"The" Stereo / Audio Sound Post: Don't Skip this one!

[Statherós K-9]

Hmm. I’m no audiophile but I had a different experience. It added a ton of clarity and made the center speaker much less overwhelming. I tend to keep my volume fairly low though.

Hmm. I’m no audiophile but I had a different experience. It added a ton of clarity and made the center speaker much less overwhelming. I tend to keep my volume fairly low though.

What model truck do you have?

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[BoboForShort]

What model truck do you have?

2024 Trailhunter

 

[Statherós K-9]

@Statherós K-9, come up with any theories on the differences in quality of the same system in the hybrid vs. gas?

I can only assume less strain on the battery contributes to more available power for the audio system. Its quite noticeable. I have seen reviews for the 4Runner where they noticed the same thing.

 

[The Dude]

We can agree to disagree and that's the beauty of it! I will say I am WELL familiar with clipping. That is most certainly not the case here. That's not how clipping works. Clipping can happen 2 ways but most commonly when the speakers are actually asking more more power than what can be delivered. I am not pushing them to an SPL contest, as I certainly would not be winning any prizes. I DO however appreciate more power being utilized at lower volume to give the music more authority.

Alright. I will leave things as they are. I’ve said most of what I want to. Enjoy your day.

 

[goin2drt]

I changed the settings via carista and then played around with the three audio settings very similar to yours. After that I think there is nothing to really do except go full in with a new system like several have done. The beat sonic, changing apps etc etc etc is all a waste unless you want real quality, just band aids and to try and use a worhtless app like the last one you recommend seems silly when most of us use sirius, amazon and a few YT. Let's face it the JBL "upgrade system" is standard quality in just about every other modern vehicle.

 

[PNWkip]

I have a question for anyone who knows anything lol
Why do audio people say not to touch the "Bass Boost" knob on amps or sub/amp combos ? Why would the manufacturer put a Bass Boost knob on literally every single thing if it isn't supposed to be used ?

 

[The Dude]

I have a question for anyone who knows anything lol
Why do audio people say not to touch the "Bass Boost" knob on amps or sub/amp combos ? Why would the manufacturer put a Bass Boost knob on literally every single thing if it isn't supposed to be used ?

It depends on WHEN you touch the bass boost. If you do it before setting gains, all you’re doing is over emphasizing a very narrow frequency range at the expense of the others. Think of it as a blip on a line graph. You can only go as loud as the highest point on that graph. If you artificially raise one point, the rest suffer.

If you do it after setting gains, then you introduce clipping and distortion, shortening the lifespan of everything in the chain of that signal (amp and sub).

 

[The Dude]

I can only assume less strain on the battery contributes to more available power for the audio system. Its quite noticeable. I have seen reviews for the 4Runner where they noticed the same thing.

No, try again. The amplifier is using the power of the alternator to operate. When, and only when, the alternator runs out of available power, the battery is used in reserve. However, Toyota would know this, and design an amplifier that doesn’t need to dip into battery reserves for power..

 

[PNWkip]

It depends on WHEN you touch the bass boost. If you do it before setting gains, all you’re doing is over emphasizing a very narrow frequency range at the expense of the others. Think of it as a blip on a line graph. You can only go as loud as the highest point on that graph. If you artificially raise one point, the rest suffer.

If you do it after setting gains, then you introduce clipping and distortion, shortening the lifespan of everything in the chain of that signal (amp and sub).

I think that makes sense. But my RF powered sub has a "bass control" but in this model it just completely negates any gains set at the amp, and then the gain is controlled through the bass control knob. So would I be right to turn the volume up, adjust the gains, crossover, and bass boost, and then never turn the bass control by my drivers seat past where I set it for the best sound at the amp ? Essentially when you plug the bas knob in it takes the gains back to zero or whatever setting that remote knob is at.

