Many people dream of obtaining the ultimate sound systems for themselves. But not all are able to afford it. The heartening news is that if you take care to ensure that correct materials are used and the proper parameters are set, your home audio system could give you a more enhanced output. The sound files you use, the settings in your system (especially of the sub woofer) and the add-ons utilized make the difference between the normal and the ultimate auditory experience. Here are five ways in which you can boost the sound clarity and quality of your audio system.
1. Cabling:
There is a lot of debate on whether one should use branded cables or affordable cables. Whichever side of the issue one stands on, everyone will uniformly agree that the thickness of the cable is an important quality determinant. The thickness selected should be such that the speaker wire resistance should not exceed 5 percent of the rated impedance of the system. Keeping this in mind, if youâre cabling is going to be about 40-50 ft, use 14AWG cables and if it is going to be 70-80 ft, use 12AWG cables. If you want to cable for your home theater system, it would be expensive to go for copper wiring because the total length would definitely be less than 40 ft.
Even in the case of a live performance or an outdoor event, it is better to go for ticker cables. This is because the thinner cables have a greater chance of picking up distortions and hums.
2. Audio Source:
With the onset of the digital age, we are flooded with music that comes as compressed mp3 files on various devices. The mp3 format is great for storing music files, but really lousy for a great auditory experience! When you compress a file into an mp3, it magically becomes one fifth or one tenth of its original size. Coming to the brass tacks, this magic is nothing but loss of information and quality. Again, this does not mean that you have to carry analog records and lug around vinyl record boxes!
Keep a lookout for the bitrates of the songs and tracks that you choose. Remember that higher the bitrates better will be the quality of the sound. When you purchase a receiver, ensure that it has the best digital to analog conversion features. The same rule holds good for your mixing software in case you are a DJ. How much ever we improve the other things, if the basic sound file is bad, there is not much we will be able to do.
3. A dedicated sub-woofer:
The speakers actually consume a lot of power to produce the low sounds in the music. This may also result in distortion of sorts. To get better quality sound and to reduce the power load, it would be a good idea to add a dedicated sub-woofer to the system. This will help prevent clipping or ‘farting’ from the main speakers. Apart from preventing these negatives, the sub-woofer adds its own positives. It lifts the overall quality of the sound and adds punch to a surround system.
4. The sub-woofer settings:
The overall sound quality can be greatly affected by your settings on the powered sub woofer. You can add the dramatic, deep bass to the audio which lifts it several notches. But if the crossover frequency is set too low in the sub-woofer, it results in a low end hole. Again, setting the crossover frequency too high will lead to a boom or a muddle due to phase cancellation. Thus, if you power mains fall off at about 80Hz, and then set the sub-woofer to 79Hz and below. This problem is solved automatically and intelligently in most of the modern home theater systems.
The other ‘settings’ of the sub-woofer i.e. where you install it is also vital. For a home theater, when you placing a sub woofer, the ideal place would be a corner that is farthest from all the large openings. Do not worry about centering it for sound is non-directional.
5. Signal Maximizers and Sonic Processors:
The Sonic Maximizes makes a helluva difference in the sound quality of PA systems and sound systems. This is an inexpensive method to boost the volume level and sound clarity of your systems. The method involves processing the signal intelligently and then amplifying it. The richness of the sound also seems to get enhanced with the sonic processors. It lends the professional touch to any audio system.
