CA&E:Tell us about your tuning process. Do you use microphones? Your ears?
GS:I use my ears and a RTA system to tune the car. After the initial install I did a basic RTA alignment of each speaker and set the time correction to achieve a reasonable image. I spent the next month just listening and making adjustments to time correction, crossovers, and level between the mids, highs, and subwoofer by ear. During this listening time I was attempting to establish the basic "curve." When I arrived at what I thought was a good balance spectrally I took another RTA measurement, fine-tuned it and stored it as the reference. I use the 5.1 Toolkit DVD and studio panel calibration CD, as well as a host of my favorite music to ear-tune the car. The test discs have all the test signals I need to set the delays and polarity for each driver. They also have the one-third octave pink noise for RTA. RTA measurements are taken with the Gold-Line DSPCIW PC calibration kit. This is a four-microphone multiplexing system, which utilizes spatial averaging in conjunction with real-time analysis. I place the four mics in a 6-inch x 3-inch rectangle at ear height in the driver's head position. All RTA measurements for each speaker are taken from this position. After each RTA/tuning session, I spend at least the next two weeks listening to all kinds of music to determine if the changes are an improvement. The Alpine F1 has a great software interface and I can run it simultaneously with the Gold-Line software. This makes tuning a breeze. I often bring my computer inside the car while running the Alpine F1 program and make small adjustments by ear. Having the six presets makes experimentation with various settings easy and gives you the ability to compare those different settings quickly. It is easy to get lost in your tweaking, so I always make sure what I have changed makes it sound "better" not just "different." This is where the critical ear comes in to play and also a lot of patience.
CA&E:What is your home setup? Do you use it for reference?GS:I do a lot of comparative listening between the home and car systems. Just before I go to do some critical listening/tuning, I review my favorite selections on the home system, just to refresh my audio memory.
My home reference system is simple two-channel and is as follows:
McIntosh MX-113 stereo preamplifier
McIntosh MC-2155 stereo amplifier
Yamaha DVD C750 (plays DVD-A and SACD)
Rane THX-44 para-graphic equalizer
ESS AMT-1 monitor speakers (love the sound of the Heil drivers)
CA&E:Lastly, what are your favorite tracks or albums, especially in regards to tuning a system?
GS:Test and calibration discs:
Stereo
1) The studio panel setup and calibration disc
2) '95 IASCA competition CD (tracks 1,8,13)
Multichannel
1) The 5.1 audio toolkit (a must if you are going to attempt an accurate calibration of a 5.1 audio system either home or car) I listen to all types of music but a few my favorite discs for evaluating my system are as follows:
Stereo
1) Dave Grusin Migration (all)
2) Fourplay Fourplay (all)
3) Lee Ritenour Smoke and Mirrors (1, 13)
4) Lee Ritenour Westbound (1, 4, 5, 9)
(The above material was recorded and mixed by a very talented recording engineer, Don Murray. Any material in his discography is worth a listen. If your system can properly image and stage the musical selections listed above, you're tweaking it right.)
5) Acoustic Alchemy Positive Thinking (1, 2, 3, 4)
6) Keiko Matsui The Very Best Of (6 "Wind and the Wolf")
7) Tracy Chapman Tracy Chapman debut album (4, 5)
8) Dido No Angel (1, 6, 7, 12)
9) Fleetwood Mac Greatest Hits (9 "Dreams")
10) Phil Collins Greatest Hits (2 "True Colors")
11) Steely Dan Gaucho (1, 2)
12) Steely Dan Royal Scam (3, 7)