Need some post-installation help.

[z411811 10+ year member]

Im back again. I recently put this into my malibu.

Headunit: Alpine CDA-117

Commonents: Massive Audio CK 6X

Rear: Polk Audio DB691

Sub: 15 inch DIgital Designs 1000 series

Speaker Amp: Precision Power Sedona S580.4

Sub amp (bridged): Precision Power Sedon S580.2

All wired up with knukonceptz cable.

So now that I tackled that project I need some advice. Im not sure how to tune and set up the gains on the amp. Im new to car audio so I honestly dont really have a clue. Plus my headunit is a lot more complex than my previous one so theres that too. Im looking for sound quality with a little thump if that helps. Thanks for any help in advance.

Click to read more...

 

[TreyE 10+ year member]

Take it to a shop.

 

[VisceralSound 10+ year member]

Take it to a shop.

^Most shops have no idea what they're doing let alone set it right.

the most common way to set a gain is using a Digital Multimeter.

 

[z411811 10+ year member]

Oh really? That sort of ***** considering I dont have one. What about the speaker timing? How would I go about that?

 

[TreyE 10+ year member]

Sorrrryyyy. **A reputable shop**

 

[z411811 10+ year member]

Unfortunately, around here the most reputable shop is ABC warehouse lol.

 

[DukeNut 10+ year member]

You can buy a DMM at Meijers since you are in Michigan, or Walmart, Sears, Home Depot, Ace Hardware etc. Search for the thread for setting gains with dmm.

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

thanks for asking for some guidance. what you want to do is not an "easy" chore to learn and apply suddenly. your question is too broad, you have some studying to do, probably 8-12 hours worth to get you started.

gain setting is simply matching the headunit output voltage to the amplifier. for now, just set the amp gains at 4V (the output voltage of the head unit). from here, gains can be turned down, but not up. you can use the full HU volume range (up to 35) without worry of clipping. note gains are turned up as the number gets smaller. so a lower gain setting is higher than 4V.

the DMM should be a decent one. best budget DMM in my opinion is made by Tenma and sold through MCM Electronics. I prefer my Fluke. you want a True RMS DMM. This is an important installers tool and required for DIY install and troubleshooting. Don't think a $10 meter is sufficient - recognize your investment and buy a tool that you can trust.

one important task is to set gains equally for each speaker set (left and right). you cannot trust the dial position. i use a test tone CD, then set the DMM to VAC and ensure left and right are identical (within 10mV). this is also very important for sub amps with separate left and right gains that are bridged.

read the manual for sound tuning. Alpine manuals are decent at explaining what each setting does. after you read it, if you don't understand something, read it again then search for those specific terms. if you want to teach yourself how to tune, you need to understand what crossovers are, what time alignment is, what equalizers are, etc. after you are familiar with these terms ask specific questions. (there are plenty of resources, bcae1.com is a good resource or i can offer pdf's of books - send me a PM if interested)