PERFECT AMP GAIN SETTING COMPLETELY FREE!!!

In this video i apparently make all amp gain setting tech redundant. This does however rely on the knob markings on your amp being accurate. which may or may not be the case. Either way, support the channel as i like to feel loved. Peace out holmes xx

[@iThoughtUHad2Bitch]

Another easy way is use an old small speaker you have laying around attach a small Capacitor to it. Hook it up to your amp, play a 40hz test tone through it and start turning the gain up. Once you hear sound through the speaker (clipping/distortion) simply turn the gain back down slightly till the speaker goes silent again. Bam clean signal every time, try it for yourself. The capacitor will filter out the 40hz tone playing through the amp but allow the harmonic distortion from the clipping to play through it. Free and 100% effective.

[@zeltergiest4224]

Yo, this is genius. Science for the win.

[@kc816_9]

Nice gotta try now that I've clipped 900 worth of sub's 🤦🏽 I must say at 43 years old I've never fried so many subs I would have thought I would have done that young

[@kevonmurray3947]

What size capacitor to use?

[@leegerstorff3971]

What size cap do you have to use for this to work?

[@kevonmurray3947]

@@iThoughtUHad2Bitch thanks

[@doxnoogle5782]

Finally someone who actually understands this stuff explaining it to where anyone can understand it. Huge thanks!

[@fyler1]

I would've never thought that you'd measure HU pre-out on the RCA, and THEN set gains... brilliant. Everyone always says "set your volume to 75-80% to max and then set gains" but I love the idea of matching pre-out voltage. Thank you for this!

[@sivz87]

​@titoham-DCXLs i have a question buddy.... I don't have an amp I just got my speakers running to my head unit, now the thing is how do I know the maximum volume i am allowed to turn it up to without frying any speakers or even the head unit?

[@barevids]

Really great concept! The only issue is this assumes that the manufacturer has used a linear potentiometer for gain control - ive seen many using logarithmic potentiometers, whereby half-way up the dial is equal to around 28% or 72% of gain depending how its been wired. Wouldn't it be so much easier if all manufacturers actually labelled the voltage on the dial! :P

[@cunninglycalculated4583]

Hands down the best explanation I have heard to setting the gain on an amplifier

[@dankmemes8569]

The fact that you showed 92BT head unit and old MRV amp together is such an unreal find for me. I wondered why my signal is clipping at volume set 20-21 for about a year. That almost driven me to throw away MRV-F405 from my system. I'll definitely try your setting up scheme tomorrow. Thanks a lot!

[@jamessanderson7289]

Best instruction video I've seen! Been hunting for tons of information and this video shows everything I needed to know. Awesome video

[@boneskull4207]

nothing against anyone else trying to explain the science behind all this but that's about the best explanation of how thing work I have found that I could understand, thank you for sharing. be safe and God bless!

[@rexiwhit3616]

Thank you very much break down was awesome and really appreciate how you showed everything rather then just telling me I'm much more hands on type person this is so helpful keep it up please and thank you have a great day

[@chadcurrent1645]

When measuring AC volts there is no need to observe polarity. You can put the meter leads on whichever you want, it will read the same. DC is when polarity matters. Hooking up the speakers polarity matters so they receive the same wave and work together. Other than that it for anyone to cheap to buy an oscilloscope it looks like some good advice. I'm a firm believer that distortion kills more speakers than slightly over or under powering them.

[@T4TipsGuides]

Excellent guide. I will be using this technique to set up my amplifier. Head Unit Single RCA output. 1.5v. Multimeter set to AC to find clean output on RCA in relation to HU volume level. Calculate where 1.5v sits on gain dial. Sony Amplifer RCA input voltage 0.3 - 6v. 6v minimum. 0.3v maximum. Lower voltage position (0.3v) is maximum gain. So lower voltage value = higher RCA input compensation (gain). Hopefully, I understand it correctly.

