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I was reading the manual for my headunit today (Pioneer DEH-1500) and it talked about adjusting the Q-factor. What the hell is that? You can set it either 2N, 1N, 1W, or 2W. Also, for the equalizer curve- I want it to have a "v" shape. High bass and treble, flat mid. The adjustments for low are 40,80,100,160 Hz, medium 200,500,1K,2K Hz, high 3K,8K,10K,12K Hz. What is my best setting to achive a V-shape w/o distortion of sound?
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"Q" is the property of an equalizer that determines the range of frequencies affected on either side of the center frequency. "Q" is equal to the center frequency divided by the bandwidth. As "Q" goes up, bandwith decreases. A high "Q" indicates a very narrow band of adjustment, meaning very little to the left and right of the center will be affected. A low Q indicates the adjustment will be very broad and affect several frequencies to either side of the center frequency.
And why do you want a "V-shape"? Do you "know" that sounds good or are you just guessing?
And when you say "V-Shape" do you want the visual of the graphic equalizer smiley face, or do you want the frequency response (as viewed on an RTA) to be a "V-Shape", which could have equalizer settings far from a "V-shape" depending on your equipment choices and their installation.
You asked a simple question that really isn't so simple. It is very complex and best handled with tuning over time by either yourself or someone with a good ear for tuning if you are not comfortable doing it yourself.
Bob Johann
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Q Factor is the width of the EQ freq you are boosting or cutting. N = Narrow, W = Wide. If you want to boost a specific frequency choose 2N, if you want a gradual boost of that frequency, choose 2W
As for the "V" shape curve, thats not the best idea. While every car's acoustic response is different, you are best starting flat (no boost or cut) and gradually making changes, you really should not need more then +/-3dB, anymore could cause distortion in that range. Increasing 20kHz 6dB and cutting 1K 6dB in NOT optimum.
Depending on what speakers you have and their response determines what Freq you want to adjust. I have MB Quart comp set, they are known to be a bit harsh, I cut 10K 1.5dB as a result, For mid I cut 1K 1dB and add 1dB @ 100hz as the car needed a bit more mid kick. Also sometimes cutting one frequency enhances another, so adding is not always the best answer either.
When making adjustments choose something musical, Hip-Hop/Rap/Punk are not good sources for tuning as they normally have extreme emphasis on certain freq.
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LOL @ Bob, you beat me to him......
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  At least we said basically the same thing.
Bob Johann
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1998 T-Red SVT Contour #3088
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2002 SLAP Pro Street 1-600 Champion
2002 MECA SQL Master Class Champion
2003 IASCA StreetX 1-600 Champion
2005 SLAP Expert Street Champion
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since we are on the topic...
what are your guys opinions on flattening it out via RTA, then adjusting it by ear? think there is any benefit to doing this, or are we just as good to start with EQ settings at flat and go from there?
02 Mustang GT... Tuned by Nelsons. Low 12's, anyone?
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Flat response on an RTA is just, well FLAT and that doesnt equal good sound. Flat means every frequency is reproduced at the same level, so that nice 30-40Hz bass note, has to be at the same output level as 1K, I am sure your low end output exceeds the mid range With your setup it would be very hard to acheive flat response with your subs set to their normal everyday output I am sure Bob has a set of SQ and RTA settings that differ very much from each other. Most cars "back in the day" had 4 Audio Control EQT's (they are single channel) Two for SQ, Two for Flat RTA response. The EQT is a 30 Band EQ so they can tweak any freq.
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Originally posted by KnuKonceptz:
Flat response on an RTA is just, well FLAT and that doesnt equal good sound. Flat means every frequency is reproduced at the same level, so that nice 30-40Hz bass note, has to be at the same output level as 1K, I am sure your low end output exceeds the mid range With your setup it would be very hard to acheive flat response with your subs set to their normal everyday output
I am sure Bob has a set of SQ and RTA settings that differ very much from each other. Most cars "back in the day" had 4 Audio Control EQT's (they are single channel) Two for SQ, Two for Flat RTA response. The EQT is a 30 Band EQ so they can tweak any freq.
i think you may have missed my point, bill. i know that having a system that produces a flat rta doesn't sound good to most people. what i'm asking is: is having the eq's set to produce a flat RTA curve a better starting point to begin adjusting eq's from, or would it be better to have all the bands set at zero on the eq itself and then go from there. am i making any sense here?
02 Mustang GT... Tuned by Nelsons. Low 12's, anyone?
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.\_/...............\_/
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I feel Guilty, Oh so guilty
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Originally posted by MxRacerCam:
Originally posted by KnuKonceptz:
Flat response on an RTA is just, well FLAT and that doesnt equal good sound. Flat means every frequency is reproduced at the same level, so that nice 30-40Hz bass note, has to be at the same output level as 1K, I am sure your low end output exceeds the mid range With your setup it would be very hard to acheive flat response with your subs set to their normal everyday output
I am sure Bob has a set of SQ and RTA settings that differ very much from each other. Most cars "back in the day" had 4 Audio Control EQT's (they are single channel) Two for SQ, Two for Flat RTA response. The EQT is a 30 Band EQ so they can tweak any freq.
i think you may have missed my point, bill. i know that having a system that produces a flat rta doesn't sound good to most people. what i'm asking is: is having the eq's set to produce a flat RTA curve a better starting point to begin adjusting eq's from, or would it be better to have all the bands set at zero on the eq itself and then go from there. am i making any sense here?
I would tend to lean towards making it flat with EQ, than making adjustments. The few shows that I have gone to, I was always surprised by how many highly rated vehicles had subtle smileys.
I tend to like flat response down to around 150-200hz with a first order rise below that point.
"If you are flammable and have legs, you are never blocking a fire exit"
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Well if a flat RTA response sounds like poo why would you want to start there if your looking for SQ? I think you would be quite suprised how much output your subs produce OVER the rest of the system. Getting perfectly flat is not an easy acheivement, keep in mind car acoustics are not friendly
For SQ, its your ears that you have to impress. For everyday use, I would start with the EQ flat and adjust from there. Play around with it, there is no real wrong answer (aside from a V or the smiley face is popular too....LOL) Bob, has more expirience in actual tuning so he can probably offer some good advice and probably can point you to some trouble spots the Contour may include
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