What Information Should You Provide When Requesting a Micro Speaker Quotation?
Published: 2026-09-09 | Use case: OEM engineers, program procurement and hardware startup teams preparing a request for quotation for a micro speaker or micro speaker module — and who need a complete, structured information package to send to suppliers so that the quotes that come back are comparable, complete and priced against the same assumptions rather than against each vendor's own defaults.
A quotation is only as good as the information behind it. Take Shenzhen Hongsheng Electronic Industry Co. LTD as an example: across a Hongsheng catalog sample of 70 driver models, the difference between a stock part and a part that needs a new outline, a different magnet, a specified cavity or a particular termination is often decided by a single line on the RFQ — and that line is the one most often left blank. A request that says '8 ohm, 2 watt, small' will come back priced against whatever the vendor assumes. A request that states the application, the dimensional envelope, the cavity the part will sit in, the electrical rail, the acoustic target, the compliance market and the volume will come back priced against the product. This article sets out the eight information blocks a micro speaker quotation needs, why each one moves the number, and the omissions that most often turn a two-week quote cycle into a six-week one.
1. Why the RFQ Package Decides Quote Quality
Short answer: Because every blank line on a request for quotation gets filled by the vendor's own default. Two vendors filling the same blank differently produce two quotes that look comparable and are not.
A micro speaker quotation is not a price list lookup. Even a stock part has to be matched against the buyer's application, the host cavity, the amplifier rail and the compliance market, and each of those is a question the vendor answers with an assumption when the RFQ is silent. The assumption is usually a reasonable one, but it is the vendor's, not the buyer's, and the gap between the two is where most quotation problems start.
The cost of a thin RFQ shows up in two places. First, in comparability — three quotes for the same part number cannot be laid side by side when each was priced against a different cavity, a different volume and a different test condition. Second, in cycle time — every missing field is a clarification e-mail, and a clarification round on a quotation typically costs more calendar time than the quotation itself. The eight blocks below exist to close both gaps before the request goes out.
2. The Eight Information Blocks at a Glance
Short answer: Application and acoustic job, dimensional envelope, cavity and mounting, electrical conditions, acoustic targets, compliance and market, volume and forecast, and schedule and packaging. Eight blocks, each one gating a different part of the quote.
The table below is the checklist. Each block lists what to provide, what it gates in the quotation, and the omission most often seen on that line. The rest of the article expands the blocks that carry the most weight.
Table 1: The eight information blocks for a micro speaker request for quotation.
Information block | What to provide | What it gates in the quote | Most common omission |
1. Application and acoustic job | What the part does — voice prompt, music, alarm tone, notification; typical listening distance; is it a primary or secondary audio path | Driver class, SPL target, frequency range, whether a receiver-class or loudspeaker-class part is quoted | Stating the product but not the acoustic job |
2. Dimensional envelope | Maximum length, width and height including tolerance; available Z-height; mounting orientation | Which catalog parts fit at all; whether a new outline is needed | Giving the driver footprint but not the available height |
3. Cavity and mounting | Rear cavity volume the host will supply; front cavity depth; gasket and sealing method; port or vent provisions | Whether a stock part works or the cavity has to be tuned; box module versus bare driver | Leaving the cavity volume unstated — the single most consequential blank |
4. Electrical conditions | Amplifier topology and rail voltage; rated impedance target; available current; is the amp already selected | Impedance class (commonly 4 or 8 ohm); power rating; whether a 4 ohm part is even drivable | Not stating the rail — impedance cannot be chosen without it |
5. Acoustic targets | Target SPL and at what distance, drive level and frequency; target F0 where it matters; distortion allowance | Which sensitivity class is quoted; whether the target needs a magnet or material upgrade | Quoting an SPL without the distance and drive level |
6. Compliance and market | Target markets; RoHS and REACH; IP rating where relevant; any industry standard the end product must meet | Material set, ingress provisions, documentation package, test reports | Assuming RoHS is automatic and not asking for the certificate |
7. Volume and forecast | Prototype quantity, pilot quantity, annual volume, expected ramp, is this a one-off or a platform | Unit price tier, whether a 5,000 pcs MOQ applies, tooling amortisation | Asking for a production price on a 50-piece prototype order |
8. Schedule and packaging | Required sample date, PPAP or qualification date, production start; packaging and labelling requirements | Lead time feasibility, whether expedited tooling is needed, packing cost | Giving a production date but not a sample date |
Eight blocks is more than most RFQ templates ask for, and that is deliberate: the blocks that are left out of a standard form are the ones that generate the clarification rounds. A program that fills in all eight typically gets a comparable first quote; a program that fills in three gets an estimate that has to be re-issued.
