Choosing the Perfect Audio Speakers
Choosing speakers can sometimes be a hard task especially for those who do not know anything about them but for me as an electronic enthusiast, it can be very easy. Allow me to share a few tips and tricks in how to choose the right audio speakers for your sound system. This way, you can be sure that you will have a great time listening to your favorite music at any level you like. My tips and how to choose the right speakers may not be the best in town but I assure you that they can be a good start those of you who do not know anything about choosing the right audio system speakers.
First let us put some popular terms on the line and also some popular standards that manufacturers follow in the implementation of power outputs and specifications of audio speakers and electronic devices which is generally where we base our choices when we talk of audio speakers. These standards by the way are mostly where the best clues lie so you must understand how these can be used to be able to choose the best audio speaker for your sound system, professional or home.
3 Terms to Understand in Choosing Audio Speakers
watts - Watts is the unit of measurement for audio power outputs like speakers and other electronic devices like radio, dvd, amplifier.. that display sound outputs. We will be using watts in the latter tipstering sessions so pay attention on this one. We will also be using watts in the basis of comparing and choosing the right match for your audio system with respect to audio speakers.
RMS (root mean square) - This is a means of calculating power outputs and this is also what is used in some of those electronic gadgets that you have at home like the power amplifier or the radio. Although this is something a little bit harder to understand and use in choosing for the right audio speaker, some professionals know how to use this in choosing the right gadget to use for the speaker they have. This may be used in the case where the audio speaker comes first before the electronic gadget.
inches - This is not a unit used to measure the size of the amplifier. Since we are talking about audio speakers, we might as well use this unit of measurement in the size of the circumference of the audio speaker itself (not including the case or baffles) when it is facing you.
ohm - This value is actually more actively seen as the same as the symbol used buy the OMEGA word. It is like a circle cut in half and the ends of the cut have short tails on both ends - (?). Ohm is a unit of measurement for resistance in electronics and is the same unit used in audio speakers.
So far, what I have above are the 3 basic terms that might be of use in choosing the best quality audio speakers for your home or professional audio system. Those 3 terms will also give us the clue if what we are choosing is the closest right value for our audio speaker system.
Tips on Choosing Audio Speaker Brands
Whenever you choose something to buy either for professional, personal or corporate use audio speakers we always look for the best brands of audio speakers. It is also the first question that we throw to the salesperson that we will meet when we are out to buy products. It would be therefore just the right thing to put into consideration as one of my great tips to give you some of the best brands in the speaker system business. Now, this could be a little bit outdated because it has been so long since I last looked at some of the best speakers in town and in the internet. But the thing is, you can use this tip (go for brands) to help you out in choosing.
When we speak of audio speaker brands, we also speak of the big time and veteran producers of quality audio products who have been in the business even before we are born. These are some of the list that I have and mind you I am not in any way promoting these products. They are here mainly because they exist in the internet which is my primary source and in the audio industry for a long time. They are not arranged in any order.
- Sony
- JBL
- TDK
- Yamaha
- Bose
- Wharfdale
- Infinity
- Audio Research
- Klipsh
- Dell
- Paradigm
- Mirage
Choices and Ways to Test Audio Speakers
As far as I am concern, based on the details that I have provided above, we can come up with a few popular choices and ways to test audio speakers when we want to choose the best in the business. I have enumerated them all based on my own experience and knowledge about audio speakers.
Choosing by size - We sometimes choose the speakers that we buy by size, thinking that the bigger the size, the better the performance. In some cases, this could be right but most often, we end up disappointed. This is because size does not matter at all when we buy plainly because we believe in the information above. Size will only be a good basis of buying the right audio speakers if and only if we have already chosen the correct matching with which we are going to use the speakers with. This is based in the rating which is wattage. For example, if you have an amplifier that is 100 watts in rating (which you can see at the back label or under), at least you must go for an audio speaker that’s about 120 to 150 watts to match up the amplifier that you are going to use the speaker with. This is the basic idea on when it is good to use the size as basis in buying audio speakers which only comes after you have chosen the wattage rating first. Note: It is always best if we already have the gadget where we intend to use the speaker with and not the other way around to avoid confusion in trying to match up what we will buy.
Choosing by brand - Choosing audio speakers by brand is always a good thing especially if we know what brand we are dealing with or if we have experienced using a specific brand name on audio speakers. If this is not the case, I suggest that you leave it to the experts or you can try getting accompanied by an expert or a friend who knows best in audio speaker brands like a DJ or an avid music PRO.
Choosing by ear - Choosing audio speakers by the ear is always a very interesting and good thing at the same time. This is where all you will need is your ear and a few steps and utilities to use for testing speakers and knowing which is good to your ears. Remember that a pleasing speaker sound will always depend on the listener and not the audience. If you are the one going to use it, then it should be you who should see and listen if it is good based in your ear. Here’s what you will do to accomplish this. You can try and bring with you an original DVD movie or DVD music and have it tested with different brands that you know are good to see for yourself the difference. Note: Be sure that along the testing process, you are using the same speaker size and case size (if it is cased in a baffles) as much as possible for the purpose of accurate comparison. Be sure also that you are testing the same speaker wattage rating for the same purpose and that the volume is varied according to your preference on all same speakers to test. All this is to achieve accurate results in search for the best audio speakers to buy.
Choosing by asking the salesman - Although in some cases, this can hold a positive result, mostly they would not work well for your money’s worth. Remember that the salesman will always want to make a sale as some of them may even have quotas to reach for an incentive. Don’t get me wrong on this but if you want a worthwhile shopping for the right audio speakers, you might as well allow yourself only to be part of the shopping process and not some outside people except if they are known authority in the music scene or you personally know them to be good at handling this shopping. Overall, this choice is not a good one and I would not suggest it at all only if you have other steps to do first.
So these are just a few good tips and how to’s in choosing the best audio speaker system. There may be a few more good tips I know of but I would like to leave them up to your own understanding and verdict. As a last tip which is one of my favorites as an electronic technician…Try to see if the speaker edges (the soft rubber on the sides of the cone near the edge of the speaker metal body) is soft enough and have no small cracks appearing in it. This is an indication that the speaker itself is not longer a new stock and might break earlier than you expect it in the edge if you try to play a loud sound. Another good last tip that you can do is to try and push a little bit the speaker cone down and see if there is nothing you can feel touching something or hearing crackling sound as if something is being scratched slightly. This is a good indication that your audio speaker is not centered in the core of the magnet that handles the vibration.