EQ usage

skooter · 27th December 2007, 01:17 AM

Is it overkill to use EQs now with deck as advanced as they are now? Never used one and am thinking about it. I have an old Alpine EQ I thought about installing with my Alpine 9805 deck.

djQUAN · 27th December 2007, 02:53 AM

my headunit already has built in parametric EQ but I still used a 31 band eq externally.

probably overkill but I want to be able to tune it well.

Clipped · 27th December 2007, 03:36 AM

octave eq's help out quite alot with the subs... you can get it to peak just right with the box, and cut out the stuff it cant play, making it more efficient...

only problem is, i know of only one brand that cuts the bass well,
audiocontrol.

crs1 · 28th December 2007, 05:39 AM

in my opinion adding a external EQ is a waste of time i haven't used one since the mid 80's setting up a proper sound stage and box tuning makes all the difference in the world with the head units and amps these days external eq's and xovers are not needed my alpine cda-9853 has both user EQ and Xover the only thing i mess with is the preset eq and sub level and my Xover is set in my infinity amps but that is just my opinion

zigzagflux · 28th December 2007, 11:41 AM

And my opinion as well, crs1. If one insists equalization is necessary, get a high function head unit w/ DSP, and scrap the external EQ. IME, extensive EQ requirements is a tell tale sign of an improperly designed system.

Eva · 28th December 2007, 01:38 PM

I'm involved in professional audio and I always like to have a 10 band or bigger graphic EQ handy when listening, particularly when it is loud. Not all recordings have the same tonal balance and this becomes particularly unpleasant at high volumes. Also some of the music that I like is not very well recorded and requires some EQ, and I don't want to refuse to listen to it just becauseof this. At times there is much more in music than just sound quality.

On the other hand, the EQ functions found in head units are completely useless for real-time sound customization because the control interfaces are very complex. These interfaces are intended for fixed adjustment (set and forget) and are often based in only two or three buttons, so they require a lot of attention and key pressing to do what you would achieve by moving a slider in a traditional EQ. Short timeouts that bring you back from EQ to the main screen after two or three seconds only make things more frustrating.

jol50 · 28th December 2007, 03:36 PM

That is the thing, with an external you can fiddle with it on every song while you drive down the road...and never look at it.

jol50 · 28th December 2007, 08:51 PM

I should add to that, if you do use one it better be a good one or it will put noise into your system.

Jonny Hotnuts · 28th December 2007, 09:29 PM

I have always felt an EQ is a band-aid for an improperly set up system.

With the good speaker choices, in the optimum locations and crossed properly and with adjusted gains the stereo should sound perfect with every eq adjustment on the deck set flat (0) & loud turned off.

I remember we would run white noise in a system with mic @ ear level to a sitting person and see what was peaking or dipping.

It was not all that hard to tweak a gain here or there and move a XO point to flatten the curve.

I must admit that we made some really nice sounding setups back in the day.....won some trophies and got the girls. And did it without an EQ.

Jonny Hotnuts · 28th December 2007, 09:44 PM

BTW:

Not that this is an exact science but a rule of thumb that I would tell someone that would help in correct speaker choices.

If your mids are 5.25” good choices are 8-10-12” subs. They have a better ability to play mid bass. 6.5” mids are better suited with 12-15-18” because the 6.5” can pick up some of the frequencies that are not easily made by larger diaphragm subs.

27th December 2007, 01:17 AM	#1
skooter diyAudio Member Join Date: Oct 2007	EQ usage Is it overkill to use EQs now with deck as advanced as they are now? Never used one and am thinking about it. I have an old Alpine EQ I thought about installing with my Alpine 9805 deck.

28th December 2007, 01:38 PM	#6
Eva diyAudio Member Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Near the sea	I'm involved in professional audio and I always like to have a 10 band or bigger graphic EQ handy when listening, particularly when it is loud. Not all recordings have the same tonal balance and this becomes particularly unpleasant at high volumes. Also some of the music that I like is not very well recorded and requires some EQ, and I don't want to refuse to listen to it just becauseof this. At times there is much more in music than just sound quality. On the other hand, the EQ functions found in head units are completely useless for real-time sound customization because the control interfaces are very complex. These interfaces are intended for fixed adjustment (set and forget) and are often based in only two or three buttons, so they require a lot of attention and key pressing to do what you would achieve by moving a slider in a traditional EQ. Short timeouts that bring you back from EQ to the main screen after two or three seconds only make things more frustrating. __________________ I use to feel like the small child in The Emperor's New Clothes tale

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27th December 2007, 02:53 AM	#2
djQUAN diyAudio Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: manila	my headunit already has built in parametric EQ but I still used a 31 band eq externally. probably overkill but I want to be able to tune it well.

27th December 2007, 03:36 AM	#3
Clipped diyAudio Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: home	octave eq's help out quite alot with the subs... you can get it to peak just right with the box, and cut out the stuff it cant play, making it more efficient... only problem is, i know of only one brand that cuts the bass well, audiocontrol.

28th December 2007, 05:39 AM	#4
crs1 diyAudio Member Join Date: Dec 2007	in my opinion adding a external EQ is a waste of time i haven't used one since the mid 80's setting up a proper sound stage and box tuning makes all the difference in the world with the head units and amps these days external eq's and xovers are not needed my alpine cda-9853 has both user EQ and Xover the only thing i mess with is the preset eq and sub level and my Xover is set in my infinity amps but that is just my opinion

28th December 2007, 11:41 AM	#5
zigzagflux diyAudio Member Join Date: Oct 2006	And my opinion as well, crs1. If one insists equalization is necessary, get a high function head unit w/ DSP, and scrap the external EQ. IME, extensive EQ requirements is a tell tale sign of an improperly designed system.

28th December 2007, 03:36 PM	#7
jol50 diyAudio Member Join Date: Nov 2007	That is the thing, with an external you can fiddle with it on every song while you drive down the road...and never look at it.

28th December 2007, 08:51 PM	#8
jol50 diyAudio Member Join Date: Nov 2007	I should add to that, if you do use one it better be a good one or it will put noise into your system.

28th December 2007, 09:29 PM	#9
Jonny Hotnuts diyAudio Member Join Date: Dec 2007	I have always felt an EQ is a band-aid for an improperly set up system. With the good speaker choices, in the optimum locations and crossed properly and with adjusted gains the stereo should sound perfect with every eq adjustment on the deck set flat (0) & loud turned off. I remember we would run white noise in a system with mic @ ear level to a sitting person and see what was peaking or dipping. It was not all that hard to tweak a gain here or there and move a XO point to flatten the curve. I must admit that we made some really nice sounding setups back in the day.....won some trophies and got the girls. And did it without an EQ.

28th December 2007, 09:44 PM	#10
Jonny Hotnuts diyAudio Member Join Date: Dec 2007	BTW: Not that this is an exact science but a rule of thumb that I would tell someone that would help in correct speaker choices. If your mids are 5.25” good choices are 8-10-12” subs. They have a better ability to play mid bass. 6.5” mids are better suited with 12-15-18” because the 6.5” can pick up some of the frequencies that are not easily made by larger diaphragm subs.