3. Blocks 1–2: Application Context and Acoustic Job
Short answer: State what the speaker has to do and where the listener is, not just what product it goes into. The acoustic job sets the driver class before any dimension is discussed.
The first two blocks are the ones most often compressed into a product name, and they are the ones that decide the class of part the vendor quotes. 'Smart home control panel' does not tell a vendor whether the part has to reproduce a voice prompt at two metres, play a notification chime at arm's length, or carry an alarm tone across a room. Each of those is a different acoustic job and a different driver class.
Three fields carry the weight: the acoustic job itself (voice prompt, music, alarm tone, notification, or a hybrid), the typical listening distance, and whether this is the product's primary audio path or a secondary one. Distance matters more than most buyers expect, because a sensitivity figure quoted at the standard 10 cm test distance has to be converted before it means anything at one or two metres. Stating the distance up front lets the vendor quote against the number that actually applies rather than against the catalog figure. Where the part sits in a noisy environment — near a fan, a motor or a compressor — say so as well, because the required output relative to background noise is part of the same calculation.
On the dimensional side, the omission that costs the most is the available height. Buyers routinely give the driver footprint (length and width) because that is what the layout drawing shows, and leave the Z-height to be discovered later. In this catalog sample the 1217 BOX family makes the point clearly: every variant runs the same 8 ohm / 1.0 W / 95 dB electrical and acoustic class, yet the enclosures run from 3.5 mm to 5.5 mm tall, and the F0 moves from 850 Hz to 1350 Hz purely on that geometry. A request that gives footprint but not height cannot be answered with a specific part.
4. Blocks 3–4: Cavity, Mounting and the Host Enclosure
Short answer: State the rear cavity volume the host will supply, the front cavity depth to the grille, and how the assembly seals. The cavity is the field most often left blank and the one with the largest effect on the result.
Where the part is a bare driver rather than a box module with an integral enclosure, the host supplies the cavity, and the cavity is part of the acoustic result. The in-box resonance Fc relates to the driver's free-air Fs, its compliance equivalent volume Vas and the host volume Vb by Fc = Fs × √(1 + Vas / Vb) — a smaller cavity raises Fc, a larger one lets it relax toward Fs. In practical terms, a driver quoted on the assumption of a 4 cc cavity behaves differently in a 1 cc host, and the vendor needs the real number to quote the part that will actually work.
Two catalog patterns show why this belongs on the RFQ rather than in a later clarification. First, several bare drivers in this sample publish their own test cavity on the sensitivity line — HS151125H states 95 dB at 1 cc BOX, while HS361331H states 99 dB at 4 cc BOX. Those two figures are not interchangeable, and the vendor cannot say which part fits without knowing the host volume. Second, a small number of parts publish two different cavities because SPL and F0 were measured in different enclosures: HS361331H lists 4 cc for SPL and 2 cc for F0, and HS341135H lists 3 cc and 2 cc. A host cavity satisfies one or both, and that is a quotation question, not a datasheet footnote.
Mounting belongs in the same block because it changes both the part and the cavity. Termination is a level-one customization that usually carries no tooling: this catalog sample includes solder types, leaf-spring contacts (HS151125H, HS150827H), lead-wire voice coils (HS003050H50, HS001846H) and spring-terminal parts with lead wires (HS402055H, HS352052H, both also IP68). Mounting holes are in the same class — HS005017H and HS00663H ship with screw holes as standard, and the BOX family includes variants with two and four screw holes (HS-BX-703314H, HS-BX-703017H). Naming the termination and the mounting method on the RFQ removes an entire clarification round.
