Listening to good music is undoubtedly one of the best ways to pass time while commuting. Generally, car amplifiers play a critical role in the reproduction of great music in your vehicle by boosting the magnitude of the input signal. However, to get the most out of your car audio system, you may want to properly tune the gain of the amplifier.
Without proper gain settings it is almost impossible to experience quality audio in your vehicle. However, it is important to highlight that gain control is not the same as adjusting the volume. Instead, the gain control entails adjusting the magnitude of the signal transmitted from the input device to your amplifier.
In this guide, we’ll provide easy and quick steps for setting the gain on your amplifier and how to tell if amp gain is too high.
What does gain do to an amp?
Basically, the work of the gain control is to adjust your amp input signal to be in line with the voltage level of your head unit. Now, when you set the gain to high, the sound tends to distort, even when listening at moderate volume levels.
On the other hand, if you set the gain too low, the background noise becomes more prominent, thus rendering the amplifier worthless. That said, it is critical to determine a ‘sweet spot’ that will let you use a wide range of volume levels without resulting in either distortion or hissing.
In addition, setting the gain on the amp allows the user to determine how hard they need to drive the preamp of the amplifier. That way, you can control the distortion level of the tone, regardless of the volume level of your system.
In other words, the gain control helps to regulate how clean or dirty your sound signal is regardless of the volume settings. This means you can opt to set the gain high when playing a dirty tone without altering the master volume. The vice versa is also true when playing a clean tone.
What’s more, adjusting the amplifier gain prevents the head unit from transmitting distorted signals to the amplifier, thus allowing you to enjoy the crisp and clean sound. The best thing is that you can adjust the gain on multiple amplifiers simultaneously.
However, it is important to note that different manufacturers may vary when it comes to the design of the amplifier and, consequently, the gain setting on amp. As such, you may want to check the user manual to determine the method that will work with your specific amplifier.
How to adjust gain on amp
This simple gain adjustment is all you need to achieve stellar sound quality in your vehicle. As we have mentioned above, setting the gain too high introduces distortion, while setting it too low undermines the usefulness of the amp altogether.
The idea of adjusting gain control is to help you achieve the right tonal balance that will work for your specific amplifier. That said, here are simple steps for adjusting the gain on an amplifier;
Step 1
Turn your stereo volume to zero. Ideally, this will help ensure that there is no distortion present before you attempt to adjust your gain.
Step 2
Locate the knob labeled as ‘gain’ on the amplifier. Using this knob, you can begin by turning the gain the amplifier all the way down. This implies turning the gain knob in an anti-clockwise direction as far as it can go. The idea behind this is to ensure that the amplifier does not amplify any signal transmitted from the head unit.
Step 3
At this point, you can try and power up your head stereo by playing a CD or putting on a radio station. Remember, there will be no sound coming from the stereo yet since the volume is still turned down.
Step 4
Now, turn your stereo volume up to the maximum level or until you notice some distortion. Next, turn the volume down slowly until the point where the distortion goes away. Generally, the most ideal volume range is setting it at 2/3 of the maximum volume. In addition, this is the best range to use if you want to avoid overworking your system.
Step 5
At this point, you can shift your attention back to the gain knob. Now, turn your amplifier’s gain up (turning the dial in a clockwise direction) until you hear some distortion coming from the sound or anything you’re using to test your tone. Also, ensure to turn the gain to the highest point you intend to listen to your music at.
Step 6
Once again, turn the gain down until the distortion is gone completely. If you can still some distortion, continue adjusting the gain until the point where you don’t get to hear any sound distortion. Most amplifiers come with an ergonomic gain knob that allows you to adjust the knob by hand. However, some may require you to use a special tool (e.g. a screwdriver) to turn the knob.
Step 7
Finally, turn your volume back to the normal or your most preferred level. However, you may want to avoid pushing the volume to the limit to avoid distorting the sound further or overworking the head unit. At this point, the gain is set correctly, and you can now continue enjoying your favorite music.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How high can you turn the gain without distortion?
The gain adjusting process entails obtaining a point where both the head unit and amplifier match. Now, once you’ve set the gain control, you can easily tell if it is set too high by observing the point where it begins to distort. Ideally, the gain setting should never surpass that level.
Q: What happens if amp gain is too low?
If you decide to set the gain control too low, the amplifier might not be able to realize its full potential. Furthermore, the amplifier power might become compromised, thereby clipping your source. The result of this is the transmission of distorted signals to your speakers.
Conclusion
A car amplifier is an aftermarket car stereo component often installed inside the trunk of the car. But to get the most out of your amplifier, it is critical to understand how to tune it properly and adjust the gain control. If the purpose of the amplifier is powering your speaker, properly setting the gain help to ensure that the sound is clear and powerful .On the other hand, if you need to power a subwoofer, the amp gain control is going to help the sub to hit harder while ensuring that the bass is well-defined.
