My goal for this video was to provide information, a lot of people are trying to decide if they need SMD tools. There are ton of ways to set gain, it is OK to use the method that works best for you.
When you adjust the gain for distortion either for the smd or multimeter, did you move the crossover frequency for the lpf all the way up. My polk audio has a freq of 50hz-500hz on the knob and on hpf it's 20hz-400hz. Need to adjust my gain this weekend and while I know how to get the target voltage I don't know what to do to the frequency before I start moving the gain knob to PROPERLY reach the targeted voltage
nice video! out of all that, the MOST important thing you talked about was how everything in the chain starting from the beginning matters. I see a lot of lame video's on YT where someone is trying to "teach" people how to set gains with an O-scope and they are doing it completely wrong. "Just turn up the gain till you see (or hear) clipping" is not how you set gains. Head unit (or L.O.C if tapping in), DSP, crossovers etc, everything BEFORE the amps needs to be known first or it is all out the window. Also there is gain overlaps. Something completely ignored by these so called youtube "teachers". I have always told people, USE AN OSCOPE first. Learn it. Love it. USE IT RIGHT. Then get a DD-1 (for more accurate and simple results) once you feel like you are ready. It's the same process. (The DD-1+ Plus is a little different). But the standard DD-1 uses the same exact technique you would use if you had a scope. So no matter which one you choose, just do it correctly. Or turn all knobs to the right and jam on till you smell that smell. There is a right way and LOTS of wrong ways to do it. Thanks for the video it was a good watch :) Appreciate ya for that!
You make awesome stuff bro! My DD1 and CC1 are well worth the money. So then I got the hard case for them. And now I've got the TMM1 for the fans. Turns heads man. Badass stuff!!
I’m an owner of the DD-1+ and the original DD-1 HV, CC-1, IM-SG (first gen), AMM-1, and the VM-1 OM-1 and the TM-1. I also have a TPi meter/scope in my kit, a polarity tester and multiple connection options for any and every install need or tuning. I use the Liumy for work. For me, it’s the perfect travel set for on the road installs, audio monitoring, or just tinkering. From NY to CA, high heat, to cold weather, no cooked equipment, and everything is clean. Thanks DIY Audio Guy, and Thanks meade916 for the videos and tools. The audio world needs all your support to DIYR! (Do it yourself right.)
You can use a scope to find clipping, and you can use a $80 calibrated mic to find distortion with free software. For the DIYer that's probably the way to go.
I use an oscilloscope with fft as that allows me to see the actual wave form and the harmonics being produced. Where I live a two channel oscilloscope with this function is a third of the price of one SMD device and can be used to read many other signals for other projects. You can add a current probe and do math to get real time power and impedance numbers.
steve meade makes money on people that think math is scary, and now they got a little blinky light for 300bux, and steve using scare tactics to preach how everyone's system is clipping, and if they keep letting it clip their subs will explode.
I think it's unfair too ues ones product and mass produced these units to sell at a very expensive price for what is a simple light the smd dd1 is good for what i does but Steve should be ashamed for over pricing a piece of equipment that only has a light no screen and advised everyone that they need he's product so he can continue too live out his expensive life style. I bought one because i too fell into the track . I repair and install and modified car audio and im a electrician as my job i been installing car audio since i was 12 and since then i love car audio i remember the real and fun reason the days of car audio and electronics and it's why i made my hobbie too learn it i will simply say dont believe the hype i uesd the tool that cost me up too 200 plus shipping with a cd and a blinking light knowed as the smd dd1 and i returned it the next day reset my gains in my system and too my ears i was more pleased with my sound again i noticed that my gains were a little lower than with tool . The car audio and sales is all about making money now . And selling cheap products made and deigned with cheap parts what does matter if it says made in usa with cheap parts from China. People stop making these con artists rich they over price there gear and boasting there worth all over the internet. Car audio was never about money it was about music and joy and products that were way better than todays junk for half the cost i should know i been repairing amps and electronics since i was 17 in fact my amps are modified and are old school Components cause i know how well they outperform todays way over priced junk back in the day you did get what you payed for.
I sprung for a DD-1 about six months ago and I'm happy I did. I began my journey into car audio with a MTX1501D bought off a local Facebook group and have slowly continued to climb up to where I'm now running 6000 watts on strapped amps and backing it with lithium and a high output alternator. As you get into the more powerful and higher quality gear it becomes too expensive to risk doing it incorrectly. I've noticed my gain walks a little every few months from the vibration and a DD-1 is fast and simple enough that I can re-tune in a parking lot when something doesn't sound right. I definitely agree that for someone just starting out the SMD tools may be a little too out of reach and a cheaper alternative may be needed...just as long as it is done right. For those bitten by the bug and constantly wanting more though, you can't go wrong with the SMD line. Thanks for all the knowledge you've shared and for continuing to put videos like this out!
I’m a DIY guy myself. I have 2 vehicles with aftermarket stereos and some higher end equipment. I’m frequently tinkering and trying different things. I have a DD-1 for gains. It always works great and is super simple to operate. I have complete confidence in SMD products and will continue to use them.
Hopefully more and more manufacturers will start including clip indicators on their products. Obviously we still need to check head unit outputs for distortion along with any other gear we put in the signal chain. But, simple clip lights on all amps would be enormously helpful. Very interesting and informative video Justin!👍
This was a good watch. The distortion issue is one that I never had considered or taken much thought into before, so it was really interesting to see that demonstrated. Just due to being the type who likes to tinker, see how things work in depth, and get the absolute best value, I'll probably always have a love for scopes. But this video was great in how it presented and educated about the SMD tools, I have quite a bit more respect for the engineering behind those tools now. That compressor behavior is something I think I've only seen on pro audio gear before (with my very limited experience with pro stuff), so it was really interesting to see that on that little premade car enclosure. It makes me wonder how common that circuitry is on lower end gear, or if maybe it was just a once in a blue moon thing that some engineer thought was a good idea on that particular system. Anyways I really appreciate your content man, it's the thing I like seeing in the audio, and really any, community. We shouldn't get so caught up in what's "better" and "worse". Instead we should be educating each other on how to make the best of the gear we do have. That and of course, trying to stick to the facts of the situation is always the way to go. There's always more to learn. Thanks.
You said I was gonna want to watch the whole video, but you didn't say time after time after time again! You know you have the only channel I've even considered becoming a patron. Not going to lie I've very close to pushing the patron button 💯
The installaton of my Head unit Pioneer AVH-W4400NEX and the Pioneer GM-E360X4 has been a long road to say the least. I got the Head unit for 100 dollars off of Facebook Market Place with the 1 hour ride to and from the sellers location makes it a good price and good value. This will replace my stock unit in my 2013 Chevy Tahoe. The Amp was also picked up on Facebook Market Place and was 100 dollars also. This amp is a nightmare that I have been having over and over again for the last 2 months. It is going back on the market tomorrow and upon watching your channel I am better equipped to make the right choice for my Budget. Cheap and Dirty but one mam's cast off is anothers treasure. I really need a good installaton video as this is the most time and money pit as my electrical and fabracaton skills aver at a novice level and my wife would like the seats put back in the Tahoe asap. Can you recommend a video that will better deal with the pitfalls and shortcuts that a person in my sisutation should watch. Bingo Starr Great channel best one I have come across in the past year by far. Thanks for your clear and well thought out presentation.
I too am like you, am in my 30s getting back into car audio, i use to "install" in my younger days, looking back im not super proud lol. Now that I'm older and better funded which leads to better tools and materials I can actually do professional level install, so far its just been doing my own stuff, I might take on side work in the future, but now that I have proper shop tools, and the knowledge and experience now to do it right, plus the technology and pricing is so much better these days, additionally guys like Justin and Steve sharing info, I love the hobby all over again. I have been wanting to get a few of the SMD products for a while, I think they are really cool, I just can't justify their cost at the moment for as much as I would use them, currently I'm using the O scope and DMM method, which is light years beyond how I use to set stuff lol. Thanks again Justin and Steve.
I certainly don't consider myself a pro. Hence the channel name DIY audio guy. But when I think about the rat's nest of wires that I had in my car back in the day, I've definitely gotten better.
I use a mini oscilloscope and a multimeter to find the maximum my amp can go (5 chs) then I rely on my ears. I know up to what point I can raise it, it's just a matter of preference thereafter. I have noticed my amp mono section needs to be tuned in that way but the 4 ch output has a Max of 30v just like you've gone through.
25hz, One test you can also do when settings gains and tuning in conjunction with your ears, what I do is use my Oscilloscope as a visual guide of what my amps are doing with my sub/bass/mid bass/midrange/mid high/brightness frequencies and what ones clip for adjustments. Whatever clips, or is wasted energy and can be filtered out, or EQ’ed.
I have majority of the SMD tools and a few of the meters. Having the tools for the job, according to the sensitivity of the project, is important. The SMD Tools puts the bench size of each audio portion, into a travel size hand held tool. Justification of the cost, yeah it is a jump, but I say, their is no cost too high, when it comes to safety.
My stereo OCDs caused me to get both, The DD-1 works and does exactly what you want it to. You're kinda paying more money for the product that is easier to use without having to think. If you're on a budget, The O scope is more than adequate, you just have to know what you're looking at (like your examples). I like that the O scope gives you voltage at the same time. Ears can work.. You can for sure hear exactly when the wave clips with your ear, the tone changes. You just need a way to attenuate the signal so you don't blow your ears out. Example: find where the head unit clips by turning amp gain all the way down. you'll hear it change.
When I was younger I did it by ear 👂 but now that I have some education with electrical and using O-Scopes it's a basic understanding of how AC works and what many people forget is different frequencies have different wave forms and time periods with a good O-scope you can measure multiple things at once I believe you can't do that with The DD1? I really don't believe it's a bad tool at all but the cost per usage is what I look at when buying a tool to do a job, If I bought a dd1 it's only for testing and tuning amplifiers with an oscope it has many usagages not just car amplifiers so would I buy one nope 🙅 I will stick to what I was trained on
I personally own the SMD DD-1 and the CC-1 I recommend this product to any one that is diy i have done install for many years and I never had a complaint about how clean and clear it sounded i have gotten some folk that wanted me to use the SMD DD-1 AND CC-1 to there system and they where very pleased about there sound. so shout out to Steve Meade 💪🏼 it can be pricey but it is truly worth the buck!
