Power vs Decibels

[ThxOne Premium Member]

You still aren’t getting it. I don’t care who you are and if you are a “professional “ or not. You are going to have to actually install some equipment in your car and listen to it. And then start to adjust the things that are wrong.

I am going to give you an example. About 10 years ago I knew 2 guys in a local mustang car club. Both had the same model car. One guy had a full aftermarket stereo installed by a local shop. The other guy heard it and loved the way it sounded. So he went to the same shop and bought the exact same equipment and had installed by the same people. The second car was 1.6db louder on the meter and the eq curve was very different between the two cars. The only difference between the two cars was the color and one car had fabric seats and the other one had leather seats.

Why would you think that I don't comprehend what you are saying? I fully understand that many variables determine many things. That cloth will absorb sound waves while a less porous surface will reflect sound. I know this just by opening my sunroof cover by sliding it back and the treble increases in the car.

I am trying to find the starting point as everything has a starting point. I am getting there. Some people claim to know but I have been finding that a lot of stuff being told to me is regurgitated or copied from other sources. So I figured ok, I will just ask the people who actually know. Like SkizeR, I believe he actually knows about sound deadening and crossover points as well as several other things.

It's COVID season so I am trying to occupy my brain and the best way to do that is to educate myself. If you are going to learn... go all out.

 

[Jeffdachef 5,000+ posts]

I am hoping that by the end of my research I will be able to understand the way the original music is intended to sound. Once this is known, it is easier to reproduce it in a car environment. I won't have to act like I know how to do it, I WILL know how to do it and maybe even be able to explain it in layman's terms.

The DB's Mr. Chef are more for a reference for me. Again, how loud is an SQ car? I have no idea what IASCA expects or deems a normal sound level. I would like to know. All these things help.

they dont listen loud at all. Its actually very quiet when they judge. Like REALLY quiet like 1/3 of your max volume ish is the best i can describe it. So you really want to tune your setup at a low level of listening and do not tune at high levels. Yes its not even 1/2 volume its less. Imagine the grandma with sensitive hearing and does not like loud music and thats your level.

 

[audioholic 5,000+ posts]

IASCA judging is done at between 80 and 90 db. At that volume level, even a modestly powered system should have plenty of headroom to allow for EQ'ing to flatten and blend the system's overall response.

 

[ThxOne Premium Member]

From the IASCA Revised SQ rules:

"Sound judging for Tonal Accuracy, Sound Stage and Imaging will be performed at a system volume level between 80 and 90 dB. If the noise floor at an event is too high to properly Judge at 90 dB, the volume level will be adjusted up in 5dB increments to compensate. The volume level for judging will be set by the Judge using a portable SPL meter and the Pink Noise track from the CD, establishing a consistent volume level of evaluation for each vehicle at an event. Judges will record the decibel level used on each score sheet. All vehicles in a class will be evaluated at the same level."

The audio engineer in NY also told me they listen and mix @ between 80db and 90db. A pattern emerges. I am getting excited!!!