If you notice that the quality of your sound is a bit off, you may have a blown or partially blown car speaker.
How to Know if Your Speakers Are Blown
Listen for Damage
There are varying degrees of blown-out car speakers. A speaker that's completely blown out will have no sound at normal to low levels, and you may experience distorted buzzing at high volumes. If you can still hear music at regular levels but it sounds off, use your audio system's fader controls to attempt to isolate the faulty or partially blown speaker. Using your system's equalizer, set all of your levels and set the balance to the middle. By narrowing down one section of the car, you'll have a better chance of hearing any distortions in the sound and determining which speaker is actually blown out.
Test by Feel
If you can't feel any vibration or thump coming from a subwoofer when the volume is up, your speaker may be damaged. Place your fingers lightly on the speaker and turn up the bass. It's not the most reliable way to test them, but it's another option you can try before spending money on a new speaker.
Test Your Speakers
If you're a do-it-yourselfer, get an electric meter and set it to read OHMS (impedance). Then make sure your speaker is off and put one meter lead on each of the two terminals. If your speaker is blown, it will read infinite impedance. If your speaker isn't damaged at all, it will read 1.0.
Repairing a Blown Speaker
The best way to determine if your car's stereo speakers are broken is by using your ear. Distorted sounds and the buzz of the cone vibrating against the coil are the best indicators that it's time to replace your speakers. Installing a car speaker into today's vehicles can be challenging. If you need a hand, schedule an appointment at your local Pep Boys and we'll help you get your new speaker installed.
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