Great video and very informative, the only thing that comes to mind in regards to needing a multimeter to set gain is in a situation lets say where you have an amp that can put out 2 or 3 times the subwoofers rated power. You would have to have a multi-meter or an oscope so you can turn the gain up to where the sub is rated at. If a DD1 is used you can only see where the amp starts clipping but at that point the power that the sub is rated at would be double or tripled. I cant see a reason to buy a DD1 and or 1 or 2 of the other SMD audio tuning devices unless you own a shop and time is a factor as the DD1 can speed up setting the amp if it can be done that way vs. using an oscope. If somebody does car audio as a hobby and setting there amp once or twice a $100 oscope is more than enough to do the job.
Awesome video! Steve Meades equipment IS the best available to those who know. I don’t own any myself but I do have access to most of it and rely on it for every customer.
i have been building speakers for fun, since 87 when I was a schoolboy, I've made some good stuff in time but also made the worst sh....ever🤣🤣 but listening when setting gains by ear have never failed me, never burned any unit or amp... Steve Meade is one of my new idols in car audio, he's a genius and does things my way👌👌👌
If you train your ear it is a great tool. But a lot of people that set by ear have not done that. If you are ever listing to live music, and it sounds like crap, it is because the guy running the mixer in the back of the room has not trained their ear. (or the venue just sucks for audio)
@@DIYAudioGuy i don't like live music, i think it lacks quality, i like the bassdrum through the subs but not Moore than that... I've trained my ears since 87 and i put a finger in each ear and listen close to the bass... when I tune in the headunit I've always done as you also do and then i turn the gain on the amp for the woofer and set a mark aso for mid and treble.. and this is done with a original CD i use scorpions-passion rules the game for mid and treble and 80s pop/disco for the bass...sometimes hard rock.. some streaming are okay but most of it is too compressed and has no quality... (one day i will try to connect my vinyl record player and listen to that, just for fun 😊)
Great video. I finally invested in the DD1... more so for ease of use and efficiency. I've been using the Lummy but when I'm doing multiple amps on a boat or vehicle the DD1 sure saves me time and I know it's consistent.
The dd 1 one reminds me of my hp distortion analyzer. The scope isn't a distortion meter it's a wavemeter it does care about distortion. So it makes sense the dd1 will pick up distortion before its visible on the scope.
You can find used SMD equipment on Ebay at great prices. I found my DD-1 just under 100 bucks. Now I have one. No longer a professional I shut down my store back in 2004. I just recently bought gear to have a nice system in my old Dakota and I just wanted the DD-1 to set my gain. It worked great and now I can either resell the DD-1 and possibly make a profit and have set gains, or just keep it and have it for life. I'm keeping mine and will set gains for friends if needed and have fun with it. As a former "pro" I only wished they had this back in my time. Great video as always.
This video is why I watch and subscribe to your channel. I may have different views on a few comments but we all get something different from the same pages of a book. I enjoy you topics and it contents. It is very imformative for those Novice whom just want to get louder within breaking the bank or destroying their gear due to lack of know-how.
I love content like this. I have a DD1 sitting in my Amazon cart right now. I wanna add this tool to my arsenal but was more interested in doing other aspects of car audio. Now I have people wanting me to help install, and I think im going to pull the trigger on this.
I bought my first DD-1 nine years ago from Steve and used it to tune a similar Alpine amp available at that time I'd love to see the content you'd create with the IM/SG in your hands, another choice piece of kit.
Great video, thanks for sharing. Too funny, that Alpine M500 you talked about. My wife has had that amp for years powering her sub along with another Alpine for her midranges. She's had them for years and moved them to a number of cars. Last fall I upgraded them with an Audio Control D-5-1300. I made use of the DD1 as well during the install.
Most add a subwoofer folks just crank the gain, and don't know, nor care if it's distorting. If you actually care about the sound or care of your system the SMD tools are in my opinion the ONLY WAY TO GO! They are idiot proof. Great video and even better product! Absolutely worth the money!
I tune by hear using a 1k or 40hz test tone. You cam hear the Amp tone starts to clip with the gain. As a pro installer I backed this up with a scope or dd1.
A better scope would have more options that would be far more useful. SMD is selling convenience and simplicity. Don't mistake their equipment for being more accurate or giving more information. Hell if I could afford them I'd have some SMD stuff too, because regardless of Steve being a little baby the engineers that actually made this stuff did accomplish what they were going for. Shame that it lines Steve's pockets but wdyd.
the funny thing is I have friends that tuned their systems by ear or by a voltmeter. I did it by ear then I invested in a dd1 and boy was not only mine clipping but my friends were clipped worse than mine. I love my dd1 and my taramps smart3 clip led is the best thing that came to amps
I know I know. Everyone has their tool they like to use. But let me tell ya. I got the DD-1, and used it with the Cheap gear I was testing. My god man. It was a gift from beyond! I was able to find every bit of CRAP gear and identify almost every little bit of distortion or noise in my system or gear that just did not make the cut and I was able to get this very inexpensive gear and find out its weaknesses and even fix it. I was even able to determine the weak spots in my signal chain for my head unit same with the digital signal processor I was using. the thing is, I don't just use one tool I use as many as I can to go ahead and get a good reference just like somebody at audiosciencereview uses a very expensive machine to go ahead and get results and measurements from gear. but all that does is give you a baseline working in a lab environment which in our car audio world doesn't quite work that way. but thanks to his tools, Steve made literally made my car audio experience not only inexpensive but I was able to get the absolute maximum with the equipment I was using. the final judge is always going to be you and your ears. But for me? I use as many tools as possible to track down any sources of noise in my signal path and chain. my final piece of advice is don't worry about the best way worry about the most thorough away and you will always have your audio Nirvana
I know my particular radio clips at 37 of 40. I set all my radio settings to where I like them. I set the amp for my highs first so I can hear any hiss or distortion. Then I moce on to the bass amp. Bass knob all the way up and amp gain all the way down. Radio set to volume 37. I play a 0db 40hz test tone. I hook a tweeter to the subwoofer channel. Slowly turn gain up to I hear a buzz in the tweeter. Then back it down to it stops. Basically quick explanation of how I set my system
@@DIYAudioGuy so I basically got completely ripped by Steve Meade saying I can set my gains with a tweeter just as well as his smd tool. I've seen multiple videos of people testing his smd tool against a tweeter with a capacitor to set gains on a bass amp. The red light on the smd comes on and off as the the buzz of the tweeter stops and starts. So what's your take on using a tweeter to set amp gains. Because he literally ripped into hard . Said I'm as smart as a box of nails 😂
I dropped a link to the video of him rippin into me. It's a bit rude and not very mature the way he spoke to me. I would expect a mature response from man like him. Anyways if u have time to go over the conversation that's in the link. I'd greatly appreciate it sir. Thanks and love your videos
Man……GREAT JOB!!!!!! Even better whn you clarified your goals as a content creator !!! We need more videos like such. Shout out to the “godfather” of car audio SMD!!!!! Thnks for the GREAT video. Been a fan for sometime now.
From watching this MOST INFORMABLE video, there is not much difference btween the dd-1 and the oscilliscope, I will trust the oscilliscope beause it will keep under the clipping safely. Thank you very much!
Another great video DIY Guy. Most of my sub amps have clip lights and I adjust the highs by ear. I think highly of Steve and defiantly have some of his tools on my audio wish list. Once again Steve generously giving away his tools and wanting nothing in return. The man believes in what he sells.
He gives them away to these popular YT channels because he gets free advertisement out of them. Advertisements turn into sales and sales turn into profit.
Thanks for this nice informative video… just a little concern, please stop switch scene between the scope and your postur, too often. It gets me dizzy, would keeping up with your voice. Because I try to keep up with the scope detail view as well. 😊
I love technical videos and I really enjoyed this. Thank you I still think the best advice in your video is - buy a decent brand, which solves a lot of problems.
Right, you don't have to drop big cash on the high-end stuff, just avoid the bottom of the barrel. Pioneer, for example, makes solid amps that are clean and do rated. Rockford Fosgate Prime amps even have a clip light.
Tried training my ear, ended up loosing hearing in my left ear😉. But seriously though, a lot can probably get it close by ear. However I don't trust it enough. The way I look at it I spend enough on amps and subs that it's not worth risking. I've tried by ear then followed with the dd1 and an amm1. Then check it with a dmm to see how far off I was. Next smd goodie I want is the signal generator. Thanks for sharing another excellent video
@DIY Audio Guy agreed. I still have to plug into the dm-608 dsp once in a while. I have the bt-24 bluetooth dealio but it's just easier to adjust thing on the laptop. It's really cool to stream hq files and bypass the head unit though. We live in a cool day n age with tons and tons of goodies to play with.
DD1 for people who make a living in audio. Quicker and reliable. Liumy + cheap voltmeter for the rest of us. On any reputable amplifier, I never use max undistorted gain anyways. It's usually the least power efficient, and more power than the speaker calls for. Now your first test, that is definitely oscope winning. That fuzz, not a big deal on subwoofers. But full range, it's noticeable. I used a 2 channel Jensen from Walmart recently. Class d. It just never sounded, right. If you're listening to rap or something simple, you'll likely not notice. But something more complex, notes would break apart. Turning the gain down to a nice curve on the scope, fixed the problem. I lister louder than most people, so it stands out.
I completely agree. I set everything by ear it's never failed me but I don't think it's the actual correct way. Someone like me who changes subs like underwear could definitely use a dd1. But like you said for someone just getting a normal lower power system for the next 5 years it doesn't make sense.
