System Calibration and SQ

[MDK210]

What's the best way to calibrate the system in a vehicle? I know they make USACI disc and I have one but my goal is not for SPL these days but geared toward SQ. What kind of speakers are the real deal these days? I have a polk component set which sound really nice in my opinion but I've never heard a really expensive pair either. I've also heard that some guys don't even use rear speakers anymore and just fade their systems to the front. I have this setup and yes the cap has already been mentioned and in my newcomers post I have debated this intelligently:

Vehicle: 2005 F150 Reg Cab

Sub-box: Supercrewsound.com box

Sub: Kicker solobaric L7 12" 4-ohm

Amp: Kicker ZX750.1

Amp 2: Kicker ZX200.4

Cap: Stinger 1 Farad Digital Cap

HU: Pioneer Avic D3

Front Speaks: Polk Audio db5250 Component System

Rear Speaks: Pioneer 6X8 4-way Rear Speakers TSA6881R

Other: Dynamat

Now I can how the L7 would be geared toward SPL but to create an SQ setup where would you need to start. What brands are generally used for that and are there car audio installers out there that have calibration tools to fine tune a system. Everyone's ears are different so who's to say what sounds good? These are the things I wish to know. Thanks for any info.

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[Trey803 5,000+ posts]

I use auto eq......Once I installed deadener and got the tweeter attenuation right the pioneer auto eq sounds better than I ever got it to manually. I have made some small adjustments to the mid frequencies that can get harsh on certain songs. I want to try the Alpine Imprint as it appears to have even more adjustments and much better user interface.

 

[shaneb 10+ year member]

As far as the speakers go, Image Dynamics is a leading competitor in SQ, also Morel, ARC Audio and a few others.

The same goes for subwoofers, Image Dynamics has a good quality sound and are capable of working in very small enclosures.

As far as HU's go, I prefer Eclipse, also, Clarion makes decent ones, and Pioneer has a great HU for SQ.

As far as speakers go, Polk are good IMO, I am using a set of their coax until I get my image dynamics comps in, and I couldn't be happier with the tweeter's clarity and crispness.

 

[Haunz 10+ year member]

For a newb your best bet is to get your hands on a studio quality set of headphones and adjust your EQ untill the system sounds most like the headphones do..

If you have the time to learn how to use real tools and some cash to burn you need a measurment microphone, a preamp, a laptop, and a copy of speaker workshop (or some similar program)