 

[The Dude]

I think that makes sense. But my RF powered sub has a "bass control" but in this model it just completely negates any gains set at the amp, and then the gain is controlled through the bass control knob. So would I be right to turn the volume up, adjust the gains, crossover, and bass boost, and then never turn the bass control by my drivers seat past where I set it for the best sound at the amp ? Essentially when you plug the bas knob in it takes the gains back to zero or whatever setting that remote knob is at.

Not knowing exactly which RF sub you have, I’ll make a couple generalizations.

When you want to set gains, turn the bass knob up full, adjust any gains on the amp, and be good to go. You need to think of the bass knob as just a volume control for your sub. You’re not negating the gain setting in the amp, you’re remotely adjusting it. If the bass knob is set to full, and the gains at the amp are adjusted correctly, then you can go “crank it to 11” for a real rocking song, and dial it back for one you’re not as jazzed about, or if you want to talk to passengers.

 

[PNWkip]

Not knowing exactly which RF sub you have, I’ll make a couple generalizations.

When you want to set gains, turn the bass knob up full, adjust any gains on the amp, and be good to go. You need to think of the bass knob as just a volume control for your sub. You’re not negating the gain setting in the amp, you’re remotely adjusting it. If the bass knob is set to full, and the gains at the amp are adjusted correctly, then you can go “crank it to 11” for a real rocking song, and dial it back for one you’re not as jazzed about, or if you want to talk to passengers.

Lol apparently the Rockford fosgate P300 8p is a bit of in outlier in that the bass knob becomes the gain control. So whatever I set under my rear seat doesn't matter, like right now I have it at 0, but as I turn the bass knob up from the front seat it turns the gain up which acts as the "volume control" for the sub. According to the manual anyways.
I guess I just need to put a good song on and adjust everything. Right now I have the bass boost at like 1/8th turn (because I'm nervous about it) and Crossover around 80hz, and then just turn the bass knob down when the family is in the truck.

 

[The Dude]

Lol apparently the Rockford fosgate P300 8p is a bit of in outlier in that the bass knob becomes the gain control. So whatever I set under my rear seat doesn't matter, like right now I have it at 0, but as I turn the bass knob up from the front seat it turns the gain up which acts as the "volume control" for the sub. According to the manual anyways.
I guess I just need to put a good song on and adjust everything. Right now I have the bass boost at like 1/8th turn (because I'm nervous about it) and Crossover around 80hz, and then just turn the bass knob down when the family is in the truck.

Just read the “gain adjust “ in the manual of the P300, and it says that for best performance the gain should be set at minimum. Where are your gain settings? Because my description of a remote “volume control” seems like it would apply to this powered sub as well.

BTW, I’ve heard Rockford makes some of the best powered subs out there, so good choice on that.

 

[PNWkip]

I legit have the gain at zero at the box. Then turn it up to about 50% via the bass knob. so Idk. I'll mess with it. I wired it up no problem, but the setting are confusing me lol the internet has too much information. OVERLOAD!

This sub is waaaaaaaay better than the 8" underseat kicker I had in my last truck. Barely fits under the rear seat though. Had to have it in the downfiring position.

 

[The Dude]

I legit have the gain at zero at the box. Then turn it up to about 50% via the bass knob. so Idk. I'll mess with it. I wired it up no problem, but the setting are confusing me lol the internet has too much information. OVERLOAD!

This sub is waaaaaaaay better than the 8" underseat kicker I had in my last truck. Barely fits under the rear seat though. Had to have it in the downfiring position.

Sounds to me like you have it set correctly. Yes, just be careful with the bass boost, that is a sub killer if not done right.

And I agree, there’s A LOT of info on EVERYTHING out there. You can end up with “paralysis by analysis”. I spent a good 10 years doing that when I went from “just gotta make it loud” to “why doesn’t this sound good.” I’ve been at this for 35 years, and there’s always more to learn.

 

[maxx075]

When you're adjusting your gains specifically for an amp, you want to use an Oscilloscope so that when you're at the highest listening volume level that your signals are still sine waves (there's a little more to it based on the frequency of the sound you're tuning against). If you just crank the bass knob and your gains aren't set properly you'll get square waves, aka clipping.

Clipping is bad mmkay.

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