As someone who is in a field in which I have a lot of specialized testing equipment it’s hard to fault Steve on the price of the equipment. A DIY guy may see it as expensive but they wouldn’t likely get enough use out of it to justify it anyways. A shop that would use it multiple times a day would see that price as a bargain as it will save them tons of time over the course of a year. It’s all relative and I see these tools as just that… Tools. If you would hardly ever use it then why buy it? If you would use it a lot and it would make you more productive then the price is certainly worth it. I have multiple oscilloscopes including a 4 channel PicoScope but I would still love an AMM-1 as that little thing does all kind of cool stuff like real time power and you can’t find anywhere else really.
I unfortunately can’t afford all these amazing tools so I had to build my own clipping detector. A small 3inch speaker with a capacitor in-line you can tell when the amp clips
I would recommend a analog oscope, the issue with new digital scopes is the latency in cheap oscopes. I use a Iwatsu 200mhz 3 Channel scope. But it's heavy and clunky. But very accurate . Rigol digital and the better brands are fine, but the processing is a little slower, just a little tech tip
My JL amp has a red light around the gain screw and if that ever blinks it’s clipping. It’s my favorite thing I’ve ever seen on an amp 😂 I love this video though because it has so much info I didn’t know
I have generally always overpowered my subwoofers. This makes the gain not that big of a deal to me. I just use a basic voltmeter and set the volts to match what the subs need. For instance, powering a 600 watt sub with a 1000 watt amplifier. If you were to set gain to the max before clipping on the amp, you would most likely blow the sub. No clipping worries for me. Although I have pushed amps back in the day to their max etc, where clipping would matter.
I wish he could bring the price down on them by like 30-50%. I think he would sell alot more at a lower price. I dont think cost of production is so high that its impossible to do that. I know SMD and D'amore are a higher quailty brand but for as good as these are why not make them more easily/cheaply available to tge car audio community. Never have used then but everyone irl and online always talk very highly of them.
He has been selling these things for over a decade, if he was priced to high he would have lowered it by now. I don think the price has ever gone up, so after inflation he has cut the price.
@DIYAudioGuy idk man, I understand that R&D has to get figured into the price of a tool like that. But when I can get very nice and advanced DMM and Oscopes and obd2 and Tech2 devices now for under $50 and the myriad of other technology tools that have come down in price drastically in the last decade you would think he could do something to cut the cost of manufacturing and pass that on to everyone. Especially being someone as passionate for the community as he seems. Not really trying to complain, just feel that they are over priced for as limited as each one of those devices are. Mind you if I wanted all 5-6 different tools offered it would cost close to 2 grand. The for the reply tho. Love Steve and what he does and your channel. Just my personal opinion on these tools
5:49 I think the noise if it's the output of the amp, is not going to be filtered by the crossover at all. That is noise that the subwoofer will be seeing and playing. But that's still probably so quiet and high in frequency you won't ever notice it over the noise of the "wub wub" it's making. If it's above 10kHz then I doubt you'd ever hear it on a subwoofer ever. Thanks to this video I might hold off on getting a cheap o-scope as if it isn't telling me the whole story and could leave distortion on the table then It's not what I need. This also helps me feel like I'm actually accurate assuming my amp (NU3000DSP) is limited to 24/25v per channel before distortion jumps to very audible. Might not be clipping, but sounds very bad past that.
@@DIYAudioGuy Yeah. Curious what it takes on the scope to show the distortion. Like would you need a better scope or more practice with it to see it. Or what other device would it take to make it easy to detect the 1% distortion. Maybe some sort of RTA you can clamp onto the output of the amp that shows the frequencies and the harmonics. I think harmonics 40dB below the fundamental tone is 1% and 20dB below is 10% distortion. There's probably a device that could do that, but is it cheaper than the SMD tool? I need to look into this more now.
I love the SMD tools. Especially the AMM-1. It shows you exactly what's happening in YOUR system..esp impedance rise. And seeing your actual power is awesome.
@@DIYAudioGuy Rather difficult to use a clamp & volt meter when you are testing on music with the ever changing impedance loads, i think that is what he was getting at.
Can use a tweeter whit a 2.2 uf capacitor too. You must to increase the gain. When the distortion appears,the tweeter will begin to sound. That's another way to calibrate it
Love the Channel.. quick question. I want to check to see where the volume on my iPhone distorts. Should I go with 3.5mm to RCA into the DD-1? Thanks Reason I’m asking is because I’m going to be using a DragonFly Black into the vehicle’s head unit for lossless Audio. And the DragonFly Black pushes out 1.2Volts… And that would probe my be the highest signal for Setting up the Gains on my amp.
I use an 4 channel Autel o scope that can plug into a pc or my Autel scan tool. Since it is designed for automotive diagnostics, the leads are long enough to keep from "laying in the trunk."
Good video. I have the original liumy. The backlight screen has gone out, but still works. I recently bought Dean's irta2, which I love to see the signal. I switch out between audio control, audison, my d'amore mono block and old skool Phoenix gold( original ti series) amps on a regular basis. Yes, the audio control has distortion detection built in, and the audison software has clip lights too. However, I still, after 30+ years in car audio, have a hard time with 'gain over lap'. I understand the reasoning why, but I need a tool to help with that. So, now it's a matter of dd1, or dd1+? I figure , if I'm going to buy these amps( which I doubt I'll ever stop doing) , then I need the right equipment to tune it, otherwise I've wasted my $$$ on the gear.
Great video. If I was into systems like I was in my 20's I would have definitely spent the money on the Steve Meade gear. Nowadays, I might install an amp once every couple of years so the Liumy is good enough, plus it's a pretty decent multimeter. That part about the high frequency noise was a good tip. I have seen that before and thought it was distortion.
The best tools are the tools you have.. I have a O-Scope and a DMM so that's what i use. But 1 thing I am seeing is with the first reading with that noise is unless you are running a low pass filter on your sub it's getting to the Sub. It's easier to see distortion with an analog meter.
To set GAIN in AUTOSOUND... Ya set your MIDS and HIGHS/FULL RANGE system to its maximum range with no audible distortion. Typically ya can get 3/4 the volume on most DECKS then distortion sets in. NOTE the VOLUME NUMBER on the DECK, important. Once ya have your MIDS/HIGHS/FULL RANGE system tuned to its max clean output... THEN dial in yer SUB WOOFER AMP to sonically MATCH the mids and highs. Set your remote sub VOLUME KNOB to about HALF and adjust accordingly as SOME MUSIC is BASS HEAVY.... some music not so much so, Bass knob set at half way will afford the user a RANGE of adjustment needed depending on the music being played. Typically your MIDS/HIGHS/FULL RANGE system will distort LONG before your sub amp. OR... In "competition mode"... bust out the TOOLS mentioned in this video. I been installing AUTOSOUND better than 50 years now... I dont own TOOLS. Trained ear I suppose here. Good video!!! BDBD/2023
OH YEAH... AUTOSOUND???.... %99.999999999 "SQ"..... 0.000000001 "Competition"... Know your customers... Very few Competition types out there... as SQ goes... Nicer the car the better the SQ.. regardless of GEAR. BDBD/2023
@@jervornjoseph4483 That’s the only one I found sadly. But they could have more now. It’s like a misc inside yard sale never know what they’ll have. Gotta search thru it.
Question 🙋🏽♂️: if your calculations says your subs take 80vrms but your distortion light comes on at 87vrms. Should you leave it at the 80vrms or to the 86vrms where the light is off when you back it down?
Hey there, I just found your channel and your videos and you are awesome! I really love your videos and how much you know about all that. So here's a tricky one for you: Try to get the maximum spl/lowest frequencies out of a custom build spare tire subwoofer!
@@DIYAudioGuy I didn't have the time to watch all of your videos (or at least the most important ones). How does the shape of a box affect the sound? And how do you match the box to a fitting sub (&passive)? I'm asking because these weirdly shaped cabinets for the sides inside the trunk exist. Thanks!!
tldr: Use this if you are broke or do not set up amplifiers often: amzn.to/3SYtrm6 Use this if you are a pro or if you do this frequently: lddy.no/14doe
I set the gain LOW, then turn the source up until I can hear the clipping, I back the source volume down a little, Then I set the amps with a Multimeter.
Yeah I've always tuned by ear. I've done it so long I can usually always tell when a sub goes from a smooth bass to turning the knob doesn't get louder voltage drops and bass isn't so smooth anymore. But even though I'm 45 and old-school ways . I just spent ruffly $4k on all new setup, wires ,mids highs sub, amp the whole nine. So as I have bills and a family. It's not an option to burn this nice stuff up from distortion. Wife's face definitely was a remembering moment when she found out what I've put in it 🤣 I ve been following smd for a long time now. Since when the video 1st came out of the Escalade with 30k and 2 of the biggest Rockford fosgate Amos ever made and a chucks fake eye fell out in his Escalade 🤣 he looked Dow like WTH. Played it back in super slow mo. LMAO Im definitely going to invest in some and meters. Gonna have to do one at a time . The whole new style kit is not poor man friendly. But distortion isn't either 😂 could have the most expensive system in the world and that will take it out. Well ta hell with all that lol I'll save myself the heartache and the wife murdering me in my sleep and buy the dd1+ 1st then the AMM1 after. As I'm new to these tools. I hope the 2 I'm going to start off with are the most important to have a clean signal to run clean without smelling the "your killing your subs smell"
I know a guy that installed locally for years. He always set by ear, and he was good at it. He did it every day for a decade and I would not hesitate to trust his ears. Now that I have been able to correlate the light with the sound I think I could set a sub by ear. Mids and highs, probably not.
@@DIYAudioGuy yea mids and highs are definitely harder. I've got ruffly 10k watts in dj stereo equipment in my man cave. And Everytime I mess with it the renkus- Heinz horns make me half def and next thing ya know my eq is all outta wack 😆 that raspy ping gets me Everytime. Wife says your gonna go def. I'm like what was that did quite hear you as my ears just got ripped off 🤣 b4b I forget. I've got some old school gems of the past. Couple of the amps I have are the 1998 Rockford fosgate punch power 1000a2 and the 600a4 both complete end caps knob and all. But I can't seem to find a center link to make the 2 look like 1 big amp. I saw 1 with the dig volt meter and the guy wanted over $400. 🤯 Been looking for years . You wouldn't happen to know of one would you? I don't need a fancy one with a volt meter. Be nice. But that's a little too rich for me lol
I have so much headroom on my amps they essentially never clip. So yes I always set by ear and no i never clip. Boom problem solved. I *do* use a pocket oscilloscope for my headunit though :)
First thing, you should see where your source makes noise. And then, push on to amps/dsp/processors. Always find where your source clips/makes noises. If you dont do that first everything down the chain will be "off"....
