Thread: Line Driver Vs. Amp Sensitivity Adjustment

Originally Posted by 3onDubs

I was going to put in a line driver the other day to fix the problem that I was having with my subs (no bass). I decided to change the sensitivity on my sub's amp first and turned it down to .5V and it seemed to fix the problem, so i left the line driver out...

...However, I was wondering what the benefits of a line driver would be. I noticed currently that my max volume isn't really that high (wave and master volumes are all tuned to max). If I put in my 6-channel line driver so that it drives all of my speakers and then adjust the sensitivity on my inside speakers' amp up to 8V, would that yield a higher volume?

The short & simple answer is that line drivers take the output of whatever your source is and increase the voltage without otherwise changing the signal. You therefore get a higher volume output without having to...

A: overdrive your source (causes clipping)
B: overdrive your amps (causes clipping)

The end result is that line drivers are a good thing (assuming you get one worth a crap). You know how your stereo sounded (like crap) before the days of amps when you turned it all the way up to get it loud enough? The same applies here. The sound coming from your puter is much better if you leave those sliders at midrange and use a linedriver to increase the voltage of the source signal before it reaches the amp. Ideal is 7 to 11 volts...my choice being the linedriver/eq/crossover half-din dash unit by Memphis. The advantage to that unit is it has separate controls (rotary knobs) for main volume & subs, so if you wanna pump out the bass you can, but if you wanna turn the subs all the way off (or down), you can do that too without climbin in the back with the amps.

Originally Posted by TheLandYacht

The short & simple answer is that line drivers take the output of whatever your source is and increase the voltage without otherwise changing the signal. You therefore get a higher volume output without having to...

A: overdrive your source (causes clipping)
B: overdrive your amps (causes clipping)

The end result is that line drivers are a good thing (assuming you get one worth a crap). You know how your stereo sounded (like crap) before the days of amps when you turned it all the way up to get it loud enough? The same applies here. The sound coming from your puter is much better if you leave those sliders at midrange and use a linedriver to increase the voltage of the source signal before it reaches the amp. Ideal is 7 to 11 volts...my choice being the linedriver/eq/crossover half-din dash unit by Memphis. The advantage to that unit is it has separate controls (rotary knobs) for main volume & subs, so if you wanna pump out the bass you can, but if you wanna turn the subs all the way off (or down), you can do that too without climbin in the back with the amps.

Thanks for clearing it up...the only reason i was asking was because I purchased a "cheap" 6 channel line driver off ebay...planet audio was the brand i think. Hopefully this will be decent enough to do what I want. My only other concern is the popping noise that I get when I start my system....will the line driver magnify this pop (its already pretty loud)?

just put a delay on your amps turn on lead.

Originally Posted by scott_fx

just put a delay on your amps turn on lead.

Right now I'm using the amp turn on delay on my Carnetix regulator, but I'm still getting the pop...I'm thinking that the delay given by the regulator is too short for windows to start and I wouldnt know how to design my own delay.

EDIT: I was looking at the David Navone Pop-Stopper...i think ill try that out

FWIW, here's a site with some very good equipment (line drivers, delays, etc.) you may want to check out: http://www.autosound2000.com/linedrivers.htm