[@onishimo2595]

You are a god, this is the easiest explanation for this I've ever heard.

[@PacmanBasshead]

Thoroughly appreciated 👏

[@smojovi]

Great video. I showed it to me Gran. She called it rubbish and pissed off back to the tele. :)

[@kelvinliew4988]

Thank you for sharing the video. Now the sound produced by my amplifier is perfect.

[@CuckBalls]

Thank you for a simple video with an easy to understand explanation for doing this. You're the shit

[@rhinevalleygarage]

Great video! What equipment are you using to set up your bench to power.the head unit and amps? Thanks

[@BigStuDolla91]

Bro this is….amazing. For years I’ve used ohms law but that implies the amp actually does rated power. This is insane lol

[@PacmanBasshead]

Thanks haha its not 1000% accurate for for anyine without a scope its good enough!

[@smigletat9634]

@@PacmanBasshead Better than shooting from the hip🤔😂👍

[@mikestivers8302]

my new CT Sounds amp(s) dont have a line/input dial. in this case, i just turned my head unit up to 75% of the volume, and checked the output at the speaker terminals. my door comp's can handle 80w RMS. they are 4ohm rated. so the quick math to do is multiply the RMS power rating (80w) times the resistance in ohms (4ohm) then get the square root of that.. 80x4=320 squared, is 17.9 with the head unit volume at 75%, i'd check a/c voltage on one of the speaker terminals and turn up the Gain until it outputs 17-18 volts. *to get this done right, set your EQ, all your sub gains or bass boosts on max because once you turn up the gain, you CANNOT then do a 0-12 db bass boost unless you want your voice coils in your passenger seat :)

[@anthonyrewti4948]

Awesome. Thank you sir. Cheers from Florida.

[@PacmanBasshead]

You are welcome from england ❤️

[@andyhatesohl4080]

Great explanation!! Wondering if this can be done using a line out converter as well? I will be adding an amp and sub using the factory HU which doesn’t have any RCA pre-outs. Thanks

[@THEATREGOD3]

Fantastic formula that didn't bore me to death with guesses

[@agghell224]

You really earned me with this video. New subscriber here !!!

[@kevintimothyshields]

Thanks a ton for this! I must be doing something wrong... my head unit spec reads "Low-Level Output (4 channels): 2.85 Volts." With max volume on both Bluetooth phone and headunit, my multimeter reads .6 Volts AC for a 1000 hertz test tone... and vacillates between .7 and .8 Volts AC for a 100 hertz test tone. The headunit tech support (Retrosound) says I won't see full voltage unless "there is a load" such as connecting to an amp. So I tried adding an RCA Y-Adapter (one side to the amp and then onto a speaker... the other side naked). Readings on the naked Y-Adapter RCA plug are the same (.6-.8 ACV). I then measured with an oscilloscope... I see no clipping (perfectly smooth waves) at max volumes (perhaps Retrosound engineered theirs to have

[@inglouriousmofo]

Looked up one of their decks and heard some janky things. I would be surprised it does 2V, most likely 1V which makes sense if you got .8 or whatever...

[@RollingThunder85]

Man iv heard al this is so many times but God dam it I finally understand thank you sir😂

[@WordLogos]

Awesome video, the best explanation on this topic!!! On my setup my base sounds good when I have the input level button out in the high mode per the kicker 800.1 label. Pushed in the base is low like non existing. But I have the rca cables from the headset into the amp. Shouldn’t the base sound in the low setting? I had this installed years back and don’t recall but I think the installer used an inline converter from headset speaker wire to rca converter out the amp because I have the factory headset. Is it that when using this LOC converter even though the rca is going out the amp input button should be set to high level input?

[@smarafino10]

Not sure if you had any on your outputs before measuring with the scope, but you must have a load on the output before checking for clipping. Whatever the input impedance is for the amp on the line level outs to your scope and whatever the amps output impedance (prob 4ohm) dummy load on the scope leads. Your way will work but you're losing some of the power capabilities because with a load connected the output adjustments would be a bit higher before clipping.

