Looking for LOUD?

Get ready to shake the seas! When shopping for a marine stereo, one of the first questions you should ask is how much power you will need. Will you be listening to your stereo in a quiet, idyllic anchorage, or will you be blasting out your tunes to a wake boarder or other towed person behind your boat? If you fall into the second category, you will need a marine audio amplifier—and an appropriate set of speakers to match.

What is the best measurement of an amplifier’s power?

Watts per channel is a measurement of an amplifier’s ability to power speakers. For the purpose of this simplified discussion, a “channel” is essentially a speaker. So for example, a two-channel amp can be used to power two speakers. The best measurement of power, as with an automotive audio amplifier, is watts RMS (root mean square, a method of describing the magnitude of a wave that is oddly shaped) which is a far more honest measurement than peak watts. Since product descriptions often only give peak watts as a specification, reading the amplifiers owner’s manual is often necessary to determine watts RMS.

At West Marine, you will find JL Audio, Fusion, Dual and Clarion amplifiers. Choices include amplifiers with anywhere from one to six channels.