Distortion in audio when continued use of high volume

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JustinStone

aspiring nutrient
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I've had this problem I've noticed for a couple days where the audio is fine at 80% of my receivers volume, but as the song continues the distortion gets worse. The distortion gets to a point where the song sounds "mushy", but not the static sounding distortion I heard from my factory paper speakers. The sound starts when multiple instruments are playing, but not instantly. I can't record the sound because my phone's mic peaks at that volume. I imagine the cause is from the subwoofer and similar components where my dash support vibrates and distorts the 3.5's I have. The dash support is very thin, but I don't actually know if this is the issue.

I have a pair 3.5" Hertz Dieci DCX 87.3, and a pair of Kicker CSC65 for front speakers. The hpf on the fronts is 250Hz, and practically all the bass is thrown at the subs. I'm thinking I need to increase the hpf for the 3.5's, but the receiver only goes as high as 250Hz.
 
To describe the sound more accurately: it sounds like listening to bass boosted songs with powerful mids on some $20 earbuds.

So the problem may be that I need a higher HPF value. I'm unsure if my bass needs to be controlled by the subs completely, but that is what I have been tuning the receiver to output. Currently, the sub controls everything below 400Hz, and I found it to be enjoyable. If I'm wrong please let me know.
 
To describe the sound more accurately: it sounds like listening to bass boosted songs with powerful mids on some $20 earbuds.

So the problem may be that I need a higher HPF value. I'm unsure if my bass needs to be controlled by the subs completely, but that is what I have been tuning the receiver to output. Currently, the sub controls everything below 400Hz, and I found it to be enjoyable. If I'm wrong please let me know.
What headunit do you have ?
 
I imagine the cause is from the subwoofer and similar components where my dash support vibrates and distorts the 3.5's I have.
I think you may be getting sound cancellation due to this. Try to stuff spongy material around the 3.5 housing. If it helps then awesome possum. You may also use a passive bass blocker if no change.
 
There also may be too speakers hooked up to the tiny amplifier chip in your radio and as you play it more it continues to heat up ..causing the sound to become distorted ...I'd recomend 4-500hz on 3.5 speakers ... but if it's clear in the beginning...I doubt the crossover point is the issue
 
I think you may be getting sound cancellation due to this. Try to stuff spongy material around the 3.5 housing. If it helps then awesome possum. You may also use a passive bass blocker if no change.
I'll be sure to look into those options, although I'm sure deadening material will needed at some point :)
 
So you're saying that it starts out sounding fine then it starts to sound like **** after a couple minutes? This may be just "listening fatigue" meaning it sounded like **** from the start but your brain sort of "fills in the gaps" for a little bit. This sort of thing is a known phenomenon in how humans process sound.

An amp would help for sure, being able to adjust crossover points may help, sound deadening speaker locations may help, changing mounting locations or aiming of mids and highs drivers may help.
 
400hz is very very high to have a subwoofer playing. By most people's standards, you have your subwoofer extending into midrange territory. And having your fronts play nothing below 250hz means your front stage will sound tinny and hollow. Id suggest sealing up your doors good, and buying a decent component set with the proper power. In my experience, chasing high fidelity with absolutely no upfront bass is a hopeless fight.
 
id sell all those speakers, get a good set of comps and a good amp and set it up right

gains, crossovers etc

what sub and sub amp u using?
 
id sell all those speakers, get a good set of comps and a good amp and set it up right

gains, crossovers etc

what sub and sub amp u using?
well i plan on upgrading the the door drivers to alpine x-series, and pairing that up with a 4channel D4.100. Unfortunately I'm going to be hard headed on the 3.5's, because they are not going to sell, and they handle the higher frequencies very nicely.

The system I'm using is a hand-me-down pyle system. 2 Channel, amp, "200watt" subs... the works.. yaknow.. but it's what got me into modifying my audio setup so i appreciate it for that reason.
 
400hz is very very high to have a subwoofer playing. By most people's standards, you have your subwoofer extending into midrange territory. And having your fronts play nothing below 250hz means your front stage will sound tinny and hollow. Id suggest sealing up your doors good, and buying a decent component set with the proper power. In my experience, chasing high fidelity with absolutely no upfront bass is a hopeless fight.
Once I install an amp for the fronts I plan to wire the door speakers as rears so I can adjust them to play lower frequencies in the receiver (adjusting the dta in the receiver). I'm trying to chase high frequencies in the 3.5's, but as of now the 6.5's and 3.5's can only be tuned together.
 
Once I install an amp for the fronts I plan to wire the door speakers as rears so I can adjust them to play lower frequencies in the receiver (adjusting the dta in the receiver). I'm trying to chase high frequencies in the 3.5's, but as of now the 6.5's and 3.5's can only be tuned together.
That upgrade should make a very noticeable improvement in your sound quality. Not only more power to your front speakers, but it will solve your crossover settings, which are off the charts bad right now.

As for your initial question, assuming your description is accurate and the system really does start distorting more over time, that sounds like a heat saturation problem, which Id guess is in your h/u's built-in amplifier.
 
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JustinStone

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