Bad speaker distortion

[Turnt Audio 10+ year member]

I just put a new clarion cz202 head unit (19w RMS per speaker) in my car, connected to Polk mm571 front speakers only. These speakers sounded awesome in my other car with a Kenwood head unit (one of their best excelons). Now they sound terrible, have no bass, and distort very bad at 3/4 volume. I even used new kicker wiring to run from the head unit to the speakers because the stock harness was a mess. I've never dealt with distortion in any of my installs. But I've used better head units every time. So is the problem caused by the head unit being too weak?

I thought 19w RMS was enough to at least not have distortion this bad?

I dobt want to spend any more $$ on this car so no amp this time.

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[trumpet 5,000+ posts]

Are you listening to good quality recordings? It's normal for the internal amplifier to get badly distorted well before max volume. The preouts are probably not clipping or just barely clipping.

 

[Turnt Audio 10+ year member]

The music is off my ipod through USB so yes its good quality. the speakers are hooked up directly to the head unit with the unit's wiring harness

 

[trumpet 5,000+ posts]

How are the speakers installed? What vehicle are you talking about?

 

[pro-rabbit 5,000+ posts]

The limited power does not create distortion. However, bad settings and clipping can.

 

[_S7V7N_ 10+ year member]

Has a few options, here's the list i found: (Toggle through them and turn them off.)

General Features:

In-dash AM/FM, CD, MP3, WMA player with Remote

iPod and iPhone connection, control, and playback via USB

Pandora Internet Radio station link with smartphone and app

Theft-deterrent, detachable face plate

Power Output:

Peak: 45 watts x 4 channels

RMS: 18 watts x 4 channels

CEA-2006 compliant amplifier

White single line LCD text display

Blue illuminated button lighting

Highly visible display during daytime

Human-Machine Interface (H.M.I.) provides a convenient starburst design and intuitive operation

Integral rotary volume for complete volume control

Wireless remote control included

CD text information display

MP3 ID3 Tag Display (Title/Artist/Album)

__________________________ Start Here, Read the Manual

Playback and Audio Features:

 

Playback of CD, CD-R, CD-RW, MP3, and WMA

AM/FM tuner with 18FM/6AM presets

BeatEQ 3-band equalizer with 5 selectable tone curves (4 preset, 1 user)

On-board Low-Pass Filter (LPF) for enhanced subwoofer connectivity and playback

Magna Bass EX dynamic bass enhancement

Subwoofer level volume control