Need audio equipment suggestions

[Rangore]

Found this...

http://www.caraudioforum.com/archive/index.php/t-300177.html

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[SR56]

What is SPL?

Sound Pressure Level

Generally used to refer to how hard a sub "hits."

 

[SR56]

Well shit!! LoL. There's an extra layer of confusion/research. LoL

I do appreciate all the information...thanks for the replies so far.

Like others have said, it's how you like to listen. Make sure you go to some audio dealers and bring your favorite music. Listen to as much as you can. Close your eyes and listen for those details.

I'd suggest getting a good component system that's matched with a crossover from a top brand. Some good ones mentioned here, and I'd also throw in JL Audio. I used to use Diamond Audio, but not sure of their reputation anymore. They were amazing at one time, though. The system I had with Diamond and JL 13w7 sub was hitting 156db and was crystal clear. The thing used to make my nose hairs twitch. lol

Pay attention to the tweeter. Some can be really harsh and tinny. Listen to voices and if they're muddy, high pitched, or sound natural. Acoustic guitars should sound clean and not blend into the background too much.

Also look at frequency range and RMS power handling. A wider frequency gives you a little more tuning capability with your sub if the speaker can handle under 60hz. Having a smooth transition from sub to mids without a weird "gap" in the bass is what I aim for.

RMS tells you how much amp you can handle on a consistent listening level. I try to go about 25% more amp than RMS. If RMS is 100, go with 125w/channel minimum then tune the gain down to where it's clean and not cracking, popping, or cutting at the highest listening level.

Good luck! Hope you put together a sweet system.

 

[essque]

Dude Diamond Audio was fantastic. I bought two Diamond M6 old school 10's from the early 2000's and I was blown away with how hard they hit and how accurate they were. In a prefab vented box on a JBL BP1200.1, it was one of the best bang for buck setups I've ever had. Paid $250 for the subs and $100 for the amp on craigslist, crazy good sound a decade after they came out. I believe the owner and creator of Diamond passed away a few years ago unfortunately.

Like others have said, it's how you like to listen. Make sure you go to some audio dealers and bring your favorite music. Listen to as much as you can. Close your eyes and listen for those details.

I'd suggest getting a good component system that's matched with a crossover from a top brand. Some good ones mentioned here, and I'd also throw in JL Audio. I used to use Diamond Audio, but not sure of their reputation anymore. They were amazing at one time, though. The system I had with Diamond and JL 13w7 sub was hitting 156db and was crystal clear. The thing used to make my nose hairs twitch. lol

Pay attention to the tweeter. Some can be really harsh and tinny. Listen to voices and if they're muddy, high pitched, or sound natural. Acoustic guitars should sound clean and not blend into the background too much.

Also look at frequency range and RMS power handling. A wider frequency gives you a little more tuning capability with your sub if the speaker can handle under 60hz. Having a smooth transition from sub to mids without a weird "gap" in the bass is what I aim for.

RMS tells you how much amp you can handle on a consistent listening level. I try to go about 25% more amp than RMS. If RMS is 100, go with 125w/channel minimum then tune the gain down to where it's clean and not cracking, popping, or cutting at the highest listening level.

Good luck! Hope you put together a sweet system.

 

[SR56]

Dude Diamond Audio was fantastic. I bought two Diamond M6 old school 10's from the early 2000's and I was blown away with how hard they hit and how accurate they were. In a prefab vented box on a JBL BP1200.1, it was one of the best bang for buck setups I've ever had. Paid $250 for the subs and $100 for the amp on craigslist, crazy good sound a decade after they came out. I believe the owner and creator of Diamond passed away a few years ago unfortunately.

Their components were the sh*t. I went from MB Quart to Diamond and was floored. I had 150w/channel running from 2 Autotek amps to the 4 corners in a Lincoln LS. That JL Audio 13w7 ported box took up most of the trunk I would have put that single sub up against 4 12's for as hard as it hit.

Running some DJ Icey or Baby Anne in there would shake the world.

 

[mumbles]

Noob question...what is the intent of adding a processor and why is it worth the cost?

I'm not competing in stereo competitions, but want pretty good quality sound and volume (yes those are subjective). I'm not just an average listener (obvious by my desires to upgrade at even this level), but I'm not an audiophile that will buy $10k home speakers.

Basically the processor will provide a pure, clean signal to your amps so you can EQ and dial in the sound precisely the way you want to hear it. Without one, you will be at the mercy of the stock head units factory settings which literally limits the bass at higher volumes to supposedly protect the speakers. So you just dropped over a thousand on new equipment but your bitch ass factory head unit is choking your sound. It's called bass rolloff and it sucks. At first, you may not really even notice but after a few weeks of listening, your ears will adjust and you may find the sound to be a little muddy. Or you'll hear someone with the exact same or similar sub and power as you and their system slaps hard as hell while you're left scratching your head why yours doesn't sound as good. You can get by without one don't get me wrong, but you'd be leaving a lot of quality sound, control and SPL on the table. This is my plebian understanding of getting good sound in a Mustang.

To add to essques answer, in addition to equalization, some processors offer crossover and time-alignment functions as well.

Most speaker 'sets' come with passive crossovers that are designed for the speakers that they come with. Unfortunately, passive crossovers don't take different car acoustics into consideration... If you use raw drivers like I do, you either need to build a passive crossover for them, or use a processor with an 'active' crossover which allows you to fine tune the frequency, slope and pass values that your speakers see... this gives you much more control to manage car acoustics and/or bad installation locations (putting speakers where they fit as opposed to where they would sound the best).

You can search and read to your hearts content about time-alignment, but in short it is a method of delaying the sound from individual speakers to that the sound from all speakers arrives at your ears at roughly the same time.

 

[mumbles]

Good sir please post a sound clip asap! It is a must that I hear your setup, fascinating choice of equipment :cheers:

My system is currently undergoing a rebuild... mostly for cosmetic reasons, but I'll try to post something when it it fully tuned again.

I know its a bit of a drive, but you'd probably enjoy attending this car audio get together in Sept, linked below;
http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum...5057-va-md-wv-pa-etc-fall-meet-sept-30th.html

I can tell you that the systems that will be there are worth the drive to listen to, and the people that will be there are top notch! I am going to try to attend if I can work out some scheduling conflicts.

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