Crossover problem or?

bowbender7

Been trying to track down the cause of a strange problem - I seem to have an issue with a loss of volume on one channel (sometimes sounds like only certain bands of frequency)intermittently. To be exact, my right channel overpowers the left, even from the drivers seat. Balance levels are set even.
System is simple: Head unit to 4 channel amp to one sub and one pair of seperates. To the amp I have switched inputs (swapped rca's)only, swapped both inputs and outputs of amp and even swapped drivers from side to side. The only thing I have not done is new speaker wiring, and swapping crossovers. The install is brand new and all wire connections are good so I really did not concern myself with wiring too much, but because the crossovers are installed inside the doors, swapping them would be much more time consuming as per running the wire through the factory door channel (PITA!)

My thought is that with the crossover, there could be some capacitors out of spec creating an attenuation of sorts.

Does this sound like a possibility? Or am I overlooking a diagnostic that would help determine the problem without a meter?

Thanks in advance.

MacLeod

Im betting that the right speaker is a lot more on axis to you than the left.

If this is the case, thats probably your problem right there.

Higher frequencies are a lot more directional than lower frequencies and the right speaker, being more on axis, has its higher frequencies like 3-5 Khz hitting you with more intensity than from the left side.

This is especially noticeable with heavy metal. The guitar that should be in the center seems to be coming only from the right.

You can either click the balance over a notch or two, learn to live with it or buy a digital EQ that allows for independant EQ'ing of both left and right channels.

MacLeod

Just dawned on me, another trick you can try - run the left midrange at full range.

This will bring the higher frequencies up higher on the left side and will make em somewhat more equal to the right speaker since the right will be cut off at a much steeper slope where as the left speaker will be using its natural roll off.

bowbender7

Thanks for the tips Macleod. I'll mess with it some more.

Never thought about trying to run the left mid full range... but I know stranger things have helped in the car environment.

PoweredByDodge

crossovers IN doors = not so good
crossovers mounted on doors = cool looking and still physically safe for mr. crossover.

you stick that gear in a door panel and all sorts of fun junk like water, extreme temperatures, and general crappage can occur. temperature will play a huge role in determining how your crossover reacts. however, because they're both in the door, and exposed to similar nightmarish life, the effect should be the same on both sides (ie. no difference).

you could actually have a pinched wire grounding out or shorting the channel - easy enough to test for.

other than that - minor imperfections in caps and inductors are not going to cause the broad differences that you are describing. 2% here or there isn't going to be noticeable at all. and compounding error dictates that it all comes out in the wash.

either one driver so far off from axis than the other (as mac suggested), or you have an electrical issue well beyond the scope of semiconductor error.