FINALLY, Q&A Questions Answered!!  

I agree with you 100%. Listening via bluetooth is the worst, and mp3 files from a USB are very compressed. I listened to a song on USB, then through my Fiio player, and there was so much missing on the USB MP3 file. I use a Fiio M11S and it is a total must have, game changer. I also have an Astell&Kern PEE51 DAC Dongle as a backup to use with my phone, just in case. But straight from my phone, usb or bluetooth just won't cut it.

Really glad you participated, and even happier that I gave you the answer that you were looking for. Now, you hafta go BACK down the rabbit hole and study yourself blind...LOL!!

@@Ahm-Creative LOL. No doubt. I knew I only had so much power to distribute, yet there were still a ton of scenarios. Trust me, I may go blind but I’ll be 100% more confident when I make a choice.

@@milesbachelor8747 LOL yeah brotha, you have ample power going to your speakers. And here's a truth they won't tell you...because they want to sell you a bigger amp....having 100+ watts going to mids and high's can be a bit of overkill, because you don't need that much power to move them, and with proper tuning they'll be very loud off less power. Will 100x4 be louder than 65x4...of course, but not to the degree one might think. What that 100watts is actually giving you is dynamic headroom, where your amp doesn't have to work as hard to push your speakers, but still, with the gains dialed back so much (to not blow your speakers), that extra power/dynamic headroom will only be used in short bursts that we aren't likely to hear. I have 65x4 and my boy with the Dyn Audio Accord has 125x4 if not more, and his car is BARELY louder than mine, but both are equally clean....so if you already have the 50x4, I say rock wit it!

@@Ahm-Creative Yes I suspected that I don’t need much power, for my listening preference anyway. My stock amp is delivering maybe 100W total to a 5-speaker front stage. It’s almost enough, but the bass drowns out the voice at times. I’d probably be fine with another 50-75W to mids/highs and a time delay function. Hard to modify my thinking to SQ. Bass is more about space whereas front stage is more about location and angles.

@@milesbachelor8747 You are correct about everything, and also consider the factory speakers your amp is pushing are likely lighter with smaller magnets than what you'll eventually get...so there's a difference in efficiency. That amp is perfectly matched to those 5 speakers. Now, you'll have to do somewhat of the same job in order to get proper sound out of your new system...which isn't hard to do at all...don't let me scare you. It's just different, but not in a bad way.

I'm glad you found it helpful. What I'll say is this... dsp's can seem a bit overwhelming initially, but at the end of the day, it's an EQ with time delay... which is surprisingly easy to use too. If you approach it with that in mind, it won't be so bad. But unfortunately, even showing a walkthrough could cause someone to try to copy what I'm doing, and could cause them to damage their gear, and if you notice, there aren't any in depth dsp videos anywhere... because of the reasons I explained. But, if you have a dsp that has an auto tuning feature, that dsp comes up with those settings based on your speakers and crossover points you input.... so at a minimum, I'd suggest finding your speaker's fs, and set your crossover 2 times that number. For example, the Morel Elate Carbon Alto tweeters fs is 900... which is why mine are crossed at 2700hz. Other tweeters may have a higher fs, so you'd start there, then cut the unwanted or unused frequencies to zero. I believe on the Arc Audio RU-vid channel, they have dsp tutorial videos, so that may be a bit more helpful. Also, I forgot to answer the 2nd half of your question. My goal in tuning is to make my car sound balanced like my home audio system, or over the ear headphones. If my car sounds nothing like that, I know something is off. A lot of times, we want our cars to be in your face and brighter than our home systems or headphones, but that is the goal... to get our cars to sound as good as home systems and headphones... witchu can be difficult because a car is tight, confined and sound bounces around very easily, and that's difficult to control.... but if you do it right, it's magical!

Bro, that's awesome to hear! I haven't heard their components aside from the TM8, but they sound amazing just like their sub, so I have no doubt their components will sound awesome too. I actually considered the Barbara Anne... or maybe even their 6 Channel Lanna... but I'm having a hard time deciding because I love my Zapco's. Spec for spec, the U.S Acoustics looks better...I just don't want to go through the pain of re-tuning, but for that boost in fidelity, I just might... and it's a 3rd of the price of the Zapco AP 150.6.... so we'll see. I am looking forward to your build shorts!

