When choosing a subwoofer, you need to know what the main characteristics mean. Therefore, a brief description will be given below:
1. Power
Each subwoofer has two powers:
- maximum - the power that the subwoofer can withstand without breakdown. This power, as a rule, does not mean anything, since the speaker is not able to work for a long time and correctly with it;
- nominal - the power at which the subwoofer is able to reproduce pure, distortion-free sound. For good bass sound in your car, it is enough that the rated power of the subwoofer is between 150 and 300 watts. At a higher rated power, the hair of people in the car begins to move.
2. Sensitivity
The sensitivity of a subwoofer is the sound pressure in dB that the speaker can reproduce. The higher the sensitivity of the subwoofer, the better.
3. Resonant frequency
The resonant frequency of a subwoofer is the frequency at which the speaker resonates. The acceptable resonance frequency is 25 to 35 Hz. A frequency over 35 is too high for the subwoofer speaker.
4. Equivalent volume
Equivalent volume is the volume of air, with the elasticity of which the elasticity of the suspension of the subwoofer speaker can be compared. This value depends on the rigidity of the speaker suspension and the diameter of its cone. The equivalent volume is not the volume of the enclosure required for the subwoofer speaker.
A car subwoofer is a speaker, when choosing which, in contrast to the choice of acoustics, you should pay attention to its magnet, or rather, to the magnitude of the magnet. The larger the magnet, the higher the rated power of the subwoofer. The speaker cone is usually made of pressed cardboard, which has a water-repellent impregnation. Speaker mounts are made of rubber or rubber. When buying a subwoofer, keep in mind that very often it happens that the speaker may simply not sound the right way in your car. Many factors can influence this. Therefore, it is advised to purchase a subwoofer from representatives who guarantee its replacement. Let's consider some types of car subwoofers.
If you are just interested in a subwoofer without a housing, take a look at the JBL GT5-12.
This speaker has a good power rating of 275 watts. When purchasing such a product, you need to remember that for good bass sound in your car, you should make a case for the JBL GT5-12 in compliance with all the rules and dimensions specified in the instructions for the product.
If you are interested in a ready-made subwoofer (a speaker installed in a properly shaped housing), take a look at the Magnat Active Reflex 200A II.
Magnat Active Reflex 200A II is an active subwoofer, that is, there is already a built-in amplifier in its cabinet.All you need to install such a device is to run the cable under the car floor trim from the subwoofer to the line or subwoofer output of the radio. The speaker of this subwoofer has a nominal power of 80 watts, but this will be enough to provide good bass from your car speaker system. The advantage of Magnat Active Reflex 200A II is that it has a small size, so it will not take up much space in the luggage compartment of your car. As we can see from the picture, the subwoofer case has two holes that serve to suck in air when the speaker is working. It should be noted that holes must be provided in the cabinet of each subwoofer.
There are also ready-made subwoofers in an oblong box. An example of such a product is the Sony XS-GTX121LT.
Sony XS-GTX121LT is a passive subwoofer (no built-in amplifier). To connect it, you will also need to purchase an amplifier, because an ordinary radio tape recorder will not be able to swing the subwoofer. When choosing an amplifier, you need to take into account how much power your subwoofer has and what power the amplifier is designed for. If you want to connect only Sony XS-GTX121LT to the amplifier, then an amplifier with one output of 300 watts or more will be enough for you. An example of such an amplifier is the DLS Reference CAD11 (1x1000W digital). This amplifier has one 400 watt output. If you want to connect not only one subwoofer to one amplifier, but also other speakers, then you should select an amplifier with a certain number of outputs, depending on how many speakers you want to connect. In this case, do not forget to pay attention to what power each amplifier output is designed for.
Low-power woofers can be connected directly to your car radio. An example of such a speaker is the Helix X-MAX 206.
The power of Helix X-MAX 206 is 60 watts, which means that such a speaker can be connected directly to a radio tape recorder that has a linear or subwoofer output designed for this power. Another pleasant factor is that such a subwoofer can be installed on the rear shelf of your car without a special housing.