[@AccessGranted95]

When you say load you mean a song playing right

[@bobit8742]

so what happen when you use audio control amplifier and on the gain there isn’t any numbers on the gain? but it is 8v input? the signal come out head unit is 5v, so turn up half way and a tad more? also what if you use factory head unit and use high speaker input for signal. how do you determine the factory head unit voltage? this is really helpful, thanks

[@hrdcoreme]

Most useful information I have received from KZbin thanks mate.

[@PacmanBasshead]

Thanks for watching buddy, I appreciate it 😊

[@mattfire8579]

Can you just set your head unit to max and your input for music such as an iPod or phone to max. From that point adjust the filter your using (in my case hpf) and gain until it isn't clipping on an oscope and be in the clear?

[@gsmecanica]

Hey mate, quick question. What you describe at 2:30 is a better way of just setting your headunit at 75% and assuming that is clean voltage, right? Thanks for your video!

[@PacmanBasshead]

Heya, Use the specs in the manual for the voltage and test with multimeter. Ive not had any that arent clean at the rms voltage

[@gsmecanica]

@@PacmanBasshead Thing is I bought a chinese multimedia for my Suzuki, and the manual does not mention that value... Seems good quality, but it lacks specifications.

[@jiriza84641]

wait I see where you checked the gain on the receiver, but how did you check the clipping one the amp w/o the scope?

[@stu8932]

Great video! Quick question, what test tones did you use? 40hz?

[@inglouriousmofo]

Probably or just pink noise

[@boardbuslife]

Damn it man you aced this, thank you!

[@MichaelVivian]

Great vid. So what if my HU is stock with all the integration stuff, and I have an amp connected to speaker level inputs. Can I just read the voltage off the speaker wires since my shitty HU has no RCA?

[@treysuedel4959]

How would you measure the output of a factory head unit to a line output converter? Would it essentially be the same process? On the line output converter I have it has a clip light to set it at the frequency needed if I am correct, please correct me if I am wrong

[@fishrrelaxing9361]

Set your sub out to 1/2-3/4 then do this.. in my experience you’ll get more clipping from the internal gain/filtering of a head unit not the actual volume.. But you got to pair that with the speaker level outs as well if powering speakers off the head unit.. find the balance of clean out and clean rca.. This is a good starting point for just adding a sub but it doesn’t really give you the full picture.. you want clean power to everything it just the sub.. this is why amps have gain controls so you can tune them up or down accordingly to match the rest of the system. But most times the pre out will over run your line outs on your head unit.. I like to start with the line outs and then work from there unless everything is running off amps Can’t believe this doesn’t have more views.. this is one of the easiest to understand and follow videos for beginners But need to know your head unit sub out.. for example mine is 0-14 with -8bd to +8db.. 0db is setting 7. Therefore when doing this with my head unit I would need to be at setting of 7/14 not at max.. This is more often than not the case for most brands.. alpine is the best at giving really good non clipped output at max settings though for most models.. I’d bet your sub out is plus minus too cause most alpines will go max power in clipped to both the preamps and the line outs

[@caddyguy5369]

Is there a way to do this with an amp with built in speaker level inputs, or just have to hope the manual provides the right info to figure it out?

[@hgfdksk17]

Wait; great advice on measuring the pre-outputs of the radio because I haven’t seen that yet ( I’m a beginner so I’ve been watching TONS) of videos. My question is how do I know what “ Hz “ to set it at? I’m doing a 2 amp setup. 1. Pioneer DX871 powering 2 “12s / 2. Aunex 4ch powering all 4 interior speakers

[@avedgy]

what test tone do you use to find the headunit clipping?

[@Killertomato84]

hey, that's the same head unit i used to have. I loved it, wish i had pulled it from my truck before i sold it.