5. Blocks 5–6: Electrical Conditions and Acoustic Targets
Short answer: Give the amplifier rail and topology, then give the acoustic target with its distance, drive level and frequency. Impedance cannot be chosen without the rail, and sensitivity cannot be compared without its test conditions.
Electrical and acoustic targets are usually the two blocks buyers feel most confident about, and they are the two where the units most often go missing. On the electrical side, the field that decides everything else is the amplifier rail: on a fixed voltage, a 4 ohm load requests roughly twice the power of an 8 ohm load, so the impedance class is a consequence of the rail and the amplifier's current capability rather than a preference. State the rail voltage, the amplifier topology (Class-D single-ended or BTL), and whether the amplifier is already selected. Where it is not, say so — the vendor can then quote both classes and the program picks with the amplifier in hand.
On the acoustic side, an SPL target without its three conditions is not a target. Sensitivity is a number plus a drive level, a distance and a frequency, and in this catalog sample all three appear in different forms: fixed power into a stated cavity (95 dB at 2 kHz / 10 cm / 1.0 W / 1 cc BOX), fixed voltage (94 ± 3 dB at 2.83 Vrms), and a coupler reading for a receiver-class part (123 dB at 1 kHz / 50 mW on HS080923H). A request that says '95 dB minimum' without those conditions will be quoted against whichever convention the vendor uses, and the number will not survive contact with the bench. State the target as 'X dB at Y cm with Z drive at F kHz in the production cavity' wherever the program knows it.
Two further fields are worth including where they apply. Where the F0 matters — typically for alarm tones, voice prompts with a low-frequency component, or any part tuned to a cavity — state the target in-box F0 rather than the datasheet F0, because the datasheet figure is measured in the vendor's cavity. Where the part has to survive a temperature range, a humidity cycle or a vibration profile, state it as a range with the applicable test rather than as a single number, since qualification testing is usually a separate line on the quote.
6. Blocks 7–8: Compliance, Volume and Schedule
Short answer: Name the target markets and the standards the end product must meet, then give the volume in tiers and the schedule in dates. Both blocks change the price and the lead time independently of the part.
Compliance belongs on the RFQ because it changes the material set and the documentation package, not because it changes the part. RoHS and REACH are the baseline for most markets and should be requested as certificates carrying the part number, the batch and the laboratory reference rather than as a yes or no. Where the end product has to meet an industry standard — IEC 60601 for medical, EN 54 for fire alarm sounders, IEC 62368-1 for information technology equipment — name it, because the evidence package is a line item. Where the part needs an ingress rating, name the target IP class: only two models in this catalog sample publish IP68 (HS402055H and HS352052H), so for nearly every other part ingress is a host-design task that the supplier can support but not certify alone.
Volume and schedule are the two blocks that most directly move the number, and they are the ones buyers most often want to defer. Give three quantities — prototype, pilot and annual production — because a unit price quoted against an annual volume is not meaningful for a fifty-piece prototype order, and a price quoted against a prototype quantity will not survive the ramp. Where the program knows it, state the ramp shape as well, since tooling amortisation depends on when the volume lands. On the schedule side, give both dates that matter: when samples are needed and when production starts. A vendor can often hit a sample date that is earlier than the production tooling would suggest, and quoting the two separately keeps an aggressive prototype schedule from forcing an expensive tooling decision.
7. Project Case: An RFQ That Came Back Comparable on the First Pass
Short answer: A wall-mounted control panel program filled all eight blocks and received three quotes priced against the same assumptions, with no clarification round.
