Speakers, which ones don't distort at high volume?

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Yeah, I wondered about this for a while but learned recently from one of the guys here in another thread that "the higher the wattage speaker the worse the performance." I'm going to look for some quality low wattage speakers, 20-30 watts max. I just don't want to "add" anything to the system like an amp.

~O~
 
Omega Man":1hi4753x said:
Yeah, I wondered about this for a while but learned recently from one of the guys here in another thread that "the higher the wattage speaker the worse the performance." I'm going to look for some quality low wattage speakers, 20-30 watts max. I just don't want to "add" anything to the system like an amp.

~O~
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thats true ~O~ the speakers have to be matched to the radio or darn close. lets say you have a 50w radio that gives you 25w per channel. 25w speakers match the radio but as the wattage rating of the speakers go up you'll start to loose bass in the speakers and eventually they will have nothing but higs like tweeters with the same 50w radio
 
My stereo sounds sorta "ok" in the driveway with the motor off. Add engine noise and the volume needs to really go up. But the higher the volume, the worse it sounds. If you can imagine a cheap small transistor radio turned up full blast. Sounds like crap! I can't really even recognize what music is playing. I assume this is due to 30 year old speakers? So my question is about specs. What should I look for? Dimension wise and wattage wise? I'm looking for direct fit (plug and play) for the stock stereo in my 83 Interstate. This has the am-fm, cb, cassette tape player set up.
I've never been a CB'er, but best I can tell all this stuff works. I just can't stand the raspy sound. I want my tunes to sound bitchin or leave it off.
 
scdmarx":15a3cc6d said:
My stereo sounds sorta "ok" in the driveway with the motor off. Add engine noise and the volume needs to really go up. But the higher the volume, the worse it sounds. If you can imagine a cheap small transistor radio turned up full blast. Sounds like crap! I can't really even recognize what music is playing. I assume this is due to 30 year old speakers? So my question is about specs. What should I look for? Dimension wise and wattage wise? I'm looking for direct fit (plug and play) for the stock stereo in my 83 Interstate. This has the am-fm, cb, cassette tape player set up.
I've never been a CB'er, but best I can tell all this stuff works. I just can't stand the raspy sound. I want my tunes to sound bitchin or leave it off.
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As far as i can tell the OEM wattage on the speakers was 8 watts. At Saber Cycle they have some speakers that are 15 watts and are "plug and play" everyone says they have no problems turning the volume up. Here is a link to them. https://www.saber-cycle.com/store/Audio1.html Also here is a link to a Honda service bulletin listing the makes and models of the stereos in the cycles so you should be able to do a little research to find out what wattage the different stereos put out. https://www.touringmotorcyclists.com/doc ... s/sl14.pdf
 
This is definetly one place where you get what you pay for. Your analogy of sounding like a cheap AM radio is right on. If you buy the cheap radio it sounds like a cheap radio. I've been using nicer stereos since I got my bike. It came with a nice Kenwood in it, I upgraded it to an even better Pioneer but it died, probably because it's been in 1 car, 2 trucks then the bike(I really loved that stereo). I now have an Alpine.

As for speakers, I started with PO POS speakers. When I upgraded I didn't have a lot of cash so I went to Walmart and got some Road Masters or something like that. 4" two-way's, sounded lots better. My next purchase will be Infinity Kappa's. Really nice, will sound really good, but cost 60 - 90 dollars a pair depending on where you get them.

Someone before mentioned the higher the wattage rating the worst sounding they are. Only true if your stereo is now the weak link. The better the speakers the higher wattage they will be rated for. A good stereo now-a-days will have 45 to 55 watts per channel. Speakers should be rated 50 watta or above for one of these stereo's.

As for the rating of the speakers they go by impedance. Normal speakers are usually rated at 8 ohms. THe infinity Kappa's are rated at 2 ohms. The lower the impedance the less power required form the stereo to drive them. The less power from the stereo means less power going into the stereo and less draw on your electrical system.

The tricky part is getting a system that runs 40-60% at the level you would like it to be at "Full volume". WIthout being able to try a few systems out your working with trial and error. GO to one of these car stereo palces and crank up theirs to see waht they can do. If you have to max out the speakers they cut up and sound bad, if you max out the stereo it's putting a big draw on your electrical and it's clipping off the signal when it maxes out. Either way, sounds llike crap and you're ashamed to play it with other people around.

Amps are good because it's usually more expensive to get a stereo that can put out high watts. The amp helps the stereo without the stereo being maxed out. Better speakers are cheaper than head units and amps are cheaper than really good head units.

That being said, spend $200 - $300 on a good unit, good speakers, and good wiring and you'll be happy. Spend $60 on all and you'll rue the day you strapped that crap to your Goldwing.

I'm not a stereo expert but I've wired up quite a few and I've failed at some so I'm getting a better idea of what doesn't work.

You're mileage may vary

Heath
 
Heath":2rv5ikmi said:
This is definetly one place where you get what you pay for. Your analogy of sounding like a cheap AM radio is right on. If you buy the cheap radio it sounds like a cheap radio. I've been using nicer stereos since I got my bike. It came with a nice Kenwood in it, I upgraded it to an even better Pioneer but it died, probably because it's been in 1 car, 2 trucks then the bike(I really loved that stereo). I now have an Alpine.