@@Ahm-CreativeI know that right now SI is having an amp sale there 4.200 is about 800 atm. I was eyeing there 4.125 amp but the Barbra Anna price was so appealing. I’m working out of an LS430 06 so I have to rerun all new wiring.

@@swizzy8735 lol the nightmare begins.... nah, it's not bad at all really...Toyota's are dream cars to work on. I haven't heard the S.I amps yet either, but all the champion SQ guys I know swear by U.S Acoustics... some even over Zapco... so it's definitely got my attention... and the price for that much CLEAN Audiophile power... it's pretty much a no-brainer... aside from the tuning woes.

Thank you brother! I'm glad you found it helpful, and that's awesome that we share some subscribers! That means we're both on the right path! I am subscribing to your channel now, and I can only hope you'll subscribe to mine.

already did, I have been working on a video about Bass restoration/enhancements, should drop some time this week. you might get a kick out of it@@Ahm-Creative

@@CarAudioEnthusiasts That's awesome! Thank you for the heads up....I will keep an eye open!

Brotha, I've been a huge fan of both Sony and Pioneer since I stepped away from Kenwood back in the mid 90's. The back of the radios used to get HOT!!! I will say, although I love Sony and Pioneer head units, I really miss Eclipse! Those were SWEET!! I kinda wish I could find a double-din today, to replace my Pioneer.

@@Ahm-Creative the old Kenwood Excelon head units were my favorite back in the early 2000s. Check out the ES models Sony made. Do you use any audio control products? I added the Matrix plus to my system and it made a huge difference in my system.

@@isiahgreen8405 yessir, I had both the Sony CDX-C90 and CDXC-910, and I'm STILL MAD that I sold em... lol! At that time when I was running Sony, I had the Audio Control Four.1 and EQ-L. Definitely game changers.

Oh man, McIntosh are dream amps, but they are PRICEY!! I love my Zapco's. I had Alpine BBX Series before these, and they're ok. But as soon as I installed the Zapco's, even before tuning, I immediately heard better sound...you are absolutely correct. JL amps are very clean, but I really don't think they're legit "SQ" amps. BUT...I will say this. I was considering the Zapco 150.6 AP, but a few SQ guys I know said they aren't as clean as the price suggests. That's not to say they're bad by no means, but they're just not up to the price they command. So I was considering the U.S Acoustics "Lanna" 6-Channel. It's a pure Audiophile amp just like the AP Zapco, at a 3rd of the price! A lot of guys are switching over to U.S Acoustics, so I am strongly considering them...or I may just keep what I have because I am not looking forward to tuning all over again.

@@Ahm-Creative U.S. Acoustics I will research them! Thanks! oORAH

Glad you had a question for me to answer...I'm glad you participated! Unfortunately, I'm not familiar enough with AF to know about their crossover mismatched points, but that doesn't make much sense to me since you can lower the output of your sub if you felt it was carrying too far above your midbass. The points Morel gave me make more sense, and work really well for me, because there are no gaps or frequency overlaps. I'm crossed from 20-20Khz...I don't see how it would be different for AF or any other speaker brand.

I hope I answered your question to your liking!

Haha yeah man, it comes natural. I'm fairly reserved, but not the type to get embarrassed by mistakes... unless you've seen my "My First System was TRASSSH" video... lol. Other than that, the way I approach making videos is, I'm talking to my peers, and we all make mistakes, but it's just a conversation, and not a big production. But yeah, no matter what the SQ rules say, they're still interpreted by a person who can't help but be subjected to their opinion. If it weren't opinion based, even if by a little, they'd judge our system's by rta readings and nothing more. In dB drag, the meter didn't lie, unless it was defective. Otherwise, the score was what it was. But don't get me wrong...I enjoy going to the shows and the commaradary... I'm just not the biggest fan of the subjective rules... but it's all love. I'm really glad you find my videos helpful, and I hope you'll come back to join the family ✊🏿

@@Ahm-Creative You are so correct. A flat tune is exactly that, FLAT. Certain rules are made to be broken or bent. I mostly tune my car to get rid of the massive peaks that give your listening fatigue. I see a lot of cars set up with 100 or 150 watts x 4 which is awesome, but some people would be surprised how loud 35 to 60 watts actively crossed over is. I guess it's just depends on what the goal is. It's crazy I don't see as many systems or should say, hear as many as I did in 80's & 90's.

