Setting gains: before or after setting xove points

[ItsHammer]

So just a quick question. Does it matter if you set your gains before or after you set your xover points? What about time alignment? Should absolutely everything be set to zero or default while setting gains?

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[nauc 10+ year member]

you want your eq flat, xovers turned off. dont think time align matters. you could try both, see if theres a change voltage wise

 

[trumpet 5,000+ posts]

So just a quick question. Does it matter if you set your gains before or after you set your xover points? What about time alignment? Should absolutely everything be set to zero or default while setting gains?

Time alignment is set before crossovers. Set crossovers initially to protect the speakers. There's no need to wait to set a subwoofer LPF. Many coaxials, components, and mids in the 6.5" size or larger can handle a High Pass Filter at 80 Hz.

What method will you use to set gains?

 

[krisfnbz 10+ year member]

I've seen a lot of people using the SMD DD-1 for gains. I've personally never used it, but I may pick one up to fiddle with it. Multimeter has always been my go-to after using an oscilloscope to figure out where the head unit distorts. Most systems in the past I have run the 80PRS which doesn't distort at full volume, though IIRC the full 5v of the preout doesn't hit until 55+