mans gotta have sounds in his digger.

Have had a fair read of posts on the search but clearly this is a complex subject.

Today I instaled a basic system in my digger for the boss after much hasseling and it sounds crap.

After 26 (of 40) on the volume its distorting (clipping) real bad.

The HU spec:      Is 18w x 4 power output (50w x4 Max P) speaker impedance  4-8 ohms

Speaker spec:     Peak power 170w Rated power 40w, 4 ohms

The speakers are fitted to a seald box solidly secured in the cab.

My question is would I get less clipping if I up the resistance by adding another 2 speakers of 4 ohms in series to the front speaker wiring giving better sound and louder or would I be better of just adding the 2 other speakers to the rear wiring?

Thanks

DGP

Simple solution here, you are expecting too much from too little. You need a amplifier rated between 30w - 50w rms x 2. What you are finding is that the tiny little amplifier in the cd player is struggling to produce power, your requirements for sustained volume levels are beyond that of the tiny little amp built into the cd player. When a amp runs out of clean power, the point of clipping, it produces distortion that your speakers will faithfully reproduce until they succumb to smelly speaker syndrome (SSS). Upping the resistance is going to leave you with even less power on tap and make the situation that much worse. Adding another set of speakers is a good idea as yes it will make things louder, however, it will also still leave you with the same problem that you have now. Another suggestion here is to use larger speakers that can handle more low frequency information as compared to the 4" (I am guestimating) that you are using now.

Thanks for response guys.

It is a Kobelco SR25 II with a seald cab. As a system for the operator what I have installed is fine, but in our line of work the digger might work for 1 or 2 hours then sit on site for the rest of the day. For this reason we would like to be able to crank it up as a site stereo. It seems all the younger guys these day have I-Pods so I figured if I gave them good sounds I might get more work out of them.

I guess I was suprised after spending the best part of 1/2 a day fitting this thing and doing what I considered a good job it wouldent go much over 1/2 throttel.

It is a Panasonic CQ-C3303W HU and Sanyo 6 1/2 inch 2-way speakers XS-GF1621X.

As yet I have not brought more speakers as I thought I would wait and see what you all think. Any recomendations?

Realisticly I could get away with spending another $200.00 nz on the job.

Thanks

DGP

In the CAT's here I'm using fusion 6" 2 way box speakers and they seem to be doing the job quite nicely.  Mainly in the 247, 248 and 226 range.

Where you from?  I'm from Christchurch originally.