Car Audio

**boomerfoxtrot** · 10-09-2002, 08:00 PM

Re: Car Audio

Originally posted by Iceman8446
[B]Hey,
Whats frequency responce?

The higher the level the better the sound qulity. (puttn' it simple) so, a sub with 92 will sounded better then a sub with 90. Now, that's sound better at low levels. If you run everything at max or too loud to hear it (you just feel it) then this number really isn't all that important to you.

Whats power range? Does peak power mean that it can only run at that certian wattage for a short time?

Ofcorse the power question... FORGET the MAX Power Output.. that number is GAY and it just sells amps!! What you need to look for is RMS!! and at what ohms.
I have a mono amp that runns 1100 watts RMS @ 1ohm - ... so this would kick major... (most of what you hear is no more then 400 watts) my amp is a 1200wat (max) but being a mono class D, it can run harder. So if your running JUST SUBS then GET A MONO CLASS D amp! If you have amp that says 2500 Watts Max by 4 channel. (this would mean that you would get about 500-900 watts from it) if your running subs... the bigger the amp doesn't mean the more the power! Infact I have a class D 1200 Watt amp for sell.. (1100 watts RMS) which is more power then most subs can handle.. $300 (PM me if you want)

If your not running subs you want more power for your main speakers, then look at the sensitivity levels, responce levels, and feq levels of the amp.
[/Quote]

What the heck are ohms?

ahh... the question... that will get you 1,000 different answers... ohms... this is your voice coil level. (speakers) most every speaker you've seen is 4ohm, unless you seen "Dual Voice Coils" written on it, if so then it's 2ohm. thus can't be run at 4ohm.

your ohm is a count of your voice coil... so if you have 1 12" 4ohm speaker, then you are running your amp at 4ohm. and thus had better have a 4ohm amp. (4ohms is VERY clear and crips, but not very powerful) If you have 2 12" subs that are 4ohm then if you hook them up right, you can run them at 2ohm. (the lower the ohm the more the power you can suck from your amp)

me, I was running 3 10" Audiobahn Dual Voice Coil subs... thus running my amp - 1ohm. (pushing 1000watts +)

If your amp is not 2ohm stable then NEVER EVERY try to run it at 2ohm!!! you'ld have to hook the sub up at 4ohm (putting each sub in it's own channel)

count the voice coils hooked up to a single channel.. that's the easiest way to tell your ohms ratting. [/quote]

What are channels? And what are crossovers?

Channels, are your output ports on your amp. 4 channel amp, means you can hook 4 different speakers up and run them at 4ohms. (better sound qulity) multi channel amps are mainly used to power main speakers, unless the one who owns the amp doesn't know alot about audio.
Crossovers, they clean allow you to crossover channels. Turning a 4 channel into a 2 channel amp... giving you more power, but lowering sound qulity.
[/quote]

I have a huge amp for sale $300 with a 4 year best buy replacment plan. (so it's perfect, and still unwrapped and in the box) I haven't really tried hard to sell it, that's why I still have it...
I'm not going to lie to you.... the part that is going to cost the MOST if you get the amp I have... SPEAKERS!!
$300 for the amp $100 for the kit to hook it up, and $500 for speakers!!!!!

lol.... it has WAY tooo much power for me!-)

hope this helps

**ShooterJM** · 10-10-2002, 12:59 PM

Frequency response is the measure of ability to handle music without changing the relative loudness of sounds of various pitches. Errors in frequency response is a form of linear distortion. You want the biggest range available. Between 500-8Khz its REALLY easy to hear linear distortion so at least get that.

Ohms are a measure of electrical resistance. Think of it as a hose with the water turned on. The higher the ohms the bigger the hose, since the hose is bigger the water comes out calmer, but slower. ie slower=less power, calmer=better quality. Smaller ohms speeds the water up, but makes it really choppy. High power, but low quality.

