to iPods and other mp3 players – even your laptop or phone.
Here are a few things to consider when shopping for portable speakers.
- Power source: Many speakers are still able to operate off battery power and/or come with an AC adapter. But nowadays, many portable speakers can connect directly to your PC for power. And remember, if you’re going to use your speakers outdoors, you likely won’t have access to an electrical outlet.
- Connectivity: Standard portable speakers are as easy to use as 1-2-3 – simply plug them in via an analog or digital cable and blast your favorite songs. Most computers, cell phones and mp3 players have a 3.5mm audio input. You want to ensure your speakers have an input that matches and can connect easily.
- Sound quality: While the quality of portable speakers continues to improve, you may still stumble upon some with less than stellar sound. It’s hard to ascertain sound quality without checking them out for yourself, so listen before you leap. To make sure you get the sound quality you desire, listen for hissing or static at lower volumes, and sound reduction or crackling at higher volumes.
- Number of inputs: Most docking speakers have at least two inputs, one for the dock cradle and one for an audio-input jack; sometimes they’ll even feature more. Many computer speakers, however, will offer only a single audio connection, meaning you’ll need to have other audio sources available.
Installation speakers
Great for larger shows you take on the road or for permanent installations, these speakers are installed in rack mounts. They offer professional, high-quality sound.
Public address system speakers
When addressing a crowd, you want to ensure your message or performance comes across clearly and concisely. Getting the right speaker for your performance is paramount for this.
First consider the power needed. Generally, you’ll want your speaker to handle 1 watt per audience member. So 100 people in the crowd means 100 watts.
- Remember: The amplifier you use should provide at least the same amount of wattage as your speaker, if not more. This will make sure you don’t damage either piece of equipment.
There are other things to consider as well.
- Size of the crowd
- Size of the venue
- Are you looking for portability?
- Frequency
Smaller PA systems are generally compact, with mixer amplifier and speaker (with woofer and tweeter) in one enclosure, and the ability to handle one to six input channels for mics, CD players, instruments and the like. These systems often lend themselves to portability, so you can bring them with you from event to event.
Larger systems for a larger audience require speakers with a better range. These speakers, in addition to a woofer and tweeter, also utilize a midrange driver for smoother sound, and quite often a subwoofer for the lowest bass tones.
Studio monitors
Studio monitors are designed for recording and mixing in a studio setting. While other speakers are meant to reproduce sound so that it sounds best to you, studio monitors are designed for the most accurate and actual reproduction. These are a must-have for any sound engineer, whether you’re a big time professional or aspiring to start your own studio at home.
You need to consider powered, or active, vs. unpowered, or passive, monitors. There are clear benefits to both. A powered monitor is self-powered, often with the amplifier built into the speaker cabinet. This saves you a trip to the store, as well as some money, since you won’t need to buy a separate amplifier. Unpowered monitors require the purchase of a separate power amplifier.
Powered monitors are super easy to use. If your focus is on the music you’re creating rather than worrying about the technical mumbo jumbo of recording, these are the monitors for you. Essentially, these are the perfect match for Joe Sound Engineer.
Unpowered monitors, however, require a bit more know-how. It’s easy enough to connect your mixer to a power amp and then run speaker wire to the monitor; however, if you’re just starting out as a sound engineer, there are many potential issues you may not realize.
There’s proper cooling and proper cables, first of all, as well as remembering that the amp is its own separate unit with its own capabilities. You need to make sure it’s an appropriate match for your monitor, especially in regards to power. A good rule of thumb is to bring home an amp that can produce twice the power wattage your monitor requires in order to avoid any mishaps.
Frequency response is also important to consider. Basically, for an ideal monitor, the flatter the better, meaning all tones, from low to high, will be as crisp as can be. And if you’re working with ultra low tones, you’ll want to make sure your monitor has a subwoofer.
Finally, consider the size of your room when determining the power you’ll need to produce. Smaller studios won’t need speakers more than 10 to 60 watts. But if your room is a bit larger, and can hold more than five people, then you’re looking at speakers in the 75 watt and higher range.
Outdoor speakers
The walls of a room reflect and confine sound, making it an ideal location for low-frequency sounds. An outdoor setting is a completely different animal with entirely different audio needs.
