Best Marine Speakers

The Best Marine Speakers

Marine speakers are designed to withstand the tough marine environment and are available as 6.5, box, tower and other types of the speaker. The acoustics on board a boat are different from other environments and you will require speakers designed for boats. In this article, we want to show you the BEST marine speakers for your boat.

If you are on a budget, the Kenwood KFC-1653MRW 6.5 marine speakers provides excellent value for money with a peak power of 150 watts.

When it comes to the quality of the speakers, you really do get what you pay for and the cheapest option is not always the best. The speaker must be resistant to UV rays, dust, corrosion and water as they will be subject to this environment constantly.

READ ALSO  The Best Marine Stereo

Table of Contents

Best Boat Speakers

Marine Speakers Preview Peak Power
Kenwood KFC-1653MRW 150 Watts
Pioneer TS-MR1600 100 Watts
BOSS Audio MR60W 200 Watts
Kicker KMT674 300 Watts
MCM 60-10031 260 Watts
Kicker KB6000 150 Watts

Updating your marine speaker setup can involve installing a range of speakers from a marine subwoofer, 6.5 speaker, tower, box, and others. Improving the audio system will involve changing a lot of the standard speakers with the latest upgrades.

Choosing marine speakers that have been certified over car speakers that will not survive a day within a marine environment is highly recommended. It may be tempted to save a small amount of money but it’s not worth it.

Choosing the correct speakers can become confusing because they can be mixed with automotive speakers. However, we have done the research for you and below is a list of the best marine speakers that will provide high-quality sound on your boat.

Kenwood KFC1653MRW 6.5 Marine Speakers

most popular marine speakers.


Kenwood is another big audio brand within the automotive and marine industry. The KFC1653MRW 6.5 marine speakers are by far one of the most popular due to their performance and excellent value for money.

Features of the Kenwood KFC1653MRW 6.5 marine speakers include:

  • The peak power rating of 150 watts
  • 50 watts RMS and 4 ohms impedance
  • Rugged polypropylene structure
  • 60 to 20,000 Hz frequency range
  • UV resistant protective speaker grill
  • Injection-molded for additional water resistance

Overall, the Kenwood KFC1653MRW is the best 6.5 marine speakers for the money and are even available as 8-inch speakers. Considering they are reasonably priced, they still provide great performance and build quality.

Check it Out

Pioneer TS-MR1600 6.5 Marine Speakers

reasonably priced marine speakers.


The Pioneer TS-MR1600 are reasonably priced marine speakers that are designed to withstand water, heat, and corrosion. Many cheap alternatives tend to only use a few corrosion-resistant parts and leave some components unprotected, which makes them prone to durability issues.

Features of the Pioneer TS-MR1600 boat speakers include:

  • The peak power rating of 100 watts
  • 25 watts RMS
  • 90 dB sensitivity
  • 4-ohm impedance
  • Dual cone tweeter
  • Uses a water-resistant IMPP composite woofer

Pioneer states that the TS-MR1600 Nautica series uses corrosion-resistant materials for peace of mind. Overall, they are a great all-rounder and priced reasonably compared with other marine speakers of a similar performance rating.

Check it Out

BOSS Audio MR60W Boat Speakers

 Boat Speakers with an impressive range of speakers at low prices.


Boss Audio are gaining more popularity over the last few years due to their impressive range of speakers at low prices. The MR60W boat speakers they produce are weatherproof and are sold in pairs at an affordable price.

Features of the BOSS Audio MR60W boat speakers include:

  • The peak power rating of 200 watts
  • 100 watts RMS
  • The impedance of 4 Ohms
  • Poly injection cone and Mylar tweeter
  • Aluminum voice coil that is corrosion resistant

The speakers provide a fair amount of bass but the quality may not be as good due to the low cost of this model. These boat speakers are cheap but don’t think they will be of poor quality. The fact that BOSS audio provides a 3-year dealer warranty should give you peace of mind.

Check it Out

Kicker KMT674 Marine Speaker Tower System

best wake tower speakers.


Marine tower speakers attach to the wakeboard tower of your boat and are much more powerful than the standard 6.5 marine speakers. All that is required to install them is a 3-inch mounting that can be mounted above or below the bar.

Features of the Kicker KMT674 Marine Speaker Tower System include:

  • The peak power rating of 300 watts
  • 150 watts RMS
  • UV treated components
  • Water-resistant design
  • Sealed cones and motor assemblies

Overall, the Kicker KM, T674 system is the best wake tower speakers for the money without spending serious amounts of money with the like of the Wet Sounds Revolution series alternatives, which cost thousands.

Check it Out

MCM Custom Audio Wake Tower Speakers

 cheaper alternative Wake Tower Speakers.


The MCM Custom Audio marine wake tower speaker system is a cheaper alternative to the Kicker setup above. However, this does not mean that quality has dropped because they are built to last with a heavy-duty construction.

Features of the MCM Custom Audio 60-10031 includes:

  • Peak power of 260 watts
  • RMS 130 watts
  • 8-inch poly cone woofer
  • Titanium dome tweeter
  • Available in black or white
  • The sensitivity of 91 dB
  • Heavy-duty ABS case and mount

Considering that these two speakers can be bought for less than $100 dollars, they are definitely the best cheap wakeboarding speakers available. If you were looking to improve the sound quality further, you could connect these speakers to an amplifier.

Check it Out

Kicker KB6000 Marine Box Speakers

 very popular Marine Box Speakers in the US.

Marine box speakers are another type of speaker setup that can be angled in a range of angles. This KB600 series by Kicker is very popular in the US due to its high-quality audio from a full range speaker.

