Some basic audio tips

When it comes to audio, home or car, I've had quite a bit of experience. Over the years, I've competed in DB drag and SQ competitions with different vehicles. I build/sell custom home speakers and even entire home theaters (including the room).

Here are some simple tips/tricks and bits of info.

Not all sound deadener material is created equal. Items like Peal&Seal and others that you find in your roofing section have a very low melting point. IIRC less than 180 degrees, which your vehicle can hit if baking in the direct sunlight. They are mostly asphalt based product and when they start to melt, not only will it make a mess, but your vehicle will begin to smell like a parking lot.

Other deadeners are butyl-based and have a much higher melting point (north of 300 degrees), and can withstand direct sunlight without any issues.


Home speakers work just fine in a car. Places like Parts-express.com and madisound.com sell individual drivers which tend to be higher quality for the price than the car audio equivalent. If you are worried about the cone material, (bigger worry is the surround material) than select something with a metal cone like the dayton reference series, or a sandwich cone material. I can suggest drivers that will impress for all sorts of budgets.

Those $1500 ea. home speakers you see at the specialty stores? Those are often using raw drivers that you can purchase for $50 a pop from these sites. (now, there is a lot of design work in the enclosures and especially crossovers, but that isn't as much of a concern in a car).

Most all car speaker installations are considered infinite baffle, so just because the driver states a sealed/ported enclosure does not mean that it will not sound correct in your vehicle. Most midrange drivers will work just fine. In fact, even subs would if you can correctly seperate the cabins. (basically, if you mounted the sub in your back wall, and the rest of the sub was outside, this would be an infinite baffle and sound just fine).

Clipping/distortion does not kill speakers. Too much heat kills them. It is like any electrical/mechanical system. Anytime it is pushed too hard over too much time, it will heat up and burn out.

The gain knob on your amplifier IS just another volume control. Everything either adds volume or reduces it before the speaker. From the head unit, to a crossover to the amplifiers and other signal processors. To eliminate distortion, Work your way down the chain turning each one up till it clips then back off. This normally works best starting with the quietest driver first, then level matching the others to match.

Expanding foam works wonders on rattling/loud/obnoxious panels. Deadener can add weight to the panel, but expanding foam is a quick way to firm it up. Just remember, it is called expanding foam for a reason, SO BE CAREFUL! Otherwise your panels may start to pop off.

There is no difference in sound from different brands of wire. Lamp cord from home depot sounds just as good as Audioquest Everest (if you've never heard of that, look it up for a good laugh) and monster. This applies to speaker wire, RCAs, power wire...etc.

Regardless of whether you put in a stereo in your car or not, doing the ole' big three is a great upgrade. I tend to use 4 awg because I have a bunch of it around. MANY electrical issues are a result of corrosion on these connections, and often bad alternators/batteries are a result of these connections being bad or undersized for the current you are pulling.
1) alternator positive to battery positive
2) battery negative to chassis
3) engine ground to chassis.

A simple couple dollar panel popper from harbor freight can save you a lot of headaches. Nothings worse than breaking all the clips off an interior piece and it never correctly going back on.

Don't be afraid to switch polarity on a speaker. Often times this can improve the sound in your vehicle.

Where can i go to learn more about home theatre crossovers

Building your own custom crossovers isn't hard, designing them is. Best way to get into it is to start with some kits that are already designed and go from there. Check places like diyaudio. That has tons of information on learning to build speakers.

The melting point of Quick Roof is over 200 degrees Fahrenheit, and the flash point is over 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

Like I said in the other thread, myself and several others have used it and you're the first person I've heard say they saw it melt. Withstanding over 200 degrees is pretty good, and it would have to be pretty damn hot outside to get that high inside.

http://www.cofair.com/pdf/msds/QRMat Safe Data.pdf

If it works for you, that's great! You got away with saving some money. And it is possible that it would work for a lot of people. All it takes is that one person that has to replace his interior because it melted.

I tested several types years ago in an oven. The peel and seal melted at 160 in less than an hour.

It's a risk.



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backwoods said:

I tested several types years ago in an oven. The peel and seal melted at 160 in less than an hour.

Click to expand...

Is peel n' seal a name brand?

Yep.

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Don't roofs get much hotter than 160 degrees in the summer? Why would it melt in a car but not on a roof, in its intended application? Not trying to start an argument or anything (I haven't used any such product before) it just doesn't make sense to me.

Normally when it is exposed on a roof (quick chimney patch, etc) it does not cover any openings, or only covers very small openings. It can melt underneath the backing, but as the day cools, it will solidify again. Often this is helpful as it seals up any possible leaks.

There is also rarely any pressure on the material (you normally don't walk on it). Whereas in your car, you will put pressure on it. If it is soft, you can push it out from underneath the backing and have it seep into the carpet. When it is used on doors, it covers large openings in the doors, which will allow it to drain into the door. There is a good chance that if you pull it off, you may find some had ran down inside the door.

If you understand the risk and are fine with it, then I am all for saving money. But, people have to understand why there is a price difference. I would never reccomend dynamat, as it is ridiculously overpriced, but there are many other butyl based competitors out there at a much more reasonable cost.

Also, there is a lot of confusion as to what the point of this stuff is. It merely adds density. The point is to stop vibrations (rattles) that you have in panels, sheet metal, etc. If you want a quieter ride, then a role of jute or similar sound absorption material will work better and do not have a melting risk associated. If you take the time to pull out your interior to put a vibration dampener in, it is worth it to run to a jo-ann's fabric and pick up some jute to lay over top. This does two things, helps save your carpet in case of it melting, and provides actual sound absorption to reduce outside noise.