ProSoundWeb Community

Please login or register.

Login with username, password and session length
Advanced search  

Pages: 1 2 [All]   Go Down

Author Topic: Software RTA for DBX/Crown CDI System  (Read 3746 times)

chris georgiou

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 26
Software RTA for DBX/Crown CDI System
« on: May 12, 2018, 10:39:16 AM »

I and in the process of installing a DBX ZonePro 1260m based system for an upscale hotel/restaurant/lounge place and I need to calibrate after the install. Speakers are new bi-amped JBL AE AM7212 for the main room, existing bi-amped McCauley  ID2.208 for the lounge powered by Crown CDI amps. No subs for now; will add them later on. What would you guys recommend for RTA? I've used REW(Room EQ Wizard) when I was building my speakers and I have a calibrated mic for it but I would rather use something designed for commercial.
« Last Edit: May 12, 2018, 10:42:17 AM by chris georgiou »
Logged

Rob Spence

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 3531
  • Boston Metro North/West
    • Lynx Audio Services
Re: Software RTA for DBX/Crown CDI System
« Reply #1 on: May 13, 2018, 05:39:15 PM »

I and in the process of installing a DBX ZonePro 1260m based system for an upscale hotel/restaurant/lounge place and I need to calibrate after the install. Speakers are new bi-amped JBL AE AM7212 for the main room, existing bi-amped McCauley  ID2.208 for the lounge powered by Crown CDI amps. No subs for now; will add them later on. What would you guys recommend for RTA? I've used REW(Room EQ Wizard) when I was building my speakers and I have a calibrated mic for it but I would rather use something designed for commercial.

An RTA is not the tool you need. An RTA has no sense of time which is critical in measuring a system.



Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro
Logged
rob at lynxaudioservices dot com

Dealer for: AKG, Allen & Heath, Ashley, Astatic, Audix, Blue Microphones, CAD, Chauvet, Community, Countryman, Crown, DBX, Electro-Voice, FBT, Furman, Heil, Horizon, Intellistage, JBL, Lab Gruppen, Mid Atlantic, On Stage Stands, Pelican, Peterson Tuners, Presonus, ProCo, QSC, Radial, RCF, Sennheiser, Shure, SKB, Soundcraft, TC Electronics, Telex, Whirlwind and others

Caleb Dueck

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 1687
  • Sierra Vista, AZ
Re: Software RTA for DBX/Crown CDI System
« Reply #2 on: May 13, 2018, 06:40:43 PM »

An RTA is not the tool you need. An RTA has no sense of time which is critical in measuring a system.



Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro
Correct.  What you're looking for are SmaartLive or Systune.   And a class from them on how to use it. 

Sent from my VS980 4G using Tapatalk

Logged
Experience is something you get right after you need it.

Craig Hauber

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 984
  • Mondak Sound Design - Plentywood MT/Grenora ND
Re: Software RTA for DBX/Crown CDI System
« Reply #3 on: May 14, 2018, 01:35:43 PM »

Correct.  What you're looking for are SmaartLive or Systune.   And a class from them on how to use it. 

Sent from my VS980 4G using Tapatalk
RTA's have some usefulness as an educational tool. 
If you are new to recognizing frequencies they are helpful -especially with feedback. 
They also really help one figure out the left to right LF to HF and up/down amplitude of charting standard -you might not realize how many people don't understand that. 
Watching an RTA while playing back commonly known sounds really helps one understand relationships of frequencies and loudness   -and really makes many have their first epiphany in finally equating a spec-sheet frequency-response graph to real life
I think these are things that people need to understand before even jumping to a Smaart or similar type system.
-for someone running out and buying a rig cold-turkey it would be a waste of money if they don't already fully understand an RTA and now have a craving for what they don't tell you

The cheap app-based rta's for smartphones are a really good way to help learn the basics and many times for non-critical BGM systems (with no serious tuning contracted) I've even pulled mine out and found that annoying resonance that was a half-octave lower than what I guessed.  Or trying to ring out that podium (sic) mic with a head-cold!

