Sub Installation

[Digit4lSh4rk]

Hi All,

Sorry for the stupid question but i am new to car audio. I have installed new 12'' MTX sub and a Sony xplod amp. Although it sounds quite loud, the quality of sound is really poor, i.e. it sounds really "blurry". My guess is that this is happening because of the output and input diffrences in the deck and the amp, but im not sure. What can I do to improve the sound quality?
Or if you know some links where I can read more about car audio, that would be really helpfull.

Thanks.

P.s. And that is 2003 Limited

 

[Jayded]

With distorted sound, my first instinct would be to turn down the 'gain' on the amp.

I'm assuming you've already tweaked the graphic equalizer (bass, mid, treble)?

 

[Digit4lSh4rk]

Yeah...it makes it a little better but its still bad. Gain is set very low too. Im just wondering if installing crossovers would make any difference?

 

[Jayded]

I've heard that crossovers make a HUGE difference.

I don't know what else to say...I had a similar problem when I first got my amp and subs. Currently, the gain on my amp is down to as low as it can go, and my equalizer is set to Bass = 0, Treble = 4, Mid = -1. I get a very clean sound this way.

 

[my04runner]

What is the strength of the amp? Did the enclosure for the sub come with the sub or is it manufactured by someone else? If the enclose has too much or not enough air the sub will sound horrible. Is the Bass setting on the Head unit up all the way? Does the amp have a built in crossover and is it set for low frequencies?

 

[PhxRunner]

You definitely need to get a crossover of some type. Does the Amp have one built in? Are there any switches that say LPF or HPF (Low Pass Filter or High Pass Filter)? You need to engage the LPF. That prevents the High frequencies from passing through to the Subwoofer. Ideally you'd like to set the crossover to around 80HZ. Any thing higher than that, then the sub will sound "voicey". That is a bad thing.

 

[Digit4lSh4rk]

Amp is 2 channel Sony Explod 2200GTX with 1200w.
(http://www.sounddomain.com/sku/SONXM2200GTX).

With the following features:
Class A/B Operation
Gold-Plated Terminals
Variable 50-300 Hz Low-Pass Filter
Variable 40 Hz Bass Boost
Line or Speaker Level Inputs
Preamp Outputs

The enclosure came with the sub.


I ve set LPF to around 60HZ, and turned down gain really low, it now plays ok(without distortion), but so did the built in sub.

 

[PhxRunner]

First of all...Your instruction manual will tell you how to wire and configure your Amp.

Follow the instructions for "As the Monoaural Amplifier for a Subwoofer".

What you are doing is bridging the 2 channel amp into one powerfull channel. Take the + lead from the Left side and the - lead from the right side and wire it directly to the sub.

Here is a link to the instructions.
Sony XM-2200GTX Instruction Manual

Second Page, Second Column to the Right, bottom frame. That shows what you need to do.

Set your Filter Dial to 80HZ to start, set your Level to 2, set your low boost to 12 o'clock.



How are you getting your signal to the Amp? RCA connection or a Line Level convertor?