Equalizers .... do I need one ?

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In audio processing, equalization (EQ) is the process of modifying the frequency envelope of a sound. Etymologically, it means to correct, or make equal, the frequency response of another audio device. The term "equalizer" is sometimes applied to audio filters in general, though strictly speaking not all audio filters are equalizers.The equalizer is a sophisticated tone control for the system, adjusting many different low, mid and high frequencies. Equalizers come in many forms including dash and trunk mount units with either graphic, parametric, or quasi-parametric processing. The most common type of unit is the graphic, in-dash variety. Usually half the height (half-DIN) of a source unit, this type is the most easily adjustable and therefore the most often misused. An equalizer should really only be set once to overcome the acoustic problems of the car and then adjusted only periodically when tuning the system. This is why thirty band trunk mount units are used in car audio competition more often than the in-dash ten band variety. When using an equalizer do not overdue the boost on a frequency. If possible try to cut a frequency rather than boosting another. Over equalizing a system can cause damage to the components, especially the speakers

 

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How an Equalizer Helps Your System.

A graphic equalizer gives you ultra-precise tone control. A quality EQ, properly used, can fine-tune even a high-end system. It makes the difference by catering to your listening preferences and allowing you to restore great sound that gets disrupted by your noisiest, most hard-to-handle component — your car.

Vehicle noise, road noise, size and shape of the interior, the reflectivity of glass, and the absorbent nature of seats all affect your system's sound. You can use an equalizer to remedy each one of these ills, boosting the frequencies you're missing and attenuating the ones your vehicle exaggerates.

When you make these adjustments, use a light touch on those slider switches — a boost of 10 dB works your amplifier ten times harder, and this can introduce distortion. Here's a tip: Try attenuating frequencies first. For example, before you boost your bass, lower the midrange and high frequencies a little bit.

Of course, an EQ is also a great way to protect your equipment. For example, if your system's bass is provided by a pair of 6-1/2" woofers, use an EQ to cut back all frequencies below 50 Hz. Your amp will work more efficiently and you'll get higher, cleaner volume while protecting your speaker drivers from tones they can't handle.

The best way to find out what an equalizer can do for your system is to try one out for yourself. A little hands-on experience and some trial and error tweaking will help you learn more about shaping up the sound in your car and really bring out the best from your system.

 

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Types of EQ available.

There are a number of kinds of EQ. Each has a different pattern of attenuation or boost. A peaking equaliser raises or lowers a range of frequencies around a central point in a bell shape. A peaking equalizer with controls to adjust the level (Gain), bandwidth (Q) and center frequency is called a parametric equalizer. If there is no control for the bandwidth (it is fixed by the designer) then it is called a quasi-parametric or semi-parametric equalizer.

Shelving-type equalizers increase or attenuate the level of a wide range of frequencies by a fixed amount. A "low shelf" will affect low frequencies up to certain point and then above that point will have little effect. A high shelf affects the level of high frequencies, while below a certain point, the low frequencies are unaffected.

One common type of equalizer is a graphic equalizer, which consists of a bank of band-pass filters, with an independent gain control for each band. Normally, these bands are tight enough to give at least 3dB or 6dB maximum effect for neighboring bands, and cover the range from around 20Hz to 20kHz (which is approximately the range of human hearing). A simple equalizer might have bands at 20Hz, 200Hz, 2kHz and 20kHz, and might be referred to as a 4-band equalizer. A typical equalizer for live microphone work might have as many as 24 or 32 bands.

Note : In these days of increasingly complex HUs with onboard processor functions, almost all HUs come with some form of EQUALIZATION FUNCTION. These can be either in form of GRAPHIC EQ or PARAMETRIC ones in some of the higher end HUs. Both of which when used effectively will give you a multitude of tone control and fine tuning options. Do remember that excessive equalization is indication of more serious system problems that should not simply be masked with an EQ

Credits : caraudiohelp.com/mobileaudiofaq.com