shizzzon

I know what you're referring to but the good news is somewhere on their site, they guarantee that no check engine light will come on with this thing! Haha. they claim competitors have used these up to 170db for years. They also claim that they are calibrated just like TLabs and other high end meters are that i've never heard of. I'm not trying to compare this meter to a hgih end meter. All i need it to do is read louder when i do something right and get lower when i dont. That shouldnt be hard. I could have just gotten a radioshack mic but they dont go high enough for car audio.

Welcome to the what questions do you may i help great info here to read!? Tried to save on sentences.

Well, the thing retails for $249 but they got it on here for practically nothing. It's not as convenient on the Tlab sensor which i'm sure makes the cost go down but if you have an o-scope, which i do, it will give me the actual db reading on screen. Supposedly its gonna take forever before i get it but everyone's feedback says that they like it. Watch, week after i get it, i'm gonna come on here and say i did a 157 with 1 10 off the head unit and claim it's accurate! Well, we'll see in a couple weeks.

Thank you Good Sir i am testing an idea i had, what i do is measure the distance from the sub too where the mic will be placed then convert the inchs into feet / times 4 / gives me the quarter wave # / i take that # and devide it into the speed of sound 1131 and get the Freq i need to port the box to if i do it x2 i get the 1/2 wave and a lower tuning freq.... for street beet then i look for a sub with an Fs of 34 or higher and Bammmmmmmmm what exactly do you mean if you do it x2 you get the 1\2wave? multiplying by 2 will double frequency result... do you divide in half? In my case, it would be 25 hz, lol Some box i was testin the other sounded pretty loud between 30-33hz then got loud again at 39-42hz then hit the car's Fs at 49-54hz.

you'll get a lot more info about them over on ROE's forum but i'll tell you what i have found out about them from reading over there. Compare the HDC3 to the BL, haha, thats what you think! There over there comparing the HDC3 to the BTL, does that raise your eyebrow yet? Power ratings for the HDC3 are there for the people who are new to car audio and dont know all the little details about gaining the most output from a sub by overpowering it without failure. Now, here is what to know- IF you don't know every tip or secret about running subs with more power safely, then power an HDC3 with 1,000-1,500 amp. IF you know a decent deal and ARE going to be upgrading electrical system, alt + batt(s) if necessary and money doesn't choose your electrical system for you, then run a 2K amp on 1 HDC3. If you know a LOT and money is no restriction and are going for loud, LouD, LOUD, run a 3K amp to each HDC3. You MUST know how to setup x-overs properly when doing this and building boxes or else you will end up with damage. They supposedly sound like DD subs audibly(not sq-ish type sub but suppose to be better sounding than an actual DD sub), they weigh a lot(example - shipping weight for 1 12 is 52lbs, just sub, cardboard and Styrofoam), they can take a lot of abuse, i know this personally because i own 2 of the older AQs and these are suppose to be even more heavy duty. They are considered one of the best "get hella loud" subs out there for the money. Nobody can say The loudest for the money because they might be wrong but is definitely a killer sub. I'm planning on going with Fi or AQ myself. I've done AQ before and was blown away. People on here do Fi and are blown away.

oh, i'm not the kind of guy that buys cheap equipment whatsoever. Everything i own in terms of electronics is expensive. I don't like entry to average level anything. $1000 head unit $1000 sound deadening over $8k worth of computers in house.... get me? Of course i've been broken into before too. More than twice within 8 years. However, insurance is there for a reason. I did about 45 minutes of researching just to make sure that the mic they have on ebay is the same one on the companies website and was studying everything about it. Only thing i'm not for sure is how to recalibrate it if necessary. However, i'm mainly only going to be using this for a day or 2 then i'll be ready to build my enclosure. Of course i'll still use it after the enclosure for curiosity but if it starts to get inaccurate, i don't care. As long as the first 2 days are consistent, i'm fine.

you "might" have to cancel me out of the Fi in april or may... I just ordered me a meter so i can build a test box to see what would be the best way to setup a design in my car. If i can continue to do as i have been drawing, it will be Audioque HDC3s... If I have to shrink my enclosure down to get louder, it will be Fi's. If i don't do anything for some reason, it will be factory... If i do something but nothing loud, i'm not even gonna say i did anything. If...... you get the picture? Give me time. Patience...

Wow, now that is an awesome score! Can i borrow some of your Dbs when you are not using them so i dont have to spend as much money?