Yes, exactly. I need to get a bunch or bass knobs, and processors/crossovers and show that. Put about 10 things in the signal chain and show how quickly it all goes sideways.
So I've I stalled an jvc kwm745 head unit paired with an audison sr5.600. I have looked at the out put of the head unit using an oscilloscope there no cliping at full voltage . Although I have sent the gain to matched the pre out I was thinking is there any reason why I can match it it to the speakers, which are audison rated to 100w rms @ 2ohm. Or set the gain as close to speaker max before oscilloscope shows cliping. What are ur thoughts
That works as long as you have some sort of way to see distortion.setiing voltage ac via Dmm is not all equal. 20 vac on gain is not equal to 20 vac clipped on gain.but you have a clip light so non issue🤙🏽
@@angelvip2474 if I have a 1000 watt RMS reputable amp I set with multimeter to 900rms what ever the voltage may be for the ohm load. I just leave a 10% room for error . You gain 3 db out put every time you double power , you will never hear the difference between 900 and 1000 rms on the same set up.
@@angelvip2474 I think with good amplifiers that post there proper power in there manuals I think the dmm method works well, but I have clip lights on these amps so it seems to be pretty close the only draw back u may leave power on the table that was my experience with it, I may have been 20% under what I would have set to without clip, but with 5k watts and six of them that is a lot of power left on then table
That's how I did my gains when I first started, one of my most popular videos shows how to do it. It works, but you have to know what you're doing to make it work.
@DIY Audio Guy I love your videos and had a few questions boggling my mind any answers or advice is much appreciated:) So I set my gains using a Oscilloscope and the wave was clean up to 40 volts on a skar rp.800d:) My first question is that I feel 40 volts is quite high for a 800 watt rms at 1 ohm amp so am I not understanding something correctly here? My second question is I realized by watching the soundwave that when I set my crossovers (subsonic=26hz/lpf=100hz) while playing the same 40hz-5db tone the voltage drops from the 40 volts to 25 volts. I'm just a little lost on why my voltage is changing so some clarification would be great cause that's quite the voltage drop. Last question, is it not good to set your gain with crossovers already set? I see everybody set crossovers after gain but I'm just curious if you can set crossovers then gain as long as you never touch the crossovers after setting the gain? Cause in my mind it makes sense that that would maximize voltage/performance:) I believe that with 25 volts after crossovers I'm only getting 625rms wattage out of the amp so if it needs boosted a bit I will:) thanks for any advice or clarification:) I also have the smd dd-1 and the smd clips at the same point as my Ocsilloscope so I believe everything is accurate:)
The crossover works by cutting voltage, the slope follows log10. So it is not a wall, it is a gradual roll off that gets steeper. What you're seeing is the top of that gradual roll-off. And yes, that does seem like a lot of volts for an 800 watt amplifier.
I might have posted this before, I know you were using the Dayton DSP. I found it will only take 1.5v in and only 2.3v out.. So use that information how you will. I've got an audiocontrol on the way. The helix is what I really want.
I remember seeing the post, not sure if I replied. I like the 408 but it is an entry-level DSP. I'm hoping to upgrade mine sometime in the near future!
@@DIYAudioGuy I'll have to jump on your blog and share some projects, keen to learn some things, can I ask did you study anything or are you fully self taught?
I just posted some vids testing my alpine decks with DD1 and O scope. Even ran an RTA on one if you see the description. I'd like to do more if I had the units
Sorry for the necro post in advance. I never thought my O-scope wasn't effective. Interesting watch. I do find the Amp dyno to be useless since and Amp pushing 500 watts will not make a huge difference over an Amp pushing 600 watts. I know some folks will say it matters. It makes no sense unless you are dragging and laying in 1k plus power. Average Joe diy installs are just too small to be that petty.
You have to double the power to gain 3 DB. So you're not wrong there. Plus there are so many other factors in the real world that will impact the actual amount of power and amplifier will give you. But that's not the big issue. The big issue, even after decades, there are brands that just slap random numbers on the side of the amp. So there are a ton of people out there buying garbage amps and they have no idea.
@DIYAudioGuy Agreed. My point though is to get more output, wattage is too difficult compared to speaker count or efficiency in general. To double output how you essentially need 10x wattage whereas you can add 3x the cone area. Not always possible but you get the picture. That's why I shop the speakers, then match the amp. It would be insane to just try and dump 1k to a set of components rather than buying twice as many components.
Hey bro can you do a video on running 3 amplifiers? I’m planning on doing 2 4 channel amps to run my mids and highs and ofcourse the 3rd amp is for my subwoofer. Being that now days the tweeters are so high in watts as well as the 6x9s I want to run everything separately instead of wiring the tweeters to the 6x9’s. Also my car has a factory hole for an 8” subwoofer which I bought an 8” mid speaker for. Hence why I’m planning out 2 four channel amplifiers
Can't you put the probes of the oscilloscope in the positive and negative speaker terminals on the amp like you do the dd1. To find the clipping from the headunit? And also set gains on the amp
Very nice video again , i own the dd combo, but if i'm not mistaking when you read the instructions , thay say to play 40/1000hz tone when you try to find the max volum of your head unit , but when you set your amp they say somethinf about -5/-10 db 40 hz tone. So what s the right way ? 40 hz 0db , or -5/-10 ?
I think the gear is great.. I just truly believe as "audiophiles" we should be able to detect distortion by ear.. no disrespect to anyone.. I have just noticeably been able to hear what sounds "bad" from a fairly young age.. I just really enjoy music
My experience is that you need to train your ear in order to hear distortion. It's not really your ear that you're training it's your brain. Yes you can hear it, but do you know what it is your hearing? I've noticed that when I connect a DD1 and an AMM1 to a woofer and start to turn it up I'm able to hear the distortion after the DD1 lights up but before the AMM1 shows clipping. Now that I recognize the sound I'm pretty confident that I could set the amp gain by ear. The next goal is to learn how to do the same when adjusting the EQ.
My goal for this video was to provide information, a lot of people are trying to decide if they need SMD tools. There are ton of ways to set gain, it is OK to use the method that works best for you.
Yes most definitely. So many ways to have the same end result..
If u going to recommend just one to set the gains witch one you recommend??
When you adjust the gain for distortion either for the smd or multimeter, did you move the crossover frequency for the lpf all the way up. My polk audio has a freq of 50hz-500hz on the knob and on hpf it's 20hz-400hz. Need to adjust my gain this weekend and while I know how to get the target voltage I don't know what to do to the frequency before I start moving the gain knob to PROPERLY reach the targeted voltage
You the man bro,thanks
Personally I don't want to spend $1000 on a couple items that are going to sit in my toolbox most of the time. I switch cars every 3 to 5 years so...
nice video! out of all that, the MOST important thing you talked about was how everything in the chain starting from the beginning matters. I see a lot of lame video's on YT where someone is trying to "teach" people how to set gains with an O-scope and they are doing it completely wrong. "Just turn up the gain till you see (or hear) clipping" is not how you set gains. Head unit (or L.O.C if tapping in), DSP, crossovers etc, everything BEFORE the amps needs to be known first or it is all out the window. Also there is gain overlaps. Something completely ignored by these so called youtube "teachers". I have always told people, USE AN OSCOPE first. Learn it. Love it. USE IT RIGHT. Then get a DD-1 (for more accurate and simple results) once you feel like you are ready. It's the same process. (The DD-1+ Plus is a little different). But the standard DD-1 uses the same exact technique you would use if you had a scope. So no matter which one you choose, just do it correctly. Or turn all knobs to the right and jam on till you smell that smell. There is a right way and LOTS of wrong ways to do it. Thanks for the video it was a good watch :) Appreciate ya for that!
Thanks for the tools!
@@DIYAudioGuy no prob! enjoy :)
@@meade916 I was pleasantly surprised to see the DD1 detect distortion when there was no clipping. I knew that system did not sound right.
You make awesome stuff bro! My DD1 and CC1 are well worth the money. So then I got the hard case for them. And now I've got the TMM1 for the fans. Turns heads man. Badass stuff!!
I’m an owner of the DD-1+ and the original DD-1 HV, CC-1, IM-SG (first gen), AMM-1, and the VM-1 OM-1 and the TM-1. I also have a TPi meter/scope in my kit, a polarity tester and multiple connection options for any and every install need or tuning. I use the Liumy for work. For me, it’s the perfect travel set for on the road installs, audio monitoring, or just tinkering. From NY to CA, high heat, to cold weather, no cooked equipment, and everything is clean. Thanks DIY Audio Guy, and Thanks meade916 for the videos and tools. The audio world needs all your support to DIYR! (Do it yourself right.)
Sam's probably one of the coolest knowledgeable people on TH-cam.
Not just about amplifier repair either.
Enjoyed the video again!
I wish I had half of his knowledge and skill.
Have you seen the old barevids video of his 4" subwoofers in that huge box ?? Pretty cool stuff
dd1 has been on my wish list for a while, thankfully im getting divorced so i can get back to focusing on me projects!
👍
Def recommend the dd1+ it's just a little more but worth every penny
I shouldn't laugh but this comment was funny 🤣
@@tridelv702 more 'happy' than funny.. good 4 him. 😊
🎉
😂 congrats bud 🎉
You can use a scope to find clipping, and you can use a $80 calibrated mic to find distortion with free software. For the DIYer that's probably the way to go.
Yep, lot of ways to do it.
I use an oscilloscope with fft as that allows me to see the actual wave form and the harmonics being produced. Where I live a two channel oscilloscope with this function is a third of the price of one SMD device and can be used to read many other signals for other projects. You can add a current probe and do math to get real time power and impedance numbers.