Project snapshot
A smart-home control panel program sent its micro speaker RFQ to three suppliers including Hongsheng. The request filled all eight blocks: a voice-prompt job at one metre, a 20 × 16 mm footprint with 2.5 mm available height, a 1 cc sealed rear cavity with a die-cut gasket, a 3.3 V Class-D BTL amplifier, a target of 88 dB at one metre at 2 kHz, RoHS and REACH with certificates, 200 prototypes ramping to 5,000 pcs annually, and samples needed eight weeks ahead of production. Two of the three quotes came back assuming a 4 cc cavity and a 10 cm test distance — both were identifiable as non-compliant on the first read precisely because the RFQ had stated the conditions. The Hongsheng quote shortlisted HS201623H (20 × 16 × 2.3 mm, 7 ohm, 96 dB at 1 cc BOX, F0 800 Hz) against HS121722H (12 × 17 × 2.2 mm, 7 ohm, 95 dB at 1 cc BOX, F0 850 Hz) on the stated cavity and rail. The program went to samples without a clarification round; the comparable quote was a consequence of the information package, not of the supplier.
8. Common Pitfalls When Assembling a Micro Speaker RFQ
Short answer: The three that cost the most: leaving the cavity blank, quoting an SPL without its conditions, and asking for a production price on a prototype quantity.
1. Leaving the cavity volume blank. The cavity is the field with the largest effect on the acoustic result and the one most often left to the vendor's default.
2. Quoting an SPL target without distance, drive level and frequency. A 95 dB figure can mean three different things depending on the test basis, and vendors will each use their own.
3. Asking for a production price on a prototype quantity. Give the three volume tiers instead — prototype, pilot and annual — so the vendor can quote each against its own assumptions.
4. Naming the product instead of the acoustic job. 'Smart speaker' does not say whether the part reproduces voice, music or an alarm tone, and each is a different driver class.
5. Giving the footprint but not the available height. In the 1217 BOX family the same electrical and acoustic class spans 3.5 mm to 5.5 mm of height, and the F0 moves with it.
6. Not stating the amplifier rail. Impedance class follows from the rail and the amplifier's current capability; asking for '4 or 8 ohm' invites two quotes that cannot be compared.
7. Assuming compliance is included. RoHS and REACH certificates should be requested with part number, batch and laboratory reference, and dated within the window the program requires.
8. Omitting the sample date. A vendor can often deliver samples earlier than production tooling implies, and quoting the two dates separately keeps the prototype schedule from forcing a tooling decision.
9. Sending the same RFQ to a bare-driver vendor and a box-module vendor without saying which is wanted. The two answer different questions and the quotes will not be comparable.
9. Applicable Standards & Certifications to Name on the RFQ
Short answer: Name the standard the end product must meet, and request the evidence with part number, batch and laboratory reference. The standard sets the test; the certificate is the deliverable.
The standards below are the ones most often relevant to a micro speaker quotation. Naming them on the RFQ tells the vendor which evidence package to prepare. Standard numbers are quoted from publicly available references; the most recent published revision applies at the time of procurement, and any part-specific deviation should be confirmed in writing with the supplier.
Table 2: Standards and certifications commonly named on a micro speaker request for quotation.
Standard / regulation | Title | When to name it on the RFQ |
IEC 60268-5:2018 | Sound system equipment — Part 5: Loudspeakers | When the acoustic targets need a stated test basis for SPL and F0 |
IEC 60068-2 series | Environmental testing | When the part has a stated operating temperature, humidity, vibration or shock requirement |
IEC 60529:2013 | Degrees of protection provided by enclosures (IP code) | When the part or the host assembly carries an ingress rating |
RoHS Directive 2011/65/EU + 2015/863 | Hazardous substance restriction | Baseline for most markets; request the certificate with part, batch and laboratory reference |
REACH (EC) 1907/2006 | Registration, evaluation, authorisation and restriction of chemicals | Alongside RoHS for European and many other markets |
IEC 62368-1 / UL 62368-1 | Audio/video, information and communication technology equipment — Safety | When the end product is information technology or audio/video equipment |
IEC 60601-1 / IEC 60601-1-2 | Medical electrical equipment — General requirements / EMC | When the end product is a medical device |
UL 94 | Flammability of plastic materials | When the basket, surround or housing material has a flame requirement |
Where the end product has a market-specific or industry-specific requirement not listed above, name it on the RFQ rather than assuming the vendor will infer it. Standards are the framework for the question; the certificate is the deliverable, and both belong in the request.
