Santro ICE - Installation & Tuning Queries

[junky]

I currently have a Pioneer TS-A6991S 6x9" Coaxial speakers at the rear in my zip, planning a change to JBL GTO 937 6x9" Coaxial speakers.
A poineer HU
My query is whether the system has to be re-tuned to match the speakers or the same tune setup is enough???

[DerAlte]

Originally Posted by junky

I currently have a Pioneer TS-A6991S 6x9" Coaxial speakers at the rear in my zip, planning a change to JBL GTO 937 6x9" Coaxial speakers.
A poineer HU
My query is whether the system has to be re-tuned to match the speakers or the same tune setup is enough???

Depending on your listening tastes, you might have to change the tone settings on the HU, if they are not set to flat.

If set to flat, first just see if you like the sound without changing settings.

[nura]

The Alpine 9887 HU was finally installed last Sunday & even without TA adjustments it has made a huge difference.
Somewhat surprisingly, the orange wire meant for illumination was missing from the supplied harness. Luckily, I had found a capable installer this time. He used the audio-interrupt-in wire instead to get the HU lights to dim, when the car lights were switched on. This guy also soldered the wires together instead of merely twisting & black-taping them. Needless to say, I had some heat-shrink tubing handy to go over the joints.
One thing I haven't been able to figure out is how to get the HU out of the dash, when the need arises. The supplied keys are too big for the holes in the HU. I guess I need to take the protection collar out first but have no clue how to do it. Or has Alpine messed up & supplied the wrong keys? Help will be sincerely appreciated.

[gunbir]

Originally Posted by nura

The Alpine 9887 HU was finally installed last Sunday & even without TA adjustments it has made a huge difference.
Somewhat surprisingly, the orange wire meant for illumination was missing from the supplied harness.

Or has Alpine messed up & supplied the wrong keys? Help will be sincerely appreciated.

Supreme messed up again, they have done this before. Call their office and complain.

[nura]

I am trying to adjust the Alpine 9887 HU correctly but am confused about the following settings.
1. What should the crossover point & slope on the HU be? The LPF & HPF on my amp are set at 80 Hz & the 3 way component speakers also have their own passive crossovers. I have a sub only, no rear fill. Is there any advantage/ disadvantage in using HU, amp & passive crossovers together?
2. Should the subwoofer phase be set at 0 degrees or at 180 degrees? What is the difference? Is it the same as reversing the polarity of the sub?
3. Should the subwoofer channel be set at stereo or mono? Why? I have a 2 Ohm DVC sub with the voice coils wired in series to get 4 Ohms.
My sincerest thanks in advance.

[Bass&Trouble]

Originally Posted by nura

1. What should the crossover point & slope on the HU be? The LPF & HPF on my amp are set at 80 Hz & the 3 way component speakers also have their own passive crossovers. I have a sub only, no rear fill. Is there any advantage/ disadvantage in using HU, amp & passive crossovers together?

Passive crossover is doing a different job from that of the head unit and amplifier's crossover in your case. So passive crossover is not something you have to worry about.

Ideally, for a 3-way component set, you should set the HPF at 50Hz or so so that you can get the extra bass from the midbasses. Do this either from the head unit or the amp.

Originally Posted by nura

2. Should the subwoofer phase be set at 0 degrees or at 180 degrees? What is the difference? Is it the same as reversing the polarity of the sub?

Same as reversing polarity, yes. Choose whatever provides better integration of sub with the speakers.

Originally Posted by nura

3. Should the subwoofer channel be set at stereo or mono? Why? I have a 2 Ohm DVC sub with the voice coils wired in series to get 4 Ohms.

Mono.

[nura]

Thanks a ton.
A few clarifications
1. Are you suggesting both HPF & LPF at 50 Hz or HPF 50 Hz & LPF remaining same i.e. 80 Hz?
2. What would you recommend for the slope?

[Bass&Trouble]

Originally Posted by nura

1. Are you suggesting both HPF & LPF at 50 Hz or HPF 50 Hz & LPF remaining same i.e. 80 Hz?

HPF & LPF both at 50Hz. Dont have them overlapping. It could cause either a peak or a dip in the band.

Originally Posted by nura

2. What would you recommend for the slope?

Umm, 6dB at 50 Hz could be a bit too much for the speakers. 12dB should be fine. For the sub, try with 6, 12, 18. If you can find one to sound decidedly better, stay with it.

[navin]

Originally Posted by Bass&Trouble

Umm, 6dB at 50 Hz could be a bit too much for the speakers. 12dB should be fine. For the sub, try with 6, 12, 18..

B&T/Gunbir/Blueraven/Gurus, I have noticed that 6db HP slopes and 24db LP slopes dont really gell well in most applications. have you noticed the same?

[Bass&Trouble]

Originally Posted by navin

B&T/Gunbir/Blueraven/Gurus, I have noticed that 6db HP slopes and 24db LP slopes dont really gell well in most applications. have you noticed the same?

Yeah, me too. 20-20-20

[nura]

Clear. Thanks once again. Will tweak & post results shortly.

[gunbir]

Originally Posted by navin

B&T/Gunbir/Blueraven/Gurus, I have noticed that 6db HP slopes and 24db LP slopes dont really gell well in most applications. have you noticed the same?

Originally Posted by Bass&Trouble

Yeah, me too. 20-20-20

Yes, same here as well. 12dB works best in most cases.

[nura]

I would like to use the time correction feature on my Alpine 9887 HU, for the front right seat listening position. I understand that I need to measure the following distances.
a) Front right head-rest to sub
b) Front right head-rest to front left speaker
c) Front right head-rest to front right speaker
Now my sub is placed behind the rear seat of the Santro & it faces the hatch door. So is a) the distance from sub-driver to front right head-rest or is it sub-driver to hatch door to front right head-rest?
My front speakers are 3-way components with the tweeters placed on top of the dash, the mid-ranges in the lower part of the dash & the mid-basses in the lower part of the front doors. So I have 3 distances for b) & 3 for c)! How do I convert them to get a single figure for b) & a single figure for c)? Do I calculate averages?
Thanks in advance.

[Bass&Trouble]

^^^

Firstly dont measure from head rest. It should be from the center of the head, so insert the measuring tape to there through your nose. Well, actually, tilt the back-rest ahead so that the point on the backrest from where you are measuring is the apparent center of your head.

You need to measure distances for the rear speakers also (or you don't have rear fill?)

3-way dilemma:

Option 1: Ideally, all three drivers per side should be equidistant. Easier to achieve with 2-way, sometimes impossible with 3-way. This will produce the best results.

Option 2: Mimic the effect of all 3 drivers being equidistant by attenuating closer drivers through the passive crossover of the speakers. Does your 3-way have this option?

Option 3: Align just bass. This can be done by feeding the distance of the midbass alone in the TA menu. Downside: Imaging not upto the mark

Option 4: Align using tweeter's co-ordinates only. This would produce a good image in 2-ways, especially those with tweeters playing low. In your case, not much help since tweets of 3-way systems are usually cut off quite high (not sure about the set in concern, please check this) Downside: bass alignment is not correct.

Option 5: Take the average. This will neither be perfect for bass, nor for frontstage. A general mashup sounding perhaps a bit better than without any TA whatsoever.

[nura]

Thanks Bass&Trouble. I guess I could try option 2 first, since the XO has +2dB/0dB/-2dB options for the tweeter as well as the midrange.