Crossovers split the full range signal from your stereo into different types of ranges (i.e. High, mediums and bass) and the directs each signal to the correct speakers. This allows you to keep your nice expensive tweeters from being toasted or sounding like crap by making sure only high sounds go to it. It's kinda like a switchboard.

**Iceman8446** · 10-10-2002, 06:37 PM

Thanks alot guys. It helped me out alot. Now I was lookin at some subs and I found Alpine SWS-1041D 10" subs. Its got duel 4-ohm voice coils, so i'm guessin its not that powerful but it is very clear. Its power range is 50-200 watts RMS, frequency responce 30-1000hz. So does it have a good frequency responce? I'm still lookin but i'm gonna just throw out a combination and see if i got the concept down. Ya could get 2 of these alpine subs with a California 600SX amp that gets 150 watts RMS x 2 at 4 ohms. So would that mean that you are gettin 150 watts to each sub? And one more question, what are the differnece in boxes, ported, sealed?

**boomerfoxtrot** · 10-11-2002, 06:09 AM

ported ::::: BIG POWER, lower sound qulity
sealed ::::: Tight sound, great qulity (but sux on the power end)

bandpass :::: this box was built just to blow everything up.

with the qulity... and box, it really depends on what your wanting to do... are you wanting to be able to make the next lane feel your music or are you wanting the guys in the movies wondering who in the hell is bumbing so hard outside...

4ohm speaker will give you better sound qulity...
so if they are dual, it means they drop to 2ohm and gives them more power..... don't ever let anyone tell you have a 4ohm speaker is more powerful then a 2ohm speaker.
a 4ohm speaker will sound better at lower levels.....

if you are wanting crazy power... and have room (what kind of car/truck/suv is this going in)

cause for $600 or so... I can give you a mad system.... (just to give you an idea)

or for $1500 I can give you GREAT sound and GREAT Qulity..
you see... most people who want to bumb, spend way to much $$$ on junk. they just don't know how to put a system together. If you want some crazy power... PM me... 8-)

**ShooterJM** · 10-11-2002, 08:33 AM

Originally posted by boomerfoxtrot
or for $1500 I can give you GREAT sound and GREAT Qulity.. you see... most people who want to bumb, spend way to much $$$ on junk. they just don't know how to put a system together. If you want some crazy power... PM me... 8-)

I'd be interested in that!

Actually I'm trying to figure out how to get a custom video system now. Just need to figure one or two things out.

**Miscue** · 10-11-2002, 01:58 PM

Re: Car Audio

Originally posted by Iceman8446
Hey,
I know nothing about car audio at all but i'd like to learn and get a system in my car. Right now I don't have a car but I will soon. I just have some questions about subs and amps right now. I know that the mid and tweeters add to the sound but i'll ask about them later. I got some questions about what stuff means. Whats frequency responce? Whats power range? Does peak power mean that it can only run at that certian wattage for a short time? Whats sensitivity? What the heck are ohms?
Ok now for the amp questions. What are channels? And what are crossovers?
Well for now thats it. If u guys could answer some of these questions taht would be great. Right now I don't know how much I can spend on audio for my car and I know know what kind of power I want. In time I will figure these things out. Thanks alot guys.

Frequency response: Range of frequency capable of reproducing.

Peak: Most it can take w/o blowing up...

Not significantly important.

Channels: Think of it like this - Stereo has two 'channels' left and right. A 4 channel amp will send front left/right speakers and rear left/right. Also sub channel.

Crossover: Filters out frequencies. IE: You filter out high frequencies going to your sub. Filter low going to tweeters. Reason being... although the speaker cannot reproduce the sound at all or very well... the speaker cone will still move as a result... screwing with the sounds it can reproduce. Some other reasons for XOvers... but this is basically important thing.

Go to: rec.audio.car newsgroup for more info than you ever wanted to know.

http://www.teamamp.com is great.

Stores:

https://www.mmxpress.com

https://www.sounddomain.com

https://www.ampmanaudio.com

Just a moment...

https://www.savinglots.com

Screw Crutchfield... they suck.

