tuning a subwoofer..

ET87 · Post by **ET87** » Wed Jul 29, 2009 1:28 pm

hey guys my best mate got a 400watt RMS kicker sub and his amp measured at 450watt RMS on his amp has sub frequency... where should I put the sub frequency at? between 45 to 200hz.. i have the amp at 3/4 gain so it wont kill either..thanks guys..

Callumgw · Post by **Callumgw** » Wed Jul 29, 2009 2:22 pm

The frequency on subs generally refers to the upper clip level, so it only lets frequencies (sounds) below this level through to the sub. For house systems this is typically set at about 80hz, but can be adjusted depending on the sub.

This next bit I'm not certain about, but the the smaller the diameter of the sub the higher you could set the frequency. So I'm guessing people will want to know the size (12inch?) of the sub.

C

ET87 · Post by **ET87** » Wed Jul 29, 2009 3:09 pm

uR a genius CHEERS.. its a 12inch kicker sub.. cvr12. i have no idea about the frequency of the sub so i askeed the question.. should i make the frequency level 150 or there abouts for the 12inch.. or about 180? thanks.

Post by **tassuperkart** » Wed Jul 29, 2009 5:48 pm

Umm all the theory on shelf frequencies and so-on is valid and all well and good but all that info just clouds the real issue.

However, just fire it up and adjust it untill you actually LIKE the sound. THAT is all that matters.

Too easy.

L8tr
E

ETTRBO · Post by **ETTRBO** » Wed Jul 29, 2009 6:14 pm

around 75hz will be equal for all style music, dance, r&b, heavy ect... thats all i really tune customers cars at and sounds neat

Valentich · Post by **Valentich** » Wed Jul 29, 2009 6:26 pm

E's right,
8 years fitting pro audio, audiophile for 25 years,
You spend hours tuning a system, and what you get, some knob wants it louder, and bumps up the gain.
Car audio is a hard one; The subwoofer was designed to replace the low frequencies that you loose in the non perfect environment of a car.
These days it to give the duff heads, duff LOL
So, The best is to have clean, even sound. but 99% of people want louder.
I found that regardless of the woofer, people want to hear it, so 150Hz (or higher) is it, and crank that amp, the more distortion you make, the happier the person is.
It sounds like I am being "facetious" buts it’s true.
Crank it up

Ps: The gain on an amp is not a volume control, It is used to match the output line voltage of the head unit to the input voltage of the amp, hence, reducing distortion and improving sound quality. And hopefully stopping clipping, which kills audio equipment.

A properly fitted and tuned system is magical to hear, In the old days, it cost a lot of money,
now the equipment is ready available, but the technique seems to be lost.

Post by **shanec86** » Wed Jul 29, 2009 11:46 pm

well i was about to write the same thing haha. Valentich is spot on...

If you want to learn some more, have a look at the tuturials section of the caraudioaustralia forums.

ET87 · Post by **ET87** » Thu Jul 30, 2009 8:48 am

u blokes r the best lol ( i dont wanna have sex with any of u's lol) just awesome now ill tune it to perfect. i tune by listening Valentich said.. i dont know much about the gain on the amp so i left it at 3/4...is it a good idea at 3/4 or should it be more or less?? its for everyday bass not dB racing..thanks again

dexi_styles · Post by **dexi_styles** » Thu Jul 30, 2009 9:50 am

ET87 wrote:u blokes r the best lol ( i dont wanna have sex with any of u's lol) just awesome now ill tune it to perfect. i tune by listening Valentich said.. i dont know much about the gain on the amp so i left it at 3/4...is it a good idea at 3/4 or should it be more or less?? its for everyday bass not dB racing..thanks again

The gain is the volume the amp can power your sub. So think it as you have the gain at 3/4 which is 75% of volume.

My Sub is a 12" pioneer 1000W MAx Power or 400W RMS 4ohm running off a 380W RMS Pioneer Amp. I think mine is also up at 3/4. its fine for me.

BUT it also depends on the sub, amp, sub box, Ported or sealed, Boot size and the big one YOUR TASTE in BASS.
See my sub gives a really good punch and a tidy rumble. Where as I put my mates 12" in thinking it was a better sub and found out its a different sound, due to all the conditions mainly it was a JL sub and a Bigger box.

you'll tinker with it till it suits your style. I am still changing the setup to suit my liking.

Dex

Valentich · Post by **Valentich** » Thu Jul 30, 2009 5:02 pm

It’s all mute, if you don’t know what type of box, and what the box is tuned to. The specs of the woofer, and so on.

I give up.

PS: the best way is to set the base level on the head unit up and volume on the head unit up. And amp down, then slowly wind the gain up. Then when is start to distort, knock it back a bit.
At least you are sure that turning up the head unit won’t kill the woofer or amp.

But as I said,
I give up.

Kimmo · Post by **Kimmo** » Thu Jul 30, 2009 7:37 pm

Valentich wrote:It’s all mute

Don't you mean moot, or was that a pun?

Valentich · Post by **Valentich** » Fri Jul 31, 2009 2:08 am

I don’t know, I spell bad in two languages,
Far from me to be socratic, and make puns,
though I hear there good with jam.

ET87 · Post by **ET87** » Fri Jul 31, 2009 9:19 am

i adjusted the sub last night.. sounds punchier at higher Hz.. at the moment its at 130 or around there.. thanks for the help..

Post by **tassuperkart** » Fri Jul 31, 2009 10:11 am

Just try things M8.
Whatever sounds good to YOUR ears is the key!

Just scrathc off all those pesky figures in Hz and whatnot, trust your EARS, They are what matters, not some stupid figure screen printed on.

L8tr
E

Post by **Ash** » Sun Aug 09, 2009 12:31 pm

tassuperkart wrote:Just try things M8.
Whatever sounds good to YOUR ears is the key!

Just scrathc off all those pesky figures in Hz and whatnot, trust your EARS, They are what matters, not some stupid figure screen printed on.

L8tr
E

thats exactly how i look at it. if it sounds like shit to you then change it till you like it. just don't try and push the limits of your equipment too far.

works for me. i haven't ever blown and amp, speaker or sub and i push them all pretty hard.