Car audio - sound stage or timing or ??
Discussion
Trying to understand why some systems sound so much better to my ears than others…
Some years back a friend spent a few £K on a sound system for an old 911 cabrio. Sound deadening in the doors as well as expensive Morel 2 ways, upgraded speakers in the rear deck area, an under-seat subwoofer, a 4 channel amp and an Alpine head unit. The music was incredibly clear and crisp and in the right piece you could pick out individual notes and instruments. And even with the hood down you could hear the music at 80mph over the wind noise.
But… engine off with no background noise it seemed quite clear that some music was coming from the door mounted midrange drivers and some from the tweeters, some from the left and some from the right. I contrast that with something like an HK or Bose system where the sound doesn’t seem to be coming from somewhere; it seems to be coming from everywhere. It’s nowhere near as clear or crisp but somehow I still prefer the “coming from everywhere” sound rather than the “coming from those speakers there” sound. Perhaps my ears have become “corrupted” by too many years of OEM systems?
But how do they achieve that? Centre speakers? More speakers? Altering the timings? How can that be achieved in an aftermarket system where a centre speaker is difficult or impossible to install?
Some years back a friend spent a few £K on a sound system for an old 911 cabrio. Sound deadening in the doors as well as expensive Morel 2 ways, upgraded speakers in the rear deck area, an under-seat subwoofer, a 4 channel amp and an Alpine head unit. The music was incredibly clear and crisp and in the right piece you could pick out individual notes and instruments. And even with the hood down you could hear the music at 80mph over the wind noise.
But… engine off with no background noise it seemed quite clear that some music was coming from the door mounted midrange drivers and some from the tweeters, some from the left and some from the right. I contrast that with something like an HK or Bose system where the sound doesn’t seem to be coming from somewhere; it seems to be coming from everywhere. It’s nowhere near as clear or crisp but somehow I still prefer the “coming from everywhere” sound rather than the “coming from those speakers there” sound. Perhaps my ears have become “corrupted” by too many years of OEM systems?
But how do they achieve that? Centre speakers? More speakers? Altering the timings? How can that be achieved in an aftermarket system where a centre speaker is difficult or impossible to install?
DSP first and foremost can turn any system, even one with less than 8 speakers, into a concert hall on wheels. The JBL MS-8 was a good example of this many years ago.
The central channel is not always important. There have been systems where the set up sounds better with one disconnected as it can confuse the sound. For example, if you think about how music is recorded in a studio and how artists want it heard. Not all music is made with a central channel in mind. Else those without would never really enjoy it.
Speaker configuration is more important than the number of speakers. Having a dedicated bass channel(s) and locating the bass speakers ideally can help. In a BMW these lower end frequencies are dealt with under seat arrangement. In my Mercedes, the sub is in the footwell and that acts as a horn loaded enclosure. Then you have your mid-bass speakers, tweeters… staging also falls under configuration. No point having tweeters out of ear shot in the footwells.
Setting that all up in a front sound stage sounds better than having 20 speakers dotted around all over. Even a DSP strapped to 6 speakers can sound better than if not equal to one with 18 speakers. Speakers with dedicated duties go a long way though as said.
In some demo BMW cars I have heard. The rear door speakers, rear deck speakers have all been disconnected, and when the processor was added it sounded incredible.
The car environment is a very difficult one to achieve audio perfection in. So that’s why many systems sound better when stationary and no engine running in the background. Although you won’t want to run your battery down.
Lastly, source material deserves a mention. Playing a highly compressed MP3 versus a lossless one can make a difference too.
There are many aftermarket DSP/amp solutions on the market if that is your objective. Some are even plug and play.
Hope that answers your question.
The central channel is not always important. There have been systems where the set up sounds better with one disconnected as it can confuse the sound. For example, if you think about how music is recorded in a studio and how artists want it heard. Not all music is made with a central channel in mind. Else those without would never really enjoy it.
Speaker configuration is more important than the number of speakers. Having a dedicated bass channel(s) and locating the bass speakers ideally can help. In a BMW these lower end frequencies are dealt with under seat arrangement. In my Mercedes, the sub is in the footwell and that acts as a horn loaded enclosure. Then you have your mid-bass speakers, tweeters… staging also falls under configuration. No point having tweeters out of ear shot in the footwells.
Setting that all up in a front sound stage sounds better than having 20 speakers dotted around all over. Even a DSP strapped to 6 speakers can sound better than if not equal to one with 18 speakers. Speakers with dedicated duties go a long way though as said.
In some demo BMW cars I have heard. The rear door speakers, rear deck speakers have all been disconnected, and when the processor was added it sounded incredible.
The car environment is a very difficult one to achieve audio perfection in. So that’s why many systems sound better when stationary and no engine running in the background. Although you won’t want to run your battery down.
Lastly, source material deserves a mention. Playing a highly compressed MP3 versus a lossless one can make a difference too.
There are many aftermarket DSP/amp solutions on the market if that is your objective. Some are even plug and play.
Hope that answers your question.
Edited by anonymous-user on Wednesday 18th May 06:40
Edited by anonymous-user on Thursday 19th May 12:51
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