Best Car Subwoofers 2023: 9 Powerful Subwoofers Worth The Hype

In our car audio assessments, we ensure a balance between the consumers’ ratings and our own. We consider every available sub in the market and identify all possible reviews they have received. Our sources are mainly from local stores, Amazon, consumer reports, and Glassdoor.

Among the factors, we stress on when testing them include the loudness, sound clarity, sensitivity, frequency response, quality, and the cost. Besides, we pay attention to the design and the material used in making the subwoofer.

This is because the style would contribute up to 20% of the resultant audio quality. For instance, some cheap plastic would produce very reasonable sound. The best sub would depend on you, your expectations and the needs you wish to fulfill.

If it fits the bill, highly-rated, and is compatible with your vehicle, then it is undoubtedly the best.

• Different categories of subwoofers Subwoofers are more sophisticated than car speakers. As a result, picking the ideal choice is more of a challenge. What complicates it more is the fact that they come in characteristic, 4 different types.
• 1. Personalized system Apparently, this system happens to be the best when professionally built. It requires that you customize your own subwoofer system by mounting component subs into a subwoofer box.
• The only challenge you’ll encounter during the process is picking the right subs for the personalized system. However, once you are done, you will come up with an excellent system, which you can customize to meet your needs. You will require a car amplifier to power this sub.
• 2. Pre-built subwoofer system This is an enclosed system, which will save you the pain of purchasing a boxed enclosure for your subwoofer. Just as the name suggests, the manufacturers would have already mounted the sub inside the box before releasing to the consumers.
• Unlike the personalized system, you cannot customize this set to your mode of preference. Moreover, if either of the subs blows, the whole kit becomes useless.
• 3. Powered subwoofer A powered car subwoofer is very versatile. It is compact, takes up negligible space and quite easy to install. A full package includes a built-in amplifier, an enclosure, and the sub. Most home subwoofers embrace this type of system.
• The only downside of powered subs is the compromised bass depth, courtesy of the small size.
• 4. Vehicle specific subwoofer A vehicle specific sub is solely designed for compatibility with a particular automobile. Because of this feature, it blends well in the car and therefore occupies less space. This system can be either pre-built, powered or personalized based on the above categories.

Just like any other product, subs vary depending on the features they exhibit. Some can play cool soft music, rock, fast-paced music, double bass, while others are The number bet for all types of music.

Most subwoofers are big-sized. As a result, you need to check out for the availability of space before adding this system to your cart.

However, a big size does not necessarily translate to a great car subwoofer. Apart from your expectations and the type of car you have, below is a buying guide for subs.

• 1. Power handling abilitiesIf a subwoofer is capable of handling more power, it inevitably can produce the most profound bass you’ve ever longed for. In order to gauge how powerful your sub is, you’ll need to examine its RMS, rather than the peak power.
• Most high-powered systems are quite costly, and they would require equally powerful amps to power them. As such, you ought to pay attention to the amp’s output to avoid possible damages resulting from incompatibility. In this case, you should be having a good quality car battery, or purchase the second one for extra power.
• 2. Subwoofer style and designCheap is expensive. Subwoofers designed with urethane are a total crap and useless. You undoubtedly need something that will last longer than the span of your vehicle, without affecting the audio quality.
• Car speakers are majorly made of rubber, foam or Santoprene surrounds. For cones, the best style is polypropylene, carbon, Kevlar, and aluminum. Mostly, the material should be strong and light, and able to withstand the pressure resulting from the low-pitch sounds.
• 3. ImpedanceImpedance is a measure of electrical resistance. The most common values range between 2 and 4 ohms. An amplifier should always match up with the sub’s impedance.
• For instance, if it’s a dual audio system, which are 2 ohms each, then the amp’s impedance should be 4 ohms. A very high rating would end up overheating the sub and eventually damaging it. On the contrary, a low rating would compromise with the audio quality.
• 4. Subwoofer materialsThe better the quality of the material used to design the sub, the deeper you will dig into your pocket. Subs made of rubber are most common and relatively expensive. They will last longer and will not affect the sound.
• 5. Sensitivity rangeSensitivity is the rate at which the speaker converts power to produce sound, in decibels. The higher the rating, the less power the system will require and the more efficient it will be. If the range is low, the sub will need more power to deliver the same sound.
• 6. Frequency specificationFrequency range is a determinant on the resultant subwoofer’s low-pitched volume. A few factors such as the size of the sub and the enclosure specification have a hand in the frequency outcome. A sealed box, for example, would guarantee a clear bass.
• About the speaker sizes, a 15-inch subwoofer will generate a low-frequency range, which is enough to shake your driving lane. For your vehicle, the ideal size is 10” and 12” because they are within the human hearing frequency range of 20Hz.
• 7. Number of voice coilsThough you can still find single voice coil, dual voice coils or DVC is the most common in the market. This feature enhances flexibility when you are looking to wire a subwoofer. In this case, the sub uses 2 different voice coils, which end up joining in a standard cylinder, connected to one cone.
• 8. Enclosure specifications: Sealed or Ported?If you want a great system with lively listening adventure, an enclosed system will work for you. Most of these systems would come pre-installed, but there are still some, which you can customize for yourself. You can find out how to build a subwoofer box since it is a straightforward exercise.
• An enclosed sub is categorized as either a sealed or a ported enclosure. Just as the name implies, a sealed one is wholly boxed or concealed. It boasts very accurate bass with minimal to total zero distortion.
• Ported enclosures have been botched to port sound off the system. They mainly produce very loud but distorted bass. For outdoor settings, this system is worth a try.
• 9. AmplifierEvery car stereo system requires an amp. Although a few subwoofer brands have inbuilt amplifiers, the rest might need an external one. There are three critical factors to consider when looking for an amp. These include the number of subs you have, their impedance and RMS.
• If you plan to integrate two subwoofers or more, you should go for a multi-channel amp. However, you can still get very powerful amps able to power several subs at ago.
• In addition, the RMS of the system has to be analogous with that of the amp to avoid being under or overpowered. Lastly, the impedance of both the amplifier and the speaker should match.
• 10. Audio crossover unitsA crossover unit is meant to filter out audio frequencies within the range of 20 – 2000Hz. It splits a single audio signal into two or several bands, which are then sent to their specific drive units. If your sub does not have factory-set crossovers, you can get one with an amplifier.
• Your installed car speakers can produce only the mids and highs while the sub mainly focuses on the lows. By doing so, the entire stereo system will guarantee you a flawless mix.
• 11. PriceFrom the economist point of view, it is advisable to work within your budget. After all, you can get a subwoofer, which might cost nearly as much as the price of your car. Contrary, you can still find a perfect one that is dirt cheap, rarely beyond the $100 dollar mark.
• When talking about price and the amount you are willing to spend, the topic narrows down to a personal level. In this case, you ought to evaluate your needs, what you are looking for in a subwoofer and the amount you’re willing to part with.