(Topic ID: 307852)

Improving Sound Quality - The DIY Route

By davegauth

2 years ago


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    #901 1 year ago

    Since there's a lot of acoustics knowledge in this thread...

    If you were to add a subwoofer to a cabinet that doesn't have a cabinet speaker, where would you place it: behind the coinbox area or near the rear of the cab? Any benefit to porting the cab like Data East?

    #902 1 year ago
    Quoted from RatShack:

    Since there's a lot of acoustics knowledge in this thread...
    If you were to add a subwoofer to a cabinet that doesn't have a cabinet speaker, where would you place it: behind the coinbox area or near the rear of the cab? Any benefit to porting the cab like Data East?

    Yikes. I’d be a little concerned with the air escape when that thing starts pumping! Don’t blow out your playfield or glass!

    10
    #903 1 year ago

    WPC Speaker Upgrade

    Recipe for upgrading the speakers on a WPC pin (ST:TNG)

    Shopping list

    Backbox

    WPC Speaker panel with 5 1/4” speaker cut outs $40
    https://virtuapin.net/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=17&products_id=114&zenid=fd9jdjhled6cvdbuq0b0j48nc0

    Satin black spray paint for new speaker panel $7
    https://smile.amazon.com/Krylon-K02732007-Fusion-Spray-Paint/dp/B07LFYN3ND

    Kicker CS Series CSC5 5 1/4” Speakers $77
    https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B07NSCZ27W

    8x #8 7/8” screws to mount backbox speakers to panel $10
    https://smile.amazon.com/Gardner-Bender-SK-832T-Electricians-Electrical/dp/B00ATODOOQ

    Speaker Light Kits Deluxe 5 1/4” Type 13 kit $75
    http://speakerlightkits.com/Type-13.html
    Note: for WPC games, let Doug (@DugFreez) know you need the "2 blade US power cable”, not one that normally comes with that kit to connect to a Stern SPIKE 2 game

    (Optional) Deluxe Sound activated RGB controller (for Speaker Light Kit) $10
    http://speakerlightkits.com/Use-of-Deluxe-Sound-Activated-RGB-Controller.html

    3M 467MP Clear Adhesive Transfer Tape to attach speaker panel acrylic to new panel $18
    https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B007Y7CV86

    Cabinet

    JBL Stage 810 800W Max 8" Subwoofer $70
    https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B08WPJ5PDM

    8" Subwoofer Speaker Spacers 1/2” Depth Extender Extending Rings $18
    https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B076JSZLWF

    Power

    (optional) Switched triggered power outlet $30
    https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00WV7GMA2

    Future Goodies

    Pinsound PLUS $390
    https://www.pinsound.org/shop/en/44-5506-pinsound-plus-pinball-sound-board.html

    Dayton Audio 2.1 100W amp $99
    https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B07KX6MN91

    Speaker cable, connectors, etc.
    https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B0097JLQVC
    https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B006LW0W5Y

    (If you would like a very detailed write up on upgrading sound on WPC systems, please see Joseph “Tony” Dziedzic’s OG article from 2005 - http://www.dziedzic.us/wpc_speaker_replacement.html )

    Intro

    After successfully and very happily upgrading the sound system on my modern pins, it was time to dive in to upgrading the sound on my daughter’s Star Trek: The Next Generation. This involves upgrading the back box and cabinet speakers, adding some speaker lights from Doug @ SpeakerLightKits.com , and in the future, adding a Pinsound to get full orchestrations.

    This write up is capturing my shopping list and an outline of what I went through to get the job done. Please refer to the respective manuals and Tony’s very detailed write up from 2005 for details, or drop me a note with questions. If DIY seems like too much, there are commercial options out there as well.

    For my Godzilla LE, I had fantastic results with the Kicker CS5’s and JBL 810 sub, which are favorites here on the DIY sound upgrade thread. These are 5 1/4” speakers and 8” woofer respectively, so require modifications to the stock speaker panel and cabinet to work, and need new wiring and amplification to connect to the game.

    I’m neither skilled nor motivated to be sawing large holes in my speaker panel or my cabinet, so I used a simpler approach than what Tony highlighted in his guide. Feel free to mix and match to whatever you have comfort with.

