Sony XS-160ES

Prioritize resolution

Sony has a worldwide reputation for making great audio easy to access. So it’s always exciting when they decide to make a product that’s focused on premium car audio, like their flagship XS-160ES 6-1/2″ speakers. I carved out some time to experience their Mobile ES Series for myself at Crutchfield HQ’s Car Audio Listening Lab. Using Hi-res Audio streaming service Qobuz, I listened to some of my favorite albums from female vocalists like Bonnie Raitt and Kate Bush, soundscapes from Daft Punk, and hip-hop from MF DOOM. It’s no exaggeration to say that with every track, I heard texture and detail I’d never heard before. All of those small revelations added up to a bigger, deeper feeling — I felt closer to the music… I felt like I was “there.” If you’re hungering for an audiophile-grade experience in the car, these Hi-res Audio-compatible speakers from Sony are a wonderful way to start.

Specialized woofer

Sony builds the woofer cones of these 6-1/2″ 2-way speakers from a specialized, mica-reinforced cellular aramid fiber. Developed in-house, this lightweight, rigid material minimizes distortion and enhances overall low-frequency response. Sony’s unique, notch-edge surround helps with responsiveness and shrugging off wear and tear over the life of the speaker.

Audiophile tweeter

The speaker’s synthetic fabric dome tweeter delivers frequencies up to 40,000 Hz that, even though they are above the range of human hearing, reveal more texture and detail in your high-resolution audio files and add more realism and atmosphere to instruments and vocals.

The sum of its parts

Sony’s meticulous approach to stamping out distortion wherever it might lurk continues with nearly every other facet of this speaker. The structure of its five-beam frame helps the dispersion of unwanted resonance and the speaker’s integrated dynamic air diffuser promotes essential cooling when the going gets hot. That means you can feed the Mobile ES Series speakers plenty of power from an aftermarket amp and always count on immersive, natural sound.