-6db or -3db

[bigballin5779 10+ year member]

I want max output out my amp, its a orion 2500d and im using it to run two kicker 12 l7s, my question is if i set my gains using a -6db tone, would that mean that any music above -6db (-5,-4,-3,-2,-1,0) would cause clipping? or does that mean that -7,-8,-9,-10 would cause clipping?

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[dkguitarist 5,000+ posts]

anything below that is attenuated even more, thus having to use higher volumes to play it. -6db is the closest you want to get for daily music driving. -6db, -3, and 0 are your best bets.

 

[bigballin5779 10+ year member]

ok will i be safe doing -6 or am i better off staying at -3?

 

[tRiGgEr 5,000+ posts]

Any test tone played under -6db would cause it to clip. This is assuming the amp was set @ 0% clipping.

I only set my gains with -10db tones. If you have a hard time hearing distortion, or don't have a lot of XP with clipping detection. I would recomend you stick with the standard 0db tones.

 

[JimJ 5,000+ posts]

Both Richard Clark and David Navone have recommended gain setting with a -10dB tone for years, //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/fyi.gif.9f1f679348da7204ce960cfc74bca8e0.gif

 

[bigballin5779 10+ year member]

people say to set gains using -10 you need an o-scope which i dont have, but i do have a dmm

 

[danteBirosel 5,000+ posts]

ummm... DMM is what need to use, to properly set your gains.

-dante

 

[JimJ 5,000+ posts]

Using an scope can be handy no matter what level you're using, you'd benefit just as much by using it with 0dB tones as you would -10dB ones.

But you don't need it.

 

[JimJ 5,000+ posts]

ummm... DMM is what need to use, to properly set your gains.


-dante

The benefit of a properly-used o'scope is that you can tell exactly when the sine wave begins to clip, which is what you're trying to prevent or minimize in the first place //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

 

[bigballin5779 10+ year member]

hmm im not exactly a noob but i wont be able to tell when my equipment is clipping unless i started to smell my subs burning, should i still use -10?

 

[bigballin5779 10+ year member]

the thing im tryin to figure out is will my equipment clip more if i use -10 than if i used a -3 or -6?

 

[dkguitarist 5,000+ posts]

you use a dmm/o-scope to set your gains properly. -10db test tones are better for playing music daily //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/fyi.gif.9f1f679348da7204ce960cfc74bca8e0.gif they allow you to get more power out of your amps while mininimizing clipping at normal volumes. even if you set your hu to 75% full volume, i doubt you listen to it on a daily basis at anything abover40-50% so you wouldn't be clipping unless you turned it up past the 75% hu volume theoretically

 

[tRiGgEr 5,000+ posts]

hmm im not exactly a noob but i wont be able to tell when my equipment is clipping unless i started to smell my subs burning, should i still use -10?

I would recomend against it. But if you are confident enough to be able to know when the equipment is in danger, go for it.

 

[bigballin5779 10+ year member]

I would recomend against it. But if you are confident enough to be able to know when the equipment is in danger, go for it.

ok i set my gains using a -10db tone and i set it correctly but when i turned my volume to 75%(which i set my gains at) while listening to music, it would be louder than usual but my subs would make a popping noise often, which they never do when i set my gains using a -3db tone, why is that?

 

[iamamp3pimp 5,000+ posts]

heres the quick skinny.

when you set your gains @ -10 DB, you are raising your overall output of the amp to compensate for the -10 DB.

if you set them using 0 db tones, then the signal is not attenuated, and you will have 0 chance of clipping if done properly

-0 = noobix

-3 = minimal chance of clipping because most music is recorded lower than this

-6 - intermediate - you can tell when you are stressing your equipment, and hen you need to turn it down

-10 = professionals, or heavaly expierenced people are the only ones that should use this setting.