Confused about SQ

[Bigceap 0]

I have been reading plenty of posts and articles of sound quality, yet many people have different opinions on what a sound quality setup is. I have 3 Rockford Fosgate p2s sealed however, it is not loud enough. I am going to buy either a 15" Fi Q fully loaded or 15" Fi BL fully loaded. Both would be ported and in their proper enclosures with about 1200-1300 rms power running to them in a 2007 hyundai elantra gls.(I have enough trunk space) I have equipped my entire car with dynamat because I like to feel my bass more than others. I just don't want my sub to change the sound of my music when it gets louder. What does SQ truly mean? Does having a ported box mean I don't want a SQ setup? Lastly, would there be a noticeable difference in sound quality to someone who doesn't even really know what SQ means?

Thanks for the help, just trying to understand what I want.

[Duran 387]

You answered your own question well, if you don;t know what sound quality is, you probably don't need it

What are your goals for this system? Do you have a budget? What are your listening preferences? What does your electrical system consist of?

[Julian 641]

You answered your own question well, if you don;t know what sound quality is, you probably don't need it

What are your goals for this system? Do you have a budget? What are your listening preferences? What does your electrical system consist of?

Duran is correct, Most people who ask for SQ most don't really want it they just don't want their system to sound like shit. Sound Quality is all opinion based, That's the hard part about music it's all peoples preferences, But I can see that you're looking for basically a loud daily driver. Before you go off and buy a new woofer i would suggest porting all 3 P2's if you're able to, If not i'd port two and come back. Having the proper box will make everything great and most likely louder. I would suggest forward facing your woofers to the cabin with port on the drivers side (this typically is louder in most cars) and see what happens. A sheet of MDF is around 30 bucks.. Much cheaper than new woofers.

Music preferences, electrical, budget, and front stage info would all be great.

[Impious 1,476]

What does SQ truly mean?

The "true" definition as "sound quality" would best be described as: an accurate reproduction of the source material in every respect. If one's goal were "true" sound quality, then their goal for their system would be to reproduce all aspects of the source material as accurately as possible.

What most people actually mean when they say "sound quality" is not accurate reproduction of the source material but rather their subjective personal preference for what constitutes good sound. They want a system that sounds good to them, even if it isn't completely accurate to the original source (the easiest example would be those who enjoy exaggerated subbass). That doesn't make their goal wrong.....certainly the goal of any system should be, first and foremost, to achieve maximum enjoyment for the primary listener. But they do use the wrong word to describe what it is they are looking to achieve with their system. They are mistating their goals.

Sound quality, and what someone perceives as good sound based on their personal subjective preference, are not synonymous and interchangeable ideas....but unfortunately that's how they're used.

Does having a ported box mean I don't want a SQ setup?

Not necessarily. There are certainly valid reasons to use a ported enclosure in a system designed primarily for accurate reproduction of the source material.....another large misconception is that ported enclosures are only for those who don't care about "sound quality".

But it would depend on your reasons for wanting to use a ported enclosure. Although, rather an go into more details about why, I think you'd be better off to not to assign a label to your system and just go for what you like regardless of what term might be used to describe that.

Lastly, would there be a noticeable difference in sound quality to someone who doesn't even really know what SQ means?

Too many factors at play to say one way or the other. It will more than likely sound different, subjectively whether it's a good or bad difference is going to depend on the listener and the overall goals for the system.

[Impious 1,476]

Sound Quality is all opinion based,

No, it's not

Sound quality is accurate reproduction of the source material. That's not subjective.

Someone's subjective personal preference of what sounds good is opinion based....but that's not "sound quality", that's their subjective opinion of what sounds good. People incorrectly describe their subjective personal preferences as sound quality.....but that's nothing more than a misuse of the term "sound quality".

[Duran 387]

Sound Quality is all opinion based,

No, it's not

Sound quality is accurate reproduction of the source material. That's not subjective.

Someone's subjective personal preference of what sounds good is opinion based....but that's not "sound quality", that's their subjective opinion of what sounds good. People incorrectly describe their subjective personal preferences as sound quality.....but that's nothing more than a misuse of the term "sound quality".