[@Killertomato84]

also can confirm that particular head unit sounded best set for a max volume of 23 lol

[@ST4R1SM1NE]

This guy needs an award for the year

[@PacmanBasshead]

Why thankyou 😊

[@hydroxylane]

What test tone are you using ???

[@Robbyjonesy]

thanks a bunch for the perfect tutorial!

[@doubtingmean698]

It's 4 am and I came across this, now I've gotta try this before I sleep and forget this video ever existed

[@doubtingmean698]

I'm getting no reading from my rcas

[@doubtingmean698]

Yet when plugged in they work, like what???? I have my multimeter set to act at 200

[@doubtingmean698]

Acv**

[@saop94]

could you make a video with a oem head unit without rca and using a Hi-Lo impedance adapter please

[@SetchiPaunda]

Great info thanks !!!!

[@nickmandleberg]

Wowww dude thanks for this 🤯

[@rockerac1]

Quick few questions. 1. What test tone frequencies are you using (I assume 50 hHZ for a sub, and 1000 hz for other channel speakers)? 2. What should I do if at max volume the output measured on the RCA cable is not even half of the indicated preamp output? I am using an Boss BE10ACP. Which states it supplies outputs: 6-channel preamp outputs (4-volt front, rear, sub). When playing a 50 HZ test tone and testing one of the rca cable of the sub I am not even getting above 1.7 at full max volume. What would cause this?

[@sairuel]

I think it's 4v divided into 6 ch or 0.66v per ch, 1.7v is clipping

[@kurtmiller7945]

I think your sublevel isnt on full, how many volts have the front and rear rca´s ?

[@golfcarbb]

??? So could we still use the multimeter at the RcA outs of the amplifier to find where it clips?

[@markwyatt9847]

I will try this cool video 👍

[@akashramcharan2807]

What test tone u used?

[@Skinnygurlsplay2]

Had a question about the tone you okayed and if you had other other speakers hooked up. If I wanna set the gain myself we don’t have audio shops local. Do I need to unplug my door speakers so the Tone don’t play through them since the volume will be up high when testing the rca volts

[@mattfire8579]

It's best to disconnect your speaker inputs from your amp because they aren't necessary to get the readings. All you will be doing is playing your speakers very loudly at a test tone. If your trying to set the gain and you turn it all the way up or to a clip point it's just putting unnecessary wear on your speakers and possibly could blow them accidentally. It's no difference speakers wired or not, but security on your investment.

[@viksan9797]

Cool stuff, waiting for an update on the van. Cheers!

[@PacmanBasshead]

VAN UPDATE VIDEO AROUND 7PM

[@viksan9797]

@@PacmanBasshead Awesome!

[@Ascendingstorm]

This is a great video, thanks for making this. My Pioneer HU is 4v, and my Alpine amp is 4v at minimum....so I'm assuming my gain should be on minimum?

[@077nerfboy]

Good question , use the ohms x watts then square root that number to get target voltage for speakers on amp

[@alexpickering7725]

How do you account for the dynamics of different music

[@tanwirkhan78611]

So I've I stalled an jvc kwm745 head unit paired with an audison sr5.600. I have looked at the out put of the head unit using an oscilloscope there no cliping at full voltage . Although I have sent the gain to matched the pre out I was thinking is there any reason why I can match it it to the speakers, which are audison rated to 100w rms @ 2ohm. Or set the gain as close to speaker max before oscilloscope shows cliping. What are ur thoughts

[@roffe4u2]

What frequency do you use in this tuning? And does BT never distort at max level from the phone? Can all amplifiers handle max level in without any load, dont you have to put a load at the speaker output, or is it safe to run full gain and max signal in without any risk of breaking the amplifier?

[@wyattmerchant182]

Amps have a input sensitivity rating, which indicates the maximum voltage for RCA signal in that the amp can handle without clipping.

[@juugman6648]

Do the same rules apply with a crossover/line driver

[@leonart7875]

This sounds And looks positive

[@jeremycarter7463]

what tone video did u use?

