what does it mean when car audio speakers are classified as 3 way, or 4 way?

H

Hunter

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i am trying to pick a radio, amp, and speakers for my 2001 GMC Jimmy. I already have 2 " speakers in the doors and they are still good but now i gotta get 2 6"x9"s, and get some more speakers to put in the back of the jimmy. I am trying to get a 200W Ipod docking radio.
 
2 ways are woofer/tweeter. That is all that is needed to produce the full audible spectrum. 3, 4, 5 ways (etc) simply add more tweeters.

There is nothing about these mulit-tweeter speakers that makes them better than a standard 2 way, and in most cases they are much worse. Unfortunately, many manufacturers have recognized a lot of uninformed consumers live by the principle that more is better, so they automatically lean toward the 3 4 and 5 ways thinking 4 tweeters on a small speaker must be better than 1.

Look at a good car audio retail website -- sonicelectronix.com for example.
Go to their 6x9 speakers and sort them from high price to low. You'll see that above $100 there are mainly 2 ways, with a few 3 ways and two 4 ways. Below $100 there are a few 2 ways, several 3 ways, and a few 4 and 5 ways. There's even an 8 way, it's $35.

I don't think that pattern is a coincidence.
 
2 ways are woofer/tweeter. That is all that is needed to produce the full audible spectrum. 3, 4, 5 ways (etc) simply add more tweeters.

There is nothing about these mulit-tweeter speakers that makes them better than a standard 2 way, and in most cases they are much worse. Unfortunately, many manufacturers have recognized a lot of uninformed consumers live by the principle that more is better, so they automatically lean toward the 3 4 and 5 ways thinking 4 tweeters on a small speaker must be better than 1.

Look at a good car audio retail website -- sonicelectronix.com for example.
Go to their 6x9 speakers and sort them from high price to low. You'll see that above $100 there are mainly 2 ways, with a few 3 ways and two 4 ways. Below $100 there are a few 2 ways, several 3 ways, and a few 4 and 5 ways. There's even an 8 way, it's $35.

I don't think that pattern is a coincidence.
 
It's basically three ( or four ) separate speakers stacked up together, to get better range of sound out of a limited space.
 
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