setting low/high pass filters

[LMR]

Is there a way to measure what the setting actually is when setting the filters on an amp or crossover? I admit to being a newbie at this stuff and don't have an ear, so to speak, to tell where it should be. The system so far is in a quad cab truck with an Alpine hu and CDT front stage run by a Zed Leviathan. The sub which I am working on now is a PowerBass 2250 with the PowerBass 12" subwoofer. Thanks!

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[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

with an RTA you can see the effects of the crossover point and slope. but you won't have access to that.

for subs, start around 80Hz LPF

for speakers, start around 80Hz HPF

adjust from there based on slope, speaker size/response.

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

another way would be to use Autosound 2000 Disc 101 - it has tracks from 10Hz - 98Hz in 1Hz increments. you could monitor the speaker output voltage with a DMM and watch it drop at the crossover point.

 

[LosIsATool 5,000+ posts]

The SMD CC-1 will help you.

 

[LMR]

I am not following what an RTA is and can be very resourceful in getting equipment. Setting the filter at 80 would only be a guesstimate as it goes from 50-250. I looked at the manual and there is no high pass but a sub sonic pass down to 15hz. Isn't that more where you feel it than hear it?

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

don't worry about an Real Time Analyzer (RTA).

the CC-1 is more expensive than a decent DMM and test CD - yet both can give you the same results. The CC-1 is like an idiot light on your car - tells you something, but you don't know exactly what "that" is.

subsonic filters are high pass filters that remove very low bass information - useful when you have a vented box. note that when you build a vented box - you don't want information below the tuning frequency. a subsonic filter protects vented subwoofers.

a high pass filter would be for your speakers, different amp or the HU. without a HPF on the speakers, you are limited to what you can use for HU EQ settings since bass will distort speakers.