Need Tuning Help---system sounds terrible to me!

[PittViper 10+ year member]

Hi,

I recently upgraded my system to the following:

Alpine 7996 hu

Front components: Polk db6501

Subwoofer: Alpine Type R 12" dual 4ohm

Front amp: Rockford Fosgate Punch 400-4 bridged

Sub amp: Rockford Fosgate Prime 750 monoblock

Sub Box R/T 300 12" Ported box for alpine subs

The new additions are the addition of a dedicated sub amp and a different subwoofer.

The Problem:

I cannot seem to get the levels set right or the crossovers as well, plus all of the settings on the hu,

the system sounds terrible to me.

The highs are too bright and don't sound as good as they used to. The bass is muddy and does not

go as low as it used to. The gain on the sub amp is about 3/4 and still there doesn't seem to be enough bass. It used to slam better using a JL 12v2 sub single 4 ohm, and half of the Punch 400-4 amp.

Please help. I'm ready to tear the whole thing out and give up. It seems the more I play with all of the settings, the worse it becomes.

I need help on how to set these settings, and get its gains set properly, as well as all of the settings on the amps, as well as the hu.

Thanks,

Viper

Click to read more...

 

[Jeffdachef 5,000+ posts]

turn 4 channel gains down very low, Turn EQ on head unit to FLAT, turn bass boost/punch off on head unit and amp, loudness off, turn subwoofer level all the way up to max, low pass to 80hz, high pass 80hz, low pass(freq hz) on the amp to 80. subsonic(infrasonic) to 25 on amp. turn volume on the head unit up to 85-90% of max. Then set your gain levels on your amp.

It would help if you had a 2 ohm sub instead of a 4 ohm sub because you are only wired to 2 ohms(make sure you are wired in parallel) and with box/impedance rise you'll be at 4 ohms and its barely tickling the sub, basically getting the same amount of power those 2 channels on your fosgate amp puts out, it takes a lot more power to move that type R sub. Never make that mistake again if you are running a single sub setup.

Another thing is, that enclosure will never get low. Its a POS premade enclosure, garbage basically. Get rid of it and get a properly made custom enclosure, makes the single biggest difference in sound quality and output.

When you got your bass at the right spot, then work on your mids and highs/set the gains on the 4 channel. On your components, on the crossover, put the tweeters at -3. Also change the position of your tweeters, where they are mounted at makes a difference too. Instead of bridging the 4 channel amp, just wire them to front left and right channels, they are sensitive to power, you might just have too much power going to them if you've bridged the amp. Afterwards you can tweak the EQ, only reduce, never boost and leave bass frequencies alone.

Tell me what other functions your head unit has.

 

[PittViper 10+ year member]

Thanks for replying, I do appreciate it.

Question 1: given the setup that I have, what power mono sub amp would improve my system. If you can, recommend a not so expensive brand with the power you think I should have for the type R. If I give the current sub/box configuration more power, will my system sound improve?

Question 2: Secondly, I could forgo this sub and get the 2ohm version, that would be another $150. How much improvement would that yield using the current 750w amp.

Question 3: I see you use a hifonics amp for you subs. Could you recommend a powerful enough to make a difference hifonics mono amp that would improve my system?

Lastly: you do think I will get better sound out of the front components if I don't bridge the 400w amp 4ch amp? This is an easy adjustment to make.

Also, you say "tweak the EQ". I do not have a dedicated eq. Would the clarion eqs746 be a viable choice? I cannot afford to start getting into the expensive eq's. Do I really need a dedicated eq for a system as simple as mine...

Looking forward to your answers...

turn 4 channel gains down very low, Turn EQ on head unit to FLAT, turn bass boost/punch off on head unit and amp, loudness off, turn subwoofer level all the way up to max, low pass to 80hz, high pass 80hz, low pass(freq hz) on the amp to 80. subsonic(infrasonic) to 25 on amp. turn volume on the head unit up to 85-90% of max. Then set your gain levels on your amp.
It would help if you had a 2 ohm sub instead of a 4 ohm sub because you are only wired to 2 ohms(make sure you are wired in parallel) and with box/impedance rise you'll be at 4 ohms and its barely tickling the sub, basically getting the same amount of power those 2 channels on your fosgate amp puts out, it takes a lot more power to move that type R sub. Never make that mistake again if you are running a single sub setup.

Another thing is, that enclosure will never get low. Its a POS premade enclosure, garbage basically. Get rid of it and get a properly made custom enclosure, makes the single biggest difference in sound quality and output.

When you got your bass at the right spot, then work on your mids and highs/set the gains on the 4 channel. On your components, on the crossover, put the tweeters at -3. Also change the position of your tweeters, where they are mounted at makes a difference too. Instead of bridging the 4 channel amp, just wire them to front left and right channels, they are sensitive to power, you might just have too much power going to them if you've bridged the amp. Afterwards you can tweak the EQ, only reduce, never boost and leave bass frequencies alone.

Tell me what other functions your head unit has.

 

[Jeffdachef 5,000+ posts]

Thanks for replying, I do appreciate it.
Question 1: given the setup that I have, what power mono sub amp would improve my system. If you can, recommend a not so expensive brand with the power you think I should have for the type R. If I give the current sub/box configuration more power, will my system sound improve?

