Got noise?

If you're experiencing a rattle or buzz from your speakers, it may be due to some debris or a loose mount. Remove your speaker, shake it out, and reattach it, making sure to secure the screws. If you still hear a rattling, your speaker may have a loose part, or your driver might be blown.

Use speaker baffles or a Dynamat kit to cut down on extraneous noise.

Dynamat

For optimal noise dampening, try a speaker baffle or a Dynamat kit. For more on speaker baffles, see "Environmental damage" below. Dynamat's noise-reducing technology stifles speaker rattle, engine rumble, road noise, and any other noises that might emanate from a metal environment. Dynamat allows your bass to thunder boldly and your highs to soar clearly, while eliminating competition from extraneous sounds. You can purchase Dynamat kits for your door, trunk, speaker, license frame, or bulk matting.

Bass blockers can help relieve strain on small front speakers.

Speaker Distortion

Do you hear annoying distortion? If so, your speakers probably can't handle the pressure supplied by your amp or receiver. Check the RMS ratings given for your speakers and your amp or receiver. They should match, or the amp or receiver should have a lower rating than the speakers. You can install a set of bass blockers to reduce strain on your component speakers. Bass blockers send the lowest frequencies to the rear speakers, which usually handle bass pressure the best.

Be consistent with how you attach wires to your speaker terminals to avoid phase distortions.

Out of phase

If your bass sounds weaker on one side of the car than another, you may have attached a set of speaker wires to the wrong set of terminals. Simply reverse the leads on one set of terminals of the weak speaker. As long as you're consistent, it does not matter which terminal you designate positive or negative.

Speaker baffles are also a great way to minimize damage to a speaker resulting from dust or moisture.

Environmental damage

A vehicle endures all weather conditions — wet, dry, hot, and cold. That means your speakers must, too. Moisture causes speaker damage. If you find your speaker performs poorly in certain weather conditions, you may try a set of speaker baffles. These soft foam surrounds not only seal out moisture, they also protect the speaker against dust and dirt, and block road noise at the same time. If your speakers perform well, you can still use speaker baffles to prevent future environmental damage.

Shorting out

Baffles can also prevent your speakers from shorting out. Mounting your speakers close to metal sometimes results in inadvertent contact between the speaker and the metal, causing a short. Speaker baffles create a barrier between the speaker and the metal, eliminating the problem. You can also prevent shorts by wrapping the speaker terminals with electrical tape.