Ok, i thought i had tested enough as to how exactly i am going to build and face my box but maybe i'm wrong so i'm going to buy this meter - http://cgi.ebay.com/186-db-SPL-SOUND-LEVEL...1QQcmdZViewItem They say that it is calibrated just like some other top of the lines including the new Termlab sensors. I would buy a TL but not for the price they want for just building the best box for my money. All you do with this thing is hook it up to a DMM and the voltage it outputs, you look at this chart to see your Db reading. It is accurate down to 1\1000th of a volt AND Db so that's interesting. The slightest change can be detected which is great. So, here in the near future, i'm going to build a new test box with multi changeable ports on each wall so i can find out which way in every possible direction is the loudest.

nvm, went to the website and seen some pics.

Well, I don't have a test box with port on a wall that's not on baffle. Question- U say sub up port to driver side sideways. How far away is the port from the wall? I'm sure ur box is takin up bout the whole width and depth right?

cant do slot in middle. Required more depth than depth of box. If i split the vent in the middle 50\50, the volume a slot port would take up is too ridiculous. 6" aeroports would ONLY fit in the middle, i would only need 2 but they would still need to bend in the back to fit and that takes up just about as much room as the slot port does. I have done measurements for normal size ports that i can readily obtain - 1", 2", 3", 4", 6" and slot port. 1 and 2" are too small of course. I can do 3" but not necessary. 4" seems to be the sweet spot. These ports are PVC. It's a plus because PVC is so thin compared to a slot. One thing i'm contemplating is whether i should install flared ports on the ends of the port on the INSIDE of the box. I don't have room to fit them on the outside.

oh and by the way, i need someone to look at this. You guys first reaction is probably going to be WTF? but i'm serious. Is there anything bad about the following draw that could cause some major problems - That is a picture of 2 12s with 5 4" ports above them. each port is 29" long tuned to 37hz. The ports must run all the way to the back of the enclosure, make a 90 degree elbow, then head down 6" and end. Is there anything bad about this because i've never had that many ports before? Bad as in, i cant run ports like that because....? or the ports are too close to each other....? You tell me.

i'm about to go to sleep but before i do, I wouldnt mind guiding you through your first build which would save you a LOT of money if you have the following- Table saw or skill saw Router or jig saw Caulking gun or no caulking gun Power drill with bits Screwdriver C Clamps or a friend Tape measure or Ruler Compass or intuition. I think that's the basics. If you can list what all you do NOT have, then i can let you know if i can help ya. Otherwise, someone on here should be able to tell you a couple sites to go to have them build one for you.

yes, you are right, that's what i'm after. Man, good thing you were here when i was thinkin about this, i would of had a heck of a time sleepin tonight. I'm not kiddin. When i start thinkin, it's like the end of the world... hehe. Gotta find those answers and gotta do that research, hehe. Thanks again, man. And about SQ, yes, you are right, it is VERY in depth. But what people got to realize (not you, just in general) is it also depends on the music you listen to. If the music i listened to did not have heavy bass lines in every song then i wouldnt be venturing into the heavy bass that i do. However, if i only listened to that music also, i wouldnt venture into total SQ either knowing that i can get louder the way i am now. I believe the variety of music one listens to determines the project, SQ or SPL-ish. I wont say SPL because SPL simply, to me, means competition one note wonders and that obviously isn't musical. Well, this has helped me out a lot and hopefully the Original Poster as well.

well get ready to laugh then. Of course you guys may already know i'm not doin this for SQ, i'm interested in doing this to prevent from losing the detail of music while the bass is going. Unlike other people who cut corners, i like to retain the ratio of highs to lows as the output power increases to a certain extent(thats the key) rather than 90% bass and 10% mids n highs. This is what i was going to do, this is why i said go ahead and laugh, I'm assuming this would work in terms of getting the mids and highs loud enough to hear what i'm listening too- 4Kw of bass. X-overed at 60hz. all 4 midbasses - bandpassed starting from 55-65hz and going up to the point at which the CD1pros can take over which is up in the 700s. I see that you dont run your mids higher than 150 or at least thats what u want me to do so where oh where would my lost frequencies be played from, 150-700?

you're gonna try and find a 400A + Alt?!?! The only one i've heard of is a Leece Neville (if i spelled that right) that my alt guy told me about before.

