Clear Search

Glossary of Audio Terms

While you’re shopping for your stereo, you might run across a term or abbreviation that you’re not familiar with. Below are the most common terms and abbreviations that you will find while shopping with Classic Car Stereos.


A
Acoustics production of sound and the frequencies that your atmosphere picks up while music plays.
Accessory an item that can add more value to your car’s interior.
Acoustics production of sound and the frequencies that your atmosphere picks up while music plays.
Active Crossover connects each driver to a specific range of frequencies.
Amps short for ampere is a base unit used to measure electric currents.
Amplifier an electronic device that can increase the power of a radio’s sound signal.We carry single channel, 2 channel, 4 channel and 5 channel amplifiers.
  • 1 Channel Amplifier (mono) can run a subwoofer
  • 2 Channel Amplifier can run 2 speakers, a left and right
  • 3 Channel Amplifier can run 2 speakers + a subwoofer
  • 4 Channel Amplifier can run 4 speakers, 2 front and 2 rear
  • 5 Channel Amplifier can run 4 speakers + a subwoofer
Auto Memory A tuner designed to find the strongest stations in the area and places it in your radio’s presets.
Auxiliary Input port that connects Aux cord to your IPod and smartphones for audio/video play.

B
Basket exterior frame for your speaker that protects all of your speaker’s components.
Bluetooth wireless interconnection of mobile phones, computers and other electronic devices, allows you to have hands free control audio’s volume and live phone calls while you drive.
Bridgeable an amp that combines two channels to gain more power. Bridging your amp is perfect for powering subwoofers when you can’t access your monoblock amp source.

C
Channels source outputs that help your amplifier power speakers & subwoofers.
Coaxial Speakers speaker that comes with a large tweeter cone to play low range frequencies and a smaller cone to play the higher-range sound frequencies.
Current the rate of electricity in your audio equipment. The rate is measured using amperes or amps.

D
dB aka Decibel logarithmic unit that measures your audio equipment’s sound level.
DIN made for European vehicles, refers to the size of the stereo.
Dispersion sound released from the speaker.
Distortion audio sound that comes out of your speakers with unclearly and with static.

E
Enclosure a box that contains the driver.

F
Fader stereo feature that controls the volume levels of your car’s front and rear speakers.
Filter electrical circuit or mechanical device that gets rid of excess energy.
Frequency Response signal frequency for the output/input, typically used for measuring amplifiers and speaker’s signal frequency.
FS abbreviation for Free-Air Resonant Frequency for a speaker, it measures where the weight of moving parts and speaker suspension while your speaker is working.
Full-Range speaker that is designed to produce a full spectrum of sound that a human can hear.
Fuse safety wire that melts and breaks electric currents that have exceeded your device’s safety levels.

G
Gain your electrical circuit’s total amount of amplification use
Ground an electrical connection to the body of your vehicle.

H
High Level Inputs use of speaker wire to connect radio that does not have low level (RCA) inputs, uitilizes the signal from the speaker outputs as an input source for the amplifier.

I
Impedance resistance any speaker gives to the current and voltage being applied to it, we recommend 4-OHM impedance speakers for high-powered amplifiers.
IPX tells you how resistant a product is against the elements; the higher the number, the more resistant the product is.

L
LCD abbreviation for liquid crystal display, a digital display that is used on stereo systems; it projects images using liquid crystal material that is modulated into screen display.
LE abbreviation for voice coil inductance.
Low Level Inputs also known as RCA inputs and has multiple RCA outputs, which allow you to connect you can connect your radio to multiple amplifiers. *Note- Low-level inputs are mostly seen on aftermarket radios, not factory made radios

M
Mono monophonic sound, a method for reproducing.

N
Net Volume amount of airspace within a speaker enclosure.

O
Output sound level produced by a loudspeaker

P
Peak maximum amplitude of a voltage or current.
Power Handling/Peak Continuous maximum power level that your speaker is capable of showing off in short bursts.

Q
QES abbreviation for the measurement of control coming from the speaker’s voice coil and magnet.
QMS abbreviation for the measurement of control from your speaker’s surround system.
QTS or Total Q QES x QMS.

R
RE abbreviation for the measurement of electrical resistance of your amplifier.
Resonance how frequently an object vibrates at a certain frequency.
RMS Power amount of continuous power that an amplifier produces, the higher the RMS power, the better sound quality you’ll get for your audio.

S
SD abbreviation for the actual surface area of your woofer cone.
Sensitivty gives you the efficiency and volume level that you can expect from your loudspeaker.
Signal-to-Noise Ratio a measure of how much information there is in a stereo system.
Subwoofer designed to reproduce low-pitched bass frequencies and increase sound quality.
Subwoofer Enclosure a cabinet to protect your subwoofer from damage while it is in gear.

T
Three-Way Speakers speaker system with 3 ranges of speakers: woofer, midrange speakers and a tweeter cone.
Total Harmonic Distortion the measurement of distortion present in audio equipment.
Treble the upper sound effect produced by your stereo’s tweeter cones.
Tweeter loudspeaker designed to reproduce high audio frequencies for better sound quality.

U
Unloading an uncontrollable vibrating of the woofer cone; caused when an enclosure produces no spring or pressure on the woofer

V
VAS abbreviation for the volume of air in your speakers

W
Watt standard unit of energy, used to specify the rate electrical energy is released. Speakers, amps and subwoofers are measured in watts. Typically, the more watts a speaker has the better.

X
XMAX or Maximum Linear Equation how far your voice coil moves in one direction .