DavidRam's 1st Audio Build... EVER! :)

[DavidRam]

Wait do you have an DQ-61? You may need to eq with that to pull some of the harshness out of the tweets and get everything to blend better. I would play with those to get a little nicer sound before dropping tons of money on a DSP.
Which amp was that again, I remember discussing it but could remember the outcome.

He has the LCQ-1, what I had about 2,000 posts ago! Lmao

 

[wsutard1]

He has the LCQ-1, what I had about 2,000 posts ago! Lmao

Yes, sorry, LCQ-1. I have already messed with that to get it as good as I can. would much prefer a digital way of doing that.

My amp is the JL XD 400/4. It is decent and better than that SKAR crap I bought from someone, cough cough. (J/K, although I dont use it anymore. It didnt play well in my truck so I had to kick it to the curb)

 

[Etroze86]

Well damn I had to dump my inbox a while back to so I can't even see what we figured out.
I would try out the MiniDsp that David suggested it will get you in the game for sure and if its anything like PPI DEQ like people are saying it will for sure make life a lot easier for tuning.

 

[troutspinner]

If you are not wanting to "change the world" and keep it on the cheap right now, I would do what David suggested and buy a miniDSP. You would still keep your Hertz Xovers in play but the DSP would give you EQ ability that you do no currently have. You could also apply a little bit of time alignment left and right and take control of T/A with front, rear and sub to make it sound a little more dynamic.

If you want to go further down the road, then you can start buying more amps and taking individual control of those 3-ways.

 

[troutspinner]

Well damn I had to dump my inbox a while back to so I can't even see what we figured out.
I would try out the MiniDsp that David suggested it will get you in the game for sure and if its anything like PPI DEQ like people are saying it will for sure make life a lot easier for tuning.

LOL, you and I posted just minutes apart. The miniDSP is just like the DEQ.8 except the software has been changed from a graphic EQ on the inputs to a Parametric EQ (preferred IMO) and that's about it. I can't say for certain what goes on internally but I know people are happy with either unit.

You would also have some valuable resources here who could help you along should you need it.

 

[DavidRam]

Yes, sorry, LCQ-1. I have already messed with that to get it as good as I can. would much prefer a digital way of doing that.

My amp is the JL XD 400/4. It is decent and better than that SKAR crap I bought from someone, cough cough. (J/K, although I dont use it anymore. It didnt play well in my truck so I had to kick it to the curb)

What was wrong with the Skar amp??? That thing worked perfectly for me in the 1-2 months that I had it...

The only reason I sold it is that I needed a 6 channel, because I did what you are about to do! Lol

 

[adrianp89]

My buddy just dropped off an old Rockford 360.2 to sell for him. It can do what you want and probably would sell it cheap.

 

[DavidRam]

Done

 

[Etroze86]

Those look sick man nice job.

 

[DavidRam]

Those look sick man nice job.

Thanks E! To bad they won't be visible...
Don't tell anyone, but my OCD got the better of me and I polished the heads of the screws and washers so they match the shine of the speaker!

 

[Etroze86]

Lol nice

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

 

[DavidRam]

Installed and wired up. May the tuning begin.

That area in the sound bar is completely sealed. There is obviously a big improvement in sound with the baffle sealed against the enclosure vs the brackets that were holding the speakers before...

Do you guys thing there would be any issues with the sealed enclosure considering mids are generally built for IB ??

Btw, for now the xovers are set at 400 - 12,000k.

 

[DavidRam]

Forgot to update this...

After a lot of time spent on time alignment and EQing the mids in the sound bar, I am really happy with the results!

There is no way to tell that there is sounding coming from the soundbar, it blends so well with the front stage, but there is a noticeable fullness to the sound that was lacking before, imho.

When I demo it I ask people if they think that I have speakers blaring in the soundbar just over their heads, and they swear there is absolutely no sound coming from that direction! Also, they are surprised to find out that the sub is in the trunk because the "upfront bass" is pretty solid right now! Lol

So I have now achieved upfront-bass AND upfront-rear-overhead-soundbar-fill! Lmao

The only thing I would say is lacking in the Jeep, is stage width... I realize it's a narrow cab, especially compared to the Ram, but are there any tuning tricks to extend the stage past the A pillars?