Ok, that sounds interesting. Now, i've never used horns before so does it actually sound like the information coming from the horns is really under me rather than around me since the horns are under the dash? Because that would sound weird. Oh, and i would only be able to use large woofers like that in the rear quarter panels. So, you think it should be- subs in the rear, large midbass drivers in the rear quarter panels and nothing but horns up front? Just thought of somethin. Instead of fabricating custom brackets for larger woofers, if i ran all 6.5 midbass in all 4 locations, that's 800wrms of potential right there because a lot of 6.5 midbass drivers i look at should be able to take 200w per driver. That should definitely be enough. And then the horns are so efficient they would carry out the rest of the frequency range on their own.

i have a question about this- IF you were to run let's say CD1pros, or CD2s and give them their recommended power, would the tweeters in the doors be audibly non-existent? You know? If i were to replace my 2way components with some 150w components, let's say Image Dynamics and replace by rear speakers with 6.5" mid basses and the bass was still drowning out the music, would installing horns drown out the front tweeters? I have never used horns before and wonder how loud they get. I notice their outrageous efficiency but still, is it literally deafening? Enough to fit in a vehicle equipped with 4Kw of bass?

Well, i just did some testing with about 30 songs and frequencies from 27-55hz individually with positioning a ported and sealed box around in the hatch to determine what sounds loudest to the ear. I only faced sealed forward, everything else is for ported. This test though is with port and sub on same side. I have a sub up port back box but no sub to fit it, lol Sealed firing forward, right behind rear seat - Basically everything just drops in output. IT all sounds the same, just quieter so that definitely isn't recommended. Fire rear, box against the back seat- the mid range 50-60hz seems to hit hardest by doing this but not by much more than firing directly forward! The low bass was great. Fire rear, box 5" from the back door - everything sounded less loud. I do not recommend doing this. Fire to the side, 5" from the wall - everything sounded less loud. I do not recommend doing this. Fire forward - This is the setup i want to do and this is what i found out- Compared to firing rear, the 50-60hz range is very slightly quieter. I'm sure after a couple days you wouldnt even hear the difference. the lows are surprisingly still existent! I am using a box tuned to 41hz and surprisingly i was getting some pretty good low end output firing forward, 3ft away from my head! With it tuned that high, i tested as low as 29hz in that box before the sound started to become too quiet to even care anymore. This was only on 50w of power by the way. In the tC, 49hz is suppose to be the Fs of the car. It may very well be too in my case because when cycling through the tracks one by one, when i reached 41hz, the output started to drop a LOT through 46hz. 47hz came back a little, 48hz came back a LOT. You could tell something was about to get loud soon, hehe. From 49-54hz, it was VERY loud for only 50w. I am probably going to and recommend tuning firing forward for this car between 36 - 41hz. Even though my box i used to tune was 41, i think i should tune just a little lower so i can gain back some the low end output. Don't get me wrong, 41 hz still has some great low end output but when comparing it to what i heard around 50hz, well... you understand, I believe if you tune below 36hz firing forward that the upper frequencies may not be as loud as they are when i did testing, or as loud as they could be if you kept it above 36hz. Tune too high liek above 41hz and you might as well say goodbye to lowend. So, all in all, i'm excited!!! Gotta do some more drawings in CAD and see where i'm at. My current looks right now are 2 AQ HDC3 12s off of 4,000w tuned to 37hz. Of course i may change but as of right now.... Wow!

They are cheap because- They do not have to employ a humongous employment line. They do not distribute their products to dealers creating a contract to advertise a certain MSRP which is always hella high. They do not spend money to make the sub look like it's made of diamonds and gold and silver, etc... What they do is have intelligence and manufacturer equipment that is cost effective and that has a good price to performance ratio. There is no ultra inflation as you can see.

He already blew out one of my windows and he's over 1,000 miles away from me!

Jimj, I was about to fall asleep and just so happen to glance where it says you are from, , that's hilarious. Anyways, yea, IF you were to have damage done to a vehicle, it would be gradual, not instantaneous. Although, we are all assuming you do not have Alan Dante installing this for you either so unless you start seeing damage, there won't be for quite some time. I mean many years.... many..., ok, i'll go to sleep now.

if you go into high powered mode, like push both 12s over their rating a bit, you may want to double up on the baffle, use 2 3\4" sheets but as to doubling up any other wall.. it isn't necessary. You will need to brace for every 12-16" of wall. If you are serious about bracing, use all-thread. That has more effectiveness than doubling up on other walls but double baffle is a good recommendation for, i dont know, 2-3Kw of power maybe?