Albin Owners Group

There is an older PA speaker on my boat. I am pretty it doesn't work but I don't know how to even test it.
Are these things connected to the vhf?

Many are, but there are stand alone hailers as well. I would trace the wires to start. Or you can check your vhf to see if it has a hailer function

I didn't see any hailer functions yesterday and my partener got distracted so the work day plans shifted pretty quickly

Is it a hailer (bull horn shape) or an external speaker (like a stereo speaker box)? If you google your VHF user manual, you should be able to see how these attach to your radio.