 

[DavidRam]

I was finally able to figure how to connect a source directly to the DSP!!!




After trying multiple cables, plugs, DACs and settings, I have it working! Now I can completely by-pass the factory head unit and very conveniently connect anything to the DSP as a source. That way I don't have to deal with any of the issues of the factory HU... Though it hasn't been giving me much grief, I still wanted to have this second connecting option and also have the ability to play FLAC files directly to the DSP.
The one issue I will be having shortly, is that the Wrangler's audio is set-up to were it cuts output when you remove the hardtop, and it's quite noticeable from what I am reading on the forums... Apparently, this is so you don't try to compensate for the top being off by turning the system up even louder and blowing your speakers.
With the DSPs remote I can save 4 different tunes and switch between them on the fly, so now it's easy breezy!
What made this whole thing a little tricky for me is that the MiniDSP requires a digital source via optical or spdif and I only had analog sources (phone, laptop, tablet, DAP, Mp3 player, etc.). So I had to get a little DAC that would convert my analog sources to digital and connect via spdif or optical to the DSP. DONE!

My initial thoughts are that it sounds good with a couple of FLAC songs that I played just from my phone, but most notable is the increased output... I'll spend some time on tuning once I get a nice little DAC that will be the optional music source.

 

[troutspinner]

Very interested in what DAC you bought. Is it as easy as from phone to DAC, then DAC to S/PDIF?

 

[DavidRam]

Very interested in what DAC you bought. Is it as easy as from phone to DAC, then DAC to S/PDIF?

Exactly like that. ^^^

This is the DAC I got: PCM2704 USB DAC USB to s PDIF Sound Card Decoder Board with Aluminum Housing | eBay

 

[DavidRam]

Very interested in what DAC you bought. Is it as easy as from phone to DAC, then DAC to S/PDIF?

I'm a dufus!!! Yesterday, I was in a hurry to finish it up so I didn't listen closely or compare the HU vs. the phone at all... Today, I went in and listen to the new phone-dsp connection and realized that it sounded kinda crappy and weird.

Turns out I had the inputs wrong and it was playing in mono!

So I did a little level matching and EQing, and the sound is excellent! Definitely a worthwhile upgrade from the factory HU... It needed very little (a fraction of the amount the factory HU needed) EQ to smooth it out, and the clarity, detail and output is great!

The next step is to find a decent digital audio player to mount on the dash.

 

[troutspinner]

I'm going to have to do it now. . I still need to pick up a remote though so I can quickly change configurations.

 

[DavidRam]

I'm going to have to do it now. . I still need to pick up a remote though so I can quickly change configurations.

I can't wait to hear your thoughts on this...

I used this for the spdif cable from the DAC to the DSP: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00FMZX4DS/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I spent less than $20 on hardware and have a clean, unmolested source with lots of options and flexibility, and the potential sound quality could rival a really pricey head unit. Also, the noise floor is much lower than HU.
Most importantly, I get to keep my factory head unit which will soon be just a big clock in the dash! Lol
Actually, the HU is still good for CDs, Sirius XM (which has the sound quality of a 30 year old cassette from my childhood) and to make Bluetooth phone calls.

 

[DavidRam]

I ordered a cheapo, ebay special DAP to see if/how that will work as a source and for music storage...
If it works well, I'll get a really nice, high-end player and mount it permanently somewhere in the Jeep. I like this one a lot: https://www.amazon.com/Teac-HA-P90S...68857984&sr=8-8&keywords=digital+audio+player
The cheapo player will be passed on to my daughter so she can listen to the Frozen theme song in FLAC!




On a side note, it really surprises me how much programming is in the factory HU... The midbass is totally boosted in 125hz range, the highs are through the roof, then in the 500-2,000hz range there seems to be cuts... I have spent so much time EQing to correct these issues, and I originally attributed them to the installation and location of the drivers.
The signal from my Motorolla phone directly to the DSP gave a pretty smooth RTA right off the bat, and already sounds better than the factory HU. WTF?!?!?! Lol