The Good Car Audio
The biggest and hardest problem is the 12v (14.4v) power line in a car. Creating a nice power supply which doesn't create much noise can be an expensive *******. There are rumours that the auto industry is going to change to 35v and some prototype cars already have this. I have modified some cars electrics by putting in tri alternators in series to create 36v which is enough to feed LM3886 based chippies, and since car speakers are at 4ohm life is good. Just gotta remember to run dual lines since the engines electrics are still at 12v
Getting the sound right in a car is good fun, there are many things to think of... starting with glass windows. However, sweet spots can be designed and I have built many enclosures using fibreglass which can 'focus' the sound from the speakers. Of course, true tuning would not be complete without a parabolic crossover (i'm old fashioned) and a basic sine wave generator.
However, bass can also be a problem. It is virtually impossible to have boomy tight bass in a car. One or the other is easy. Then of course there is the 'bass sickness' problem where bass frequencies are not being killed in the car and after long periods of bass the listener can start to feel physically sick. This gets biological here... basically the fluid in the ears is getting confused because its 'hearing' two of the same frequency microseconds apart and in an enclosed space this effect is amplified inside the body. I have been inside cars which have a powerful enough bass to suck the air right out of the lungs (no ****!) and make breathing difficult. Why very much fun, not so practical i guess.
So you you noddies who think a car is not a good environment, think again. If you can make a car sound good then you have a good chance of making your home sound good too. The posibility to create multiple sweet spots in a car is also quite unique and a challenge. If you spend alot of time in a car, then good sounds become very important. It is possible for instance to create gain of several dB based on the porting being tuned to the space (volume) of the car.
It is not too unusual to have nearly 1KW for the bass and 100W per channel with fronts, mids and rears. Of couse it is wise also to sound proof the car such as space filler in the panels and cement pannels on the insides. THis will help give the car a more 'full' sound as it stops the air molecules transfering their movement to the car body.
So there is indeed a real art to car audio. Clarity and gaining a complete flat line response is not impossible and while can be a challenge (for instance the difference of one, two or more people in the car) is a much better feeling of satisifaction than a simple home theatre setup which can be perfected in about 5 minutes with a tape measure, calculator and a DTS trailer.
The biggest and hardest problem is the 12v (14.4v) power line in a car. Creating a nice power supply which doesn't create much noise can be an expensive *******. There are rumours that the auto industry is going to change to 35v and some prototype cars already have this. I have modified some cars electrics by putting in tri alternators in series to create 36v which is enough to feed LM3886 based chippies, and since car speakers are at 4ohm life is good. Just gotta remember to run dual lines since the engines electrics are still at 12v
Getting the sound right in a car is good fun, there are many things to think of... starting with glass windows. However, sweet spots can be designed and I have built many enclosures using fibreglass which can 'focus' the sound from the speakers. Of course, true tuning would not be complete without a parabolic crossover (i'm old fashioned) and a basic sine wave generator.
However, bass can also be a problem. It is virtually impossible to have boomy tight bass in a car. One or the other is easy. Then of course there is the 'bass sickness' problem where bass frequencies are not being killed in the car and after long periods of bass the listener can start to feel physically sick. This gets biological here... basically the fluid in the ears is getting confused because its 'hearing' two of the same frequency microseconds apart and in an enclosed space this effect is amplified inside the body. I have been inside cars which have a powerful enough bass to suck the air right out of the lungs (no ****!) and make breathing difficult. Why very much fun, not so practical i guess.
So you you noddies who think a car is not a good environment, think again. If you can make a car sound good then you have a good chance of making your home sound good too. The posibility to create multiple sweet spots in a car is also quite unique and a challenge. If you spend alot of time in a car, then good sounds become very important. It is possible for instance to create gain of several dB based on the porting being tuned to the space (volume) of the car.
It is not too unusual to have nearly 1KW for the bass and 100W per channel with fronts, mids and rears. Of couse it is wise also to sound proof the car such as space filler in the panels and cement pannels on the insides. THis will help give the car a more 'full' sound as it stops the air molecules transfering their movement to the car body.
So there is indeed a real art to car audio. Clarity and gaining a complete flat line response is not impossible and while can be a challenge (for instance the difference of one, two or more people in the car) is a much better feeling of satisifaction than a simple home theatre setup which can be perfected in about 5 minutes with a tape measure, calculator and a DTS trailer.
He was barely 20 if that, but yes he could afford it; he was probably selling drugs, but not using them himself. Top tier dealer. He probably had 100K stashed away somewhere.
This system was both loud and fairly good on the SQ as well. All of the amps were Orion, if I remember correctly. He had two alternators on the car, and the system would run the battery flat in a few minutes with the engine off.
The subs were in the back of the absolutely showroom perfect 80s Chevy Nova, and they were sending as much sound outside of the car as inside of it. He had probably spent at least $20 k on the car back in 1986.
The sub generated a lot of really fast bass, no clipping, very clean.
Other lesser dealers just have noise boxes, where the sub bottoms out a lot making a really annoying buzzing sound. You can also hear the amps on some of these clip in sympathy with the bass kicks. But I have a suspicion that the reason for the subs goes way beyond just the braggin' rights. It also makes it easy for their 2nd tier connections (often using addicts on the streets) to find them and make purchases.
This system was both loud and fairly good on the SQ as well. All of the amps were Orion, if I remember correctly. He had two alternators on the car, and the system would run the battery flat in a few minutes with the engine off.
The subs were in the back of the absolutely showroom perfect 80s Chevy Nova, and they were sending as much sound outside of the car as inside of it. He had probably spent at least $20 k on the car back in 1986.
