When the shucking boxes are piled high with scallops, the traps and pots are full of lobster and crab, or the nets are full of salmon, you gotta have sound. You have to rock the boat with whatever genre the captain or crew want, as long as there’s music it makes the work go easier.
But the music needs to sound good, and that depends on the speakers. Brands like Wet Sounds, Stillwater Designs’ Kicker series, Garmin’s JL Audio and Fusion series, Jensen, and Bose all offer hard-wired systems that generally provide good sound and are built with “marine grade” durability.
“I like the Bose 151SE,” says Newport, Rhode Island fisherman, Doug Lucier, who has the system on his 40-foot dragger. “They’re old school, but they crank!” Lucier’s Bose 151Se speakers can be hardwired to an amp and are usually mounted with mounting brackets. According to Bose dealer Pro Acoustics, the 151SE speakers each have “three 2½" full-range drivers arranged to deliver full stereo sound across a much wider area than conventional outdoor speakers.” Pro Acoustics adds that the speakers have been tested to withstand salt fog (passing twice the marine industry standard), high humidity, rain, snow, and extreme temperatures from -40°F to 158°F, and come with a five-year warranty.
Another New Englander, Jonesport, Maine, lobsterman, Austin Houghton, has opted for Cerwin Vega 6x9 marine speakers. Designed specifically for the rigors of the marine environment, the Cerwin Vega speakers are made with a water-resistant, UV-coated, composite paper cone seated in a high-temperature composite basket. “I used a rubber-coated speaker box going on 4 years now,” says Houghton.
Other brands of hard-wired speakers like the Stillwater Designs Kicker KM series are built with coated steel baskets that resist corrosion, and reviewers say they produce high-quality sound. They are specifically built for saltwater exposure and reported to still be “looking and sounding new despite daily saltwater exposure after three years on a fishing boat.”
The Kicker, the JL Audio M series, and the Wet Sounds Rev all have IP65 and IP66 ratings, which means they can withstand forced spray and dust. These are the speakers you want if you are on a Bering Sea crabber, Newfoundland shrimp boat, or similar vessel that encounters extreme weather and temperature conditions. All of these premium speakers are built with corrosion resistant materials like polymer grilles, synthetic rubber surrounds, and tinned components that are tested to exceed international standards and not crack, fade, or corrode even with prolonged exposure to harsh environments.
Another well-known name in sound systems, Pioneer, also makes 40-watt marine-grade speakers, and Deer Island, New Brunswick fisherman, Judson Mitchell. “Music is a big part of our work scene,” says Mitchell. “We have lots of lucky playlists that we put on when things aren’t going great. Christmas music is always the last resort.” Mitchell had four Pioneer 8.5-inch speakers on his old boat, the Half Mine. “They sounded good,” he says. “But my new boat, the Lexus Arlene, has a crazy system, with Kicker speakers; it’s got two 12-inch subs and more speakers than I can count.”
“I put Garmin Fusion speakers in the Phosphorescence,” says Cam Hagan, of Homer, Alaska. “They are awesome. I have two in the wheelhouse and two on deck. The outside ones are up in the mast, and the only thing I’d do different is position them a little lower. Which I might do if I build another boat.”
But many fishermen opt for battery-powered Bluetooth speakers that can go wherever they’re needed and be installed with a bungee cord. “I like the JBL Bluetooth, with sub extension,” says Scott Fitzgerald on Campobello Island not far from Mitchell. “It’s rechargeable, but after about 3 or 4 hours it needs to be plugged in to 110 AC.”
Tim Rider, who runs his 47-foot scallop and groundfish boat out of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, has fallen behind with his system. “I’m getting ready to upgrade,” says Rider. “A lot of guys these days are going for these big loud boxes that you can connect with Bluetooth. That’s what I’m going to do. You can go to BJ’s warehouse and Costco, and get them for a couple of hundred dollars.” Rider adds that he has a JBL barrel in his processing facility and that it will blow the doors off the place when he listens to Hair Rock on Sirius and Spotify. “I’m going to put a pair on the boat,” he says. “They’re great, no wiring and you can just run the sound off your iPhone.”
The big box Bluetooth category also includes Ecoxgear speakers, many of which have an IP68 rating, meaning they can withstand shallow submersion. The Ecoxgear Ultra, with an IP67 rating, is the brand’s most powerful portable marine model, pumping out sound at 121 decibels—the equivalent of a small airplane engine.
On the high end of Bluetooth speakers, Sonos offers its Roam and Play speakers, which also have IP67 ratings. “I have a Sonos system on my boat, the Kaitiaki,” says British Columbia prawn fisherman Mark Urwin. “You gotta have good sound while working!”
A new introduction from the German company, Teufel, offers solid sound at a more economical price. “It’s the Fender x Teufel Rockster Go 2,” says Teufel PR agent Morgan Alexander. “It’s got an IP67 rating, which means it’s resistant to dust and spray, and it can be submerged for 30 minutes and still work.”
Alexander points out that the Go2 has two wide-band drivers in a stereo arrangement made of lightweight, stiff aluminum. “And the middle houses a subwoofer, which puts out ultra-deep bass in high quality,” she says. “And you can keep rocking at temps as low as 15 degrees.”
The price point also makes the GO2 attractive, Alexander notes. “It sells for $99, and a lot of times it’s on sale so you can get $10 or $20 off that price,” she says.
The connection with guitar and amplifier manufacturer Fender is in the design of the 8.27-inch wide, 4.33-inch high, and 2.36-inch deep Rockster GO2, Alexander explains. “The design is inspired by Fender’s classic guitars and amps,” she says.
The Fender x Teufel Rockster GO 2 runs on a single rechargeable lithium-ion battery that Teufel expects to provide 16 hours of sound, and as many as 28 hours of play in Eco Mode at medium volume. The company adds that the USB-C charging port “means you can go from 0 back to 100 in no time.” No time may be a bold claim; reviewers report a 2.5 to 3-hour charge time using a 60-watt, fast charger.
The options are many, and the Fender x Teufel Rockster Go 2 expands them. Alexander reports good reviews coming in, and she hopes that at the often discounted price, more fishermen will give the Rockster GO2 a go.
For big boats operating in the rough waters of higher latitudes, however, the hard-wired systems may be the most durable and powerful options, but it would appear, based on comments from many fishermen, that Bluetooth speakers are growing in popularity, and the growing number of options in that category means that manufacturers have noticed and are moving to meet the demand.