    Speaker Panel

    The stock speaker panel on TNG (and other WPC games) has a 5 1/4” hole and a 4” hole. Rather than sawing out an enlarged hole for the right driver, I purchased a bare WPC 5 1/4” speaker panel from Virtuapin. Price was right ($40) and came predrilled and with t nuts for the mounting hardware. Awesome, one carpentry problem solved.

    ?pasted_image (resized).jpeg?pasted_image (resized).jpeg

    Before moving parts from my stock speaker panel over to the new one, first thing I did was make sure all the t nuts were (mostly) flush with the panel (much easier to hammer them in now vs after the panel is populated). I also spray painted both the front and back sides of the panel black, making sure to paint the inside of the speaker openings and DMD opening.

    ?pasted_image (resized).jpeg?pasted_image (resized).jpeg

    Next, it was time to disassemble my stock panel and move parts over to the new panel. This includes the back hooks where the speaker panel hangs from the back box, and the glass channel at the top of the panel. These can be purchased new from Pinball Life or Marco if you prefer to not move them over, but I moved mine. I also removed the DMD to make things easier to work on (take pictures before disassembling anything!)

    The tricky things to move over are the acrylic front of the stock speaker panel, and the speaker grilles with the Star Fleet insignia. Tony’s guide goes into great detail on how to do this without damaging the parts. If you’re not comfortable with doing so, I suspect there are reproductions available to purchase new so you can leave your old panel alone. Take your time, be careful, this is the only tricky and scary part of this upgrade.

    While you have the acrylic panel removed, this is the perfect time to clean and polish it, I hit mine with #3 Novus in some tough areas, then #2 Novus for the entire panel, then finally #1 Novus to finish it off.

    With the front acrylic removed, time to remove the screws that the DMD is mounted to. You will need to install these on your new panel before you attack the acrylic speaker panel face to your new panel. You can use a hammer to knock these out, but note that these screws do have a threaded portion to keep them from spinning when you tighten the bolts for the DMD. What I did is I wrapped the end of the screws with a cloth, and gently used a set of pliers to grip them and rotate counter clockwise while pushing down on the long part of the screw. This popped the screw right out of the front of the speaker panel until the thread area was clear, then I used a hammer to get them the rest of the way out.

    ?pasted_image (resized).jpeg?pasted_image (resized).jpeg

    On the new panel, it was a tight fit to get the DMD mounting screws back in. I used a hammer to get them in right up to the thread near the head of the screw. I then used a bolt and washer to tighten it in the rest of the way (press on the head of the bolt while tightening the bolt against the speaker panel on the other side, and the bolt will thread right into the front side of the panel)

    Next, I installed the speaker grilles on the panel. Careful to not damage or bend your panel as you do so. I was able to use several of the original staples, and used a staple gun for the rest. I gently (and carefully!) used a hammer to get the staples as flush with the surface of the grilles as I could (don’t ding the grilles with the hammer!). In the photos you can see my original panel on the bottom and new panel on the top. With the grilles moved, you can see the smaller right speaker, which is the reason I need a new panel to use two 5 1/4” speakers

    ?pasted_image (resized).jpeg?pasted_image (resized).jpeg
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    Following Tony’s guide, use the 3M tape to mount the speaker panel acrylic to your new panel. Take your time, get it right, and sure all the tape is secure and snug. You most definitely don’t want to have to remove the panel and do this over again.

    Finally, reattach the panel hooks, glass channel, the foam around the DMD opening, and the DMD. At this point, you will have a complete panel ready for installing the speaker lights and speakers.

    ?pasted_image (resized).jpeg?pasted_image (resized).jpeg
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    The installation of the Kicker’s and Type 13 kit is very straight forward. Follow the installation instructions for the Type 13 kit and you’re good to go. Make sure you’re not over tightening the speakers, and to make sure the ground ribbon is reattached on the new panel to all the components where it was attached on the original panel (DMD, speakers, etc)

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    Your speaker panel is now ready to be wired into the machine.

