Definitive: Cold weather = lower output

[its_bacon12 10+ year member]

X2 I'm pretty tough on my stuff when its cold too, just let it warm up a little bit and let er rip!!!

See the quote below.

Zaph did a study on this and his results were very conclusive and consistent to the OP's.
http://zaphaudio.com/temp.html

Zaph is very respected among the DIY community and his study shows that at 0 degrees, his woofer in review has almost zero output below 200hz, whereas 110 degrees plays the lows with authority.

 

[Cpyder 10+ year member]

Ya, for sure. I started a post like this a while back

http://www.caraudio.com/forum/showthread.php?t=366014&highlight=temperature

I have no doubt that speakers sound different in different temperatures. Plus Zaph's results seem conclusive

 

[Lakota 5,000+ posts]

I lose score when it's really cold...

I also lose score when it's really hot...

 

[Kyle_Keating 10+ year member]

should be louder in the cold, i have done cold weather test using refrigeration, granted it was in a room not a car so there may be other factors such as the amp or car battery, but bottom line is colder air means colder wire temperature which means lower resistance if the wire is aluminum or copper which means higher sensitivity and more SPL over a large portion of the range of your system. - run-on-sentence.....

 

[dman4486 5,000+ posts]

should be louder in the cold, i have done cold weather test using refrigeration, granted it was in a room not a car so there may be other factors such as the amp or car battery, but bottom line is colder air means colder wire temperature which means lower resistance if the wire is aluminum or copper which means higher sensitivity and more SPL over a large portion of the range of your system. - run-on-sentence.....

you should read the techy articles in this thread.....and do realize that the "cold" these guys are talking about is sub 0

retry your testing in a deep freezer instead of a fridge and be sure to set a woofer in the deep freeze overnight before doing any testing

 

[its_bacon12 10+ year member]

should be louder in the cold, i have done cold weather test using refrigeration, granted it was in a room not a car so there may be other factors such as the amp or car battery, but bottom line is colder air means colder wire temperature which means lower resistance if the wire is aluminum or copper which means higher sensitivity and more SPL over a large portion of the range of your system. - run-on-sentence.....

That's just ignorant.. The reduction in resistance doesn't have ANYTHING to do with the lower output - but rather the T/S parameters of the speaker itself changing.

At 0 degrees, Zaph cannot calculate T/S parameters for that speaker at 0 degrees because there is NO impedance peak. Resulting in ZERO bass output below 200 Hz.

 

[brynm 10+ year member]

I don't find much of a difference with my system, I don't usually crank it until I've been driving for 15 minutes or so when it's really cold though

 

[microhaxo 10+ year member]

Currently -20 at the moment, just about to leave for classes.

The sub is a BLOCK of ice. I wont be listening to music for a LONG time it seems.

When it gets warmer though i will post up some videos of my RSDC. I love the thing. I only have 1 and it hits EXTREMELY hard!

 

[sue bee 10+ year member]

I noticed lower output in the cold too. It was about 0 degrees in Boston last night.

 

[mazdakid 5,000+ posts]

So since this guys test is accurate, then im really not hearing my sub play below 200hz? My ears must be playing tricks on me.

 

[dman4486 5,000+ posts]

So since this guys test is accurate, then im really not hearing my sub play below 200hz? My ears must be playing tricks on me.

you are a douche.....don't read into what is stated above....

this thread is about when a coil is very cold....like sub 0 temps.

as soon as you start to play the woofer, it will gain temp and begin to play more normally. What 'that' guy is stating is that when the temp continues to drop below (some temp which I don't know) then the driver's ability to play frequencies below 200hz is hindered.

Now do I believe this? maybe, but I would have to see it for myself

 

[brynm 10+ year member]

My sub still played when it was -50 //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/fyi.gif.9f1f679348da7204ce960cfc74bca8e0.gif

 

[audioholic 5,000+ posts]

This thread has gone from preposterous... to just plain stupid.

 

[brynm 10+ year member]

It turned stupid on page 1, it's now gone into retarded.

 

[microhaxo 10+ year member]

I dont understand how this DOESN'T make sense to you guys

If in fact it were -50 F outside and it stayed at that temperature for a moderate amount of time (6hrs or more) the sub would simply be unable to perform because it would literally be slightly frozen.

The rubber surround would be HARD as a rock and you would be hard pressed to move it..

Why don't you try this out for a test..

Take some 12ga wire and leave it outside for 2 hours when its 0 or below. you pick that wire up and tell me it is malleable..

Same principal for the sub, since the rubber is stiff the cone wont have any excursion, thus just building up heat in the coil.

The test shown before wasn't talking about the COIL, he was talking about the CONE and surround..

Think about it.. How much excursion is needed for 200hz??? Not much but try to do 40hz or 50hz, much much more is needed and since the cone can barely move the cutoff is a cliffhanger at 200hz.