[@TBSWORLD77]

Yo Adam was great until you only hooked up the oscilloscope to the amps not the multimeter. How do I use a Multimeter on an amp?

[@maniacalmonster2293]

And is your phone at full volume as well?

[@antoniobrown8726]

what tone are you playing

[@anthonybarker9110]

But were are u putting the tester once plugged in 2 the amp 2 know were 2 set the gain on the amp on the speaker outputs ?

[@NightwishArena]

I don't get this. The less voltage your car stereo will give, the less you turn gain from your amp? So, in my case, my stereo has 4V output level and my amp has 6V input level I would turn gain to about 2/3 of max. And because my subwoofer is 250W RMS, and my amp is 310W RMS, I probably lose some of the potential of my subwoofer? Or should I use 31.62V instead (square root of 4 ohms x 250W)?

[@luispina4134]

I have this question as well

[@errolsmith5634]

He said a 250w RMS subwoofer@@titoham-DCXLs

[@zakarytomlinson2537]

What is the head units equalizers set to

[@RobSinner]

Dude this is relevant aswell to guitar recording in the digital realm, I would need to measure my guitar pickup output to set up my virtual amp simulator input level according to my pickups (meaning, passive and actives have different output etc..) I'm hittin my head against the wall with this thing.

[@PacmanBasshead]

Should be the same man!

[@2.4Garage]

What if you use a line driver with higher voltage ratings

[@user-fu9pp9tm5v]

what is the best Gain setting With rockfoord Punch P3D4-12 600 RMS @2ohm

[@JayTown1991]

Soooo at what point are you just going to use the multimeter?

[@Robbyjonesy]

what is the settings on your oscillator?

[@oneonlymarisol6868]

What ru playing on your phone a song or a tone or anything

[@sp00f34]

QUESTION PLEASE: 1) im using the pac sub pro as my LOC, it's coming off my factory radio. can i use the RCAs that are going from my PAC to my AMP? 2) my real question is, i want to do this but im afraid of turning my system up all the way cuz i want to work on it in my garage and not piss off the neighbors. can i put a silent track on so that its turned way up but cant hear anything???? or does there need to be something coming out? any thoughts on best way to do that quietly? Please answer if u can

[@ryandavies8174]

If you can adjust the fader/balancem send it all to one speaker and test at that output or disconnect it and then test the rcas

[@MJ-hn1bv]

Question what are you playing through the heaunit..a test tone?

[@texasarmor]

100 hz for full range

[@calebcain1419]

I'm confused on the alpine amp that you said it's 0v to 4v. why does it say 0.5v nowhere near where it should & how the 2v being across from max does make any since if you break it down to % 2v should be straight up where it's says Nom, which I thought was for the most common setting being 2v is pretty common. But I really like this video & how to find the head unit per out put max. Every one else say go 75% of max volume which I never liked.

[@swolezerow18]

that is really interesting, I can't understand that as well, @Adam Francis could you reply? :)

[@lcvenusaur2168]

THANK YOU

[@tonywoodward1983]

Genius

[@eds8633]

My android HU has a built-in subwoofer gain. Should I set it to max before I will perform your video tuning process? I will also set bass boost to OFF and equalizer FLAT on the HU.

[@PacmanBasshead]

Youll need to find the rms ac voltage of the subwoofer, the manufacturer should be able to say what it is, then find where on the headunit its at that voltage and go from there.

[@sunnyyyyy946]

He's not lying about setting your car on fire.

[@esmokebaby]

How do i do this starting with a factor HU and going into a audio control LC2

[@philmissy1]

nice one bravva

[@jurijsk8997]

Nice!!! Thak you

[@solsticedr1fter394]

How come when I do this to my RCA wire it always says at 0? I have my RCA cables plugged in the the back of the radio. There are a front and rear red and white and then below that two back RCA connectors that say sub. That's the correct place to connect them right?

