Help with EQ settings and time alignment!!!

[seatown1two]

So I finally did it, replaced the factory head unit with an alpine w535hd. I must say I'm not regretting it one bit. Much more control over the sound.

I've never had a unit with time allignment or 9 band parametric eq b4 and am wondering a few things. Am I able to accurately use the time alignment setting w/o going active? As of right now (with using auto setup for time alignment), vocals sound as if they are coming from the center of the windshield with other instruments filling to the left and right. This is what I'm trying to achieve, yes?

With head units I've owned in the past, they have not had anymore than a 3 band parametric eq which I was able to tailor to my liking but this 9 band is throwing me off. Within each band there are there are like 5 different center frequencies, level -7 to 7 and q-factor 1 to 3 (3 being the most narrow). I guess I'm looking for good starting points those of you that have experience with this. Here are the frequencies:

Band 1 (20Hz-100Hz)
Band 2 (63Hz-325Hz)
Band 3 (125Hz-500Hz)
Band 4 (250Hz-1kHz)
Band 5 (500Hz-2kHz)
Band 6 (1kHz-4kHz)
Band 7 (2kHz-7.2kHz)
Band 8 (5.8 kHz-12kHz)
Band 9 (9kHz-20kHz)

Setup includes the head unit, MB quart PVL216 (mids in doors and tweets in factory location), Zed draconia II and a JL 10w3v3 in a ported enclosure. Amp is set to full pass on fronts, HP on sub channel (subsonic filter) with HP and LP filters for both enabled on HU.

Sorry for the long post.. Thanks in advance!

[bumppinKota]

@neo_styles ;

i think you can help. i might be wrong. tho.

[keep_hope_alive]

yes, you want vocals in the center of the dash with left and right panning to each side.

for the EQ - only use what you need. it lets you choose which frequency you want to adjust, and Q is just the width of the filter effect.
each setup is different so no way to tell you how to adjust the eq without listening to it or seeing an RTA result.

[keep_hope_alive]

you can manually adjust time alignment but if the auto works well, then leave it alone.

if you don't have an RTA, an auto EQ function would also work. just be sure to move the mic around while measuring so it doesn't try to correct a peak or valley associated with one specific location. i make a figure-8 in front of my face when doing RTA or auto-EQ measurements.

[TaylorFade]

Whoa whoa whoa.... that double din has T/A, 24bit Burr brown and 9 band parametric?

Why wasn't I notified?

[ciaonzo]

you can manually adjust time alignment but if the auto works well, then leave it alone.

if you don't have an RTA, an auto EQ function would also work. just be sure to move the mic around while measuring so it doesn't try to correct a peak or valley associated with one specific location. i make a figure-8 in front of my face when doing RTA or auto-EQ measurements.

Interesting. I've considered sitting in the vehicle during this stage but haven't yet. So, you make the figure-8 depth-wise, horizontally? Had you done trials to discover that the unit was compensating for peaks, then you corrected that with this method?

[TaylorFade]

Interesting. I've considered sitting in the vehicle during this stage but haven't yet. So, you make the figure-8 depth-wise, horizontally? Had you done trials to discover that the unit was compensating for peaks, then you corrected that with this method?

He's talking about the RTA mic. Not the autotune mic. The figure 8 is to "average" the reading since it isn't binaural.

[seatown1two]

I should also mention, the auto setting affects all sound shaping settings on the HU, crossovers, time alignment, eq... I don't believe it has the ability to RTA (there is no built-in mic or one that you can attach specifically for that purpose). It is configured based on vehicle type, speaker size/placement, interior type and whether or not I have tweeters or a sub. I should note that I went back into the settings and set the HPF at 80hz/18db and the LPF at 100hz/18db, set the eq to flat and left the time alignment as is.

Imaging appears to be where I want it to be however I'm not sure my time alignment settings are ideal as I'm not running active. Can anyone suggest good starting points for adjusting the eq or am I best to leave it flat? Tweets seem alot brighter after I added the HU. I'm thinking about connecting the lead on the xover to -3db and turning up the gain a lil (got plenty of headroom) OR adjusting the eq on the headunit. Do both of these options essentially do the same thing? Too many **** settings to F with now rofl...

[seatown1two]

@neo_styles ;

i think you can help. i might be wrong. tho.

Thanks for this, will try and pm.

[keep_hope_alive]

I should also mention, the auto setting affects all sound shaping settings on the HU, crossovers, time alignment, eq... I don't believe it has the ability to RTA (there is no built-in mic or one that you can attach specifically for that purpose). It is configured based on vehicle type, speaker size/placement, interior type and whether or not I have tweeters or a sub. I should note that I went back into the settings and set the HPF at 80hz/18db and the LPF at 100hz/18db, set the eq to flat and left the time alignment as is.

Imaging appears to be where I want it to be however I'm not sure my time alignment settings are ideal as I'm not running active. Can anyone suggest good starting points for adjusting the eq or am I best to leave it flat? Tweets seem alot brighter after I added the HU. I'm thinking about connecting the lead on the xover to -3db and turning up the gain a lil (got plenty of headroom) OR adjusting the eq on the headunit. Do both of these options essentially do the same thing? Too many **** settings to F with now rofl...

no real need to run active for time alignment. above 3.5kHz imaging is based on intensity, not time arrival differences. the best thing to do for your setup is to attenuate the driver's tweeter by 3dB but leave the passenger tweeter at 0dB. this will improve the sound stage for the driver's seat. note that passengers won't hear the same thing, so when you demo, have them sit in the driver's seat. for this reason, i have presets on my HU that are for driver, passenger, or both.

eq is not the same as level on crossover. crossover turns down the entire tweeter while eq affects a band of frequencies. only use the EQ to fix peaks or valleys. doing this by ear requires you start to pay attention to specific instruments in a recording. for example, find a song that has prominent bass guitar - listen to the loudness of the bass guitar as it plays a wide range of notes. if some notes seem muted or exaggerated, use an EQ to fix that. i prefer to use an EQ to cut more than boost.