Hey All,

So the Arc Audio MX-3 crossover I bought on E-bay turned out to be a joke...obviously used and missing parts. Steer clear of blown454ss on Ebay.

Anyhow, I now need to order a crossover. I am having a hard time finding a place online where I can order the Arc Audio crossovers.

Kale, you suggested them, do you know of an online retailer?

Anyone else have crossover suggestions or do we all agree Arc is the way to go? I need a 3-channel, because I want the remote Bass controller (and the crossover will bring my line levels up from their puny 2v to something decent). It needs to have High Pass and Bandpass.

Thanks in advance guys. BTW, the Dynaudio MW172 and Seas Neo textiles tweeters I put in sound great! Thanks for the advice.

Shan

 

cant get them online... :/ You can get them directly but the price is insane.

arc is good, but there's also Memphis which is decent... I can't remember if audiocontrol is good or bad.

How do you like the bass from the 172s?

 

I have a Clarion MD360 in there now and it sounds OK, but it is bringing some engine noise into the system. The worst part is that it has no bandpass filter. What kind of dopes design a 2-way capable crossover and do not incldue Bandpass. Obviously the designers at Clarion.

 

if you are using eqs/crossovers with PDX amps you'll always have some noise.

 

I expected the low amount of hiss that I have...but that is really low. What I did not expect was the engine noise. You beleive that should also be expected in an install with the PDX's?

I should say that even the engine noise is inaudible unless you put your ear to the tweets. Guess I should not complain.

Shan

 

Not engine noise or static, but "teakettle" noise. It doesn't follow the RPMs with pitch or intensity - it just does its own thing and is super high frequency.

Every EQ I have does it with my PDX amps, but NOT with my other amps. Price to pay, I suppose.

 

what's your budget? you could always try out the behringer dcx2496 like me :-). it's more then the arc x-overs but it does a hell of a lot more. it looks big but it's actually mostly the case. you can easily take it out and put it in something a lot smaller. the main board isn't much bigerr then a dollar bill (maybe 50% bigger on the height). That'll get you crossover, time alignment and an impressive eq plus it has up to 9v outputs. I think you can get the whole shabang for about $400

 

This is about as good as car audio crossovers get.

 

http://woofersetc.com/index.cfm?fuse...roduct_id=1258

Looks VERY nice.

 

Fortunately you can get it in something other than that wonderful yellow

 

Scott, the DXC2496 looks sweet...especially considering I can get it for $250. I cannot, for the life of me, figure out where I would mount something that huge and I am not sure I have the skills to remove it and put it in a different case...plus it looks like it has enough buttons and displays to require that much space.

The Audio Control unit looks like a good option. Is there anything bad about the fact that its crossovers are 24db/octive? I know people often use that for Subwoofers...is that too steep for Mids/tweets. Don't really know why I am asking cause I am sure you would not reccomend it if it was.

What do you all think about the new Alpine PXE-H650 Imprint EQ/Crossover? I was going to get one from Car Toys, but the installer was having a bitch of a time getting it working. I think it was lack of patience and understanding of the product tho (I was the first customer and they'd only had a 30 minute overview session on it). It looks really promising in that it has an auto analyze and EQ feature, as well as crossover (only 12db/octive, not changable).

BTW, the Ebay seller is standing behind his word and refunding the price of the unit, all shipping to me and return shipping back to him. Guess he is not that bad a guy after all.

Shan

 

Kale, the 172's a still breaking in so a lot of the bass is not there yet nad I have them crossed at 80hz, but they seem good so far. I am sure they will rock when they're broken in and I can cross them lower.

I don't think the Audio Control DQX is going to work for me after all. There is no bass remote or remote option for this unit. Since it only has a single input, I cannot even use the SW control on the deck. I looked at the 6XS from Audio Control and it looks like it would work, except they do not have adjustable crossover frequencies. You have to buy modules, which sucks because I will not know what the ideal crossover between the 172s and the 10W7 is until I can play with it some. They claim this solution is better than the adjustable, but I have a feeling it is just cheaper. Either way, it rules that out too.