Ok... what you should get for system depends primarily on some things: How much money you got... what you want the system to do for you... what you're driving (space limitations).

Gimme some figures, and I can help recommend stuff.

I highly suggest that you do not buy anything until you've RESEARCHED for DAYS/WEEKS

**ShooterJM** · 10-11-2002, 02:03 PM

Re: Re: Car Audio

Originally posted by Miscue

Screw Crutchfield... they suck.

I highly suggest that you do not buy anything until you've RESEARCHED for DAYS/WEEKS

AMEN on both counts!

**Miscue** · 10-11-2002, 02:35 PM

I'll clue you in to what I will be doing if curious.

First thing I do:
Tear apart my vehicle, and sound dampen the heck outta it. Sound dampening is cheap... reduces road/engine noise... raises your sound stage... and can increase your SQ and SPL. SQ = Sound Quality... SPL = Sound Pressure Level (db's)... Sound Stage is 'apparant' source of sound. Generally you aim for getting vocals to seem to come from your windshield... depending on tastes. You can get about as much extra SPL from sound dampening as you would doubling your amp's power (roughly).

Seal your doors, floor, trunk, hood, firewall, ceiling... etc. If you don't want to do that much... just do your doors first... and floor second if you want to. That usually works out peachy. You can do two layers for extra dampening.

Don't get Dynamat, Cascade, etc... get Peel & Seal which you can find in roofing sections of hardware stores. http://www.rwc.org/u/web/rwcorg/cgi-local/catalog.cgi sells it cheap.

For $50-70 you can pretty much sound seal your whole vehicle... versus being able to seal maybe your doors if you get Dynamat.

I HIGHLY RECOMMEND SEALING YOUR CAR! This is the BEST thing you can do for yourself, for real.

Source Unit: I think this is a great bang for buck deck: http://www.savinglots.com/caraudio2....t=CD%20Players (The Clarion DXZ725 for $209) I will be getting the 825. Alpine makes good decks... some others... but I really think these Clarions are a great buy.

I recommend ONE sub. Unless you are competing in an SPL comp... (which I doubt)... you only need one. If somebody tells them you should get two... they are full of it. See, what you do is get a GOOD single sub and give it juice.

I recommend: Crystal CMP 12

http://www.mmxpress.com/crystal/crystal_subwoofers.htm

This sub gets great SPL and great SQ... best of both worlds.

Put this in a sealed 1.2+ cu/ft sealed enclosure.
Recommend: http://www.ampmanaudio.com/products/details.asp?id=1013

Amp for that sub -
Recommend: http://www.mmxpress.com/crunch.html (MXB2200 bridged to 1x800)

Amp for fronts -
Recommend: http://www.ampmanaudio.com/products/details.asp?id=1010

Amp for rears -
Run off your deck. You don't need an ext. amp for rearfills.

Front speakers -
Cheap:
http://www.mmxpress.com/mbquart/6_5.htm (QM2216CX)
http://www.mmxpress.com/cdtaudio/cambria.html (CAX-600)
(or cheaper CDT Components if you can find)

http://www.sounddomain.com/sku/CRYCSC60S

Expensive:

http://www.mmxpress.com/cdtaudio/hd_series.html

http://www.sounddomain.com/sku/FOC165K2

http://www.mmxpress.com/polk/polk_momo_components.htm

http://www.ampmanaudio.com/products/details.asp?id=1494

Wiring/etc:
Stinger

1 Farad cap would be nice... generally 1 Farad per 1000W of amp.

What I described is kind of a basic audiophile type setup... you can spend less and get decent... or spend more and get into equalizers and crap... but I don't recommend any signal processing/etc. until well after you got all your stuff first. (You may find you don't even need it... great!)

**Iceman8446** · 10-15-2002, 01:01 PM

Thanks alot guys. Ya sent me tons of stuff that i'll be goin over for weeks. I just read this today becasue my internet was screwed up over the weekend.

Car Audio

Car Audio

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