Equalizer Settings (13 band)

Ok guys, I’m a total novice at setting audio up. I love a great stereo, but don’t have the knowledge to set one up.
A few months back, I had a new system put in at Best Buy. Kenwood DNX574S head unit, new door speakers, amp, and a Kicker Hideaway sub.

I messed around with the equalizer settings for hours. I got it sounding good, but not as good as I wanted it. I was talking with a guy about it yesterday, and he said it’s best to just leave them all at zero, so you’re getting the true sound the way the music was recorded.
So, I tried it. It’s definitely not the case, in my opinion. The music all sounds flat.

I listen to all different kinds of music. I can get it where certain types sound great, but others don’t.

Can any of you guys share your settings with me? I know a lot of you guys are pretty dialed in on this stuff, so I imagine you guys have it nailed down pretty well.

Besides the equalizer settings, there’s all the other stuff like crossover, locations, etc. I have no idea what to do with all of this stuff.

If any of you could just share what you think are the right settings for all of this, I would greatly appreciate it.

 

There is no setting that is correct. It has to do with an individuals ears, and the fact all songs are mixed differently. As a person once told me....listen to the music, not the stereo....all the adjustmenrs are distracting. Just adjust it the best you can...for you.

 

Leaving them all zero to get the true sound of the way the music was recorded is not exactly true. Environmental factors and the way the vehicle reacts weigh heavy on everything. Also the amount of airspace each speaker has access to not being "tuned". It's a truck in the end and not a dedicated listening room with pro-grade sound absorption and bass traps. Get it as best to your ear and call it a day.

Edit: I have the Taco Tunes 1b. I have just the 3 band with the stock unit and no dsp. I have the bass down 1. Mid level and highs up one. I adjust my subs depending on the song. Anything more and it was just a fight forever. I settled on almost zero's. I like it a bit brighter with a punch. That seemed to work for me.

 

this might help you with the basics



i also made a thread on my stereo tuning adventures. relevant info starts here. i'm using a TwK 88 but you'll be able to see all the settings in the screen shots.

 

I’m aware of that, but I’d imagine someone else’s settings would be pretty close, and I could make changes from there as necessary. I was just looking for a decent starting point.

 

Thank you very much sir. I’ve been considering just dropping the Hideaway sub altogether and just rolling with the other speakers. It always seemed to cause the biggest issue. (Sounds great on some songs, then vibrates like hell on others. I end up fiddling with the knob constantly.)

I’ll check the links out and see what I can do later.

 

Thanks for the response. I’ve been googling ways to set this up, and can’t find anything consistent. Some say flat, some go above flat, others say go below.
My main issue is when it sounds wrong, I’m not sure which settings to adjust.

 

no worries. give a shout if you need anything. the twk stuff is probably more involved than what your headunit does but most of it should be the same. you can use the eq curves from my screen grabs as a starting point.

 

Thank you sir.

 

Also it’s good to note that depending on how it’s mastered there can be crazy varations between songs, albums, and artists. Coheed and Cambria is one band I notice that is hard to find a happy medium with. Depending on the album. Modern rock is a victim of the loudness war. Where the songs volume is cranked to the roof within the song causing distortion. We could argue about what songs are good to tune off of. Even then we still wind up back at the beginning. The struggle for accurate repoduction of music is one of my passions. Mainly directs towards my home stereo.

 

Yeah, I’ve accepted the fact that I’ll never have it perfect, with the big variation in the music I listen to. Even amongst one type of music, there’s a huge gap in how well the bands have mastered their stuff. Newer bands I think put more effort into it. It seems that very few older bands did a great job of it.

I’m no expert by any means, but only a few of the classic performers seemed to do a good job in the recording studio. For example, Guns n Roses put out some amazing music, but I can’t ever seem to get them right on a stereo system. AC/DC and Eagles were well before them, but seem to have nailed it.

I’d honestly say that country artists seem to be a lot more consistent in their audio quality. Hip Hop is all over the place.