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Best eq adjusments?

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Audio and Electronics' started by 413X3, Mar 28, 2011.

  1. 413X3

    413X3 New Member

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    Any suggestions on the best adjustments to the 3 sound settings? I get a slight distortion sound when playing rock music from my ipod.
     
  2. danvee

    danvee Blizzard Brigadier

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    How about the other sources?
    I'm assuming the JBL system as you've got the sunroof.
    I run mine flat with the ASL enabled.
    You've got leather, which seems to make for a quieter interior, so you might want to start there.
    I've found that the quality of iTunes music is sometimes hampered by the compression and fairly low bitrate used which can cause distortion in high level passages. Also, if you've got the iPod connected through the 1/8 aux input as opposed to the USB there will be a major sonic difference.
    A few more details might help......even a better description of the "slight distortion"
     
  3. Thai

    Thai Prius Neophyte

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    Yup, same here...flat with ASL ON. I tried other settings, but flat with ASL seems to do the best.
     
  4. danvee

    danvee Blizzard Brigadier

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    I guess that JBL did their homework.:D
     
  5. 413X3

    413X3 New Member

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    So keep the base and others in the middle, and turn asl on?
     
  6. danvee

    danvee Blizzard Brigadier

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    Well, that's what works for Thai and me....

    So far as the distortion: what if you try a different sound source?
     
  7. revhigh

    revhigh MPG Enthusiast

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    I don't understand the idea of asking OTHER people how to set up a sound system for YOU ....

    Shouldn't you be setting up the system the way it sounds best for YOU, and YOUR SOURCES, and YOUR MUSICAL INTERESTS, and YOUR HEARING ?

    Sorry ... it just seems like such a strange request ... :D

    REV
     
  8. danvee

    danvee Blizzard Brigadier

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    Hey Rev,

    I think that it was more a question about the distortion, but lacking more specifics......

    You're right, of course, but it's nice to have a yardstick or point of reference to start. For example, if the consensus was that everyone set treble to +2, mids to -3, and bass to +5, that may well indicate a design flaw.
    Given this context it may not be so strange...
    In a previous incarnation in car/home audio I would set up each system to have as linear a response as possible by ear, and would confirm with a (back then) $700 pro spectrum analyzer. Afterwards I would tweak the sound to the customers' satisfaction.
    Yes, I could tell when the sound was "correct", and yes, when the sound was "correct" it might not have sounded "good" to me from a standpoint of personal preference.
    That's why we have tone controls/EQ's.
     
  9. Thai

    Thai Prius Neophyte

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    Yup, even though folks may have preferences, there is only one correct standard when it comes to sound...the one that sounds closest to the original recording...the one that gives the best sound in a particular environment. (Again, not to reharsh past posts, but this is why i am a big fan of correctly tuning a system.) With most systems (esp. the optional systems) nowadays, it seems like the factory does a pretty good job of tuning the system to sound flat (least coloration) at zero. JBL, in this instance, seems to do a pretty good job at that...as does most Mark Levinson systems that i have heard. I tend not to stray too far from the factory "zero" point.

    And yet, this is why most home audio systems do NOT have these tone adjustments...because a good system is one that reflects closest to the original recording. And this is also why most home AVR or pre-amp have "pure direct" mode where the user can't adjust anything.
     
  10. revhigh

    revhigh MPG Enthusiast

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    Hi Danvee !

    When I sold home stereo gear in an ancient life, we always tried to educate people to buy good transducers ... at that time it meant the cartridge in the turntable and the speakers. The electronics (generally a receiver) was the least important variable as long as it wasn't a complete piece of crap.

    I generally strive to buy final transducers (speakers) that don't need tone control input ... worst scenario of all would be to require an equalizer (GAG).

    A car is a horrible place to audition or even have true stereo gear. The best you can really hope for is a generally decent sound. That's why I kind of laugh at the thought of serious 'tuning' in a car. I think in most cases the best car stereo tends to be the loudest and cleanest one. Cleanliness in sound comes from ONE thing given half decent speakers .... POWER ... make that CLEAN POWER.

