Can You Damage Speakers by Playing Them Too Loud?

Everyone loves bouncy music, and if you are a bass lover, I can imagine that you like to treble the whole environment that you may be in by increasing the volume of your speakers, oh the nice feeling of the volume control, I feel you.

Speakers are the most needed piece of sound equipment for somebody, and as some say, speakers should be a once-in-a-lifetime purchase.

Whenever you listen to music with speakers, there comes a time when you want to turn up the volume above 100%, and I can feel you in many ways, especially when your favorite music is on! Still, there is an important question that many people ask and are concerned about: “Can you damage speakers by playing them too loud?”

Well, you are at the right place at the right time! In this article/blog you will be able to find informational content regarding the question asked above!

Without further ado, let me get straight to the point and to the main topic!

How Do Speakers Work?

Without understanding how any device works, you will never be able to understand what may harm or cause damage to them, right? It goes the same with speakers as well.

The main parts of a speaker are the diaphragm, the suspension, the voice coil, and the magnet. The main reason for a blown speaker can be a damaged voice coil so yes, always pay attention to the voice coils of your speakers.

Speakers work with mechanical and electrical energy. The electrical energy is converted into mechanical energy by the motion of the main parts (mentioned above). The mechanical energy works with air and converts it into motion and creates sound pressure levels. 

The definition above is completely related to how the volume works as well. Whenever there is more volume based on the percentage, the higher the volume there is more movement and vice versa.

Can You Damage Speakers by Playing Them Too Loud?

The simplest answer to this question is definitely yes, loud music damage speakers. How loud music plays a really big role at an audio device, I mean the loud music won’t damage it in an instant but it sure will in the future and by prolonged use.

A speaker can be easily damaged if you listen to music at loud volume nonstop. When I say loud volume I mean above 90%.

Anyways, there is never such thing as a simple answer, right? Here I will mention some important things known as the main elements that cause damage to your speakers regarding the volume increment. Those things are as follows:

Heat

Whenever you listen to music with your speakers (in any volume percentage) there is heat running around in the inner parts of the speakers. That heat that is caused by the movement of the main parts can easily damage the drivers of particular speakers that you may be using and most importantly, the heat causes damage to the driver coil which is a component used in drivers to increase speaker performance in many applications to the peak power.

Power Rating

Every speaker owns its power rating which is measured in wattage. Whatever power rating a speaker has you should consider it as the main limit in which you cannot go further on with the volume.

That can only mean one thing: Never surpass the wattage that the speaker owns because there will definitely be caused a lot of heat and catastrophic damage to the speaker’s parts.

How to notice if the speakers are damaged by loud volume?

If you think about the things that I mentioned above, there will definitely be damage to your speakers but still, there are some ways that you can kind of control them and notice the damage easier.

If you doubt that your speakers are damaged you can assure yourself by taping the cone that the speaker owns, If there is a rare rattling sound then I am sorry but your speakers are definitely damaged. Some other ways to tell whether the speakers are damaged are distortion, no vibration of any kind, no proper frequencies of sound, and no clarity at all.

In other words, speakers that are damaged by a high volume are also called blown speakers. Blown Speakers – Speakers that don’t work properly or don’t work at all

What Are Other Elements That Could Cause Harm to Speakers?

Loud volume isn’t the only thing that can cause damage to your speakers and that’s the main fact that should definitely be known.

I know that this article is related to the volume, but I can’t stop myself but mentioning some main things.

Too Much Bass

This isn’t all about that bass! I am going to say sorry to all the bass lovers here, but too much bass can harm your speakers as well! Bass is vibration, vibration is movement, and movement is heat! As you already know, the heat of the speakers can be caused by many things.

Bad Connectivity

Some speakers are wired and some are wireless. that doesn’t really have to do with this part, right? Well, it definitely does! If you are using wired speakers you should always check out and take care of the cables, adapters, and the ports of the devices that you are using them with. In case you are using wireless ones you should always, but always have in mind the version that it works at, let it be WiFi or Bluetooth.

Dirt and Moisture

Clean, clean, clean! Always keep your speakers clean of dirt. Whenever there’s a little bit of dirt in your speakers the damages come faster and your speakers cannot be used anymore.

When I say clean I don’t mean pour water on them! Use dry rags whenever you want to clean them because speakers cannot withstand the moisture of any kind (unless they own an IP rating). Moisture is the worst enemy!

Final Words, Conclusion

Just as I mentioned at the beginning of this article, speakers are supposed to be items that are purchased once in a lifetime. That’s why a person should be very careful when they use them and how they use them.

I really hope that this article will be your biggest help in case you have been asking yourselves whether volume, the loud one, can damage your speakers.

I don’t think there’s something else left, in this case, I would advise you to take care of your speakers, guys!

Further Reading

Here comes the greatest alternatives for recording vocals with headphones, and AptX low latency headphones that don’t get damaged easily.

Find out whether you can wear headphones while surfing or while cycling.

I assume you have damaged your headphones or any noise disturbs you a lot at work, then check out these extreme noise-canceling headphones for super loud machinery.