Need help matching speakers to Head Unit!!!!!!!!!!

[ricklovin93]

Hi guys i'm not a wiz when it comes to car audio, but im willing to give it a shot in my 96 cutlass. I already have installed a JVC KD-R418 Receiver, now heres for the numbers on the receiver: it says 20W RMS x 4 (MOS-FET) 50W x4MAX. Now what the hell does all that mean? I'm looking for some nice speakers that have good bass. What watt speakers should i use, And what does rms and MOS-FET mean thanks guys

[RobertISaar]

RMS = root mean square

 

if you went into the more advanced math classes in high school, this term should be familiar, it's essentially the average of an AC measurement.

 

meaning you can push 20W of averaged power into one speaker (per channel) without issues.

 

you can ignore the MOSFET acronym.

 

EDIT: if you're not going to run an amp, then i would suggest just finding some speakers with a decently high sensitivity rating.

[ricklovin93]

So does that mean i need speakers that are rated to 20w rms?

[RobertISaar]

not necessarily.

 

your head unit can only safely provide 20W RMS, you could get speakers rated for 10W(though i don't know where you would find them), but so long as you never drove them higher than 10 watts, they shouldn't fail.

 

on the other hand, let's say you found 40 watt speakers(still a low rating), your head unit would never overpower them unless you drove it into clipping, which at that point you should hear obvious distortion and know that something is wrong.

 

hence the "find speakers with a high sensitivity" comment. since higher sensitivty speakers will be louder with less power applied.

[ricklovin93]

so i need speakers that have over 20rms and if they have under 20rms the head unit will blow them up is what your saying? What if i got speakers with 20 rms would that be the "perfect" set up? Sorry for all the questions just need to make sure i have this down before spending money

[RobertISaar]

you'll only kill under 20W rated speakers if you blatantly overdrive them.

 

but i doubt you'll find any speakers rated for 20W, unless they're roadmaster stock replacement units, and those things are a waste of money, especially if you want any kind of sound quality.

[ricklovin93]

okay so ishould be looking at something in the 40w range what will happen if i go with something

high say like 50w or 60w

[RobertISaar]

immediate head unit explosion.

 

 

no, the speakers and the head unit will be fine, assuming the impedance is allowable for that rating. i can't the specs for that ATM, but it's safe to assume that's at 4 ohm impedance, which is what the majority of aftermarket speakers are.

 

you can hook up 600 watt speakers to a 20W head unit and the result will be 20watts of power at peak volume before getting into clipping.

 

 

 

so, here's the easy answer: find some speakers that are rated for at LEAST 20 watts RMS, then find the highest sensitivity set your budget allows.

[ricklovin93]

thanks dude