Question 2: Secondly, I could forgo this sub and get the 2ohm version, that would be another $150. How much improvement would that yield using the current 750w amp.

Question 3: I see you use a hifonics amp for you subs. Could you recommend a powerful enough to make a difference hifonics mono amp that would improve my system?

Lastly: you do think I will get better sound out of the front components if I don't bridge the 400w amp 4ch amp? This is an easy adjustment to make.

Also, you say "tweak the EQ". I do not have a dedicated eq. Would the clarion eqs746 be a viable choice? I cannot afford to start getting into the expensive eq's. Do I really need a dedicated eq for a system as simple as mine...

Looking forward to your answers...

Before you ask more questions, Did you even attempt to troubleshoot and set everything properly like i told you?

1: your amp should be fine, any higher you'll need electrical upgrades starting with the "big 3 upgrade" then an AGM battery in order to support your power draw.

2: big difference but you know whats an even bigger difference? A proper box. You can spend all you want on everything else but you'll still sound like @ss and wont impress anyone using that pre made box you have.

3: Refer to #1

4: Yes, it worked well for you before right? sometimes when you bridge, it really screws with the signal having rear and front instruments playing together. Those components also cant handle a lot of power or rather, they dont need that much power.

5: EQ = head unit EQ. Dont get the clarion EQ its garbage. Used one for 2 years and compared to a proper headunit, that thing is **** near useless. Your current head unit looks like an expensive old school head unit but you still haven't told me what features It has on there.

 

[PittViper 10+ year member]

other hu features:

1. hpf: on/off

2. bass: #/Q/Frequency

3 treble: #/somthing I forget/center frequency (ex 10k, 12.5k, 15K, etc)

4 subwoofer: on/off

5 subwoofer system: 1/2

6 subwoofer level

Before you ask more questions, Did you even attempt to troubleshoot and set everything properly like i told you?
1: your amp should be fine, any higher you'll need electrical upgrades starting with the "big 3 upgrade" then an AGM battery in order to support your power draw.

2: big difference but you know whats an even bigger difference? A proper box. You can spend all you want on everything else but you'll still sound like @ss and wont impress anyone using that pre made box you have.

3: Refer to #1

4: Yes, it worked well for you before right? sometimes when you bridge, it really screws with the signal having rear and front instruments playing together. Those components also cant handle a lot of power or rather, they dont need that much power.

5: EQ = head unit EQ. Dont get the clarion EQ its garbage. Used one for 2 years and compared to a proper headunit, that thing is **** near useless. Your current head unit looks like an expensive old school head unit but you still haven't told me what features It has on there.

 

[PittViper 10+ year member]

I did attempt to make the changes your outlined.

Front sounds better now, a little.

HU functions:

1. hpf: on/off

2. bass: level/q/frequency

3 treble: level/center frequency

4 subwwoofer system: 1/2

5. subwoofer: on/off

6: loud on off

Before you ask more questions, Did you even attempt to troubleshoot and set everything properly like i told you?
1: your amp should be fine, any higher you'll need electrical upgrades starting with the "big 3 upgrade" then an AGM battery in order to support your power draw.

2: big difference but you know whats an even bigger difference? A proper box. You can spend all you want on everything else but you'll still sound like @ss and wont impress anyone using that pre made box you have.

3: Refer to #1

4: Yes, it worked well for you before right? sometimes when you bridge, it really screws with the signal having rear and front instruments playing together. Those components also cant handle a lot of power or rather, they dont need that much power.

5: EQ = head unit EQ. Dont get the clarion EQ its garbage. Used one for 2 years and compared to a proper headunit, that thing is **** near useless. Your current head unit looks like an expensive old school head unit but you still haven't told me what features It has on there.

 

[Jeffdachef 5,000+ posts]

I did attempt to make the changes your outlined.
Front sounds better now, a little.

HU functions:

1. hpf: on/off

2. bass: level/q/frequency

3 treble: level/center frequency

4 subwwoofer system: 1/2

5. subwoofer: on/off

6: loud on off

on the subwoofer system what options for 1 and 2? What is it set at right now?

 

[PittViper 10+ year member]

Bass system is whether the bass volume is relative to the overall volume level (1), or louder when volume is low, not just when you turn up the volume (2)

Also, hpf, has on/off/60,80,100,120, 150 and 200 I think.

on the subwoofer system what options for 1 and 2? What is it set at right now?

 

[Jeffdachef 5,000+ posts]

I did attempt to make the changes your outlined.
Front sounds better now, a little.

HU functions:

1. hpf: on/off

2. bass: level/q/frequency

3 treble: level/center frequency

4 subwwoofer system: 1/2

5. subwoofer: on/off

6: loud on off

I was asking for this control lol.

As for your subwoofer options, in the 150$ range if you can stretch 10 dollars, Instead of an alpine type R, try a 12" C2 audio threatcon 2 D2. In a direct comparison between the two, the C2 was a lot louder, handled more power and sounded a lot better then the type R.

Would still definitely get a custom enclosure, you'll get a lot more results afterwards.