Marine Speakers

Why should you bother with marine speakers? Why can’t you just use regular, readily available stereo speakers instead? I’m glad you asked.

Let me tell you a little story.

It’s a nice summer day and you’re out on the sea, sailing in your beautiful boat. There a nice breeze sweeping over the deck, your favorite songs are playing, and you haven’t been feeling so good the whole year. All of a sudden one stray gust of wind sends a few waves crashing over the starboard, drenching the speakers with cold, salty water. Within seconds, the speakers give out a screeching sound and quit playing – an early exit to what would have been an otherwise perfect day. That is the reason why marine speakers were created.

What’s So Special about Marine Speakers?

As you are well aware, the great outdoors are way different than cars or indoors. Various manufacturers devote their time and effort to produce speakers that bring an improved sound experience to any boat. Sound of superior quality shouldn’t be limited to the inside of your house or your vehicle. You see, marine speakers are waterproof speakers specially designed for adverse weather conditions. Since water (and any liquids for that matter) is one of the biggest enemies of any type of electronics, speaker engineers have remodeled and redesigned marine speakers to resist heat and cold, humidity and salt, and even full submersion.

Are Marine Speakers for You?

Marine audio systems and speakers are built to withstand rough weather, and produce high quality sound just as you would expect from an audio setup in your home. Therefore audio products labeled as “marine” are usually found on motorcycles, all terrain vehicles, spas, saunas and, obviously, sailboats, catamarans and all kinds of boats, large and small.

In spite of the term marine speakers, not only sailboat owners but also those spending a lot of their time in the great outdoors can take advantage of what these speakers have to offer. At outdoors concerts or while having a BBQ, you can see people gathering their speakers and hiding them inside at the first sign of rain. With a set of marine speakers you can go on having fun, listening to music, without worrying about your precious electronics being damaged by wind or rain water.

To sum it up, weather proof speakers are for any outdoor enthusiasts – whether it is on your own backyard, on a boy scouts trip, on the beach, or on your very own yacht. Their ability to withstand adverse weather conditions make them suitable for a wide range of cases where waves, rain, or mud might be involved.

How to go about buying marine speakers

Go through product reviews. I assume this is what you do before any kind of serious acquisition but I want to stress this point. Always check out real customer reviews of various speaker brands before going any further. Check out buyer reviews on big online stores like Amazon or Nextag or search Google for “marine speakers reviews” to gauge other people’s feelings about this purchase.

One thing you should look for when buying weatherproof speakers is their durability. Since they will be exposed to harsh marine environment, durability is the key. While few speakers sets are fully waterproof, look for the ones providing the best protection against splash water damage, heat and wind. Several manufacturers label their equipment as weather proof, but reading their small print disclaimers carefully you will notice certain types of extreme weather conditions not being covered.

Last but not least, the chosen marine speaker system should play well with the audio source. That is, if you want to play music from your other electronic devices like an ipod or an iphone, the system should be compatible and allow you to plug in those gadgets. If on the other hand you will have it connected to a TV or a Playstation, you will need a different set of cables and adapters. Keep those things in mind while making your purchase.

These are just a few pointers on marine speakers, their advantages and how to go about buying them. Browse the website further for extended discussions on other related topics and brands before making up your mind.

It’s easy to find the best marine speakers if you know what to look for and especially if you read the reviews on our site. Otherwise you might stumble along, reading anonymous marine speakers reviews and hoping for the best. That is not the best approach, believe me. Read reliable reviews from reliable writers and then you will be certain to get the best marine speakers money can buy.

When deciding to buy speakers for your boat there are quite a few factors one should take into account in order to get the best marine speakers available. First – an obvious element – the sound quality. That is easy to check and you can do it at any specialty store. Ask them to sample any marine speakers your are looking to buy, and there you can decide for yourself which one has the best audio.