It all boils down to price versus performance no matter who you are and no matter where you are.
steve meade makes money on people that think math is scary, and now they got a little blinky light for 300bux, and steve using scare tactics to preach how everyone's system is clipping, and if they keep letting it clip their subs will explode.
Plus if the Amp ever dies you can use the scope to trouble shoot and repair it if you choose.
@@nickn7939 Sounds like a good reason to pay attention in math class.
I think it's unfair too ues ones product and mass produced these units to sell at a very expensive price for what is a simple light the smd dd1 is good for what i does but Steve should be ashamed for over pricing a piece of equipment that only has a light no screen and advised everyone that they need he's product so he can continue too live out his expensive life style. I bought one because i too fell into the track . I repair and install and modified car audio and im a electrician as my job i been installing car audio since i was 12 and since then i love car audio i remember the real and fun reason the days of car audio and electronics and it's why i made my hobbie too learn it i will simply say dont believe the hype i uesd the tool that cost me up too 200 plus shipping with a cd and a blinking light knowed as the smd dd1 and i returned it the next day reset my gains in my system and too my ears i was more pleased with my sound again i noticed that my gains were a little lower than with tool . The car audio and sales is all about making money now . And selling cheap products made and deigned with cheap parts what does matter if it says made in usa with cheap parts from China. People stop making these con artists rich they over price there gear and boasting there worth all over the internet. Car audio was never about money it was about music and joy and products that were way better than todays junk for half the cost i should know i been repairing amps and electronics since i was 17 in fact my amps are modified and are old school Components cause i know how well they outperform todays way over priced junk back in the day you did get what you payed for.
I sprung for a DD-1 about six months ago and I'm happy I did. I began my journey into car audio with a MTX1501D bought off a local Facebook group and have slowly continued to climb up to where I'm now running 6000 watts on strapped amps and backing it with lithium and a high output alternator. As you get into the more powerful and higher quality gear it becomes too expensive to risk doing it incorrectly. I've noticed my gain walks a little every few months from the vibration and a DD-1 is fast and simple enough that I can re-tune in a parking lot when something doesn't sound right.
I definitely agree that for someone just starting out the SMD tools may be a little too out of reach and a cheaper alternative may be needed...just as long as it is done right. For those bitten by the bug and constantly wanting more though, you can't go wrong with the SMD line.
Thanks for all the knowledge you've shared and for continuing to put videos like this out!
Awesome!
Just remember how you set your gains last time and do it again. Or make a mark, you don't need a dd1
Yo love that dude.. bought his product earlier 2012 and then he signed his product.. love it..
He is a good dude.
I’m a DIY guy myself. I have 2 vehicles with aftermarket stereos and some higher end equipment. I’m frequently tinkering and trying different things. I have a DD-1 for gains. It always works great and is super simple to operate. I have complete confidence in SMD products and will continue to use them.
Hopefully more and more manufacturers will start including clip indicators on their products. Obviously we still need to check head unit outputs for distortion along with any other gear we put in the signal chain. But, simple clip lights on all amps would be enormously helpful.
Very interesting and informative video Justin!👍
That would be nice.
This was a good watch. The distortion issue is one that I never had considered or taken much thought into before, so it was really interesting to see that demonstrated. Just due to being the type who likes to tinker, see how things work in depth, and get the absolute best value, I'll probably always have a love for scopes. But this video was great in how it presented and educated about the SMD tools, I have quite a bit more respect for the engineering behind those tools now.
That compressor behavior is something I think I've only seen on pro audio gear before (with my very limited experience with pro stuff), so it was really interesting to see that on that little premade car enclosure. It makes me wonder how common that circuitry is on lower end gear, or if maybe it was just a once in a blue moon thing that some engineer thought was a good idea on that particular system.
Anyways I really appreciate your content man, it's the thing I like seeing in the audio, and really any, community. We shouldn't get so caught up in what's "better" and "worse". Instead we should be educating each other on how to make the best of the gear we do have. That and of course, trying to stick to the facts of the situation is always the way to go. There's always more to learn. Thanks.
You are exactly right.
You said I was gonna want to watch the whole video, but you didn't say time after time after time again! You know you have the only channel I've even considered becoming a patron. Not going to lie I've very close to pushing the patron button 💯
I would appreciate that, but no pressure.
The installaton of my Head unit Pioneer AVH-W4400NEX and the Pioneer GM-E360X4 has been a long road to say the least. I got the Head unit for 100 dollars off of Facebook Market Place with the 1 hour ride to and from the sellers location makes it a good price and good value. This will replace my stock unit in my 2013 Chevy Tahoe. The Amp was also picked up on Facebook Market Place and was 100 dollars also. This amp is a nightmare that I have been having over and over again for the last 2 months. It is going back on the market tomorrow and upon watching your channel I am better equipped to make the right choice for my Budget. Cheap and Dirty but one mam's cast off is anothers treasure. I really need a good installaton video as this is the most time and money pit as my electrical and fabracaton skills aver at a novice level and my wife would like the seats put back in the Tahoe asap. Can you recommend a video that will better deal with the pitfalls and shortcuts that a person in my sisutation should watch. Bingo Starr Great channel best one I have come across in the past year by far. Thanks for your clear and well thought out presentation.
I too am like you, am in my 30s getting back into car audio, i use to "install" in my younger days, looking back im not super proud lol. Now that I'm older and better funded which leads to better tools and materials I can actually do professional level install, so far its just been doing my own stuff, I might take on side work in the future, but now that I have proper shop tools, and the knowledge and experience now to do it right, plus the technology and pricing is so much better these days, additionally guys like Justin and Steve sharing info, I love the hobby all over again. I have been wanting to get a few of the SMD products for a while, I think they are really cool, I just can't justify their cost at the moment for as much as I would use them, currently I'm using the O scope and DMM method, which is light years beyond how I use to set stuff lol. Thanks again Justin and Steve.
I certainly don't consider myself a pro. Hence the channel name DIY audio guy. But when I think about the rat's nest of wires that I had in my car back in the day, I've definitely gotten better.
I use a mini oscilloscope and a multimeter to find the maximum my amp can go (5 chs) then I rely on my ears. I know up to what point I can raise it, it's just a matter of preference thereafter. I have noticed my amp mono section needs to be tuned in that way but the 4 ch output has a Max of 30v just like you've gone through.
Cool
25hz, One test you can also do when settings gains and tuning in conjunction with your ears, what I do is use my Oscilloscope as a visual guide of what my amps are doing with my sub/bass/mid bass/midrange/mid high/brightness frequencies and what ones clip for adjustments. Whatever clips, or is wasted energy and can be filtered out, or EQ’ed.
I have majority of the SMD tools and a few of the meters. Having the tools for the job, according to the sensitivity of the project, is important. The SMD Tools puts the bench size of each audio portion, into a travel size hand held tool. Justification of the cost, yeah it is a jump, but I say, their is no cost too high, when it comes to safety.
Right, no need to drag a laptop or tablet into the car.
@@DIYAudioGuy except when tuning a processor unfortunately…
My stereo OCDs caused me to get both, The DD-1 works and does exactly what you want it to. You're kinda paying more money for the product that is easier to use without having to think. If you're on a budget, The O scope is more than adequate, you just have to know what you're looking at (like your examples). I like that the O scope gives you voltage at the same time.
Ears can work.. You can for sure hear exactly when the wave clips with your ear, the tone changes. You just need a way to attenuate the signal so you don't blow your ears out. Example: find where the head unit clips by turning amp gain all the way down. you'll hear it change.
Right! It's easy and you don't have to think.
When I was younger I did it by ear 👂 but now that I have some education with electrical and using O-Scopes it's a basic understanding of how AC works and what many people forget is different frequencies have different wave forms and time periods with a good O-scope you can measure multiple things at once I believe you can't do that with The DD1? I really don't believe it's a bad tool at all but the cost per usage is what I look at when buying a tool to do a job, If I bought a dd1 it's only for testing and tuning amplifiers with an oscope it has many usagages not just car amplifiers so would I buy one nope 🙅 I will stick to what I was trained on
That's why the scopes are so popular, they do a lot more. I was pleasantly surprised by the DD1. It does one thing, but does it very well.
@@DIYAudioGuy and thank you for making a great video on these tools
I personally own the SMD DD-1 and the CC-1 I recommend this product to any one that is diy i have done install for many years and I never had a complaint about how clean and clear it sounded i have gotten some folk that wanted me to use the SMD DD-1 AND CC-1 to there system and they where very pleased about there sound. so shout out to Steve Meade 💪🏼 it can be pricey but it is truly worth the buck!
It all boils down to budget, they are great if you can afford them/justify the expense.
Great video and very informative, the only thing that comes to mind in regards to needing a multimeter to set gain is in a situation lets say where you have an amp that can put out 2 or 3 times the subwoofers rated power. You would have to have a multi-meter or an oscope so you can turn the gain up to where the sub is rated at. If a DD1 is used you can only see where the amp starts clipping but at that point the power that the sub is rated at would be double or tripled. I cant see a reason to buy a DD1 and or 1 or 2 of the other SMD audio tuning devices unless you own a shop and time is a factor as the DD1 can speed up setting the amp if it can be done that way vs. using an oscope. If somebody does car audio as a hobby and setting there amp once or twice a $100 oscope is more than enough to do the job.
I agree.
Awesome video! Steve Meades equipment IS the best available to those who know. I don’t own any myself but I do have access to most of it and rely on it for every customer.
His stuff is very easy to use.
i have been building speakers for fun, since 87 when I was a schoolboy, I've made some good stuff in time but also made the worst sh....ever🤣🤣
but listening when setting gains by ear have never failed me, never burned any unit or amp... Steve Meade is one of my new idols in car audio, he's a genius and does things my way👌👌👌
If you train your ear it is a great tool. But a lot of people that set by ear have not done that. If you are ever listing to live music, and it sounds like crap, it is because the guy running the mixer in the back of the room has not trained their ear. (or the venue just sucks for audio)
@@DIYAudioGuy i don't like live music, i think it lacks quality, i like the bassdrum through the subs but not Moore than that...