The sub generated a lot of really fast bass, no clipping, very clean.
Other lesser dealers just have noise boxes, where the sub bottoms out a lot making a really annoying buzzing sound. You can also hear the amps on some of these clip in sympathy with the bass kicks. But I have a suspicion that the reason for the subs goes way beyond just the braggin' rights. It also makes it easy for their 2nd tier connections (often using addicts on the streets) to find them and make purchases.
The skill of the sound system designer is what makes it work
good, whether home or car audio.
People have wild imaginations with car audio, an old stereotype
that continues to live on today. People act like it's impossible to
create a good sound system in a car.
Lets back up a second. People that do home audio buy
finished product and place it their home, plug it in and listen.
/simple.
In car audio there is no finished product, you have to design
the audio system from scratch. It's all custom made. That
means that YOU have to understand how to create your
car audio system for the best sound that YOU desire!
Not everyone in car audio shares the same design goal either.
Most people in car audio are not into high caliber audio, but
I was into this 20 years ago when I finished my SQ car audio
system that took 2 years to build using good amplifiers and
speakers.
After completition, I took the same music and tried to enter into
the home audio scene because I was done with car audio. I
wanted the same high quality sound in the home. I was
dissapointed big time. The prices were outrageous for high end
audio 'junk' speakers. The sound quality was poor. I got
the impression that home audio system design was in the
dark ages.
I had 12 amplification channels in my car, a fully active setup, I
can adjust many parameters in real time. Installation plays
a big role to complete the high quality sound, etc.
Store bought home audio felt cheap to me and it seemed that
the only solution was to DIY home audio.
good, whether home or car audio.
People have wild imaginations with car audio, an old stereotype
that continues to live on today. People act like it's impossible to
create a good sound system in a car.
Lets back up a second. People that do home audio buy
finished product and place it their home, plug it in and listen.
/simple.
In car audio there is no finished product, you have to design
the audio system from scratch. It's all custom made. That
means that YOU have to understand how to create your
car audio system for the best sound that YOU desire!
Not everyone in car audio shares the same design goal either.
Most people in car audio are not into high caliber audio, but
I was into this 20 years ago when I finished my SQ car audio
system that took 2 years to build using good amplifiers and
speakers.
After completition, I took the same music and tried to enter into
the home audio scene because I was done with car audio. I
wanted the same high quality sound in the home. I was
dissapointed big time. The prices were outrageous for high end
audio 'junk' speakers. The sound quality was poor. I got
the impression that home audio system design was in the
dark ages.
I had 12 amplification channels in my car, a fully active setup, I
can adjust many parameters in real time. Installation plays
a big role to complete the high quality sound, etc.
Store bought home audio felt cheap to me and it seemed that
the only solution was to DIY home audio.
Tru Technology
The chief designer at Tru, John Fairchild passed away at age 68 in March 2006 and was laid to rest in the Glen Haven cemetary in the sunny San Fernando Valley in Sylmar CA on a hot summer day. He was at Cervin Vega for 32 years prior to working at Tru.
I have taken over the position as chief engineer and amplifier designer at Tru along with my duties as the chief electronics engineer at Renkus-Heinz Inc. See my other technological terrors at www.rh.com.
Since John was a very competent designer and I agree with most of his design philosophies, there will be little immediate change in the amplifiers from Tru. Their products are excellent and there are no bugs in them to be worked out. Tru will continue to build amplifiers that sound great and that are reliable before all else. With no cheating on the capability of parts just to save a buck or two.
I will be at the Tru display at CES in Las Vegas in January 2007 if any of you would like to talk about car audio amplifier design.
Dan Fraser
The chief designer at Tru, John Fairchild passed away at age 68 in March 2006 and was laid to rest in the Glen Haven cemetary in the sunny San Fernando Valley in Sylmar CA on a hot summer day. He was at Cervin Vega for 32 years prior to working at Tru.
I have taken over the position as chief engineer and amplifier designer at Tru along with my duties as the chief electronics engineer at Renkus-Heinz Inc. See my other technological terrors at www.rh.com.
Since John was a very competent designer and I agree with most of his design philosophies, there will be little immediate change in the amplifiers from Tru. Their products are excellent and there are no bugs in them to be worked out. Tru will continue to build amplifiers that sound great and that are reliable before all else. With no cheating on the capability of parts just to save a buck or two.
I will be at the Tru display at CES in Las Vegas in January 2007 if any of you would like to talk about car audio amplifier design.
Dan Fraser
thylantyr said:The skill of the sound system designer is what makes it work
good, whether home or car audio.
People have wild imaginations with car audio, an old stereotype
that continues to live on today. People act like it's impossible to
create a good sound system in a car.
Lets back up a second. People that do home audio buy
finished product and place it their home, plug it in and listen.
/simple.
In car audio there is no finished product, you have to design
the audio system from scratch. It's all custom made. That
means that YOU have to understand how to create your
car audio system for the best sound that YOU desire!
Not everyone in car audio shares the same design goal either.
Most people in car audio are not into high caliber audio, but
I was into this 20 years ago when I finished my SQ car audio
system that took 2 years to build using good amplifiers and
speakers.
After completition, I took the same music and tried to enter into
the home audio scene because I was done with car audio. I
wanted the same high quality sound in the home. I was
dissapointed big time. The prices were outrageous for high end
audio 'junk' speakers. The sound quality was poor. I got
the impression that home audio system design was in the
dark ages.
I had 12 amplification channels in my car, a fully active setup, I
can adjust many parameters in real time. Installation plays
a big role to complete the high quality sound, etc.
Store bought home audio felt cheap to me and it seemed that
the only solution was to DIY home audio.
Good luck Dan
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