Taking Soundings: Are Wireless Speakers The Right Choice For Your Boat's Sound System?
Whether you want to use your boat for wild parties or simply like having some tunes playing as you cruise, installing a dedicated sound system on your boat is the best way to get quality sound while out at sea or plying rivers and canals. However, any sound system is only as good as the speakers that actually generate sound, and choosing the right speakers for a marine sound system can be more challenging than picking out speakers for use on dry land.
Many boat owners get around many of the difficulties of installing a sound system on a boat by opting for wireless speakers, and these thoroughly modern additions to the speaker market can have a number of benefits. However, there are also some real drawbacks when you compared wireless speakers to their conventional, wired counterparts, so it's important to familiarise yourself with their pros and cons before you invest in them.
What are the advantages of using wireless speakers with your boat's sound system?
No installation required
One of the most difficult aspects of installing a sound system on a boat is successfully integrating the various wires and outlets into the bulkheads so they are not immediately visible. A mass of exposed wires doesn't exactly look tidy, but finding space to hide them can be challenging, especially in fibreglass boats which tend to have particularly thin bulkheads.
By choosing wireless speakersm you can sidestep this obstacle neatly, dramatically reducing the amount of wiring that has to be installed in your boat's cabin. If you choose, the speakers themselves can be integrated into bulkheads and interior trim, but they can also simply be fixed to tables and other surfaces with screws or adhesive pads; choosing the latter option makes the speakers easier to access if they require maintenance or new batteries.
Mobility
If you choose not to attach your speakers to your boat at all, they can be carried from place to place with ease, allowing you to play music in different cabins and sections of your boat without going to the expense of installing multiple speaker systems. This is a particularly useful quality if you are on a tight budget or have a particularly capacious boat.
Durability
Because wireless speakers are designed to be moved from place to place, they tend to be quite robust in construction. This can be a particularly useful quality on seagoing vessels, where delicate electronics can take a severe beating from the heaving and rocking endured when navigating rough seas. Some wireless speaker models are even waterproof, an advantage for obvious reasons.
What about the disadvantages of using wireless speakers with your boat's sound system?
Sound quality
The primary drawback associated with wireless speakers is that they tend to be somewhat lacking in sound quality compared to wired speakers. Recent advances have made this difference far smaller than it used to be, and many high-end wireless speakers offer sound quality comparable to similarly-priced wired speakers, but you may still notice a drop in quality if you choose more moderately priced models. Interference from maritime radio equipment, such as UHF radios, can also cause sound quality to drop.
Power supply issues
Powering your wireless speakers can also be a challenge in marine environments. You have two options—batteries, which can be drained rapidly and require you to keep spare battery supplies on hand, or power wires, which tend to defeat the purpose of choosing wireless speakers. As such, you may wish to stick with wired speakers if you routinely take long, multi-day voyages in your vessel.
For additional advice, contact a company like Tivoli Hi-Fi Pty Ltd.