So technically, "SQ" judges should in fact be the artist that recorded the material, unfortunately they aren't so the Sound Quality defined by the judge becomes the goal, and THAT is subjective.

[Randal Johnson 544]

A great sounding system (loud and clear) with plenty of bass is what you are looking for (i think).

Most "Sound Quality" people doesn't want their vehicle shaken apart by large amounts of bass ...

Most Sound Quality judging consist of detailed installation, vehicle condition, Sound - staging, imageing, clarity, and reproduction of music (most vehicles you cannot tell where the drivers are located in the vehicle), RTA, and of course SPL readings (most know what their vehicle will do and will only push their system when needed to beat the competition) ...

[Bigceap 0]

You answered your own question well, if you don;t know what sound quality is, you probably don't need it

What are your goals for this system? Do you have a budget? What are your listening preferences? What does your electrical system consist of?

My goals are to of course hear the low frequencies of my music and feel most of them. Luckily, I have no budget but I just bought an Alpine MRP-M2000 and want to use that for a while before moving on. Also, I don't see the need to be too excessive. If I can go with 1 or 2 woofers that will handle my power I will be happy. Music preference would be hip hop but most of the music I listen has actual instruments not computer generated sounds plus I listen to jazz and rock. My electrical system is stock now but I am going to buy a kinetik battery.

[Bigceap 0]

You answered your own question well, if you don;t know what sound quality is, you probably don't need it

What are your goals for this system? Do you have a budget? What are your listening preferences? What does your electrical system consist of?

Duran is correct, Most people who ask for SQ most don't really want it they just don't want their system to sound like shit. Sound Quality is all opinion based, That's the hard part about music it's all peoples preferences, But I can see that you're looking for basically a loud daily driver. Before you go off and buy a new woofer i would suggest porting all 3 P2's if you're able to, If not i'd port two and come back. Having the proper box will make everything great and most likely louder. I would suggest forward facing your woofers to the cabin with port on the drivers side (this typically is louder in most cars) and see what happens. A sheet of MDF is around 30 bucks.. Much cheaper than new woofers.

Music preferences, electrical, budget, and front stage info would all be great.

I got the p2s for wholesale price along with the box which is around 6 cubic feet and already have someone who is going to buy it for their son. Additionally, my amp is tuned more than half way down and I bought that amp to use as much power as can give out. I started out my search looking for a quality sub and only found out about Fi after I made my purchase.

[///M5 2,833]

If you aren't discussing your front stage then you definitely don't want SQ. Fundamentally 99% of your energy HAS to be put into it, in particular if you are looking at higher output levels. Making a sub loud is easy. Getting the rest of the system to blend well with the loud sub, not so much.

99.9999999999% of people who come onto forums and ask for SQ have absolutely NO DESIRE whatsoever to have an SQ system. They just don't want a one note wonder. What they should ask for is how to make their sub as loud as possible and not be a one not wonder. ALL of those people as well are typically underwhelmed by the bass output of an SQ system. It is really super rare that someone truly wants an SQ system, at least for the people that come onto these forums. Exactly the reason why in our terms & conditions we don't allow the use of the word as a descriptor. Terrible idea to have something that is subjectively misinterpreted as a guide for a thread.

So in your case, don't worry about the terminology, perhaps NONE of it fits what you need. Instead describe your goals, needs, desires, and what you feel you are currently lacking. When you do that we can actually help

[Bigceap 0]

If you aren't discussing your front stage then you definitely don't want SQ. Fundamentally 99% of your energy HAS to be put into it, in particular if you are looking at higher output levels. Making a sub loud is easy. Getting the rest of the system to blend well with the loud sub, not so much.

99.9999999999% of people who come onto forums and ask for SQ have absolutely NO DESIRE whatsoever to have an SQ system. They just don't want a one note wonder. What they should ask for is how to make their sub as loud as possible and not be a one not wonder. ALL of those people as well are typically underwhelmed by the bass output of an SQ system. It is really super rare that someone truly wants an SQ system, at least for the people that come onto these forums. Exactly the reason why in our terms & conditions we don't allow the use of the word as a descriptor. Terrible idea to have something that is subjectively misinterpreted as a guide for a thread.