[@akuma4u]

R u playing a 0db 40hz tone?

[@bobadingo]

Just turn the head unit to 100%MAXX and set amp gains to zero distortion!!.. . I am into SQ installs and this is the preferred way for 0 Distortion Max output.. .

[@jasonbardwell6402]

How do I find the correct voltage for my skar rp1500

[@matthewearl9824]

This is invaluable. So real quick though, doesn't this also mean you cannot turn your radio up past 23 because of the induced voltage excess causing gain distortion?

[@PacmanBasshead]

Essentially, yes. A bit of clip never hurt though.

[@pascalbeutel7853]

nice Video .I looked at my radio but I can't find the Volt preouts settings there. It is a Sony dsx 410bt.

[@BassMaann]

its 2v

[@metaldreams3595]

Man, this is a great video, but I have a stock HU in my 2021 Mazda 3 hatchback. And I have no idea what the output voltage is, because there's no manual or nothing.

[@axetroll]

That's why you set it to 70% volume rule and measure to amp out

[@metaldreams3595]

@@axetroll I understood all of that except measure to amp out. Lol.

[@shaunjay6040]

Out of all of the other videos I’ve watched not one of them mentioned anything about measuring the source output voltage volume.

[@PacmanBasshead]

Thats because everyone else sucks

[@codyclem7146]

HELP PLEASE! MY amp is rated at 800@1ohm(pioneer 8601). My subs are 200watts nominal each(pioneer TS-W253R) and I have 3 subs. So what should I be reading on my multi-meter when setting the gain for these?

[@rasmus4635]

When I try to measure the voltage from rca my multimeter says 0?

[@BassMaann]

What if my amps input sensitivity is measured in Millivolts? Input Sensitivity (Level 100%): 230mV would be 0.23V? and my headunit is 2v. what would the math be?

[@DarkSim712]

Does it matter if I set the gains with the car off (12 Volts) or with the car running (14.4 Volts)?

[@TheAceTroubleshooter]

No it shouldnt(however I would do it while running just to be sure) seeing as how the voltage you are adjusting is the signal voltage, rather than the power input voltage, good question tho!

[@zizo4921]

How can I know that I need to do this without opening the console?

[@half_ass_gaming9864]

Dude what tone are you using I've tried this but it's all over the shop

[@PacmanBasshead]

Use the tone nearest to tuning 🙂

[@williamvegors7641]

What frequency were you using for finding your ac voltage?

[@PacmanBasshead]

I used 40hz, but use where your sub has the heaviest load on the cone

[@truedunkin8818]

Flac/mp3/ or wav for usb files format ar car?

[@TerenceGrier]

Does any step change if you are using a Full Bridge MonoBlock Amp ? something like the Sundown Audio SIA 2500

[@PacmanBasshead]

Nope, all the same 🙂

[@javaman2883]

On my headunit when using the FM radio, normal listening is at about 8-10. The max is 40 on this unit. When I use Bluetooth with the phone on max volume, I have to turn the headunit volume up to 16-20. However, I get crappy sound because the Bluetooth is clipping, so I turn the volume down on the phone so it's the first notch above where the volume bar turns red, then set the headunit to 22-28 for normal listening volume, or 30-34 to more enthusiastic music. With the drastic difference in volume between FM and Bluetooth, what do I have to change on your method?

[@PacmanBasshead]

Its worth testing at both, a bluetooth connection will offer a different level of RCA signal so you would meed different settings for both. Every device has dofferent bluetooth signal strengths too so try to make sure all of your music comes from one source. It sounds as though you have a lower quality headunit, or bluetooth device, maybe consider changing it.

[@HIGHCALIBERGAMING]

I'd think fm, aux, cd, and Bluetooth would all have different input strengths, assuming the same bitrate. So wouldn't a Bluetooth signal be pre-amped by the phone and then the HU vs the HU preamping the initial signal via a cd? Does a phone at 100% clip a signal via aux or BT?