Re: Bloated Car Bass [message #70412 is a reply to message #70406] |
Wed, 07 December 2011 00:43 |
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Wayne Parham
Messages: 18793 Registered: January 2001
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Illuminati (33rd Degree) |
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There is one very good thing that happens in cars: The absense of room modes in the bass. The pressure region goes way up high - cabin gain actually works all the way up to about 60Hz. It just isn't hard at all to pressurize a couple cubic meters and without modes, it's strong and smooth. Even if it's a little lossy, you still get cabin gain because the pressure is dynamic, sort of like how piston rings can hold pressure long enough to provide usable force even though there is some amount of blow-by. But what you pay for in the trade for getting all this great bass is high reflectivity in the midrange and treble, and no really good places to put speakers in that environment that can provide any sort of imaging. I think that's the hardest part.
In spite of all that, I think you can make it sound pretty good in a car, with the right gear and setup. Just have to accept its limitations and not expect it to sound like "you are there" or anything like that. Best you can do it to bring the band in the car, the "they are here" thing. Kinda cramped for an orchestra, but just great for a four piece rock and roll band.
Good memories: I used to run a Concorde head unit with Alpine amps. Best tape/tuner system I've ever heard, incredible sound for that era (late 1970s to early 1980s). If you never heard one, don't think JVC or Pioneer "Supertuner", don't even think Alpine or Nakamichi. The Concorde was beter than most people's home stereos and the tape deck rivals the best gear available even today. For speakers, I ran one π speakers with JBL 2115 midwoofers for car audio. Sadly, those drivers aren't available anymore, but Fostex F200 are very much like them.
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