Now that you found speakers that sound pretty good in the store, what else should you look for in the best marine speakers? Well, always keep in mind these will be speakers to be used on a yacht or sail boat. These are not your usual – sit back on the couch and relax – type of affair. Besides sounding good in the store – first requirement – the best marine speakers have to output awesome sound on a moving, rowing boat. Water splashing on the port side, albatrosses calling, wind blowing the sails. The sound coming from your marine speakers have to overcome all that environment noise. What good is they are crystal clear in the store sound room if you can’t hear a squeak when you’re out on the open sea?

Don’t forget build quality, ease of installation and durability. When it comes to marine speakers that is the part you shouldn’t skimp on if you want the best. I mean, do you want to go through the hassle of changing your sound system every year? Because that is what happens to most people who just buy with price in mind. “Oh, honey, this one is on sale, let’s buy it for our boat”. Yeah, sure. And 6 months later “Oh, honey, is this rust on our speakers wires? It’s not even a year since we bought them at a discount”. Indeed … what a steal!

Entry level marine speakers

Some of the more popular marine speakers come from Sony. Guess why? The low price and the brand – like the Sony XSMP 1620W on sale for 80$ US. And you get what you pay for. Don’t expect to see the best marine speakers coming from Sony any time soon. The sound is average at best and when you run into some rough weather one can hardly hear anything over the distortions. Moreover, the acoustic build quality leaves a lot to be desired while quite a few customers reported rust showing up after less than 6 months of use. They’re like car air fresheners and need to be replaced every 3 months. Best to avoid.

The MTX brand of audio devices are a notch above the Sony (and even cheaper) but not the best marine speakers either. A notch is just that – a little bit better. We see them for sale often on Ebay and there is a good reason for that. They are cheap and the reseller has a good margin for profit. That is the main reason the keep pushing these marine speakers. If you still want to give them a try (hey – they’re cheap!) make sure to double check sizes. The MTX TM6502 6.5 Marine coaxial speakers don’t fit into standard 5 ⅛ inches holes like most 6.5 inch speakers and you might need to drill bigger holes into your bulkhead.

Mid range marine speakers

We’re getting towards the middle of the pack – quality wise – when we run into Kicker. While not the best marine speakers either, they are a decent fit. Pair it with a good amplifier and you can get a good kick out of them. Build quality is alright although not as good as the more expensive brands and it outputs a good quality sound. The weather proof element is adequate but it could use some improvements. Consider buying if you find them at a good price.

Bazooka is another middle of the pack contender and better than Kicker in some respect. The sound it delivers has a strong bass and good highs. While not the best marine speakers they do a good sounding job. The Bazooka’s experience when it comes to weather proof sound systems shows – their big, robust towers for auto are well known. Get into this brand if you’re on a budget.

Alpine marine speakers are a mixed bunch. They perform at a good level but reading online user reviews, sometimes you get lemons. It seems Alpine manufactures their audio components all over the world, in Mexico, China and Brazil, and sometimes you get a bad batch. They do have good warranty and you can have them exchanged, however, it’s a hassle. Given all that, they can be some of the best marine speakers if you happen to run into some of the better versions. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Towards the best marine speakers …

If you are intent on playing with the big boys and want your yacht to stand out – be it at anchorage or on the open see – you have to get casual with Pioneer. These guys have been in the audio business since the beginning (that’s why they are the pioneers) and their products are some of the best marine speakers you can get. Great, full sound, awesome bass, easy to adjust tremble. On top of that, great marine proofing – these speakers won’t go rust from one splash of water. Definitely buy Pioneer if you want the best stuff.

Last but not least comes JBL. Just like Pioneer, these sound engineers have history on their side. They were building some of the best consumer grade speakers before the catamarans were popular. You cannot go wrong with JBL and we can say the best marine speakers come from them. Highly recommended if you’re looking for concert quality sound on your boat and want to host parties rocking all night long. You might have the clubs out at the port jealous though when in anchorage, so play nice.

Now that you know which are the best marine speakers there are no excuses. I don’t want to see comments on how you got cheated buying cheap speakers on Ebay. Read, review and make your purchase. And good luck if you go for Alpine