I've trained my ears since 87 and i put a finger in each ear and listen close to the bass...
when I tune in the headunit I've always done as you also do and then i turn the gain on the amp for the woofer and set a mark aso for mid and treble.. and this is done with a original CD i use scorpions-passion rules the game for mid and treble and 80s pop/disco for the bass...sometimes hard rock..
some streaming are okay but most of it is too compressed and has no quality...
(one day i will try to connect my vinyl record player and listen to that, just for fun 😊)
20 years using an oscilloscope and plan to stay the same, I bought one and sold it shortly after, it was just collecting dust on my shelf.
I honestly was not expecting the DD1 to be any better than the scope, but I already had that plate amp pulled off so I gave it a try. I was shocked.
Great video. I finally invested in the DD1... more so for ease of use and efficiency. I've been using the Lummy but when I'm doing multiple amps on a boat or vehicle the DD1 sure saves me time and I know it's consistent.
Great to hear!
This was one of the most informative and helpful videos I’ve ever seen on car audio. Major props to you! Subscribed ✅
The dd 1 one reminds me of my hp distortion analyzer. The scope isn't a distortion meter it's a wavemeter it does care about distortion. So it makes sense the dd1 will pick up distortion before its visible on the scope.
I was really shocked at how quick that plate amp distorted.
0.4 millls difference 😂😂😂😂😂😂wow
I'm a fan and believer in Steve meades products. He has been there and done that. And knows what is up!!
A lot of people agree with you.
You can find used SMD equipment on Ebay at great prices. I found my DD-1 just under 100 bucks. Now I have one. No longer a professional I shut down my store back in 2004. I just recently bought gear to have a nice system in my old Dakota and I just wanted the DD-1 to set my gain. It worked great and now I can either resell the DD-1 and possibly make a profit and have set gains, or just keep it and have it for life. I'm keeping mine and will set gains for friends if needed and have fun with it. As a former "pro" I only wished they had this back in my time. Great video as always.
This video is why I watch and subscribe to your channel.
I may have different views on a few comments but we all get something different from the same pages of a book.
I enjoy you topics and it contents. It is very imformative for those Novice whom just want to get louder within breaking the bank or destroying their gear due to lack of know-how.
Thanks!
I love content like this. I have a DD1 sitting in my Amazon cart right now. I wanna add this tool to my arsenal but was more interested in doing other aspects of car audio. Now I have people wanting me to help install, and I think im going to pull the trigger on this.
My goal for the video was to provide information for people that are sitting on the fence.
I bought my first DD-1 nine years ago from Steve and used it to tune a similar Alpine amp available at that time
I'd love to see the content you'd create with the IM/SG in your hands, another choice piece of kit.
That's definitely on my wish list.
Thanks dyi guy.. I think I wanna buy Steve Meade product.
Great video, thanks for sharing. Too funny, that Alpine M500 you talked about. My wife has had that amp for years powering her sub along with another Alpine for her midranges. She's had them for years and moved them to a number of cars. Last fall I upgraded them with an Audio Control D-5-1300. I made use of the DD1 as well during the install.
It's a great amp.
Most add a subwoofer folks just crank the gain, and don't know, nor care if it's distorting. If you actually care about the sound or care of your system the SMD tools are in my opinion the ONLY WAY TO GO! They are idiot proof. Great video and even better product! Absolutely worth the money!
Yea, a lot of people destroy their gear with the gain knob.
I tune by hear using a 1k or 40hz test tone. You cam hear the Amp tone starts to clip with the gain. As a pro installer I backed this up with a scope or dd1.
A better scope would have more options that would be far more useful. SMD is selling convenience and simplicity. Don't mistake their equipment for being more accurate or giving more information. Hell if I could afford them I'd have some SMD stuff too, because regardless of Steve being a little baby the engineers that actually made this stuff did accomplish what they were going for. Shame that it lines Steve's pockets but wdyd.
Steve is certainly polarizing.
the funny thing is I have friends that tuned their systems by ear or by a voltmeter. I did it by ear then I invested in a dd1 and boy was not only mine clipping but my friends were clipped worse than mine. I love my dd1 and my taramps smart3 clip led is the best thing that came to amps
Awesome!
I know I know. Everyone has their tool they like to use. But let me tell ya. I got the DD-1, and used it with the Cheap gear I was testing. My god man. It was a gift from beyond! I was able to find every bit of CRAP gear and identify almost every little bit of distortion or noise in my system or gear that just did not make the cut and I was able to get this very inexpensive gear and find out its weaknesses and even fix it.
I was even able to determine the weak spots in my signal chain for my head unit
same with the digital signal processor I was using.
the thing is, I don't just use one tool I use as many as I can to go ahead and get a good reference just like somebody at audiosciencereview uses a very expensive machine to go ahead and get results and measurements from gear.
but all that does is give you a baseline working in a lab environment which in our car audio world doesn't quite work that way.
but thanks to his tools, Steve made literally made my car audio experience not only inexpensive but I was able to get the absolute maximum with the equipment I was using.
the final judge is always going to be you and your ears. But for me? I use as many tools as possible to track down any sources of noise in my signal path and chain.
my final piece of advice is don't worry about the best way worry about the most thorough away and you will always have your audio Nirvana
Right, you have to test everything.
I know my particular radio clips at 37 of 40. I set all my radio settings to where I like them. I set the amp for my highs first so I can hear any hiss or distortion. Then I moce on to the bass amp. Bass knob all the way up and amp gain all the way down. Radio set to volume 37. I play a 0db 40hz test tone. I hook a tweeter to the subwoofer channel. Slowly turn gain up to I hear a buzz in the tweeter. Then back it down to it stops. Basically quick explanation of how I set my system
👍Smart
@@DIYAudioGuy so I basically got completely ripped by Steve Meade saying I can set my gains with a tweeter just as well as his smd tool. I've seen multiple videos of people testing his smd tool against a tweeter with a capacitor to set gains on a bass amp. The red light on the smd comes on and off as the the buzz of the tweeter stops and starts. So what's your take on using a tweeter to set amp gains. Because he literally ripped into hard . Said I'm as smart as a box of nails 😂
I dropped a link to the video of him rippin into me. It's a bit rude and not very mature the way he spoke to me. I would expect a mature response from man like him. Anyways if u have time to go over the conversation that's in the link.
I'd greatly appreciate it sir.
Thanks and love your videos
Man……GREAT JOB!!!!!! Even better whn you clarified your goals as a content creator !!! We need more videos like such. Shout out to the “godfather” of car audio SMD!!!!! Thnks for the GREAT video. Been a fan for sometime now.
Far too many people want me just to tell them what to buy.
From watching this MOST INFORMABLE video, there is not much difference btween the dd-1 and the oscilliscope, I will trust the oscilliscope beause it will keep under the clipping safely. Thank you very much!
Glad it was helpful!
I have a DD1, CC1, and an IMSG+. All amazing tools.
I think the best part is you don't need to drag out a laptop, connect an app to a phone or anything like that. The devices are mostly self-contained.
Love my Alpine v power 500w mono! Hooked up to two 12w0, perfect.
It is a great amp.
For me it is the Alpine PDX-M12, a bit more power on tap.
Great video. A great learning experience. Thanks for all you do!
May I note that the transition effects were giving me a headache.
Thanks for the feedback.
Another great video DIY Guy. Most of my sub amps have clip lights and I adjust the highs by ear. I think highly of Steve and defiantly have some of his tools on my audio wish list. Once again Steve generously giving away his tools and wanting nothing in return. The man believes in what he sells.
I am a big fan of clip lights on amps. Very handy for the typical DIY'er.
He gives them away to these popular YT channels because he gets free advertisement out of them. Advertisements turn into sales and sales turn into profit.
Thanks for this nice informative video… just a little concern, please stop switch scene between the scope and your postur, too often. It gets me dizzy, would keeping up with your voice. Because I try to keep up with the scope detail view as well. 😊
Been watching your videos for awhile this one made me subscribe. Love your content!
Glad you enjoyed it.
I love technical videos and I really enjoyed this. Thank you
I still think the best advice in your video is - buy a decent brand, which solves a lot of problems.
Right, you don't have to drop big cash on the high-end stuff, just avoid the bottom of the barrel. Pioneer, for example, makes solid amps that are clean and do rated. Rockford Fosgate Prime amps even have a clip light.
@@DIYAudioGuy 100% decent brand doesn't necessarily mean buy the top end. You are correct. I'd rather own a Prime RF than some dubious brand.
Tried training my ear, ended up loosing hearing in my left ear😉. But seriously though, a lot can probably get it close by ear. However I don't trust it enough. The way I look at it I spend enough on amps and subs that it's not worth risking. I've tried by ear then followed with the dd1 and an amm1. Then check it with a dmm to see how far off I was. Next smd goodie I want is the signal generator. Thanks for sharing another excellent video
The best thing about the SMD tools is that you don't need to plug into a computer.
@DIY Audio Guy agreed. I still have to plug into the dm-608 dsp once in a while. I have the bt-24 bluetooth dealio but it's just easier to adjust thing on the laptop. It's really cool to stream hq files and bypass the head unit though. We live in a cool day n age with tons and tons of goodies to play with.
DD1 for people who make a living in audio. Quicker and reliable.
Liumy + cheap voltmeter for the rest of us. On any reputable amplifier, I never use max undistorted gain anyways. It's usually the least power efficient, and more power than the speaker calls for.
Now your first test, that is definitely oscope winning. That fuzz, not a big deal on subwoofers. But full range, it's noticeable. I used a 2 channel Jensen from Walmart recently. Class d. It just never sounded, right. If you're listening to rap or something simple, you'll likely not notice. But something more complex, notes would break apart. Turning the gain down to a nice curve on the scope, fixed the problem. I lister louder than most people, so it stands out.
Yes, it's hard to justify for DIY.