Features of the Kicker KB6000 Marine Box Speakers include:

  • The peak power rating of 150 watts
  • 75 watts RMS
  • Available in black or white
  • 12 dB octave low-pass crossover
  • Can be used in alternative applications

If you are after sound quality over bass, these will do the job with a 12-decibel octave low-pass crossover with impedance compensation. The boxy design means that they are easy to fit anywhere for your marine application.

Overall, they are the best marine box speakers for the money and provide good performance at a relatively small cost.

Check it Out

Marine Speakers Buying Guide

What to Look For in The Marine Speakers

Improving the audio quality and bass on your boat will require marine speakers that are designed for the rough marine environment.

It can be a fairly confusing topic when deciding on which speakers are required for your boat but our buying guide will help debunk myths and give you a brief overview.

Location of the Marine Speakers

Marine speakers come in a range of styles and sizes and you must decide where you want the speaker to be placed. The reason for this is because it must be proportional to the space you want to cover the sound too.

It must amplify clearly around the cabin or if it is on the deck, it must cancel out the wind noise. On top of this, you do not want it placed somewhere that is going to get covered in water.

When choosing the placement, you must remember that there will be wiring required and the speakers will get their power from the marine battery. Therefore, if they are up high, the wires will be clearly visible to anyone on the boat.

However, if you are able to box up areas of the boat, you can install marine speakers virtually anywhere inside the boat.

For example, below we fitted speakers to the front of the boat with a slight tilt to amplify the music towards the passengers of the boat.

placement of marine battery speakers.

What the Difference?

Understanding the difference between automotive and marine speakers is a common question that we are asked regularly.

They are not simply white speakers slapped with a certificate as it goes much further than that because they must be able to withstand salt, spray, UV, wide-ranging temperatures and much more.

Marine speakers are made from a more heavy-duty material to survive the marine environment. For example, instead of the paper cones used in the standard speaker, a marine rated speaker will use a plastic, which can withstand moisture.

Additional components such as rubber surrounds will be used for protection too.

As salt and metals don’t mix well, the majority of metal used is of higher quality and protected by the grill of the speaker.

Types of Marine Speakers

When it comes to the different types of marine speakers, the main ones include recessed/6.5 speaker, box and tower marine speakers. They all have separate benefits, installations, and quality of sound.

We have covered all of the best marine speakers of each type in this article for those looking to perform an overhaul of their audio system.

The recessed speaker is the most common form and can be installed virtually anywhere inside your boat from the dash, floor, seats and much more.

The most common form is usually 6.5 inches in diameter and they can have varying performance ratings depending upon your budget.

Marine tower speakers are much more powerful than 6.5 marine speakers and attach to a boat’s wake tower. They can be targeted to face the person on an inflatable towable or water skis or towards the direction of the boat passengers.

Finally, marine box speakers are fairly simple and can be installed in a range of locations around the boat. They can also be angled in different directions, unlike the likes of a recessed speaker.

Clarity of the Speakers

Unlike a car, which only needs to deal with engine and road noise, marine speakers have far more to deal with.

You can improve the clarity instantly by installing a marine amplifier but if the speakers are of poor quality, there won’t be much of an improvement.

All of our recommendations are designed to output high and low bass without becoming distorted. This means you can switch the volume right up without worry about distortion.

The Best Marine Speakers 2019

Power Handling

Not all marine speakers are the same and some provide a much higher power output than others. However, you cannot fit the most powerful marine speaker you can find without matching it against the power your receiver or amplifier can handle.

If you choose one that is too high, you can end up blowing them and causing damage to your new expensive marine speakers.

Check the maximum power output of the speakers you buy and compare it against the stereos channels.

On top of the maximum power output, you must also consider the continuous power (RMS). The higher the values of these two ratings, will ultimately result in better quality and loud audio output.

Premium brands will often have a higher output of both values, where other cheaper brands will aim to impress you with a high peak power rating.

Other Components

You simply cannot upgrade two marine speakers and expect miracles to happen. Along with the speakers, you must consider the bass and quality of the sound, which will require a subwoofer and an upgraded amplifier.

However, so many people forget the most important aspect, which is the marine stereo.

Improving the wiring may be a good option too if you are planning a complete overhaul of your audio system.

Building an audio system for your boat from scratch can be a great project and make a world of difference.

marine tower speaker that has sensitivity.

Specification of the Speaker

Alongside the peak power rating and the RMS, there are various other ratings given to a speaker. One such rating is the sensitivity of the speaker, which is specified in decibels.

The lower the sensitivity, the more power that must be input into the speaker.

The frequency response is specified by kHz and determines the type of audio coming from the speakers, which include deep low bass and the much higher frequencies.

Conclusion

Whether you are planning a boat party or simply enjoy blasting music whilst on your boat, upgrading your marine speakers is an affordable and effective modification for your boat. All our recommendations within this article are certain to improve the quality and bass on your boat.

It may be tempting to choose a cheaper automotive car speaker but we highly advise not to. The durability of marine speakers cannot be matched and you are able to blast music no matter the weather.

In terms of the number of marine speakers you actually need on your boat, it really does depend on the size of your boat.

Many people will just install two 6.5 marine speakers to the dash but those with a wakeboard tower will also install additional speakers onto that.

Those that have large boats may find themselves buying 10 or more speakers with additional subwoofers and amplifiers.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIh3aRg9n84

What Are Your Thoughts?

  1. I tried some of the speakers from your list but my personal choice is Kenwood 6.5″ Marine Boat Speakers. I have these on my boat for some time and they do the job very well.

    1. Hey George,

      Indeed – my personal favorite is the Kenwood 6.5 inch and they are the best rated marine boat speakers in this article. However, some of the others do have their own benefits but this is all down to your budget and what you need from the speakers themselves

  2. I have the Wet Sounds SW-650 and they are great. I know these are a bit expensive but if you want quality music you must have these on your boat.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *