hey guys, i have a fair idea of what SPL is and what SQ is,
i can understand that u measure sound pressure level by dB's but can u measure sound quality? if so how?

is it qualitative instead of quantitative ?

maybe this goes into beginners forum...but i just asked something in there, i dont wanna seem too dumb! (:

this question could lead to easily a 2000+ word essay

in a nutshell, SQ is concerned with making the sterio sound like you are in front row seats at a concert with instruments sounding like they do in real life and sounding like they are spread out nicely accross the stage as in real life with the "Stage" being the top of your dash.

so how do u guys get judged at sq comps ? ultimately the judge decides based on what he/she thinks is good quality? good install good theme etc?

LOL honestly man unless your using the brands that the judges are using/premoting/making money from you dont have a chance.

Kiwi put it oh so well, a tough thing to define.

However to give you a good starting point its worth jumping to the downloads section and grabing a copy of the CAASQ judging sheet. Obviously outlines the criteria for judging, does as gooder job as can be expected by breaking down SQ into various measureably elements. However as noted above, SQ is all about recreating a natural sound environment. The car can prove to be a challenging environment (which makes it all the more fun) but a nice high sound stage (close eyes and try and pinpoint where the sound is coming from) with nice imaging is desirable. Refer to the judging sheet for specific marked features. I personally don't have much experience with a variety systems or competition SQ but Shiny points out a lot that overpowering subbass is a common flaw in SQ systems. Subbass should blend with the front stage to provide a balanced spectrum response. However I think most will have the subass up a bit more for daily driving, we all like our bass

I'm sure someone will correct me if i'm wrong but as far as I know there are 2 class's for the SQ comp. One where the aesthetics is judged and one where it isn't, so you don't need a flashy car/install for the SQ comps.

Hope this points you in the right direction... not quite as simple as chucking a db meter in the car and playing some tones eh?

Cheers

What a load of rubbish
Perhaps that's the way things currently are in TAS but you would not know about CAAASCA. Don't generalise. CAAASCA didn't spend countless hours at Encel in Richmond training judges for no reason.

This pathetic attitude and comments like this is what prevents Sound Quality competition from ever getting back to what it once was, and makes our job just so much harder.

[ May 06, 2003, 04:54: Message edited by: Marc Rushton ]