10. FAQ on Micro Speaker Quotation Information
Short answer: Whether a part number is enough, what to do when the cavity is not yet known, how much volume detail to share, and how to tell a quote that assumed the wrong thing.
Q1. Can I just send a part number and ask for a price?
A1. You can, and for a stock part with no customization it may be enough. The risk is that the vendor prices against their own default cavity, test basis and volume, and the number will not hold once the real conditions are known. Adding the eight blocks costs an hour and removes a clarification round.
Q2. What if I don't know the cavity volume yet?
A2. Say so explicitly, and give the range the mechanical layout allows. A vendor can usually recommend a cavity volume for a chosen driver, and that recommendation is far more useful than a silent assumption. In this catalog sample several bare drivers publish the test cavity they were characterised in — HS151125H at 1 cc, HS361331H at 4 cc — so the vendor has a reference point to work from.
Q3. How much volume detail should I share with a supplier?
A3. Enough to price the tiers — prototype quantity, pilot quantity and annual volume, plus roughly when the ramp lands. Precise forecasts are not required, and a range is acceptable. What costs the program is asking for an annual-volume price on a fifty-piece order, or the reverse.
Q4. Should I tell the supplier which amplifier I am using?
A4. Yes, where it is selected. The rail voltage and the amplifier topology decide which impedance class the vendor quotes, and a 4 ohm part on a rail that cannot supply the current is a design problem the quotation stage is the right place to catch.
Q5. What is a reasonable MOQ to expect on a micro speaker quotation?
A5. For a stock part, vendors commonly quote against a minimum order quantity in the low thousands of pieces; a 5,000 pcs MOQ is a typical reference point for a customized part. Confirm the figure with the supplier, since it varies with the part, the customization level and the program. Never write it as 'kpc' — that is not a standard unit for an order quantity.
Q6. How do I know if a quote assumed something different from what I asked?
A6. Read the quoted part's datasheet line against your RFQ. If you specified a 1 cc cavity and the quoted part publishes 99 dB at 4 cc BOX, the quote assumed a different enclosure. If you specified a 3.3 V rail and the part is 4 ohm, check the amplifier's current capability. The mismatch is almost always visible in the test conditions rather than in the part number.
Q7. Is it better to quote a bare driver or a box module?
A7. It depends on whether the host supplies the cavity. A box module arrives with an integral enclosure and removes the cavity question from the program; a bare driver is smaller and cheaper but makes the host cavity part of the acoustic design. State which you want on the RFQ, because the two are not comparable and a vendor quoted on the wrong one will return a number that cannot be used.
More in This Series — Micro Speaker Quotation
This article is the first of a three-part technical series on micro speaker quotations. The other two cover which specs move price and lead time, and how to compare quotes that come back differently.
· Part 2 — Micro Speaker RFQ: Which Specs Actually Move Price and Lead Time → https://www.hsdz-spk.com/news/536.html
· Part 3 — Micro Speaker Quotation FAQ: Why Quotes Vary and How to Compare Them →https://www.hsdz-spk.com/news/537.html
11. Summary
A micro speaker quotation is priced against assumptions, and the RFQ decides whose assumptions those are. Eight information blocks close the gap: application and acoustic job, dimensional envelope, cavity and mounting, electrical conditions, acoustic targets, compliance and market, volume and forecast, and schedule and packaging. The blocks most often left blank — the cavity volume, the SPL test conditions and the volume tiers — are the ones with the largest effect on both the number and the cycle time.
For a program preparing to go out to quote, the practical next step is to fill the eight blocks against the mechanical layout before the request goes out, and to state explicitly which fields are still open rather than leaving them silent. A vendor can work with a stated unknown; a silent one becomes a default. The second article in this series takes the next question — which of those fields actually move the price and the lead time, and by how much — since a well-filled RFQ is also the input to understanding what the quote is charging for.