How Loud Are Car Speakers? – (Revealed)

/ Electronics

Car speakers can generate a peak decibel of up to 110 per watt. However, it varies with the size of the woofer.

Generally, the rate at which a person listens to music in a car is around 75 to 85 decibels. The maximum loudness of a car speaker is not suitable for listening for a long time.

Read the following article to learn about car speakers and their loudness for different vehicles.

How Loud Are Car Speakers
Car Speakers/Source/Depositphotos

How many watts is loud for a car speaker?

Car speakers over 110 decibels per watt are too much. Besides the car speaker, any sound amplification devices for entertainment have a range that a human ear can handle.

First, you need to know how much a human ear can handle. As for the research that goes on the human ear, an ordinary human ear can stand up to 85 decibels per day on average.

However, if the sound extends to 120 decibels, it can cause immediate eardrum injury. Therefore, when it comes to car speakers, a sound level over 110 decibels is kind of useless.

Therefore, loudness over 110 decibels is too much for a car speaker. However, a car has several types of speakers, such as horns, music, smart assistant, external speakers, etc.

Different speakers in a car serve different purposes. However, all speakers have a maximum output range of 110 decibels because sound pollution is a big issue in the modern world.

RELATED: How Loud Are Sonos Speakers

How loud are stock car speakers?

Well, it depends on the car manufacturing company. However, most stock car speakers are around 100 to 115 decibels on the scale of loudness.

First, you need to know what a stock car speaker is. A stock car speaker is the built-in speaker that the company gives to the car. However, some people customize their cars and change the speakers for loudness and quality.

Moreover, some car companies do not manufacture speakers for their cars. They just go to companies that work on sound production devices. Some of the speaker manufacturers are listed below to see at a glance:

  • JBL
  • Sony
  • Focal
  • Bose
  • JL Audio
  • Bang and Olufsen
  • Dynaudio
  • Polk Audio
  • Kenwood
  • Pioneer
  • JVC
  • Kicker
  • Altec Lansing
  • Morel
  • Rockford Fosgate
  • JBL Professional
  • Boss Audio Systems

Do all cars need external speakers?

The answer is no. Not all cars have external speakers. It depends on several factors if a car needs an outside speaker or not.

Let’s talk about it here.

Generally, an internal combustion engine car does not need an external speaker. Now, you may ask where the horn’s sound comes from. Well, speakers do not produce typical horn sounds.

A device named a horn is under the hood of the car. It is connected to the car’s battery, and the horn’s circuit completes when you press the switch under the steering wheel cover.

When you press the switch, the electrical signal flows through the circuit. The horn converts the electrical signal to audible noise that you hear.

However, what about electric cars? Electric cars run silently, which is a critical issue. Many passersby estimate crossing the road by hearing vehicles’ noise. By noise, I mean the sound from the engine.

But for electric cars, there is no noise. Thus, some companies, such as Tesla, started using external speakers. External speakers mimic the internal combustion engine’s sound.

In other words, as electric and hybrid car users are increasing exponentially, external speakers are becoming more important.

Can car speakers damage ears?

Yes, a car speaker can damage your ears at any point. However, it does not occur very often.

Car speakers can raise their loudness to 120 decibels depending on what music you are playing. And 120 decibels is bad news. It can damage your ears’ structure of hair cells. As a result, you will lose your hearing.

But again, it does not occur often, as most car speakers nowadays come with smart controls. Thus, if your song’s decibels go higher than the comfort limit, it will notify you, or it will reduce the sound volume automatically.

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