    In a home critical listening environment, you tend to need VERY VERY good source material ... years ago it was the Mobile Fidelity master discs played on a radio standard turntable with the best tonearm and cartridge that you could afford. My Technics production quality turntable, ADC tonearm and Sonus cartridge could easily do that. I listened through a pair of Accoustat electrostatics, and before that Bowers and Wilkins DM7's .... all VERY good stuff. Of course I had a seperate pre-amp by David Hafler with strapped Hafler amps for each channel. You sat at the exact center of the speakers at the exact distance of the speakers sound convergence for optimum imaging.

    None of this is remotely possible in a car, so the best you can hope for is 'good enough to satisfy you' that you can afford. You can spend a lot of money and end up with garbage, and you can spend a little money and end up with a great sounding system.

    There are so many variables starting most importantly with the person's hearing that it's virtually impossible to suggest tone settings for someone else. Set it up yourself until you're happiest with the sound and enjoy it from there ... tweaking as necessary for changes in source material.

    REV
     
  11. danvee

    danvee Blizzard Brigadier

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    Hey Rev,

    But, even in your home, you have to deal with surfaces etc. that will change the overall sound, so speaker (and listener) positioning is critical.

    My favorite preamp was my modded PS Audio 6.0 in passive mode. No sonic signature to speak of.
    Amps, well, anywhere from highly modded Hafler DH200's to an Octave Research OR-1, to Allegro Audio Cantatas. Reference speakers were anything from Dahlquist DQ-10s to Maggie III's to KEF 107's.
    Vinyl source; AR XB TT with Merrill subchassis and acrylic platter, Grace 727 arm, and a variety of carts, both MM and MC.

    One of my Audio Society buddies had even invested in an old dental chair so your head could be "locked" in an ideal position.:eek:

    Those were the days....

    In truth, a car is easier to control as an environment than a room, as the "furniture" never gets rearranged and the acoustics remain pretty much fixed. The speakers never get moved. Seating position isn't much of an issue either in that the driver/listener tends to stay in a limited area. Once set up, barring component wear and aging, it's pretty much stays the same for life of the system.
    There are other variables of course- road/wind/engine noise.

    Basically, as you said, it has to start out "flat"-then you can play with the tone controls/EQ to your heart's content.

    It's all fun........:D


    I'm pretty sure that we've lost most of the readers by now......:rolleyes:
     
  12. Thai

    Thai Prius Neophyte

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    Revhigh, I like electrostats too...have them at home via Martin Logans. But, back to point, once you tuned a system to a car, it does wonders because everyone in the car now can enjoy good sound, not just the driver. In addition, seat materials, ceiling cloth, etc are already taken into account. Finally, since driver is seating in one corner of a car and thus not equal distance from each speaker, a plug-n-play won't be enough. Tuning helps balance the playing field, for the driver and everyone else in he car.
     
  13. revhigh

    revhigh MPG Enthusiast

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    Nice stuff Danvee .... I too had a pair of DQ10's for awhile. And I still have a pair of old IMF Q's I think they were, laying around somewhere that were just tremendously smooth speakers. The best imaging speakers I ever heard were the B&W DM7's, but even they 'sizzled' my ears after listening to them for a year or so. That's when I went with the Accoustats. In my case, I didn't worry too much about furniture because other than 'my seat' and a couch, there was nothing else in the room. I had put very thick curtains all the way around so that there were 'supposedly' no adverse reflections. I, like most 'nuts' even saved hundreds of egg crates that I was going to paint black and use as sound deadening material on the walls. Thank God I never really DID THAT ... LOL.

    The dental chair is a pretty sick idea .... sounds like something my buddies and I would have done ! :D

    Good talking old time audiio with you Danvee !! And meet a fellow Hafler-ite .... LOL.

    Did you build your DH200's and DH101 too ??? That was a ball wasn't it ? I can still remember twisting the 11.4 inch wires SEVEN times for connecting the caps together, and some of the other very unique instructions. How sick was THAT ???? :D

    REV
     
  14. Thai

    Thai Prius Neophyte

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    Actually, i think that a car is much worst than a home audio setup. In a car, no one sits in the ideal location (middle of the sound field). Everyone sits at the far edges of the sound field...thus, making placement and tuning to be extremely important. In a home audio setup, you can place the furniture (or dental chair) in the middle, equal distance from the front towers. This is not possible in a car. In addition, in a car, you have to deal with separation of component speakers...not every car can you put kickpanels in ideal locations. The tweeter and midrange are often far apart...and subwoofer is often far off somewhere in the trunk/cargo. (In the home, you can move the subwoofer anywhere you want.) And the tweeter and midrange are often pointed 90 degrees from the listener! And then you have deal with door enclosures (or lack thereof), road noise, etc. (as you mentioned). The home environment gives you a lot more control. In other words, in a car, you have to deal with compromises to the design of the car. The home environment is a lot more forgiving because you can change positioning of your speakers at will, etc..

