CarPC-Subwoofer Question (PLEASE HELP)

**taguy83** · 04-03-2008, 09:55 AM

Hey guys, i have been lurkin around on here for quite sometime amazed at the whole CarPC thing. I am an IT Technician in my everyday job so I love this kind of stuff. I have a 95 Trans Am, and will be putting a CarPC in it now!

I have read and read and read and still cant find a straight answer to this, so I hope you guys can help me. I dont have the PC in my car yet, but I configured RR with DFX3 on a laptop to mess around with it, everything works great.

I am going to have 1 (4-channel) Amp hooked up to my car door speakers, and 1 (mono-block) amp hooked up to 2 (12" subs). On my current Pioneer HU I have 3 sets of Preamps, so I can turn the subs on and off whenever i feel like it just by turning on and off the preamp for that amp on my HU obviously.

My questions is, if I eliminate the Pioneer HU (which I want to do) I know I have to plug the RCA's for each amp into an adapter and then into a soundcard on the PC. But is it possible from the PC to turn on and off my subwoofers whenever I want like I do with the HU now? I would like to rid of the pioneer HU, but thats my obstacle right now is this, because until I know wether I can control the subs I'm stuck in my designing! I use the subs like 40% of the time, so I hope there is some kind of answer that can help me out here!

Thanks so much!

Matt

**WuNgUn** · 04-03-2008, 10:08 AM

If your sound card is 5.1 or 7.1, it'll have a discreet sub channel, already crossed over for you to use...
And, depending on the mixer software for the sound card, you should be able to toggle it on or off...or switch to 4 channel mode (not 4.1)...
What sound card are you using?

**taguy83** · 04-03-2008, 10:41 AM

Originally Posted by WuNgUn

If your sound card is 5.1 or 7.1, it'll have a discreet sub channel, already crossed over for you to use...
And, depending on the mixer software for the sound card, you should be able to toggle it on or off...or switch to 4 channel mode (not 4.1)...
What sound card are you using?

Actually I don't have one picked out yet, I wanted to make sure it was possible to do before I actually spent the money on the sound card. You have any suggestions?

So what your saying is on a 5.1 card, i could plug the RCA's from the amp into the adapter that would plug into the sub port on the sound card, and from windows i could turn that sub channel on the card on or off just like i would with a preamp output on my current HU?

Thanks!

**WuNgUn** · 04-03-2008, 10:50 AM

If your going with a carputer, you might as well process your audio with CONSOLE or AudioMulch...
It'll give you much higher control over everything...
I'm running AudioMulch, using Virtual Audio Cable as my media player output device (because my Auzentech soundcard can't do internal loop back)...
AM picks up the signal from VAC, then I EQ each channel, delay each channel as needed...then it's outputed thru the soundcard jacks...
You can also phase shift and crossover whatever path you want too, if needed...
My setup is 2 channels from the media player (Centrafuse frontend), and I take those two channels, and send them to the front and rear and sub/center (5.1) of the sound card...center channels isn't used for music
It's actually a 7.1 sound card, so I send those 2 channels into the 'side' channels as well, but it's only intended to drive the pair of VU meters in my dash...

Search on here for 'console', 'tuning with PC', 'audiomulch'...
Lots of good info!

**taguy83** · 04-03-2008, 10:56 AM

Originally Posted by WuNgUn

If your going with a carputer, you might as well process your audio with CONSOLE or AudioMulch...
It'll give you much higher control over everything...
I'm running AudioMulch, using Virtual Audio Cable as my media player output device (because my Auzentech soundcard can't do internal loop back)...
AM picks up the signal from VAC, then I EQ each channel, delay each channel as needed...then it's outputed thru the soundcard jacks...
You can also phase shift and crossover whatever path you want too, if needed...
My setup is 2 channels from the media player (Centrafuse frontend), and I take those two channels, and send them to the front and rear and sub/center (5.1) of the sound card...center channels isn't used for music
It's actually a 7.1 sound card, so I send those 2 channels into the 'side' channels as well, but it's only intended to drive the pair of VU meters in my dash...

Search on here for 'console', 'tuning with PC', 'audiomulch'...
Lots of good info!

Thanks a TON WunGun! You've been a big help in pointing me in the right direction for exactly what im looking for. There are sooooo many ways to configure these things its amazing, its going to take alot more planning then I thought, but will be worth it in the end.

**Machinehead** · 04-03-2008, 11:57 AM

Half the battle is picking a sound card. If you're going to run a laptop, you'll probably want to go with an external solution. There's a great thread here: Ultimate USB, Firewire, External Soundcard List

**taguy83** · 04-03-2008, 12:00 PM

Originally Posted by Machinehead

Half the battle is picking a sound card. If you're going to run a laptop, you'll probably want to go with an external solution. There's a great thread here: Ultimate USB, Firewire, External Soundcard List

Cool thanks for the help with all this sound stuff

I think I am going to scrap the laptop idea now and go with a built in only because i want the LCD in my dash and what not. It will be alot of work to do obviously, but well worth it in the end to do it the way i want.

**emperorjj1** · 04-03-2008, 12:01 PM

just throw a switch on your remote wire for the amp for the subs. Switch them on and off at your fingertips and as long as you tap a fuse for the remote (not sure how u get remote out of a car pc) it can only be on when the car is on reguardless of on or off at the switch

**Machinehead** · 04-04-2008, 09:49 AM

Originally Posted by taguy83

Cool thanks for the help with all this sound stuff

I think I am going to scrap the laptop idea now and go with a built in only because i want the LCD in my dash and what not. It will be alot of work to do obviously, but well worth it in the end to do it the way i want.

That'll give you more options that's for sure.

**WuNgUn** · 04-04-2008, 09:53 AM

Originally Posted by taguy83

Cool thanks for the help with all this sound stuff

I think I am going to scrap the laptop idea now and go with a built in only because i want the LCD in my dash and what not. It will be alot of work to do obviously, but well worth it in the end to do it the way i want.

Another convert! Welcome aboard!
I'm using an Auzentech X-Plosion in my setup, but it's got this problem...
I can't (but did at one point) get perfect channel isolation. For some reason, the 2 channel input is 'bleeding' sound past the Audiomulch DSP work...
So whatever DSP changes I make, there is still a component of non-DSP sound getting thru...i.e. front channels can be heard slightly thru the rear channels...