You might be asking whether car speakers are all the same and whether you can switch them. However, even though all speakers have the same general function, each user will use them in a different setting.
While house and car stereo systems typically use identical amplifiers, subwoofers, and other components, the individual parts are very different. The Impedance, construction, and appearance of automobile and house speakers differ most noticeably.
It’s not always clear why these discrepancies exist. To comprehend the reasons for each, it may be beneficial to examine accessories for cars more closely.
The Impedance of Car and Home Speakers
The impedance rating is the crucial distinction between home theatre speakers and car speakers. You can call the electrical load that a speaker places on the amplifier the speaker’s Impedance. It is, in fact, the amount of resistance the speaker generates against the current coming from the amplifier.
Ohms are the units used to measure Impedance and resistance. The experts often explain Impedance using the analogy of rushing water. Less water or electrical current can travel through a material with higher resistance or higher ohms. If the resistance is too high, the amplifier will burn out due to a current build-up.
Differences between Home and Car Speakers
Home theatre speakers have an impedance of 8 ohms. However, car speakers are more likely to have 4 ohms. More than 4 ohms of resistance in automobile speakers is highly uncommon. There are several causes for this.
In contrast to a residential outlet, which provides about 110 volts, a car battery typically produces between 12 and 14 volts. The amplifier in your car will generally be low-voltage and high-amperage. Your home amplifiers will likely be the opposite—low-amperage and high-voltage—as you might anticipate.
Your car speakers will require less resistance to obtain the necessary power because the voltage is lower. An amplifier that can generate 50 watts of power at 8 ohms will deliver 75 watts at that resistance. This is all because the current is less constrained at 4 ohms. Because of this, most businesses specifically develop automobile amplifiers for 4-ohm speakers.
Your home speakers follow the opposite logic, as you might anticipate. Since the power you receive from your house outlets is significantly more extensive, you must ideally transfer less of it to the speaker. Therefore, it is likely to have a higher impedance rating. Home theatre speakers with 4-ohm Impedance are available. However, remember that more extraordinary impedance vehicle speakers are uncommon.
Subwoofer Differences between Cars and Homes
The size is the most noticeable distinction between subwoofers for home cinema systems and those used in automobiles. If a subwoofer is active, it is not only possible but also essential to increase the speaker’s cabinet size.
You can call a subwoofer with an inbuilt amplifier as an active subwoofer. It provides excellent versatility. Furthermore, it can be much more potent. This is since it does not depend on the stereo amplifier for power.
Active subwoofers require their power supply because they have their amplifier. This is the easiest method to detect if you want to plug your home theatre subwoofer into a power outlet. You can only connect passive subwoofers to the amplifier. The wall outlets will require active subwoofers.
As you may expect, unless you attempt anything active, the subwoofer in your automobile will be passive. You can safely assume they have an active subwoofer. This is achievable when you hear the bass emanating from a passing car three blocks away.
The efficiency of the two subwoofers varies due to their different sizes. Your home’s subwoofer aims to move a lot of air and generate a distantly audible sound. The purpose of the subwoofer in your car is to project sound across the much smaller interior of the vehicle.
Car and Home Speaker Designs
In more ways than one, manufacturers create car speakers for a very different setting than home speakers. Your car’s interior experiences various conditions, including temperature swings, deep freezing, high humidity, and solar heat.
Your home theatre speakers will reside there. They don’t need to be as robust as your home probably has a mild climate and temperature controls. This gives designers more freedom to experiment with styles and other features. Due to these design decisions, the speaker won’t be at risk of breaking down from exposure to the weather.
You will notice a clear difference between house speakers and car speakers when you compare them. However, if you took the house speakers out of their cabinets, they might resemble one another.
You can integrate car speakers in some way into the vehicle itself. This indicates that automobile speakers are only the essential characteristics with a grill or cover; there is no cabinet. Of course, there are exceptions to this rule, most notably when installing robust speaker systems in a car’s trunk.
Conclusion
Although identical, home and car speakers have different designs to accommodate their various functions. There weren’t many occasions when you’d ever want to substitute one for the other. However, it is doable if you’re inclined!
