QuestionI have a 2003 Accord with stock audio equipment. I have had no problem with the speakers in the past but for some reason ran into trouble today. My rear speakers are not making any noise. I turned the balance so all the sound would be in the back just to check and the car is silent. Are my speakers blown? I haven't really played my music any louder and my experience with blown speakers is them just sounding terrible and cracking. I really don't know much about car stereos, could I have blown a fuse or am I probably going to have to get new speakers...If so, could I just get two new 6x9s or do I have to get a new system?
AnswerHi Harmon,
I think the most likely source of your problem is defective speakers, but you can't really rule out a problem with the head unit. If I were troubleshooting your vehicle, I'd probably use a multimeter set to AC volts, and test the voltage on the rear speaker terminals while music was playing. Place one multimeter probe on each terminal at the speaker connection in the trunk. You should get an AC voltage reading that varies with the volume of the music. (This is a case where an analog meter works better than a digital meter; you can watch the needle bob along with the music). If you're getting voltage at the speaker terminals, but no sound from the speaker, the speaker is definitely defective. On the other hand, if you get no voltage reading then there may be a problem with the head unit's output.
You can also test a speaker with a 1.5v battery. Tape a couple wires to the battery terminals; disconnect the speaker, and touch one wire to each speaker terminal. A good speaker should make a popping or crackling noise, and the cone should move, as you touch the battery wires to the terminals.
There are several different ways a speaker can fail. Most commonly, with factory speakers, you'll find a rip in the speaker cone, or the cone may come apart from the speaker basket; or the "surround" around the outside edge of the speaker may rot away. This is what causes the rattling, terrible-sounding speakers you're familiar with. Another way a speaker can fail is an open or shorted voice coil. This is caused by a problem with the wire between the speaker terminals and the voice coil, or a break in the voice coil itself. When this happens, no power can flow through the speaker, and it doesn't make any sound at all. I think this is what's happening with your rear speakers. If you inspect the bottom of the speaker, you should be able to see the "tinsel leads"; bare wires running from the speaker terminals up to the speaker cone. You might see that one of the tinsel leads has broken away from the terminal or cone connections. Unfortunately, this isn't a problem that's easily fixed; the best option is a replacement speaker.
If it turns out that the speakers are bad, you should be able to install any after-market 6x9" speaker in place of the factory speakers. You don't need to replace the other system components.
Hope this helps!
Brian
