Speakers etc

[Peter-T]

Firstly, i could've sworn there was a proper I.C.E forum sub-section, but can't for the life of me find it! MODs if I am in the wrong place could you move me over pleas?

So onto my question. This weekend at Busfest i've been gathering ideas for my interior, and have pretty much sorted my colour scheme and fabrics etc, but didn't see many stands showcasing car audio.

I'm not really au fait with how car speakers work, and how to read all the jargon. I know speakers have a Watt rating, but i'm not sure what this means. Is the higher the number, the better quality the speaker?

I'm looking at having just a standard speaker in each of the front and rear door-cards, and then maybe a small subwoofer conceiled somewhere.
Does anyone have a brand, type of speaker or audio-retailer they would reccomend? I'm no audio-buff but i'd like it to sound nice, and be capable of a decent volume (i'm not looking to break records or whatever).

Many thanks for any help!

Cheers
Pete

[kevtherev]

if you have a halfords then you can go in and choose the head unit and speaker combination you find nice to listen to.
then go on amazon or such like and get it £50 cheaper.

most modern head units produce ample wattage (usually 50) for a nice sound.
if your having door speakers, then lower down is the place to get a good sized one in



as for which speaker then that's easy.. you're looking at speakers to use with head unit power, there's plenty to choose from in the lower power range.
for instance..
lets say you buy a sony with a specified 54W x 4 (17 watt rms) then you can buy a couple of speakers in the 50 watt range, best to buy some that are rated to near the 15 - 25 watt rms ... no sense in buying a 300 watt speaker as it won't be driven properly
A modern two way speaker is good enough for the bass I have found.
sub woofers are a bit finicky and really need matching well with a pre amp...

I'm a pioneer fan and these are reasonably priced.. Pioneer DEH-2400UB - CD Tuner with Front USB, iPod/iPhone Direct Control and 1 RCA Pre-out
and a couple of these..pioneer TS-875 Car Speakers 9 cm two-way 50 watt
or these JVC CS-HX438 10cm 3 Way Coaxial Car Speaker

[Peter-T]

Thank you ever so much Kev, very helpful!