SQ..what is it?

[Stalin-ohaulic]

I only understand mathematical operations that have to deal with car audio. This helps a little with spl, but really I don't know anything that applies to sq. It was my opinion that sq in the sub bass stage would come from a driver with precise control over the cone movement.... maximum linearity. Normally the more inefficient drivers are what I would guess are more sq oriented. Again, these are statements that are my guesses. I am looking for clarification from the sq guys as to how far off the mark I am.

 

[bikinpunk 10+ year member]

What stage is the best? Front or rear?

I know when I go to any venue there's always two....

/food for thought

 

[genxx 10+ year member]

Install is overlooked by many.

My favorite is well I deadened my doors with 3 layers of x and the floor ect. but my $90 comps just do sound like the dyns, HAT, Hertz ect. I heard and I installed them the exact same way.

You have a better chance at getting better sound out of a tried and proven set of comps. then some cheap stuff when doing a 1/2 *** install.

To achieve the best sound you have to play around with the install more than some MDF and deadener.

For subs you can take a decent quality sub and get it to do what you need it to do 98% of the time.

I have found the brands I like or that generally always work the way I want them to and that's what I stick with.

 

[DidUHearThat? 10+ year member]

"SQ" is the unatainable goal of replicating the orginal recording as close as possible to what was heard when it was recorded in the studio or stage.

The best way to hear "SQ" is to listen, to an orginal CD, in a quite room with high quality headphones, sometimes with subs playing.

A car is a terrible listening environment. Even the best speakers will never sound as good as it did on the studio monitors. Even if you took the same studio monitors out of the recording studio and installed them in your car it still wouldn't sound as good because of the acoustical effects of the car vs the studio acoustics.

Anyone who thinks "SQ" is about subs, doesn't even understand the question. Subs are a small part of a "system". The "quality" of the tweeters or install has a much greater effect on "SQ" than the quality of the subs, but even they are still only a part of the system. Having people hear your booming from blocks away, or impressing girls in parking lots with hair tricks has nothing to do with music, much less "SQ".

If you just want to get pounded from behind... you're just a *** with a loud vibrator.

 

[bikinpunk 10+ year member]

Let's all get one thing clear real fast... NO ONE except the engineer and anyone involved in the mixing of the final product KNOWS what it should sound like. The bottom line is that we're just tailoring our systems to:

1) What we think it should sound like

2) What we want it to sound like

3) What a judge or some other organizations tells us it should sound like

My definition of a good SQ system is one that I can sit in, throw a lot of various music in the CD player, put in drive and enjoy the whole way to my destination without ever feeling like "God, I've got to fix that later" or "could use more X". Until I get to that point, I'm still working. I recently heard a few cars that wouldn't win any world championships by any stretch, but I'd MUCH rather have those as my daily driver than the ones that would.

Cliffs: It's subjective, for the most part.

 

[genxx 10+ year member]

We have a winner ^^^. Bingo.

Erin-Explained the easiest way possible.

4. Must have a way to store presets so you don't have to re-tune to achieve the above. Presets FTW.

 

[atsaubrey 10+ year member]

Let's all get one thing clear real fast... NO ONE except the engineer and anyone involved in the mixing of the final product KNOWS what it should sound like. The bottom line is that we're just tailoring our systems to:1) What we think it should sound like

2) What we want it to sound like

3) What a judge or some other organizations tells us it should sound like

My definition of a good SQ system is one that I can sit in, throw a lot of various music in the CD player, put in drive and enjoy the whole way to my destination without ever feeling like "God, I've got to fix that later" or "could use more X". Until I get to that point, I'm still working. I recently heard a few cars that wouldn't win any world championships by any stretch, but I'd MUCH rather have those as my daily driver than the ones that would.

Cliffs: It's subjective, for the most part.

I would agree as well but lets be honest too. Tonal accuracy and good imaging and staging are the most inportant things...imo

 

[JimJ 5,000+ posts]

I think listening to live (especially unamplified) music is a key to understanding SQ in a stereo.

 

[James Bang 5,000+ posts]

I would agree as well but lets be honest too. Tonal accuracy and good imaging and staging are the most inportant things...imo

...what else is there?

 

[atsaubrey 10+ year member]

...what else is there?

doh! lol didnt think about it when I posted...hehehe

 

[genxx 10+ year member]

I would agree as well but lets be honest too. Tonal accuracy and good imaging and staging are the most inportant things...imo

That is what most people are trying to achieve even if they do not know the terms.

Its easier to call it SQ.

 

[bikinpunk 10+ year member]

lol. Might as well have said 'has to sound good'. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

 

[DidUHearThat? 10+ year member]

Let's all get one thing clear real fast... NO ONE except the engineer and anyone involved in the mixing of the final product KNOWS what it should sound like. The bottom line is that we're just tailoring our systems to:1) What we think it should sound like

2) What we want it to sound like

3) What a judge or some other organizations tells us it should sound like

My definition of a good SQ system is one that I can sit in, throw a lot of various music in the CD player, put in drive and enjoy the whole way to my destination without ever feeling like "God, I've got to fix that later" or "could use more X". Until I get to that point, I'm still working. I recently heard a few cars that wouldn't win any world championships by any stretch, but I'd MUCH rather have those as my daily driver than the ones that would.

Cliffs: It's subjective, for the most part.

For the most part, yes, it's subjective, but...

There are boundries that are outside of "subjective". There is objective good and bad "SQ".

That is why "refrence" material is so important. A recording of a chello solo, should sound like a chello. A piano solo should sound like a piano. Of course pianos can sound different, especially when recorded in different ways in different rooms. High quality refrence recordings reveal flaws in even the best systems and rooms. That is why we use them to test systems.

George Winston at Carnigee Hall should sound like a great piano in a nice room. Yo-Yo ma in the studio should sound like a great chello sitting in front of you. Etta James should sound like she's singing in your face. If it's boomy, tinny or muddy, it's your system.

Steely Dan is a popular choice for sound system checks, not because we like Steely Dan, but because his recordings are very high quality with clean clear instruments (especially drums).

If you can make these kinds of recordings sound good on your system, with minor variation, then your favorite tracks of Slayer or Tupac will jump out at you with realism and clarity you didn't know was there.

A little bright or bass heavy can be subjective taste, but clarity is clarity.

 

[trebor 10+ year member]

How does one measure this "tonal accuracy" and when is it right?//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/confused.gif.e820e0216602db4765798ac39d28caa9.gif

 

[genxx 10+ year member]

^^^Playing devils advocate I see.