Gain Setting

[jd93kid 10+ year member]

Alright.. so i have a question.. I used a 50hz tone at 0db from two different websites and i set my amp using one of them.. then i played the other one to see what the ac voltage would be and it was 3 volts higher than when i had used the other one.. but they were at the same volume.. why is this.. and should i set my amp differently.. i played some songs on it at this setting and the amp never reached the ac voltage that i had it set to on the 50hz tone on any of them..

And also this might be kinda hard to understand cause i dont know how to word it.. but.. if i set my amp to put out 40 ac volts to the sub so that it doesnt clip.. then as long as a song doesnt play more than 40 volts thru the amp to the sub then the sub wont clip? no matter the hertz?

sorry if i'm confusing..

Also if i am correct on the second question.. then is there a sensor or something i can get to let me know when my amp is putting out more than 40 volts to the sub??

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[jd93kid 10+ year member]

please?? anyone??

 

[tinmanchris217 10+ year member]

That's an 8% difference in output... I wouldn't stress it too much. For the most part, I've heard that you should use -4 or -6 dB for daily gain setting... and 0 to -3 dB for controlled blasts and burping.

If it's underrated, you can go farther, than an overrated amp. Also, make sure that your voltage stays up... cause with gnarly drop, you can see less output than a clean unclipped power. Plus, it'll keep your equipment alive much longer.

Also, depending on the amp type, you may need to tune with the subs disconnected.

 

[jd93kid 10+ year member]

alright.. thank you.. and do you know where i could get a test tone at -4 or -6 db..

Also my amp is an alpine mrp-m850.. its a pretty nice amp from what i've heard.. but i dont know if its under or over rated..

its rated for 800 rms and i have a dual 4 ohm Sonance V2 15"

 

[jd93kid 10+ year member]

but like if my amp gives 42 volts and it is clipped wont that hurt the sub?

 

[jd93kid 10+ year member]

I just dont know.. i would like to use my amp and sub to full potential but i dont want to damage either..

 

[tinmanchris217 10+ year member]

I would assume that the amp puts out rated at 14.4V. If you're bumping 42V on music, it's probably clipping. No doubt that can damage your gear.

If it were me, I'd play a wide range of songs that have long, loud bass notes (like Decaf's Screwed Collection) and keep your meter going to make sure you stay below 40 VAC even in the worst case scenario... that SHOULD keep you safe and loud.

 

[tinmanchris217 10+ year member]

Speaking of Decaf ... they have a -4.5dB test tone on SMD. Here's a link to their thread.Linky

 

[justafifteen 10+ year member]

Or you can download Audacity (free), go to Generate -> Tone (set it to whatever hz you want), then select all (ctrl+a) and go to Effect -> Amplify -> -6db