Review: Tweeter Positioning

[micka]

Disclaimer: The following is provided as a GUIDE ONLY, and neither myself nor Ozhonda take any responsibility for the outcomes of someone else doing the following. You follow these steps at your own risk!


Aim:
To explore the benefits of different positioning of tweeters when installing component speakers. I've seen a few threads of people asking where to put them, so when i got a bit bored i thought i'd do a bit of experimentation.
Required:
1 Car to test in (EG Hatch in my case)
1 Set of component speakers (I'm using Rainbow CS-265)
Various CDs
Too much time on your hands
OPTIONAL:
Amplifier
Equaliser
Steps:
I. Dismantle your car as necessary to gain access to your tweeters, add some length to the speaker wire for your tweeter if necessary to be able to manoever the tweeter about the front of the car.
For whas its worth here's my mid bass driver (this will be the constant throughout the tests)

II. Place the tweeter in various spots around the car, and listen for a while, try different songs/ genre etc.
Make sure you have a bit of a break between listening sessions, then move the tweeter to another spot and repeat.
III. When you find the spot that's best for you work out a way to secure the tweeters there; Beit make kickpanels, attach it to the trim, attach it to the dash etc.

Other comments
The results I achieved were encouraging but i must say they weren't conclusive. I am still unable to give a decisive answer to which is best, I don't think there's a definitive answer.


TWEETER HIGH: For this i had the tweeters about as high as practical, sitting on the a vents on the dash. With the tweeter i found them to sound best when they were aimed at the windscreen. It did seem a pretty strange aiming which you don't really see too much but i think it worked quite well.


TWEETER LOW: For this I had the tweeter nice and low, and too be honest it sounded absolutely crap. It was as if there was no tweeter connected at all. I know this is a very popular mounting position which people have had great success with, so I didn't want to give up on this too quickly.
I have my splits running active so i was able to adjust the balance between the woofer and tweeter.

as I started to ajust the woofer/ tweeter power levels the speakers seemed to start to come to life, they still weren't great but they were getting better. The tweeters sounded best when aimed pretty much at the opposite seat headrest. Equalisation can also help at this stage.

I moved the tweeter back and forth between positions with breaks between listening sessions (as described above) and to me the tweeters on the dash always sounded good, but the tweeters down low started sounding better every time i listened to them.

Conclusion:
Ultimately, I don't think anyone can definatively say what is the best position for tweeters. My tests took a few hours (with breaks), i think this was inadequate to make a final decision. For my next install i'll be temporarily installing my tweeters for at least a week for each position, however i think down low might be the way to go once you get used to it.

Nb: Time allignment turned off/ Subs turned off/ faded all the way forward

Comments, or anything I've forgotten to mention?

[ICACHA]

yeah, you should try using BLUTAC for a temp. method or you will be just chasing your tail...

Have a look at the FHRX Studios website... www.fhrxstudios.com there is also a FAQ bit for all your thoughts you may have on positioning...

[micka]

sorry, should have put that in the initial post, i used blutac when doing it, pics were an afterthough, just put them there willy-nilly when taking them

[bumography]

usually for good staging .
the tweeters should be placed far apart as possible to your left and right, also it should be close to your midrange drivers. I'd say you get better stating on your kickpanels
but dont quote me.. im just a noob

[ICACHA]

farthest point is the kicks which ALMOST equals the path length to your ears.

try playing around in those locations, just make sure they are clear of anything that can obstruct their performance.

only way to succeed is trial and error before you do things permanently.

i like this moto = Failing to Plan is Planning to Fail... think everything through carefully and do like the carpenters do, measure twice cut once...