It is quarantine and everyone wants to have a relaxing time to unwind by listening to great music.
Music is a great way to regulate stress and boost your mood.
And because of that, we are all after good quality speakers or sound transducers.
In this article, we are going to look at some of the things to keep in mind when buying a good quality speaker.
1. Brand reputation
The first thing that identifies any product is the manufacturer.
Many consumers agree with me that there is some level of trust when buying products from a company known to produce good-quality products.
You need not have tried a different product from the same company to know how good their speakers might be. Reviews from other users will help you.
Even when you are looking to buy from a company you don’t know much about, simply read their reviews from third-party review websites like US-reviews.com.
To give you a head start, you can simply look at online reviews about music gadgets brands. There you will find tons of relevant feedback to help you choose a good brand to buy your speakers from.
Reviews will help to save you some time from having to read all the specs you need for a good speaker.
2. Sensitivity/Signal to noise
Speaker sensitivity in simple terms means how loud the speaker is depending on the amount of power input.
In most speakers, it is referred to as Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR). It represents a measurement of the sound signal and the background noise.
It is measured in decibels (dB).
Sensitivity is the answer to how well your speaker can covert power to sound output.
The more sensitivity the better. You will be using less power compared to a speaker with less sensitivity.
When it comes to a speaker, the higher the signal-to-noise ratio is always recommendable. That is because the signal strength will be higher than the background noise you’ll be hearing.
However, when it is the other way around and the noise is higher than the signal, the sound output will reduce.
For a good speaker, a sensitivity of about 90db should be good. Anything below an 83db it’s not recommendable.
With high dBs, i.e above 105db, the output will be as loud as enough to throw big events, of course, it going to be costly. For home use, keep it between 85db to 92db.
An average speaker is about 87 to 88db.
3. Power handling.
Power is measured in watts.
A speaker’s sensitivity goes hand-in-hand with its power consumption. The higher the sensitivity rating the lower the power used, the lower the sensitivity rating the higher the power the speaker needs.
Choose a speaker that has lower power consumption but has higher sensitivity. Say, at 87db, you’ll be using just about 50 watts which is sufficient output.
4. Impedance
A speaker’s impedance is a representation of how much the speaker can resist the current. It is measured in ohms.
The lower the ohms in your speaker the better music or sound produced. Normally, an average speaker is about 8 ohms but you can find lower ones in the market up to 4 ohms.
Also, the lower the speaker’s impedance, the more expensive it is going to be.
5. The type of amplifier used.
All this ‘audio science comes down to the right pairing of an amplifier and a speaker. We have already seen some important speaker specs, let’s do a pairing.
An amplifier is a device used to increase current, power, or voltage to a signal. A wrong pairing between a speaker and an amplifier might cause your amplifier to blow up.
When matching an amplifier and a speaker, the amplifier should support your speakers’ impedance. The power used should be preferably between 50 watts to 100 watts.
Picking both a speaker and an amplifier from the same company is a good option too.
6. Price
Finally, it comes down to what you’re willing to pay for to get a good speaker. Often, the higher the price the better the quality.
However, this is not always the case. Some companies use their influential brand names to market products at a higher price when truly it’s of a lower quality or rather, the product is not worth the amount you’re paying for.
The best way to ensure you get good value for your money is to marry the factors listed above and the products you are choosing from.
The price you pay for your speaker should be worth the output you receive.