Thread: Software or Hardware Equalization?

Originally Posted by Maegnas

In my current setup I have 4 speakers going to an amp, and my 2 subs going to an amp, both of which have crossover and gain/boost options...

I have no idea how to properly adjust these, I have only concluded that the gain/boost is for the output to the speakers, though I'm not sure how high to put this? Then turn up the volume software side from there...

Your gain should be set at (or slightly lower) than whatever voltage your preamp output's are. It's a boost only in the sense of how an amp works...it boosts the signal from your HU. The most common misconception is that you'll get more "boost" by turning the gain up. This is wrong.

If you're unsure what voltage your preamp lines are then adjust the gain old school style.
step 1: turn the gain all the way down
step 2: turn the volume on your stereo (or PC) up as high as you plan on listening to it
step 3: slowly turn the gain up until it starts to clip and immediately dial it down until it stops clipping.

and there you have it. I'd suggest doing this first with the speakers then moving on to the subs.

Originally Posted by Maegnas

Also, when I use Winamp equalization my back speakers produce a feedback static like sound, which once the equalizer is turned off is gone, so I'm wondering if its better to keep that off and completely do it with the amps? Is this the better option?

No it's not. You can't really equalize anything with an amp. At most you can use the high pass filter (HPF) or low pass filter (LPF) to control where in the frequency spectrum that particular amp will allow sound through. For instance: Your subs are useless at anything above 100 hz. So, turn the LPF on your amp powering the subs to 100 hz. This means that anything lower than 100 hz will now be the dominant frequencies coming out of that amp. If that particular frequency sounds too high still then dial the LPF down. This works the same with the amp your speakers are on except you'll be using the HPF and dialing it to eliminate the lower frequencies.

Regarding the feedback. You're probably getting the feedback because your gain is turned up too high. That's what mismatched voltage inputs to outputs does...sound like crap. It'll most likely go away once you have it properly adjusted. I'd suggest turning the EQ on, finding a relatively generic preloaded EQ setting in winamp...like "Rock" or whatever...and then adjust the gain setting on your speaker amp. Dial that sub amp in too...you can adjust the EQ appropriately later.

Originally Posted by Maegnas

If that is the case... how is my next painful question. Any good articles on equalization via amps? (I could even be completely mixing the definition of crossover and equalization here, so I apologize if I am)

Equalization is the individual adjustment of certain frequencies common to all sound. I think Winamp has a 10 band EQ? I have a 16 band EQ in my Pioneer HU. You can get anything from 5 to 20 band external amped EQs. The point is...you take the whole audible spectrum and divide it into however many section your EQ has bands....and adjust them the way you like.

A crossover is what you use to segregate two ranges of frequencies. Where as a LPF or HPF cuts out the frequencies above or below a certain point a crossover splits the range of frequencies so that you can get a mid range out of a 6" speaker and a high end out of a 4" speaker. How you actually utilize this really depends on the amp.

probably not too many articles on EQ via amps but this is a great source for car audio adjustment: http://community.crutchfield.com/