Phasing The System: Setting The Front Stage; Tuning - zapco DSP-Z8 IV II Owner's Manual

Phasing the System: Setting the front stage

D. Tweeters to Mids ; Now we start phasing the driver pairs to get a proper front stage. Again,
from here on we change only by the pair. Mute all except the Tweeter and Midrange channels
and listen to a musical track. The main vocal should be centered and the sound stage should
be spread across the window about 1/2 ~ 2/3 the way up. Listen for this. Now change the
phase of both midranges and see where the sound stage is. If the tweeters and mids are out
of phase, the stage will be lost (usually it will drop toward the floor). Do this a few times (always
changing only the mids) and see which position puts the sound stage higher up where it
should be, right across the window. You will leave these this way now and bring in the Mid-Bass.
; Un-mute the mid-bass and see where the sound stage goes. If it pulls
E. Woofers/Mid-Bass
down to toward floor, then reverse the phase of the mid-bass drivers. Try both ways a few
times to see which gives the correct sound stage.
F. Subwoofers ; Subs can be difficult, but not because of bass. You have already phased the
woofers. There will be bass! The issue will be the transition from bass to mid-bass. Play a cut
with good mid-bass (kick drums are excellent). Look for sharp solid mid-bass. Change the
phase of the subs a couple of time and listen. A bad transition will leave mid-bass soft and
weak. Also listen for location. you want the bass to be in the sound stage...not in the trunk.
If your woofers are in a portable enclosure you may even want to move the box location to
see what that does. The Key is finding that combination that gives clean solid mid-bass that
seems to come from the front of the car.
Now you have set the R-to-L phase of each pair of speakers and you have blended each pair
into the system in the correct phase for the best sound stage.
: At this point you completed the system setup and will want to Save to File then Write
SAVE
to Device to save the work. Write to 2 memory positions so you have one to work on and one
as reference.

Tuning

At this point you have effectively set up your entire system. Each channel has the correct
input, each speaker has been identified as to function, the crossovers have been set for each
speaker, the delays are set for the proper sound stage and you have assured that all speakers
are operating in the same polarity acoustically. Now it is time for the most difficult and most
subjective part. Tuning the system to have the correct sound in the car. Since every car is
different from every other car, the tuning must be done specifically for your individual car
and your specific equipment. A car is a poor listening environment because so many factors
in the car change the sound as it moves through the car interior. Windows, upholstery, even the
very shape of the car all affect the sound waves and you need to tune the system to compensate
for those affects.