As for speakers, I started with PO POS speakers. When I upgraded I didn't have a lot of cash so I went to Walmart and got some Road Masters or something like that. 4" two-way's, sounded lots better. My next purchase will be Infinity Kappa's. Really nice, will sound really good, but cost 60 - 90 dollars a pair depending on where you get them.

Someone before mentioned the higher the wattage rating the worst sounding they are. Only true if your stereo is now the weak link. The better the speakers the higher wattage they will be rated for. A good stereo now-a-days will have 45 to 55 watts per channel. Speakers should be rated 50 watta or above for one of these stereo's.

As for the rating of the speakers they go by impedance. Normal speakers are usually rated at 8 ohms. THe infinity Kappa's are rated at 2 ohms. The lower the impedance the less power required form the stereo to drive them. The less power from the stereo means less power going into the stereo and less draw on your electrical system.

The tricky part is getting a system that runs 40-60% at the level you would like it to be at "Full volume". WIthout being able to try a few systems out your working with trial and error. GO to one of these car stereo palces and crank up theirs to see waht they can do. If you have to max out the speakers they cut up and sound bad, if you max out the stereo it's putting a big draw on your electrical and it's clipping off the signal when it maxes out. Either way, sounds llike crap and you're ashamed to play it with other people around.

Amps are good because it's usually more expensive to get a stereo that can put out high watts. The amp helps the stereo without the stereo being maxed out. Better speakers are cheaper than head units and amps are cheaper than really good head units.

That being said, spend $200 - $300 on a good unit, good speakers, and good wiring and you'll be happy. Spend $60 on all and you'll rue the day you strapped that crap to your Goldwing.

I'm not a stereo expert but I've wired up quite a few and I've failed at some so I'm getting a better idea of what doesn't work.

You're mileage may vary

Heath
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What system do you run in your 81?
 
Right now I've got an Alpine head unit, don't remember what model but it's 45 watts per chanel, and 4" Walmart Roadmaster speakers. I think they are rated for 45 or 60 watts. I can crank it up to mid range and hear it OK at highway speeds. It's really clear and good at 35 -45 MPH which is most of the way to work. I'm expecting the Infinity's will let me hear it clearly at 65 - 70 MPH too.

Heath
 
Heath":odpepgfa said:
Right now I've got an Alpine head unit, don't remember what model but it's 45 watts per chanel, and 4" Walmart Roadmaster speakers. I think they are rated for 45 or 60 watts. I can crank it up to mid range and hear it OK at highway speeds. It's really clear and good at 35 -45 MPH which is most of the way to work. I'm expecting the Infinity's will let me hear it clearly at 65 - 70 MPH too.

Heath
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I have the Infinity's and they did great at 75 MPH with my Sony unit (52W per channel). But early this summer, the right speaker crapped out and is crackling real bad. For the moment, I have the fader set to front (no rear speakers yet) and balance all to the left speaker until I get a chance to figure out what to do next. Even on just one speaker, it is clear at highway speeds.
 
Glad to hear. One issue I had with the Roadmasters I have now is them sitting in the sun and the center piece that holds the smaller speakers seemed to sag from the heat and it was touching the big cone and caused distortion. After some careful manupulation i reinstalled it upside down and no issues yet.

One thing I've found with motorcycle speakers is if you have them cranked up and the wind or gust coming off another vehicle or truck could possible pop the coil and "blow" the speaker.

The system I have turns up to 35. City driving I usually have it 15 to 20 and can hear it well depending on how much I want to hear the song. On the highway I turn it up to 22 or 23 and it starts distorting. I'm hoping the Infinities will let me do that without the distortion so I can really hear it at highway speeds instead of thinking I hear it because I recognize the tune.

H
 
I want to keep the stock appearance control head with the AM/FM receiver, tape cassette player and CB. But I want a better sounding stereo. Is this possible? I upgraded to Kenwood speakers that are 4", 4OHM, 140W and the sound is a whole lot better at highway speeds. But it just needs to be better. Do you think moving into 6" speakers will do anything for me? Also, I think the tape player sounds much better than the radio receiver. Why is that? Antenna?
I'm in my late fifties and don't hear so good anymore, so I'm not all that hard to please when it comes to quality sounds.
 
Moving from 4" to 6" will definetly sound better only if the head unit has enough power to drive them. If it is the weak link and that's why the 4" ones don't sound good then the 6" ones will sound even worse.

As far as keeping the stock appearance good luck. Best bet would be to get an amp that can take the signal from the head unit and boost it enough to drive the speakers you want to use. An amp and 6" speakers should be an awesome upgrade.

As for the sound difference, some modern head units let you adjust the different sources so the volume is even when switching between sources. Could be that or it could be the radio has been used more and the circuitry is fresher in the cassett portion.

Or it's evil and plotting against you in which case you should take everything off the bike and send it to me. I have protection from evil.

Heath
 
It's gonna have to stay where it's at for now.

I rode up the coast today, 300 mile round trip, and it was kinda fun having some tunes playing almost all the way.
Do they still make those mp3 player thingy's that pop into the tape player?
 
I got one of these https://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250872574846

and I got one of these https://cgi.ebay.com/CAR-FM-TRANSMI...er_MP3_Player_Accessories&hash=item5645974098

So if any of this Chinese junk works, I won't need one of these https://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=380351352258&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

I think it will be better than carrying around a box of tapes. Which I can still do if it comes right down to none of this junk working. Wish me luck. :whistling:
 

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