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Gas mileage is a big issue with an ever-increasing number of people. Most recently, the "Cash for Clunkers" program has resulted in a lot of people driving more compact vehicles. A smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicle is great news for your wallet, but it can really create problems if you like...
Posted to
Use & Enjoy Your A/V Gear
by
Charlie
on
Mon, Aug 10 2009
Filed under:
Filed under: bass, subwoofer, car audio, Sony, RMS power, music system, 8" subwoofer, 6-1/2" subwoofer, car, Kicker, Dynamat, car subwoofer, subwoofers, shallow-mount sub, JL Audio, ThunderForm, Stealthbox, MTX, 5" sub, Pioneer Premier, Utopia Be, Focal
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Jeff and I meet at the Crutchfield Research Bay for the final system tuneup. In the last installment , we set the crossover points and adjusted the gain structure in the Sebring's system. Now, we've borrowed an AudioControl Real Time Analyzer (RTA), a complex little box that's used to measure...
Posted to
Use & Enjoy Your A/V Gear
by
Charlie
on
Wed, May 27 2009
Filed under:
Filed under: subwoofer, EQ, crossover, car stereo, car audio, amplifier, car sound, car speakers, CD player, In-dash receiver, speakers, receiver, music system, 8" subwoofer, convertible, amps, amplifiers, equalizer, car subwoofer, Boston Acoustics, gain control, speaker systems, Audio Control, Sebring, AudioControl, Chrysler, Eclipse
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The big day has arrived. In the first installment , we planned out the system for my convertible. Now we'll take a long look at the installation process. A system of this magnitude is completely out of my league, so I turn to Ben and Wayne, two ace installers who also maintain Crutchfield's car...
Posted to
Use & Enjoy Your A/V Gear
by
Charlie
on
Mon, May 11 2009
Filed under:
Filed under: car audio, amplifier, gain, Crutchfield, speakers, 8" subwoofer, convertible, Dynamat, equalizer, Boston Acoustics, Sebring, AudioControl, Chrysler, Eclipse, subwoofers
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For most people, the words "car audio" conjure up an image of a big SUV blasting you with waves of bass at a stoplight. But car audio systems aren't all about bass - they come in as many shapes and sizes as home audio systems. To the car audio fan, each new car offers the challenge of how...
Posted to
Use & Enjoy Your A/V Gear
by
Charlie
on
Fri, May 1 2009
Filed under:
Filed under: EQ, car stereo, car audio, Crutchfield, 8" subwoofer, convertible, Dynamat, Boston Acoustics, Sebring, AudioControl, Chrysler, Eclipse
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For some time now, we've been offering two tips to people who want to get great sound when they connect their iPod to a home audio system: Import (rip) your music at a higher bit rate , preferrably in the Apple Lossless format. Bypass your iPod's built-in digital-to-analog converter (DAC), by means of...
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Electricity's like running water. You wouldn't run a garden hose from your well to your house, because not enough water would get through to keep up with demand. That's why you don't want to use cheap, undersized power cable to get power to your amplifiers — the amp will be starved for power when you...
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They didn't have subwoofers in mind when they built your vehicle. Big bass sucks up a lot of power, and most car electrical systems aren't equipped to deal with it. A capacitor acts as a buffer between your amps and your car's battery. You connect the cap inline on the power cable from your battery,...
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Selecting higher bit rates when ripping digital music files gives you better sound quality. The trade-off, as we've discussed , is that the files are bigger, and fewer of them will fit on whatever storage medium you choose - an iPod® or other MP3 player, your computer, an external hard drive, a USB thumb...
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My old iPod® mini died a couple of weeks ago. No need to mourn, it had a good life. But when I purchased a new 8GB iPod nano , I realized something important about car receivers and iPods. My car receiver, a Pioneer DEH-P7000BT , has a USB input that supports iPod connection and control. The USB connection...
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A good subwoofer will bring the bottom octave of your music back into proper balance, so you'll hear familiar tunes in a whole new light. It'll take a load off your full-range speakers too, since you'll be playing your tunes with the bass control set at "0" instead of "+5". Some people get turned off...
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I really love the new HiFi 2.0 movement here at Crutchfield. Helping people achieve and enjoy great sound is what we're all about, whether you're trying to do it in your house or in your car. And this building is full of people who are knowledgeable and passionate about sound. To me, HiFi 2.0 is a relative...
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Boosting your factory radio's tone controls up to 11 might make your system sound better sitting in your driveway, but it just creates distortion when you turn it up on the highway. A heavy low-frequency boost, in particular, will put a big strain on your factory system. If you want to fatten up your...
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Most people think the gain control on their new amplifier is a volume control. But it actually adjusts the amount of input signal coming into the amplifier. Crank it up too high, and you'll hear some nasty distortion. Here's the general idea when setting gain: Start playing some music Turn your car stereo...
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A car interior presents some serious problems when it comes to sound quality. Glass and plastic surfaces reflect sound like crazy, while carpet, seat covers, and other absorbent materials soak it up. Add poorly-placed speakers to the mix, and you'll find significant peaks in frequency response in most...
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You may be saying, "My factory stereo puts out 200 watts, and that's plenty of power." But there's a huge difference between 50 watts peak power per channel produced by your car stereo and 50 watts RMS from an outboard amplifier. A separate amplifier will provide more clean power than any car stereo...