for thoes who have compeated in iasca or usac sq the question i have is where should the center of the stage be in the car. my personal prefrence is center of the steering wheel. i want to know if it should be right in front of you in front of the steering wheel or the center of the dash as you would need to look at the middle of the dash to imagin thats where the voices are coming from.

which is the correct answer for competition

i am runing 3way active and have time alignment to play with

I will let the pro's answer this, but from what I'd imagine, putting the speaker right in front of you up-close like on the steering wheel will throw off the imaging. But that's just my hypothesis. I'm interested in this though.

Center should be when you close your eyes and the sounds appears to come from the center of your dash, and if the set up is really good it will sound as if it is coming from the hood ornament.

thanks for the help i have it pretty close now and as luck would have it whan i drive with the windows open the stage shifts to wher i like in front of the steering wheel. but with windows up its just in front of the center of my dash.

thanks again for the help

Are you useing a center channel processor?

no but if my friend sells me his 701 processer i will consider it i only have front stage in door and tweets in the side mirror location. waiting for money to get the L8 an L1 pro tweeter

This is just my opinion. In my past builds I found that if you have your front end set up properly you will create a phantom center channel effect, but depending on the car you may need to use a processor to create this.

This is just my opinion. In my past builds I found that if you have your front end set up properly you will create a phantom center channel effect, but depending on the car you may need to use a processor to create this.

People have been doing it for years without one.............

This is just my opinion. In my past builds I found that if you have your front end set up properly you will create a phantom center channel effect, but depending on the car you may need to use a processor to create this.

People have been doing it for years without one.............

Please reread the underlined part of his sentence.

He clearly stated that it can be done without one, just merely pointed out that it can be easier in certain vehicles to help create the effect. (at least that last bit was my interpretation).

This is just my opinion. In my past builds I found that if you have your front end set up properly you will create a phantom center channel effect, but depending on the car you may need to use a processor to create this.

People have been doing it for years without one.............

Please reread the underlined part of his sentence.

He clearly stated that it can be done without one, just merely pointed out that it can be easier in certain vehicles to help create the effect. (at least that last bit was my interpretation).

I mis understood what was being said I guess. I took it as meaning he needed some sort of center channel processing.

This is just my opinion. In my past builds I found that if you have your front end set up properly you will create a phantom center channel effect, but depending on the car you may need to use a processor to create this.

People have been doing it for years without one.............

Please reread the underlined part of his sentence.

He clearly stated that it can be done without one, just merely pointed out that it can be easier in certain vehicles to help create the effect. (at least that last bit was my interpretation).

Yes, that is correct.

Edited February 24, 200916 yr by nmssd12

i've been trying to get that effect in my car ever since i went active... its really hard being my first time active and a relative noob to the whole thing.

hey nmssd12 just noticed your from lock haven. i live in milton and go to school at bloomsburg university. i dont see many ppl from pa on this forum.

i've been trying to get that effect in my car ever since i went active... its really hard being my first time active and a relative noob to the whole thing.

hey nmssd12 just noticed your from lock haven. i live in milton and go to school at bloomsburg university. i dont see many ppl from pa on this forum.

There are a couple of us on here from the Lock Haven area.

i've been trying to get that effect in my car ever since i went active... its really hard being my first time active and a relative noob to the whole thing.

hey nmssd12 just noticed your from lock haven. i live in milton and go to school at bloomsburg university. i dont see many ppl from pa on this forum.

We had a bus load of students from Bloomsburg University go through our Haunt last year. Were you one of them?

I don't care what the judges think (alas I don't compete either) but personally I am not a fan of the "center of the dash". I don't want it centered on me either, but somewhere in between the two. If you aren't competing move it around until you like how it sounds, after all it is YOUR stereo.

i've been trying to get that effect in my car ever since i went active... its really hard being my first time active and a relative noob to the whole thing.

hey nmssd12 just noticed your from lock haven. i live in milton and go to school at bloomsburg university. i dont see many ppl from pa on this forum.

I know this is a little late, but I'm from Warren. Glad to see some other guys from norther PA here!

i've been trying to get that effect in my car ever since i went active... its really hard being my first time active and a relative noob to the whole thing.

hey nmssd12 just noticed your from lock haven. i live in milton and go to school at bloomsburg university. i dont see many ppl from pa on this forum.

We had a bus load of students from Bloomsburg University go through our Haunt last year. Were you one of them?

no im a freshman this year

There are actually two ways to determine where center is.

MECA and some judges in other organizations say that center is the center of the vehicle.

IASCA (especially older IASCA judges) were taught that first you determine where the boundry of the left stage is. Then you determine where the boundry of the right stage is. Then center is--well in the center of those two points. Depth also needs to be determined to be truly accurate.

I like the second method.

the problem with a center of the steering wheel is that means that your right stage then goes from the center of your steering whell all the way over to the passenger a-pillar. Your left stage then goes from the center of the steering wheel to the left apillar (or the outside mirror if you have it tuned in). Either way you end up with a HUGE right stage and a very cramped left stage. That makes the recordings sound very weird when you are listenign to something wit a lot of different information in the left of center and left portions of the soundstage. it also makes things seem "thin" when you have information in right center and right.

If you are competing--the easiest and safest way is to go with center of the vehicle. Know your judges though. If you get an old school IASCA judge, do it like above (left stage, right stage,depth, center).