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CAR AUDIO SYSTEMS (08/02/2001)

By Tirthankar Basu

INTRODUCTION
Car audio performance is quite different from what we hear in our homes.
Generally we end up fitting car stereos with and demand good audio
enjoyment out of it too. But we are never satisfied with it. In reality what is
necessary is the music should sound un-distorted when the car is in motion
and not when the car is stationary. We end up checking car stereos when the
car is stationary. The reason for this is that we hardly have a choice as far as
selecting car audio systems. As each fitment is customized the accessories
shop will hardly replace your system if you are not satisfied with it. Blame it
on the unorganized car accessories sector who offer us false suggestions at
false prices and providing unbranded and substandard equipment in the
guise of Pioneer and Sony.

BASICS
First we will discuss sound in a very basic manner. The music we hear is a
spectrum of sound signals of which the bass and the treble is both at the far
end of the whole spectrum. Much as infra red and ultra violet is to light rays.
The beats and the thump is the bass which falls in the low frequency
category about 60hz. And the tone or the treble falls in the high frequency
category about 24000hz. The more the bandwidth the better the sound. In
between of these two lies the mid range / vocal frequency which is about
1khz. Mid range is automatically created if you have a woofer and tweeter (Note the difference between
Hz and kHz)

So it's all about bandwidth. The more difference in the frequency created by the tweeters and woofers
the betters it sounds. It's easy to create hi freq sound which comes out through tweeters and we wont
discuss tweeters anymore in the following. So Lo-frequency sound is difficult to be created. The placing
and the fitting of woofers have to be proper. A woofer has to be placed in some kind of box made of
sound absorbing material to get correct acoustics

Why do we need BASS and TREBLE?

The more the bass and treble the better we enjoy the sound. So an audio system
has to offer both extremes to be appreciated in terms of quality. Now speakers
generate the sound, as we all know. A speaker constitutes of woofers and
tweeters. (Woofers for the bass or low freq near 60hz and Tweeters for the treble
high freq. 24000hz) If u are not enjoying music - "quality " wise then possibly the
speakers are not delivering a wide spectrum of the sound signal. For example the
low freq. might not be going below 100hz and the high freq. not above 16000hz. Many a times the song
you are playing is poor in the 'extreme frequency' content.

FITMENT
In a car however the scene is different. In 3 boxcars however placement is
easier as the speakers are fitted on the parcel shelf and it provides good
acoustics too. Only limitation is that not more than 2 speakers can be fitted and

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wattage becomes a limitation. In hatchbacks however placing a speaker to get

correct acoustics is tricky. Consider a Maruti 800 where we end up placing the speakers in the pads
behind the seats, which is improper. Here even hi wattage oval speakers fail to perform. The solution lies
in fitting the speakers in a box made of wooden fibreboard. Many people resort to racks too but in my
experience racks fail to be the best as what you need is that the speakers should be placed in a airtight
manner. In home audio the speaker box contains a hole for the low frequency sound waves to come out
and create a still lower frequency by hitting against sound absorbing material
like beds and curtains to give you deep BASS. This concept is called BASS
reflex. In cars BASS reflex is definitely necessary but to be created in a
different manner. Here the speakers have to be fitted in an airtight manner in
fiberboard boxes. In racks the air escapes and proper low frequency bass is not
created.

But why do we need the BASS and to what extent?

The answer lies in monitoring the sounds in a car. When it is in motion many
low frequency sounds are created by suspension thuds and of course the
engine. These are definitely absorbed by sound proofing materials in the
firewall area and floor pan and the carpet of course. These sounds when
absorbed, become low frequency vibrations and surround us. This distorts
the sound of any common car stereo. How much BASS? Well theoretically
the BASS in music should be able to equal the low frequencies of the cars
interior if not overcome them.

Here is where the SUB WOOFER comes in. The SUB is the perfect solution
to get proper car audio enjoyment. Shop around and you will find reputed
brands like alpine (at Khan market in Delhi and Lenin Sarani in Kolkata) but
you need to bargain of course. For a 3 box car a SUB can be placed in the
dicky if not the parcel shelf and it does gives the desired result. For a SUB
WOOFER system you need matching amplifier and an in-dash-head unit too.

If you cant afford the SUB then typical oval 3 way speakers will also do and
for hatchbacks you need to fit them in proper fiberboard boxes at each end of behind the rear seat.

TIPS
Whatever brand you buy listen to it while driving and then judge. It's not
compulsory that only SONY and PIONEER deliver the best sound. Even
local assembled stereos might solve your purpose. Try your monitoring the
friend's car system if you liked it. That is DEMO enough. My suggestion is to
be more particular about he speakers than the head unit. In my experience if
you are tight on budget but still want a decent sounding system, go for a
local 4-speaker system but with 2 pairs of ORIGINAL Sony or pioneer
speakers. And BEWARE of pioneer duplicate speakers. Be very careful about insulating the stereo
speakers wire because if any of the speakers wire gets contacted to the body-metal, the IC of you
system gets fused. Don't be too fascinated about front speakers. They actually do not give the sound you
might want, apart from disturbing you. Also test the car stereo by sitting in the front. There lies the
challenge. At the rear seat all systems will sound good.

FUTURE
We listen to music mainly from audiocassettes and CDs. In car entertainment
necessitates continuos and un-interrupted programming. However with the
radio scene in our country being grim we depend on cassettes and CD
changers. CD changers are a step better than cassettes and single CD
players. but not the ultimate. I advise everybody at present to avoid buying
CD changers and wait for a year to welcome the car mp3 players that will
come in the market - in - dash CD players that can play data CDs encoded
with mp3 tracks. A conventional Data CD with 650 mb capacity can hold about 130 songs! in mp3
format . What more do you need. You get access to your whole CD collection in a few MP3 data CDs.
There's nothing like random access and infinite repeat for all your favorite tracks on the move and that
also pure un-distorted digital sound.

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Start dreaming.

TAILPIECE
Car audio is intended for in-car entertainment and should not be judged in terms of whether you can
substitute the horn with your music system. Remember no matter how powerful you music system is it
can never sound LOUD AS WE WANT IT in our traffic jams. As the noise decibels in our traffic
surpasses our music system capacity. However if it ever does then you will soon be deaf.

NOTE: Sound accoustics is not my subject and I have indicated certain technical facts of which I
welcome comments from people in this line so that I too get to learn more.

Top

by Tirthankar Basu

(5 replies)

Interesting Link: Car Audio Speakers

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