41 replies to this topic

[Blaeven]

why is there no audio section on this site???

or did i just fail at looking???

anyway...

i got a sub (kenwood 1500W) and amp (kicker 400w monoblock) recently and have hooked them up to my head unit (pioneer)...

all is sweet, except that i'm getting sub delay... the kick of the sub falls slightly after where it should in the song...

the only thing i can think that might be causing it is that the wires from my amp to my sub are quite long (i havn't cut them, they're coiled in the boot next to my sub) and the RCA cables are also quite long (going from the head unit to the amp under the seat...

now, i don't have any issue cutting the speaker wires to my sub if anyone thinks it's gonna help, but i don't fancy cutting and soldering RCA cables... i'm not that good... lol

any ideas???

[Hypnotic]

what sort of music are you more likely to listen too more often? and is it a sealed or ported box? the length of your rca's shouldn't be the problem, it comes down to the sub/box as well as tuning. if you like to listen to a lot of trance/hardstyle/electronic music your are best to have the sub in a sealed enclosure, hip hop/rap prefers deeper dirtier bass which is where a ported box comes into hand. you can get a ported box to not delay as much through tuning, however a sealed enclosure is the best way to go for clean bass. hope this has helped a bit Ash

[SUBARU]

That sucks - especially when there is a noticable difference. What gauge wiring are you using? As stated, RCA shouldn't be an issue, but the shorter the wiring to the speakers and sub the better. Is you HU a recent model? It should have some Sub control features that you can adjust. My Alpine HU has sun control settings. Also have a look at adjusting the frequency dials on the Amp.

[SUBARU]

Jovan, speaker wire length absolutely matters, particularly in high performance systems. If the wires are too long they can attract interferance. Also if the guage it not thick enough and there is not sufficient power being delivered to the amp, sound quality will be effected.

[DY028]

Checked your + and - ? if there backwards it will put the sub out of phase with the rest of the system.

[SUBARU]

Checked your + and - ? if there backwards it will put the sub out of phase with the rest of the system.

Hey... Good point. Didn't even think of that.

Tristan, forgot to mention before, there is an electical/electronic section in the model specific sections for these kinds of questions.

[DY028]

The trick is to start with things that are simple and don't involve cutting of anything.

[Soop]

^^^ words of wisdom right there. The simplest answer is usually the right one.

[SUBARU]

i can prove to you that it matters jack shit the length of wire with hight performance systems. the load isnt that big it only matters when it comes to the main positive wire....the speakers and the sub wire dosent matter in length as it only delivers ohm....

the reason i can prove this my speaker wire from amp to the fully sick 15inch sub woofer bro is over 4m long so i can unscrew my box and move it to the road and get my spare tire out with out any issues....also + and - in speaker means jack shit also. do to the fact that speakers work both ways and there is no right or left way which positive flows. some say current flows from positive to negative others fro negative to positive....its just what you prefer.... i still say his main problem is tune of the amp and the fact the main positive is not fat or thick enough....

Ummm.. That proved absolutely nothing. Thanks for the input though.

Why don't we wait to see if our helpful suggestions have worked for Tristan before we jump on the "I'm gunna prove you wrong" band wagon.

[Soop]

Doesn't small guage wire lose engery the longer it gets? As in the electrons escape the wire.

[Xon]

Jovan you're wrong mate.
+'ve and -'ve most certainly do make a difference. If you swap the two in an already installed system, you reverse the signal going to what ever driver you changed. This means while every other driver is pushing out, the changed one will be pulling in. In a shit system it probably won't matter much but if you've spent more than $3 on your equipment you should notice it.
Certainly important information if you've got twin fully sick subwoofers installed. If they're out of phase, you might as well have 1 and save some power...

Doesn't small guage wire lose engery the longer it gets?
As in the electrons escape the wire.

On the other end of the scale, if the wire's too big the resistance is too great and the current drops...

[Dylan]

Tristan, just talked to one of my good friends. Cable length will not be the cause of the problem here.

You could just try rotating and facing the sub in another direction - that may have a big impact on what you hear.

It could also be related to the box itself. If that box is not the right specifications for the sub, it can cause problems such as this one.

It may just be that you need to adjust time delay settings on your head unit. See this link for some more info.

Time Alignment or Correction - Electronic (usually digital) delay of the audio signal (in milliseconds) to provide surround sound as well as compensate for speaker placement.

[Xon]

You're less likely to notice it with a car system because all most people want is massive boom. The bass wavelengths are nice and long, and you generally only have 1 bass driver so it's less of an issue. Try installing tweeters out of phase and put on a tweeter test and you'll probably notice it.

[SUBARU]

Stop being so grumpy Jovan! Nobody is attacking you.

[SUBARU]

i said it looked like it..i didnt say u were

Ahhhh.. Let's move on eh?