Speaker Size: What Do the Inches On A Speaker Box Mean?
- Share
- Issue Time
- Jul 31,2023
Summary
We will talk about the "meaning of speaker size" in this article.
Overview
When you're in the market for a party or Pa speaker, you often hear questions like "What size is this speaker?" or "What size speaker box do I need?"
When you visit a speaker store, you may come across promotional phrases like "dual 8-inch woofers," "10-inch pa speaker," or "12-inch speakers sound system."
What do these mean?
Question
In other words, how should we understand the "inches" in specifications?
Does the "size" refer to the overall the size of box?
Certainly not.
We will talk about the "meaning of speaker size" in this article.
"Inches" Means The Size of The Woofers
Here, "inches" refer to the diameter or size of mid-range speaker, the woofer or low-frequency driver unit inside, it is also known as the driver's diameter.
Internationally, the size of driver unit is measured in inches, based on the diameter of the driver cone, and 1 inch is equal to 2.54 centimeters.
Here is A Common Speaker Size Chart used In Manufacture
1. The Bass Driver Unit Size Chart
4-inch/10 centimeters
5-inch/12 centimeters
5.5-inch/14 centimeters
6-inch/15 centimeters
8-inch/20 centimeters
10-inch/25 centimeters
12-inch/30 centimeters
15-inch/38 centimeters
For example, a "12-inch professional speaker" means that the woofer or low-frequency driver has a diameter of 12 inches, which is approximately 30 centimeters.
Note that this does not refer to the overall size of the speaker box being 12 inches.
The size not only means that it is small.
In theory, the larger driver units yield better results, as bigger drivers can perform better in the low-frequency range, providing lower transient distortion and better sound quality.
Use AUSMAN's Product to Explain It May Be Easier to Understand
15”Outdoor Speaker AS-666-04
2. High-frequency Driver(Tweeter) Size is Different From the Woofer
The representation of high-frequency driver size is different; it is measured based on the diameter of the voice coil.
This is different from the expression used for the low-frequency drivers, so we need to pay attention to this difference.
The picture is the dimension of the AUSMAN 15" Wireless Outdoor System AS-666-04.
Please pay attention.
The size of the shell and the size of the driver is two different concepts.
Speaker Size Measurement: How to Measure Speaker Size Yourself
Measuring thesize yourself is a straightforward task.
You can finish the measurement easily.
All you need is a tape measure or a ruler larger than the diameter of the speaker cone.
1. Measure the Diameter of The Stand
Start by turning off the speaker before measuring.
For circular speakers, measuring the diameter is the most basic size measurement.
Place the tape measure or ruler on top of the speaker, horizontally measure from one end of the speaker cone to the other, and obtain the diameter measurement.
For example, if you measure a diameter of 20 centimeters, the speaker is an 8-inch speaker.
2. Height Measurement
For the height measurement, you can place the speaker on an uneven surface, and measure the distance from the surface to the top of the cone frame.
3. Height and Bottom Measurement
Next, flip the speaker over and measure the bottom to get its magnet size.
For example, if the test data as follows:
Top diameter is 10 inches/25 centimeters, and the bottom is 10 centimeters, it can be represented as "10-inch, 100-magnet."
Conclusion
When describing speakers, "inches"means the size of the bass driver unit, not the overall size of the box.
Hope the article can help you.
Get Help From AUMSAN Audio
If you have problems in the manufacture or use of this field, please leave a message or send an email to AUSMAN Audio, we are a speaker manufacturer from China and can provide you with useful suggestions.
l l Related Reference Resources：