@@user-in9et9hv4n It's funny you say that. When I first started attending these SQ shows with my boy with the CDT...now Dyn Audio Honda Accord, a lot of the tunes were flat and lifeless...which is why I made my initial video saying SQ cars were boring. Now, they have changed the rules a bit where they're looking for more prominent midbass up front (IASCA rules). Now, the cars have that energy...they're not flat and lifeless to me anymore. My current amp is 65x4 and it gets plenty loud...just about as loud as the cars with 100x4 or more. It's all in the tuning and crossover points. The car culture is definitely different compared to how it was back in the late 90's and 2000's for me.

LOL glad you liked my "answer"....but really, it's just for me...not really built for shows, but I wanted to clean it up, even if by a little bit. You have some high end gear, and if you're using a DAP like my Fiio or an Astell&Kern, you can do coax from the DAP to your DSP, but you'd still need RCA's from the output side. I use Stinger X3 cables, and while they are long, Stinger told me that if I coil them loosely, like they're packaged, it won't induce noise. I know that's not your concern, but I thought I mention it as an option. Also, F1Lionshare asked a similar question, as he wants to cut his...so if you're skilled with a soldering iron, or know someone who is, maybe you can get longs ones, order some additional ends, and cut them to specified lengths.

Wouldn't recommend coax type cables for anything other then older amps that are designed for coax. Possibly in a digital single rca type or in home audio interconnects would I want a coax cable. Other then that most amps of today expect to see a twisted pair inputs where they are able to cancel 12v DC type RF noise whenever it is introduced into both wires (reason they are closely twistesd) As for coax style braided shield is great for home audio where there is a different type noise when using 110v DC I believe it's 60hz hum. In a car you get high freq noise like alternator whine ect. If anyone has more info or if I said anything wrong please correct me? For custom length RCA's we all agree hand make your own or find someone who could help you make your own custom cables, with high quality bulk wire and decent rca connectors. Note if the wire is a 3 wire twisted directional cable the third is a noise drain wire that is usually uninsulated but not always, That drain wire is connected to the source side ground of the rca ONLY along with the foil wrap shield if the cable has one. That extra cable is so it won't transfer noise to the next component since it's not connected to the receiving signal aide, reason of a directional cable. Also use high quality electronics solder. Looking at RCA's have you ever notice high quality RCA's like stinger sometimes use carbon fiber barrels on the RCAs it's that isn't just to look different or cool its there to further block RF noise by eliminating as much metal exposed out in the open to eliminate as many chances to introduce noise into the system. Hope this might help you!

@@satyavratadas1640 I agree with everything you said. I've never made my own, but I understand how high end rca's are made the way they are. Stinger X3 cables are great and noise free as far as I can tell. I don't think I've ever come across a car audio amp that uses coax inputs, but our current models dsp's do. So feeding a dsp with coax sends it the best signal possible, leaving you to use the best rca's to send just as clean a signal to your amps. I don't use coax in mine...I use 3.5mm aux to my head unit, which sends the signal to my dsp via rca....and although I agree coax is cleaner, it's not so much to where it makes my aux sound like bluetooth, or your standard mp3...especially when I'm streaming FLAC files from Tidal. Directional rca's and FLAC files have been a great combination for me thus far.

@@Ahm-Creative Thanks for the reply, Also do you have a public playlist on Tital by chance?

@@satyavratadas1640 Thanks for the input this is the final piece of my install that I haven't decided on, so I haven't ordered anything. I still have a ton of work to do I just started on my install I have my whole car gutted and just put down my first case of killmat so the clocks now ticking, and I feel the pressure. I wish good RCA's didn't cost so much I will probably end up going with the Mcintosh from Crutchfield and stay on my Top Raman diet for another 4 months. when I started this, I was thinking about 8 to 10 now looking at the pile of boxes I got I'm counting around 16 and still need to order my Morel 3 ways or the ESP 8000 series still a toss-up and RCAs. The struggle is REAL!!

No, I'm using the 3.5mm aux because I sometimes use my head unit to power my rear-fill, and I would lose that with the opt.