Outdoor speakers can stand alone on your porch or lawn, mounted underneath eaves or deck roofs, or even buried in your yard or garden. Make sure you know where you’ll be placing them before you start shopping, so you know what kind of dimensions you need.
You also need to consider the environment where you live. Does it rain often? Are there temperature extremes? Whatever speaker you purchase will need to withstand the elements.
Outdoor conditions have the capability of making music sound thin or diluted. For a full-bodied sound, you’ll want speakers that produce enough bass, 60 Hz or below. A subwoofer will add some oomph to your outdoor sound system.
Learn more about key specifications for speakers with these jump links:
- Frequency
- Woofers and subwoofers
- Tweeters
- Mid-range drivers
- Impedance
- Sensitivity
- Power capacity
- Maximum Sound Pressure Level (SPL)
- Crossover frequency
Sound is created when an object or surface, such as a speaker cone, vibrates. Frequency, the number of times these vibrations pass through a certain point, determines the sounds tone, or pitch. Measured in Hertz (Hz), the human ear responds to frequencies from 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz. A speaker's frequency response indicates how much of that range can be reproduced
For a point of reference, here are a few common frequencies:
- Lowest “C” note on a piano = 32 Hz
- Average speaking voice = 250 Hz
- Testing tone of a television station when it goes off the air for the night = 1,000 Hz
- Treble tone control on a stereo turned up = 5,000 Hz – 8,000 Hz
- Crash of a cymbal = 15,000 Hz.
The largest of a speaker's drivers, woofers reproduce lower frequency sounds between 40 Hz and 2,500 Hz. The closer to 40 Hz a speaker can handle, the more full-bodied the sound, as they are better equipped for the low end tones. Subwoofers can reproduce sounds even lower than 40 Hz, starting at about 20 Hz. Higher quality speakers for larger crowds will definitely include a subwoofer.
Tweeters are a speaker’s smallest drivers and reproduce tones above 2,500 Hz to about 20,000 Hz, which is the highest frequency the human ear can respond to.
Higher-quality speakers will contain mid-range drivers in addition to woofers and tweeters. They reproduce middle range tones, from 500 Hz to 4,000 Hz.
This is a spec that can lead to blown speakers if you’re not careful. Impedance, measured in ohms, is the resistance of a circuit to an alternating current, such as an audio signal. Basically, it restricts the flow of power to your amp.
Most loudspeakers range between 4 and 8 ohms, but impedance actually varies with frequency. So a speaker rated at 8 ohms, might in reality range between 4 and 50 ohms. Two identical speakers connected in a series will double impedance. For instance, two 6-ohm speakers in a series will send a 12-ohm load to your amplifier.
The lower your impedance, the more power your amp will need to provide. It’s best to make sure your speakers operate at 4 ohms or higher, as anything lower than that could overheat your amp and burn out your speakers.
Your speaker’s sensitivity rating, sometimes also referred to as efficiency, will tell you how loud it can get when it converts power into sound. The higher the decibel (dB) rating, the more efficient – and therefore louder – sound a speaker creates. Speaker sensitivity tends to vary between 80 dB to 104 dB.
Don’t take decibel ratings lightly. A mere increase of 3 dB could make more of a difference in sound than you think. It produces the same audible increase in volume as doubling your amp power. Higher sensitivity ratings are more efficient, especially if you have a low-powered amp.
The power rating tells you how much AC power your unit’s speaker coil can handle without damaging the speaker. It’s also important to know the wattage your speaker can handle in order to match it up with the correct amplifier. If your amp doesn’t handle at least the same amount of power as your speaker, you could blow them out and find yourself back on the market for both.
The amount of power your speaker will require for optimal sound correlates with the size of your audience. As stated above, follow the rule of one watt per audience member and you can’t go wrong. Therefore, the smaller the audience, the less wattage necessary for your speaker to handle; conversely, larger audiences and venues will require a higher power capacity.
Maximum Sound Pressure Level (SPL)
Measured in decibels, maximum SPL indicates the highest sound pressure level your speakers can handle. Essentially, this is a fancy, technical way of referring to how loud your speakers and sound system will be.
Speakers with high sensitivity rating will be the loudest, if volume is your number one concern. But a speaker’s power capacity is the other spec to consider in terms of volume, as it will determine its maximum volume level. The equation for determining your max SPL also requires two other pieces of information: the number of speakers in your sound system and the distance from the speaker to the listening position.