So in your case, don't worry about the terminology, perhaps NONE of it fits what you need. Instead describe your goals, needs, desires, and what you feel you are currently lacking. When you do that we can actually help

A simple read would show I have stated what I was missing and my desires/goals.

As stated above, I want to feel my bass without changing the sound of my music.

So I want to hear every beat no matter how fast while feeling the bass on the low frequencies.

[NDMstang65 403]

To the OP:

I'm not sifting through everything explained in this thread.

I'd suggest picking up a solid set of components with silk dome tweets. If you are looking for something with a wide range of adjustability then you are going to need to pop for a set of components that does not have passive crossover networks, but ones that are controlled actively by a processing headunit or external processor (like a rockford threesixty.2)

Single ported 12" SSD and a ~800-1000 watt amp will likely be fine for what you are wanting to do. It will be loud..and still sound very clear provided things are setup and tuned properly.

If you are planning on hair tricks and moving cups around in the car, you will need to go bigger. But that does not mean that it can not still sound good either.

[Bigceap 0]

To the OP:

I'm not sifting through everything explained in this thread.

I'd suggest picking up a solid set of components with silk dome tweets. If you are looking for something with a wide range of adjustability then you are going to need to pop for a set of components that does not have passive crossover networks, but ones that are controlled actively by a processing headunit or external processor (like a rockford threesixty.2)

Single ported 12" SSD and a ~800-1000 watt amp will likely be fine for what you are wanting to do. It will be loud..and still sound very clear provided things are setup and tuned properly.

If you are planning on hair tricks and moving cups around in the car, you will need to go bigger. But that does not mean that it can not still sound good either.

I already have the Focal 165 VB Component System hooked up to an Alpine PDX-F6 and they sound pretty good. I've decided to go with the BL but thank you for your input. And thank you guys for helping me understand the meaning of SQ. Peace.

[///M5 2,833]

If you aren't discussing your front stage then you definitely don't want SQ. Fundamentally 99% of your energy HAS to be put into it, in particular if you are looking at higher output levels. Making a sub loud is easy. Getting the rest of the system to blend well with the loud sub, not so much.

99.9999999999% of people who come onto forums and ask for SQ have absolutely NO DESIRE whatsoever to have an SQ system. They just don't want a one note wonder. What they should ask for is how to make their sub as loud as possible and not be a one not wonder. ALL of those people as well are typically underwhelmed by the bass output of an SQ system. It is really super rare that someone truly wants an SQ system, at least for the people that come onto these forums. Exactly the reason why in our terms & conditions we don't allow the use of the word as a descriptor. Terrible idea to have something that is subjectively misinterpreted as a guide for a thread.

So in your case, don't worry about the terminology, perhaps NONE of it fits what you need. Instead describe your goals, needs, desires, and what you feel you are currently lacking. When you do that we can actually help

A simple read would show I have stated what I was missing and my desires/goals.

As stated above, I want to feel my bass without changing the sound of my music.

So I want to hear every beat no matter how fast while feeling the bass on the low frequencies.

The simple read is up to you, first try the links in my sig

This:

I just don't want my sub to change the sound of my music when it gets louder.

and this:

My goals are to of course hear the low frequencies of my music and feel most of them. Luckily, I have no budget but I just bought an Alpine MRP-M2000 and want to use that for a while before moving on. Also, I don't see the need to be too excessive. If I can go with 1 or 2 woofers that will handle my power I will be happy. Music preference would be hip hop but most of the music I listen has actual instruments not computer generated sounds plus I listen to jazz and rock. My electrical system is stock now but I am going to buy a kinetik battery.

don't tell us shit. Drop the attitude as well otherwise you really won't get the help you need.

[Bigceap 0]

don't tell us shit. Drop the attitude as well otherwise you really won't get the help you need.

I was getting proper help until you came along with your attitude. Seems like a question for clarification pisses some people off. Next just ignore my question and let those who want to help, help me. Peace