What is speaker crossover? Principle of operation and types of popular speaker circuit crossovers today

Speaker crossover is a specialized term used in electronic devices such as speakers, stereos, etc. It helps to protect speakers, cut frequencies to bring good sound quality when used. So what is speaker crossover? The principle of operation of the speaker circuit crossover like. Let’s find out more details with Tnhelearning.edu.vn through the following article!

What is speaker crossover?

An electronic circuit board consisting of resistors, capacitors and inductors each operating with a separate function is called a speaker crossover. The crossover has the function to cut frequencies, filter the sound, to bring quality sound to the user. At the same time, it is also suitable for all types of speakers such as bass, mid and treble.

Speaker crossover is not only suitable for use with the above speakers, but also suitable for 2-3-way speakers, full-range speakers, full speakers, subwoofers,… Purpose of speaker crossover is very important in protect and cut audio frequencies for speakers.

In other words, a crossover is an audio filter or different audio signals. After that, the sound will be filtered out in about 2-3 bands to match each different speaker line.

Working principle of speaker circuit crossover

The operating principle of the speaker circuit crossover depends on the components that make up the control circuit board, which are resistors, inductors and capacitors. Each part will take on a different task and function.

Resistor

The resistor has an extremely important task in the treble speaker device, which has the feature of reducing the amperage going through the speaker and protecting the speaker from fire and explosion when operating with high power. Treble speakers have a higher operating frequency than other types of speakers, so the electromagnetic coil will usually be wrapped in many layers with an extremely small wire size.

The load capacity of the treble speakers is low, because most of the electromagnetic coils of the treble speakers are made of copper and are small in size . Therefore, the resistor must reduce the intensity of the power passing through to improve the life of the device.

Inductor

An indispensable component in the speaker circuit crossover is the inductor. It has the function of blocking high audio frequencies and allowing only low frequencies to pass through.

In other words, the component will remove the high frequencies and retain the low frequencies so that the separate bass speaker works better. If the bass speaker has a large capacity , the inductor must be large in size to avoid the speaker’s explosion and inefficient operation.

Capacitor

Capacitors are indispensable in speaker crossovers, because they help block low-frequency sounds , so that high-frequency sounds can pass through easily. Contrary to the duty of the inductor, only the high frequencies pass through and retain the low frequencies so that the treble speakers work well.

The reason that the capacitor suppresses the low frequency sound is because the low sound has a lot of energy, so it is easy to explode the speaker, especially the treble speaker.

How many types of speaker crossovers?

Speaker crossovers have two main types: 2-way crossovers and 3-way crossovers.

2-way crossover

In speaker lines with 1 bass speaker and 1 treble speaker, a 2-way crossover is used. For speakers used to sing karaoke, the cutoff frequency of the 2-way crossover is about 5600 Hz .

In addition, the speakers used to listen to music, bluetooth speakers are equipped with a cutoff frequency of the 2-way crossover of about 3200 Hz .

3-way crossover

In speaker lines using 1 bass speaker, 1 mid speaker and 1 treble speaker, 3-way crossovers are applied. Each speaker is equipped with different cut-off frequencies as follows:

• 20 Hz – 1500 Hz: Bass speaker.
• 1500 Hz – 7000 Hz: Mid speaker.
• 7000 Hz – 17000 Hz: Treble speaker.

Why should use speaker circuit crossover?

The active speaker circuit crossover in each speaker is different, because each speaker device has a completely different structure. The crossover for each speaker is different because they have different operating frequencies, sizes, materials, and manufacturers.

However, the speaker circuit crossover has the common task of protecting the speaker, increasing the life of the product and bringing good sound quality to the user. If the manufacturer does not equip the speaker crossover, the product is not protected, it is easy to explode during operation and misbehave with the pre-set function, typically the treble speaker.

At the same time, the circuit crossover also affects the output sound quality. The device that wants to bring great sound quality, the speaker circuit and speaker must be synchronized with each other. If they are out of sync, the resulting negative range will be out of phase. In particular, the sound quality is not good and can be harmful to the speakers.

Hopefully, the above article will help you understand more about speaker crossovers and the operating principle of speaker circuit crossovers to choose a suitable and quality speaker. Any questions please leave a comment below!