So they are not the end-all, but they still have their usefulness.
Logged
Craig Hauber
Mondak Sound Design
-Live PA
-Installs
-Theatre

chris georgiou

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 26
Re: Software RTA for DBX/Crown CDI System
« Reply #4 on: May 15, 2018, 10:32:07 AM »

At this point I mostly need to dial in the gain for the HF/LF and the two solutions are too much for what I need to do. I can do it by ear but want to get an idea about problem spots as well. Any reason not to use something like this?
https://www.roomeqwizard.com/
I already have a calibrated mic for it(UBIK-1).
Logged

Art Welter

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 2199
  • Santa Fe, New Mexico
Re: Software RTA for DBX/Crown CDI System
« Reply #5 on: May 15, 2018, 04:10:02 PM »

Any reason not to use something like this?
https://www.roomeqwizard.com/
I already have a calibrated mic for it(UBIK-1).
REW works fine.

Logged

chris georgiou

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 26
Re: Software RTA for DBX/Crown CDI System
« Reply #6 on: May 15, 2018, 09:51:37 PM »

REW works fine.

Thank you. Can you recommend a house curve? Flat response would probably sound just as bad as in my place. I used the harman curve when I was setting up my DIY Focal Utopia III clones and it made a huge difference.

Logged

Jean-Pierre Coetzee

  • Classic LAB
  • Hero Member
  • *
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 862
  • Gauteng, South Africa
Re: Software RTA for DBX/Crown CDI System
« Reply #7 on: May 16, 2018, 03:19:40 PM »

Hotel/Restaurant/lounge?

That sounds like background music to me, leave the system flat, honestly don't thing it's going to matter since it is background music. If it isn't background music then the answer becomes it depends, will there be an engineer present, if not a bass bump can cause some very interesting feedback issues(consider almost everything is omnidirectional at low frequencies) and I would want to avoid it.

If it is going to be just loud music for dancing and such then it depends on the genre of the music but in almost all cases a system that is tuned flat is the way to do it.

Think about the fact that the system tuning is not the place to add colour, it is a scientific process and scientifically flat is the best place to start, at the console/input is the place to add colour.
Logged
Audio Technician
Word & Life Church

"If you want "loud", then run a piece of sheet metal through a table saw------

If you want "watts"-then plug in a toaster"
- Ivan Beaver

chris georgiou

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 26
Re: Software RTA for DBX/Crown CDI System
« Reply #8 on: May 16, 2018, 07:52:59 PM »

Normally it will just be background music but they want to have the option to hold events with a DJ.
Logged

Jean-Pierre Coetzee

  • Classic LAB
  • Hero Member
  • *
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 862
  • Gauteng, South Africa
Re: Software RTA for DBX/Crown CDI System
« Reply #9 on: May 17, 2018, 05:10:04 AM »

Normally it will just be background music but they want to have the option to hold events with a DJ.

Then for sure keep it flat and install a limiter that is capable of dealing with DJs. The DJ will boost the bass anyway so why blow your drivers even quicker and as I said for background music if the system is flat it should translate quite close to what the original studio engineer envision.
Logged
Audio Technician
Word & Life Church

"If you want "loud", then run a piece of sheet metal through a table saw------

If you want "watts"-then plug in a toaster"
- Ivan Beaver

chris georgiou

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 26
Re: Software RTA for DBX/Crown CDI System
« Reply #10 on: May 18, 2018, 10:37:49 PM »

Then for sure keep it flat and install a limiter that is capable of dealing with DJs. The DJ will boost the bass anyway so why blow your drivers even quicker and as I said for background music if the system is flat it should translate quite close to what the original studio engineer envision.

Thank you, I added a limiter in the DBX zonePro already. I'll just balance the HF/LF and leave the system flat as per your recommendation.
Logged

ProSoundWeb Community

Re: Software RTA for DBX/Crown CDI System
« Reply #10 on: May 18, 2018, 10:37:49 PM »


Pages: 1 2 [All]   Go Up
 



Site Hosted By Ashdown Technologies, Inc.

Page created in 0.042 seconds with 21 queries.