
As technology keeps improving, marine audio systems have undergone a transformation. No long are you limited to small sizes. Now stereos are available in many shapes and sizes and the available features are even more diverse.
In short, there is certainly a model out there that is the ideal fit for your situation. But how do you go about choosing the best marine audio system for your needs? Here are a few things to remember when making this purchase decision.
Installation Size
Are you looking forward to replacing an existing marine audio system? If so, your original stereo will leave a cutout hole for you to fill. The size of that cutout will significantly influence your decision. Try as much as possible to find a marine audio system that will fit in your existing hole.
The important thing to remember is to check the measurements of the marine audio system you’re buying against what you already have. Otherwise, you might find yourself with installation issues. Even if you are doing a new install, installation measurements can be essential.
Marine Stereo Power Output
Unless you’re planning on leveraging an external amplifier, it is essential that you factor in the power output of the marine audio system you want to buy. There are two ways to measure power output. Peak power is the amount of power the unit can produce at any given instance. Continuous power or RMS, on the other hand, is the average amount of power that the unit can put out over time.
Of course, the average will be lower than the peak output so RMS is actually the more important number you should consider. However, lower numbers are not nearly as remarkable as higher numbers when it comes to wattage. For this reason, most manufacturers tend to publish the peak power of their products and simply ignore the RMS.
A good quality marine audio system will put out 40 to 60 watts of peak power per channels. Considering most stereos have four channels, you’re looking at a total peak power output of 160 watts to 240 watts.
Numerous factors come into play when looking forward to buying the ideal marine audio system for your boat. For this reason, you should spend some time doing a bit of research here and there before spending your hard-earned money on a marine audio system.