I completely agree. I set everything by ear it's never failed me but I don't think it's the actual correct way. Someone like me who changes subs like underwear could definitely use a dd1. But like you said for someone just getting a normal lower power system for the next 5 years it doesn't make sense.
Yea, that is what I was hopping to show.
As someone who is in a field in which I have a lot of specialized testing equipment it’s hard to fault Steve on the price of the equipment. A DIY guy may see it as expensive but they wouldn’t likely get enough use out of it to justify it anyways. A shop that would use it multiple times a day would see that price as a bargain as it will save them tons of time over the course of a year. It’s all relative and I see these tools as just that… Tools. If you would hardly ever use it then why buy it? If you would use it a lot and it would make you more productive then the price is certainly worth it. I have multiple oscilloscopes including a 4 channel PicoScope but I would still love an AMM-1 as that little thing does all kind of cool stuff like real time power and you can’t find anywhere else really.
I unfortunately can’t afford all these amazing tools so I had to build my own clipping detector. A small 3inch speaker with a capacitor in-line you can tell when the amp clips
I would recommend a analog oscope, the issue with new digital scopes is the latency in cheap oscopes. I use a Iwatsu 200mhz 3 Channel scope. But it's heavy and clunky. But very accurate . Rigol digital and the better brands are fine, but the processing is a little slower, just a little tech tip
Definitely want to get my hands on one of those at some point.
I've already purchased the smd dd1 and the cc1 love them both.
Cool! I have a way to set crossovers with math and a DMM. I would like to compare my method with the CC1.
My JL amp has a red light around the gain screw and if that ever blinks it’s clipping. It’s my favorite thing I’ve ever seen on an amp 😂 I love this video though because it has so much info I didn’t know
I think we will eventually get to the point where every amplifier has a clip light.
I have generally always overpowered my subwoofers. This makes the gain not that big of a deal to me. I just use a basic voltmeter and set the volts to match what the subs need. For instance, powering a 600 watt sub with a 1000 watt amplifier. If you were to set gain to the max before clipping on the amp, you would most likely blow the sub. No clipping worries for me. Although I have pushed amps back in the day to their max etc, where clipping would matter.
Smart.
I wish he could bring the price down on them by like 30-50%. I think he would sell alot more at a lower price. I dont think cost of production is so high that its impossible to do that. I know SMD and D'amore are a higher quailty brand but for as good as these are why not make them more easily/cheaply available to tge car audio community. Never have used then but everyone irl and online always talk very highly of them.
He has been selling these things for over a decade, if he was priced to high he would have lowered it by now. I don think the price has ever gone up, so after inflation he has cut the price.
@DIYAudioGuy idk man, I understand that R&D has to get figured into the price of a tool like that. But when I can get very nice and advanced DMM and Oscopes and obd2 and Tech2 devices now for under $50 and the myriad of other technology tools that have come down in price drastically in the last decade you would think he could do something to cut the cost of manufacturing and pass that on to everyone. Especially being someone as passionate for the community as he seems. Not really trying to complain, just feel that they are over priced for as limited as each one of those devices are. Mind you if I wanted all 5-6 different tools offered it would cost close to 2 grand. The for the reply tho. Love Steve and what he does and your channel. Just my personal opinion on these tools
5:49 I think the noise if it's the output of the amp, is not going to be filtered by the crossover at all. That is noise that the subwoofer will be seeing and playing. But that's still probably so quiet and high in frequency you won't ever notice it over the noise of the "wub wub" it's making. If it's above 10kHz then I doubt you'd ever hear it on a subwoofer ever.
Thanks to this video I might hold off on getting a cheap o-scope as if it isn't telling me the whole story and could leave distortion on the table then It's not what I need. This also helps me feel like I'm actually accurate assuming my amp (NU3000DSP) is limited to 24/25v per channel before distortion jumps to very audible. Might not be clipping, but sounds very bad past that.
Slowing the footage down really helped. I think it was interesting that neither the scope nor the AMM1 showed clipping on that cheap amplifier.
@@DIYAudioGuy Yeah. Curious what it takes on the scope to show the distortion. Like would you need a better scope or more practice with it to see it. Or what other device would it take to make it easy to detect the 1% distortion.
Maybe some sort of RTA you can clamp onto the output of the amp that shows the frequencies and the harmonics. I think harmonics 40dB below the fundamental tone is 1% and 20dB below is 10% distortion. There's probably a device that could do that, but is it cheaper than the SMD tool? I need to look into this more now.
I love the SMD tools.
Especially the AMM-1. It shows you exactly what's happening in YOUR system..esp impedance rise. And seeing your actual power is awesome.
You can do most of that with a good clamp meter, but the AMM1 is designed with audio in mind.
@@DIYAudioGuy Rather difficult to use a clamp & volt meter when you are testing on music with the ever changing impedance loads, i think that is what he was getting at.
Good video.
Steve is a very smart man.
He has certainly had a big impact on car audio.
Can use a tweeter whit a 2.2 uf capacitor too. You must to increase the gain. When the distortion appears,the tweeter will begin to sound. That's another way to calibrate it
That also works.
Love the Channel.. quick question. I want to check to see where the volume on my iPhone distorts. Should I go with 3.5mm to RCA into the DD-1?
Thanks
Reason I’m asking is because I’m going to be using a DragonFly Black into the vehicle’s head unit for lossless Audio. And the DragonFly Black pushes out 1.2Volts… And that would probe my be the highest signal for Setting up the Gains on my amp.
The DD 1 may not detect voltage that low. If it can that should work.
I had to go looking for smd products second hand or other way cheaper. I even tried to reach out to Steve Mead for help
Yea, SMD stuff ain't cheap. The scope works fine if you want to save some cash.
Great video Justin maybe do a video on setting gains like 80hz on DD 1 vs oscope
Great suggestion!
Most Harley’s these days have over 3k worth of equipment on them, a proper tune is really needed on a motorcycle! Definitely more challenging
ATV / boat / motorcycle seems to be the future of the industry. It is a real challenge to put a radio in a modern car.
I use an 4 channel Autel o scope that can plug into a pc or my Autel scan tool. Since it is designed for automotive diagnostics, the leads are long enough to keep from "laying in the trunk."
I would love to have one of those!
I have the same thing but it is the Hantek one.
Good video. I have the original liumy. The backlight screen has gone out, but still works. I recently bought Dean's irta2, which I love to see the signal. I switch out between audio control, audison, my d'amore mono block and old skool Phoenix gold( original ti series) amps on a regular basis. Yes, the audio control has distortion detection built in, and the audison software has clip lights too. However, I still, after 30+ years in car audio, have a hard time with 'gain over lap'. I understand the reasoning why, but I need a tool to help with that. So, now it's a matter of dd1, or dd1+? I figure , if I'm going to buy these amps( which I doubt I'll ever stop doing) , then I need the right equipment to tune it, otherwise I've wasted my $$$ on the gear.
They can all do overlap, but the DD1+ makes it easier, no math required.
Great video. If I was into systems like I was in my 20's I would have definitely spent the money on the Steve Meade gear. Nowadays, I might install an amp once every couple of years so the Liumy is good enough, plus it's a pretty decent multimeter. That part about the high frequency noise was a good tip. I have seen that before and thought it was distortion.
Thanks for your comments, I try to read them all and I try to listen to my viewers.
Do you have a video on how to check for clipping on your cell phone?
The best tools are the tools you have..
I have a O-Scope and a DMM so that's what i use.
But 1 thing I am seeing is with the first reading with that noise is unless you are running a low pass filter on your sub it's getting to the Sub.
It's easier to see distortion with an analog meter.
I agree, the best tools are the ones that you have.
To set GAIN in AUTOSOUND... Ya set your MIDS and HIGHS/FULL RANGE system to its maximum range with no audible distortion. Typically ya can get 3/4 the volume on most DECKS then distortion sets in. NOTE the VOLUME NUMBER on the DECK, important. Once ya have your MIDS/HIGHS/FULL RANGE system tuned to its max clean output... THEN dial in yer SUB WOOFER AMP to sonically MATCH the mids and highs. Set your remote sub VOLUME KNOB to about HALF and adjust accordingly as SOME MUSIC is BASS HEAVY.... some music not so much so, Bass knob set at half way will afford the user a RANGE of adjustment needed depending on the music being played. Typically your MIDS/HIGHS/FULL RANGE system will distort LONG before your sub amp. OR... In "competition mode"... bust out the TOOLS mentioned in this video. I been installing AUTOSOUND better than 50 years now... I dont own TOOLS. Trained ear I suppose here. Good video!!! BDBD/2023
OH YEAH... AUTOSOUND???.... %99.999999999 "SQ"..... 0.000000001 "Competition"... Know your customers... Very few Competition types out there... as SQ goes... Nicer the car the better the SQ.. regardless of GEAR.
BDBD/2023
$30 for my dd1 and it works great 👍 very quick and easy tuning
Can't bet it at that price.
Where?
@@jervornjoseph4483 A store called Mardens
Anymore?
@@jervornjoseph4483 That’s the only one I found sadly. But they could have more now. It’s like a misc inside yard sale never know what they’ll have. Gotta search thru it.
Question 🙋🏽♂️: if your calculations says your subs take 80vrms but your distortion light comes on at 87vrms. Should you leave it at the 80vrms or to the 86vrms where the light is off when you back it down?
That is well within the margin of error.
Hey there, I just found your channel and your videos and you are awesome! I really love your videos and how much you know about all that.
So here's a tricky one for you: Try to get the maximum spl/lowest frequencies out of a custom build spare tire subwoofer!
Passive radiator.
@@DIYAudioGuy I didn't have the time to watch all of your videos (or at least the most important ones). How does the shape of a box affect the sound? And how do you match the box to a fitting sub (&passive)?
I'm asking because these weirdly shaped cabinets for the sides inside the trunk exist.
Thanks!!
@@GamingShiiep The shape of the box is not affect the sound.
LOVE THIS. Passing it on!
Please do!