    So, i think that designing a good car audio system is more challenging than a home system...i would even say a lot more! Unlike Revhigh, i think that proper tuning and placement of speakers to be of utmost importance in a car...maybe even more so than at home!
     
  15. danvee

    danvee Blizzard Brigadier

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    Hi Rev!

    I did build my Haflers, as well as the Allegro Audio Designs Amp (I was one of the principals of the company, and hand-built 95% of the circuit boards/motherboards of the entire first run of, I think, 25 amps).

    Dave Hafler was a great designer and marketer. I've also worked on my share of Dynaco stuff. He was a genius at getting the most for a price point.;) I still have a working Dynaco AF-6 AM/FM tuner that I had built back in the 70's.:eek:

    I did build a couple of 101's and 102's but I never had one. I started with a RAM Audio pre (Richard A. Majestic), then an APT/Holman and then a PS Audio 5.0, 5.5 and finally a 6.0 (all of which allowed for passive or bypass modes).

    Also, as a real blast from the past, I still own a pair of Synthesis loudspeakers. They were a design sold by Conrad-Johnson back in the 1980's. They had produced 2 speakers at that time; a bookshelf (LM250) and a floor stander (LM300). Theye were voiced to match with their tube and solid state equipment. Try as I might I've yet to find photos of them on the 'net. They may or may not have continued with the line...

    In my checkered past, I've been fortunate enough to meet and talk with a number of giants in the Audio biz; Nelson Pass (Threshold/Pass Labs), Dan and Rondi D"Agostino (Krell), Ray Kimber, Mark Levinson, Tom Holman (APT/Holman and creator of THX)-even Bob Carver.

    I've learned a LOT from all of them.

    Great reminiscing, Rev!
     
  16. revhigh

    revhigh MPG Enthusiast

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    LOL Danvee !!

    I was just going to ask if you ever built any of the Dynaco stuff when Hafler was the designer over there. I had an old 'Dynakit' from Radio Shack I think is where I got it. Just a good little amp.

    Good stuff for around $100 from what I remember.

    Sounds like you had some great experiences ... I'm envious. :D

    Take care.

    REV
     
  17. danvee

    danvee Blizzard Brigadier

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    Hi Rev!


    Funny you should mention RS. I worked there from 1974-1980. Started out F/T, then Manager, then Assistant to the DM. That was after the Dynakits as memory serves.

    We also opened up the first Radio Shack Computer Center store in NJ back in 1978. TRS-80! Z-80 Processor! TRS-DOS! 16K ROM 4-128K RAM!
    5.25 floppies! B+W Monitor! WOW! :eek:

    They closed unceremoniously a few years later.:mad:

    Back then you actually had to know electronics and be able to sell.
    Now you just have to "vend" cell phones (no offence to any present RS employees who don't fit this profile, but out of 10 RS stores in which I've shopped over the past years, not one had the slightest clue about "those things on the blue green or red cards in the drawers"[I/C's, Resistors and Capcitors])

    I'm such a freakin' dinosaur....:rolleyes:
     
  18. revhigh

    revhigh MPG Enthusiast

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    Dinosaurs are good things .... I be one myself ! :D

    Where ya from in Joisey ??? I worked there for many years.

    REV
     
  19. danvee

    danvee Blizzard Brigadier

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    I've worked in East Hanover, Livingston, Morristown, Parsippany, Florham Park, Rockaway, Dover/Randolph, Ledgewood, Union, Wayne....pretty much my entire working life...:rolleyes:

    Whereabouts did you work?:D
     
  20. revhigh

    revhigh MPG Enthusiast

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    WOW .... I worked in East Hanover, Morristown, Parsippany, Rockaway, and Randolph, and near Flemington too.