Any suggestions? I have a 2.7 volt HeadUnit. My amp does not say much except that I found it says "Input Sensitivity 200mV-2V" I assume I can turn gain all the way up cus max is 2 volts. I found some tips on website that the gain is for matching the headunit voltage.



- ßaller

 

what amp? thats a pretty crappy amp if 2v is true.

 

well if it's 200mV-2V, 2V would obviously mean that's the highest it'll take so your gain setting should be on it's LOWEST with anything at or higher.....so just keep it all the way down.

 

Actually its a Monitor1 amp Im sure you know them from ECA

 

i retract my previous statement then.

 

200mV would be when you need to crank that sucka!

 

after you install the amp turn the gain all the way down.. then turn on the head unit and turn the volume up 3/4 of the way.. then go back to the amp and slowly turn it up.. when you hear the speaker start to distort bring it back down a bit and that should be enough for ya.. thats what i do when i install amps.. be it on a sub or mids and highs.. havent blown a speaker yet..

 

^^ that works but when you alread know the range of the input sensitivity, espcially if it's labeled on the settings with each tick mark, it ends up being just as accurate (well in my experience anyways)

 

but wouldnt it differ if your speaker is bigger than your amp?

 

I am pretty new to this stuff, so I could be incorrect, but I think the distortion introduced by setting the gain too high is from the amp being unable to produce that power rather than it being too much for the speaker to handle. That would mean that it doesn't matter if the speaker is "bigger" than the amp.

 

guess your right im not sure my self

 

gain setting is strictly according to the preouts on the h/u... size or amount of subs is no difference. however, lets say you have an 18" XXX with a 400 watt amp... you can clip the hell out of it and be fine but it may not sound as good. if you have a shiva and put 300 watts to it in a large sealed box and clip the signal nicely, say bye bye shiva due to overexcursion brought on by too much power by clipping the amp which caused it to blow.

 

as wills said. turn the gains all the way down. turn the radio with source material you listen to to the setting you will be listening to it at. Go just beyond that point and follow his directions. remember when the distortion is audible your well above what would/should be acceptable. use your discretion and you should be alright.

as well when the amplifier has a signal input it takes that signal and amplifies it. if you have your radio pushed to its limits then it is producing its maximum distortion (Or in the neighborhood), when you input that to the amp and INCREASE it you in turn increase the amount of distortion being passed to the speaker, and reduce the actual control the amplifier has over the signal. this can cause premature failure of the speakers and a nice smell that takes a considerable amount of time to get out of the car

 

lol i used to get that smell alot, it smells like straight up wood. Neways i was asking slickrick how to set my settings for amp and sub. i believe my hu puts out 1.8v. my amp pushes 350 at 2 and my sub handles 300 at 2. so i believe halfway gains are good?

btw for my coaxials in the front the rcas are powered from a hi low adapter[ only 1 rca preout pt on hu] so how much voltage is the amp for the coaxials getting from the hi low adapter from the bose?

 

usually theres a gain adapter on the hi lows as well same tuning applies. no way to tell unless you get into testing.
if you use the methods they listed youll be alright with your settings.

 

can't just say halfway. find out what your amp input sensitivity range is

 

My headunit goes up to like 40 for volume. A pretty good pioneer. I was told to sets the max gain on the amps according to the volume being on like 20. They guy said if you max the sound level on your head unit the voltage will be too high or something. Was he wrong? I have a full system with 2 amps and I am ready to take the car to a professional and have him tune it for me. IS there a for dummies on how to properly adjust gain setting for systems and all that? The problem is I could give a $hit less about learning I just want it told to me in a way where I don't have to learn about amps, volts, etc. I could really car less about my system as long as it sounds alright. Anybody have a possible link?

Thanks

 

They say the HU volume should be set at 3/4 of full volume (so 30 in your case). This is because HU's distort at there upper volumes.

So...Set HU volume to 30. Turn off all eq curves (set them flat), loudness curves and bass boost. Slowly turn up the gain (from higher volt to lower volt...confusing isn't it ) until you hear distortion then back off a bit.

I haven't actually done this yet, but that seems to be the most prevalent method.

 

do you have a multimeter

 

ok. I will try that. I just have to try to synchronize my 2 amps. One for speakers, one for subs. And I usually have the "loud" on medium because without it on there everything seems to sound weak (no good midrange bass). I will give it a shot though. Wouldn't you want "loud" all the way up? If it is off and you set the gains on their max, when you do turn it on then wouldn't it cause distortion? I do not have a multimeter.

 

loudness=teh bad. however, "good" loudness contours fade away to nothing at like 75% or somewhere in that area. its giving your system an artifical boost, just like bass boost on an amp. try settings gains with how your going to listen 2 it, preferably with the loudness contour off.

 

This is how I've adjusted many amps. It seems to work well. As far as Loudness, most HUs are designed with a loudness button to be used at lower volumes. Set your amp with the loudness offf. The only time you should be using your loudness is when you are at a low volume. Loudness will allow the lower volume to sound more full. It is not a bass control! Don't use it like one.