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Alpine UTE-73BT Review (Head Unit)

hardisj

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On the other hand, is it possible to get good sound in a car?

Yes. I've heard some car systems that best home systems.

But it isn't easy. Car audio makes home audio look like child's play. If you want good sound, staging and imaging in a car system you are going to have to use a DSP. And you are going to have to know how to use it effectively. And that's just the starting point.
 

pjug

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There is a CEA standard for amplifiers and some companies use it and slap the label on there. But, by and large, there is no standardized testing. That is precisely what got me involved in testing speakers over a decade ago. That was what I started out with using Klippel products.
The Alpine site says it complies with CTA-2006. I see that this is formerly CEA-2006-B. Anyway, something seems wrong with the 4-ohm power measurement. Or a defective unit. Or serious lying in their specs.

- Built-in 18W x 4 amplifier (at CTA-2006 rating)
 

ROOSKIE

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ROOSKIE

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BTW: Why you are using the word "auto" instead of "car" ? Sounds a bit strange spelling "auto audio" :)
Car is common but what about SUV's, vans, trucks and all the others. (Even boats and ATV's)
"Car Audio" is deff a common term and so is "Autosound".
I supose "auto audio" is pretty rare.
Anyway obviously doesn't matter much.
 

Frank Dernie

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Yes. I've heard some car systems that best home systems.

But it isn't easy. Car audio makes home audio look like child's play. If you want good sound, staging and imaging in a car system you are going to have to use a DSP. And you are going to have to know how to use it effectively. And that's just the starting point.
How do people deal with wide dynamic range music?
I have never had a quiet enough car to hear the quiet bits at all even when the volume is so loud the loud bits practically blow me out of the windows.
 
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amirm

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Or a defective unit. Or serious lying in their specs.

- Built-in 18W x 4 amplifier (at CTA-2006 rating)
Car audio has invented the art of lying about specs. :) The unit would shut down if it current limited so I know it was not although maybe the voltage drooped.
 
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amirm

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How do people deal with wide dynamic range music?
I have never had a quiet enough car to hear the quiet bits at all even when the volume is so loud the loud bits practically blow me out of the windows.
New cars, especially luxury ones are surprisingly quiet. Going at freeway speed is noisier of course but in a lot of low speed driving, the experience can be serene. I do ride the volume control a bit but not much with such content (e.g. movie soundtracks).
 

bt3

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With quieter cabin in some EV's perhaps a sound system w/DSP makes sense. Back when my hearing was much better, it was easier to filter out vehicle and outside noise from music playing in vehicle. Pet peeve: Vehicle boom boxes that rattle windows. To my thinking, along with litterbugs and speeders, rank as some of lives more than minor annoyances.
 
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A side note: much of the research at Harman in speaker preference was funded by the automotive division as they were in the same group for good few years ("luxury division"). They wanted premium sound for automotive applications so funded the research. Harman really pioneered the premium stock car audio performance starting with the Mark Levinson branded system in Lexus cars (Toyota).
 

hardisj

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How do people deal with wide dynamic range music?
I have never had a quiet enough car to hear the quiet bits at all even when the volume is so loud the loud bits practically blow me out of the windows.


Turn the radio up, have speakers with low compression and throw some power at them. :)

Also, what Amir said about road noise not being as bad in newer cars as it was in older cars. There is a huge field of science dedicated to this alone.
 

Frank Dernie

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New cars, especially luxury ones are surprisingly quiet. Going at freeway speed is noisier of course but in a low of low speed driving, the experience can be serene. I do ride the volume control a bit but not much with such content (e.g. movie soundtracks).
The quietest ones seem to be close to 60dB cruising at 60mph though, even with hundreds of pounds of sound deadening and double glazed windows.
Mine is supposed to be one of the quietest 10 tested, I'm going to check it out when I get a chance - I certainly don't consider it a place suitable for enjoying music at all.
 

ROOSKIE

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Even with my windows down I enjoy good car audio sound.
Love the DIY aspect/potential of car audio.
My first car system back in the mid 90' had an Alpine deck, Boston Acoustics Pro 6" components for the front stage, and a really beefy Infinity 10"sub and massive powered amps.
Sounded incredible and I should have reped for Boston as friend after friend upgraded from crap coaxials and "6x9's" to BA components after hearing my SQ oriented style of sound.
 

hardisj

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I certainly don't consider it a place suitable for enjoying music at all.

That's fine. You don't have to. That's the beauty of all these hobbies. But some of us spend a lot of time in our cars driving to and from work and having a stereo system in it that gets loud, stays maintained, images and stages and has really good tonality to boot is great fun. Ironically, the only time I get to listen to home audio is when I am reviewing stuff. So my car audio is the only chance I get to listen to music much. Even though I often find myself listening to more and more podcasts than music these days. :D


Edit: That said, if I didn't spend as much time in my car - driving back and forth to work - as I do I probably would own a jalopy with a stock radio and call it a day. (Don't tell my car audio buddies I said that, LOL)
 

thefsb

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It's not like those 5W are gonna be adequate for all but the quietest car interiors... and getting there either requires a very expensive car... or several times the cost of the head unit in damping/insulation (as well as all the hours tearing everything apart and putting it back together). Seems like another "solution in search of a problem" product to me.
It should be enough if you are parked. On a quiet street.
 

sarumbear

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hardisj

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Guys, remember, in a car you are practically nearfield. The speakers are typically at most 5 feet away and most of the time less than that. You don't need 1.21 jiggawatts for everyday cruising music or talk radio.
 

pjug

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Car audio has invented the art of lying about specs. :) The unit would shut down if it current limited so I know it was not although maybe the voltage drooped.
There's ls stretching the truth (e.g. power at 10% distortion) and then there is not even in the ballpark like in this case. I assume this is some kind of Class D chip amp. These generally do as they claim with some pretty good stretching of the truth (like in your Lepy review). But it would be hard for Alpine to screw it up so bad that the 4-ohm power is significantly less than the 8 ohm power.
 

thefsb

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The quietest ones seem to be close to 60dB cruising at 60mph though, even with hundreds of pounds of sound deadening and double glazed windows.
Mine is supposed to be one of the quietest 10 tested, I'm going to check it out when I get a chance - I certainly don't consider it a place suitable for enjoying music at all.
Depends on the music. Some music is best enjoyed while driving dangerously fast. 90s techno, house and breakbeat in particular. I remember good times with for example that ↓. The car isn't so good for Berlioz Symphonie Fantastique.

 
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