Curious how these SMD devices and your oscilloscope compared to a digital multimeter and ohms law
man i was sold on the oscilloscope in the begin but after watching this now i even more confused about this Great
tldr:
Use this if you are broke or do not set up amplifiers often: amzn.to/3SYtrm6
Use this if you are a pro or if you do this frequently: lddy.no/14doe
I set the gain LOW, then turn the source up until I can hear the clipping, I back the source volume down a little, Then I set the amps with a Multimeter.
👍
Yeah I've always tuned by ear. I've done it so long I can usually always tell when a sub goes from a smooth bass to turning the knob doesn't get louder voltage drops and bass isn't so smooth anymore. But even though I'm 45 and old-school ways . I just spent ruffly $4k on all new setup, wires ,mids highs sub, amp the whole nine. So as I have bills and a family. It's not an option to burn this nice stuff up from distortion. Wife's face definitely was a remembering moment when she found out what I've put in it 🤣 I ve been following smd for a long time now. Since when the video 1st came out of the Escalade with 30k and 2 of the biggest Rockford fosgate Amos ever made and a chucks fake eye fell out in his Escalade 🤣 he looked Dow like WTH. Played it back in super slow mo. LMAO Im definitely going to invest in some and meters. Gonna have to do one at a time . The whole new style kit is not poor man friendly. But distortion isn't either 😂 could have the most expensive system in the world and that will take it out. Well ta hell with all that lol I'll save myself the heartache and the wife murdering me in my sleep and buy the dd1+ 1st then the AMM1 after. As I'm new to these tools. I hope the 2 I'm going to start off with are the most important to have a clean signal to run clean without smelling the "your killing your subs smell"
I know a guy that installed locally for years. He always set by ear, and he was good at it. He did it every day for a decade and I would not hesitate to trust his ears. Now that I have been able to correlate the light with the sound I think I could set a sub by ear. Mids and highs, probably not.
@@DIYAudioGuy yea mids and highs are definitely harder. I've got ruffly 10k watts in dj stereo equipment in my man cave. And Everytime I mess with it the renkus- Heinz horns make me half def and next thing ya know my eq is all outta wack 😆 that raspy ping gets me Everytime. Wife says your gonna go def. I'm like what was that did quite hear you as my ears just got ripped off 🤣 b4b I forget. I've got some old school gems of the past. Couple of the amps I have are the 1998 Rockford fosgate punch power 1000a2 and the 600a4 both complete end caps knob and all. But I can't seem to find a center link to make the 2 look like 1 big amp. I saw 1 with the dig volt meter and the guy wanted over $400. 🤯 Been looking for years . You wouldn't happen to know of one would you? I don't need a fancy one with a volt meter. Be nice. But that's a little too rich for me lol
I have so much headroom on my amps they essentially never clip. So yes I always set by ear and no i never clip. Boom problem solved. I *do* use a pocket oscilloscope for my headunit though :)
Nothing wrong with that!
Thank You so much for this video .
You are welcome.
First thing, you should see where your source makes noise. And then, push on to amps/dsp/processors. Always find where your source clips/makes noises. If you dont do that first everything down the chain will be "off"....
Yes, exactly. I need to get a bunch or bass knobs, and processors/crossovers and show that. Put about 10 things in the signal chain and show how quickly it all goes sideways.
I came from a dj background and back in the day ears were all we had , I still trust um to this day . 😊🎶
The pros that run live sound and mix music do it all by ear. The good ones have spent years training their years.
@@DIYAudioGuy spot on mate . 😊
phenomenal vid. THANK YOU
Thanks for watching.
I'm enjoying your videos! 😁😁😁
Glad to hear!
Excellent video and explanations
Thanks.
So I've I stalled an jvc kwm745 head unit paired with an audison sr5.600. I have looked at the out put of the head unit using an oscilloscope there no cliping at full voltage . Although I have sent the gain to matched the pre out
I was thinking is there any reason why I can match it it to the speakers, which are audison rated to 100w rms @ 2ohm. Or set the gain as close to speaker max before oscilloscope shows cliping.
What are ur thoughts
I set gains with a regular dmm it works and it is as accurate as my clip light on my amplifiers
That works as long as you have some sort of way to see distortion.setiing voltage ac via Dmm is not all equal. 20 vac on gain is not equal to 20 vac clipped on gain.but you have a clip light so non issue🤙🏽
@@angelvip2474 if I have a 1000 watt RMS reputable amp I set with multimeter to 900rms what ever the voltage may be for the ohm load. I just leave a 10% room for error . You gain 3 db out put every time you double power , you will never hear the difference between 900 and 1000 rms on the same set up.
@@angelvip2474 I think with good amplifiers that post there proper power in there manuals I think the dmm method works well, but I have clip lights on these amps so it seems to be pretty close the only draw back u may leave power on the table that was my experience with it, I may have been 20% under what I would have set to without clip, but with 5k watts and six of them that is a lot of power left on then table
That's how I did my gains when I first started, one of my most popular videos shows how to do it. It works, but you have to know what you're doing to make it work.
@DIY Audio Guy I love your videos and had a few questions boggling my mind any answers or advice is much appreciated:) So I set my gains using a Oscilloscope and the wave was clean up to 40 volts on a skar rp.800d:) My first question is that I feel 40 volts is quite high for a 800 watt rms at 1 ohm amp so am I not understanding something correctly here? My second question is I realized by watching the soundwave that when I set my crossovers (subsonic=26hz/lpf=100hz) while playing the same 40hz-5db tone the voltage drops from the 40 volts to 25 volts. I'm just a little lost on why my voltage is changing so some clarification would be great cause that's quite the voltage drop. Last question, is it not good to set your gain with crossovers already set? I see everybody set crossovers after gain but I'm just curious if you can set crossovers then gain as long as you never touch the crossovers after setting the gain? Cause in my mind it makes sense that that would maximize voltage/performance:) I believe that with 25 volts after crossovers I'm only getting 625rms wattage out of the amp so if it needs boosted a bit I will:) thanks for any advice or clarification:) I also have the smd dd-1 and the smd clips at the same point as my Ocsilloscope so I believe everything is accurate:)
The crossover works by cutting voltage, the slope follows log10. So it is not a wall, it is a gradual roll off that gets steeper. What you're seeing is the top of that gradual roll-off.
And yes, that does seem like a lot of volts for an 800 watt amplifier.
@@DIYAudioGuy Awesome thank you for the reply:) Would it be bad to set my gain with the crossovers already set?
@@robertohara9547 Not the way I would do it, but it will not hurt anything as long as you are not clipping.
@@DIYAudioGuy Awesome thank you so much for the advice I appreciate it a ton!!:)
I might have posted this before, I know you were using the Dayton DSP. I found it will only take 1.5v in and only 2.3v out.. So use that information how you will. I've got an audiocontrol on the way. The helix is what I really want.
I remember seeing the post, not sure if I replied. I like the 408 but it is an entry-level DSP. I'm hoping to upgrade mine sometime in the near future!
Love the videos keep it up 👊
Thanks! Will do!
Cool video man! Subbed to the channel, fellow audio/electrical enthusiast!
Awesome! Thank you!
@@DIYAudioGuy I'll have to jump on your blog and share some projects, keen to learn some things, can I ask did you study anything or are you fully self taught?
I just posted some vids testing my alpine decks with DD1 and O scope. Even ran an RTA on one if you see the description. I'd like to do more if I had the units
Awesome!
Sorry for the necro post in advance. I never thought my O-scope wasn't effective. Interesting watch. I do find the Amp dyno to be useless since and Amp pushing 500 watts will not make a huge difference over an Amp pushing 600 watts. I know some folks will say it matters. It makes no sense unless you are dragging and laying in 1k plus power. Average Joe diy installs are just too small to be that petty.
You have to double the power to gain 3 DB. So you're not wrong there. Plus there are so many other factors in the real world that will impact the actual amount of power and amplifier will give you.
But that's not the big issue. The big issue, even after decades, there are brands that just slap random numbers on the side of the amp. So there are a ton of people out there buying garbage amps and they have no idea.
@DIYAudioGuy Agreed. My point though is to get more output, wattage is too difficult compared to speaker count or efficiency in general. To double output how you essentially need 10x wattage whereas you can add 3x the cone area. Not always possible but you get the picture. That's why I shop the speakers, then match the amp. It would be insane to just try and dump 1k to a set of components rather than buying twice as many components.
If it says D’Amore Engineering on it, you know it’s a great product.
👍
Hey bro can you do a video on running 3 amplifiers? I’m planning on doing 2 4 channel amps to run my mids and highs and ofcourse the 3rd amp is for my subwoofer. Being that now days the tweeters are so high in watts as well as the 6x9s I want to run everything separately instead of wiring the tweeters to the 6x9’s. Also my car has a factory hole for an 8” subwoofer which I bought an 8” mid speaker for. Hence why I’m planning out 2 four channel amplifiers
th-cam.com/video/UXqqPDiRx-o/w-d-xo.html
Can't you put the probes of the oscilloscope in the positive and negative speaker terminals on the amp like you do the dd1. To find the clipping from the headunit? And also set gains on the amp
Yes.
Very nice video again , i own the dd combo, but if i'm not mistaking when you read the instructions , thay say to play 40/1000hz tone when you try to find the max volum of your head unit , but when you set your amp they say somethinf about -5/-10 db 40 hz tone. So what s the right way ? 40 hz 0db , or -5/-10 ?
I will probably do a video on that.
@@DIYAudioGuy please do 😅 , i now it has something to do with the music that you are listening to , but that's it .
I think the gear is great.. I just truly believe as "audiophiles" we should be able to detect distortion by ear.. no disrespect to anyone.. I have just noticeably been able to hear what sounds "bad" from a fairly young age.. I just really enjoy music
My experience is that you need to train your ear in order to hear distortion. It's not really your ear that you're training it's your brain. Yes you can hear it, but do you know what it is your hearing?
I've noticed that when I connect a DD1 and an AMM1 to a woofer and start to turn it up I'm able to hear the distortion after the DD1 lights up but before the AMM1 shows clipping.
Now that I recognize the sound I'm pretty confident that I could set the amp gain by ear. The next goal is to learn how to do the same when adjusting the EQ.