Unless anyone has some serious concerns, I am going to go buy the Alpine PXE-H650 tomorrow and try it out. I can always return it if it does not work out for me. Reading online, it looks like a very good solution. If it does not work out, I don't have a clue which direction to go next. Most of the other options from Woofer etc. are either way too spendy ($500+), made by low end manufacturers or don't have bandpass.

Shan

 

They've always used those modules in their crossovers. It does make them more difficult to set up, but the benefit is that the settings can't change (accidentally or otherwise) and modules don't get dirty and noisy over time like potentiometers do. It's definitely not the cheaper solution when you compare their prices to other products. The workaround for the DQX or something similar is an additional line driver (with remote level control) on the sub outputs.

AC is (and has always been) exceptional stuff, and I most definitely wouldn't recommend something inferior. AC is generally used in more complicated systems and is not for everyone.

Scott's idea lately with that Behringer unit is really interesting. It might be worth looking at a bit closer. Space certainly is an issue.

The Alpine looks a lot like the JL and Rockford OEM integration boxes. I can't say if that's the right way to go or not. I know little about it. The Alpine PXA-H701 looks interesting, too, but again I know little about that one.

For what it's worth, Komoman and I did not experience the PDX problem Kale's dealing with.

Unfortunately, to get something noticeably better than the ~$100 variety of processors, you'll have to make some compromises whether features or price.

 

You of all people should know that yellow gives you more bass


About the PDX problem - It's super high frequency. Somehow, despite the way I listen to music I can hear it - but usually people over 30 can't hear those frequencies as your ears drop off around 16k pretty quick around there.

Then again, maybe PDX amps just don't like ARC Or Alpine EQs

My Motorola Razr phone had the _same_ noise and all my coworkers thought I was insane for saying so.

 

Not to get off-topic... but if it's not too much trouble, Kale, how about hooking everything up to get the problem occurring, then grabbing an RTA of it? Might help.

You're right about the dropoff after 30. The nice thing is that with age comes the experience of knowing what to listen for in spite of that rolloff. Fortunately I didn't abuse my ears to the extent kids do today. They'll regret it in 10 years.

 

It has a remote option... look here:



http://www.mobileaudiocontrol.com/pr...51&l1=5251&l2=

You could add an Epicenter or EPIC-160 to have a remote bass ****.

If you get the Alpine unit, make sure to post about it here... I'm interested in what it can do.

Mark

 

I know I will When I was a dumb teenager, I liked to turn up the headphones until I could "feel them."

I might try to read the frequency, I'm switching to an arc amp this weekend though (if it ever shows up.)

 

I run the PPI dcx-730 and I am really happy with it. Adjustable slopes from 6-24db, adjustable frequencies by the hertz (IE 51hz, 52hz, 53hz) butterworth and linkewitz, time alignment, L and R adjustments seperatley, decibel adjustments per channel of at least 0 to -10db (might be 15), adjustable output voltage etc etc. Hell I cannot remember all of the features it has. I paid $260 for mine, you can find them for slightly more and slightly less. Good place to look would be diymobileaudio.com. Set up for 3 channel use, and can convert a single full range in, to 3 seperate outs.

I warn however that the directions for use are not that easy, and the navigation takes a little getting used to, but it is a great all in one solution for sure.

Fej

 

sorry to resurrect this aging thread, but I was curious what you all think of the Zapco DC Reference concept - seems to have EQ, crossover, and time-alignment abilities onboard and can be "programmed" via laptop USB connection. Would this be a reasonable solution for a C6 owner considering a 2- or 3-way active setup?

Thanks,
Dave

 

It looks fantastic. I just read the owner's manual, and I might have to grab one of these myself. It's certainly NOT for the novice. One really nice feature is the ability to mimic a shelf network, something I have not seen properly implemented in active car electronics. That's an absolute must for active setups, often dismissed by people who avoid passive networks at all costs (mostly because they don't understand how those work). The downside to all this is you'll need some measurement capability to take advantage of its enormous potential.

I've never been a fan of integrated systems for all functions (i.e. a head or amp with built-in EQ, time alignment, etc). Stand-alones are almost always better performers if space allows. In this case, it appears the same components are in the amp chassis as in the stand-alone box. Obviously, if you're buying a Zapco DC amp, the stand-alone box is pointless.

Zapco is one of the finest companies out there. I would trust anything they produced. If you grab one, by all means, share your experiences here.