    Note that the original ST:TNG is a mono game. While waiting on my Pinsound, I wired the sound to the left speaker only (on the Kickers, the wide tab is “+” and the narrow tab is “-“). When the Pinsound arrives, it has stereo output and I’ll wire up both speakers for stereo.

    (Many thanks to Eric_Manuel for the inspiration to add the speaker lights and for many other ideas from his Star Trek Experience project…Eric posted a video showing speaker lights in hist machine here

    )

    Advanced Wiring for the Speaker Lit Kits

    Also note that the Type 13 kit has its own 5V power supply for the LEDs in the speaker lights. If you’re going to be using the kit with a WPC game, let Doug know that you need a ”2 blade US power cable" to be included with the kit, and not one that normally comes with that kit to connect to a Stern SPIKE 2 game.

    Using the regular power cable, you can plug the speaker light kit power supply in to the service outlet, but then it is on even with the machine off.

    Rather than have to use the remote that comes with the kit to turn it off and on, or connect the speaker light kit to 5V in the machine (5V is used for the CPU board), I built a power strip (plugged into the service outlet) wired in a relay that turns the power strip on when 12V from the game is active. That way, the game can turn on power from the power strip, and the speaker light kit has the benefit of using its own dedicated power brick, plugged into the switched power strip.

    If that sounds scary (and if you’re not sure if it sounds scary or not, probably best to consider it scary), I suggest you pick up a commercial switched outlet:

    https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00WV7GMA2

    and wire it to an appropriate voltage line on the machine (this commercial unit accepts 3-48VDC, and 12-120VAC as control voltages…basically, when the unit senses a voltage on the control input, it acts like a switch and turns on power to the controlled outlets).

    For my homebrew version, I used a 12V controlled relay for my switched outlet, so I used a 12V line from the machine (I use J114-2 on the Power Driver Board, but if you review the schematics, there are 12V lines available to tap into in multiple places). The relay uses a minimum amount of current, so you don’t need to be worried about overwhelming the power circuit on your machine (in the case of ST:TNG, the cannon motors and optos are on the 12V line, so it can be finicky).

    Now when you turn on your machine, the relay in the power strip kicks in and you have switched power that you can plug your speaker lights (and other mods, like toppers, etc) into. As a bonus, if you have a bunch of other mods or a DIY topper that needs power, you can now plug them into same switched outlet, and not overload the power supply board in your pin.

    Cabinet speaker

    My ST:TNG has a smaller woofer inside the cabinet, mounted to a raised area with a smaller hole in the bottom of the cabinet. In Tony’s guide, he walks through the process of drilling out the hole in the bottom of the cabinet so that it is big enough for a 8” woofer. I’m not that brave (and honestly, I try to restrict my uber hifi audiophile crazy to my main music set up, not my pins).

    For me, my strategy is to remove the stock subwoofer, pry off the raised platform area to reduce the height (so my new 8” JBL woofer doesn’t run into the underside of my playfield), and use a spacer ring to leave space between the new 8” driver and the cabinet. The idea here is to not have the moving cone on the driver touch the cabinet (it will buzz and sound horrible). Things will sound better with a 8” hole, but again, that is a future optimization for me, that I may never actually get to.

    Once you remove the original woofer, you can see the raised area the speaker is mounted on, and the smaller hole that WPC are built with. The raised area is glued and stapled to the cabinet. I removed it by gently using a pry bar from the inside of the opening, then gently prying up. Glue was old enough on my cabinet that it easily separated from the main cabinet.

    ?pasted_image (resized).png?pasted_image (resized).png
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    After a quick vacuum (and finding some long lost nuts and washers) time to test fit the JBL subwoofer. Note that the JBL is *significantly* larger than the original WPC subwoofer. It is important to test fit and make sure that when the playfield is lowered there aren’t any mechs that are touching the woofer (I had good clearance with my ST:TNG)

    ?pasted_image (resized).png?pasted_image (resized).png

    To give the 8” woofer room to move, I used a 1/2” tall 8” woofer spacer. When positioned, the driver is not centered with the smaller hole. In the grad scheme of things, would it be better to have an 8” hole and the driver centered on it? Absolutely. Am I happier doing no carpentry and being OK with off centered mounting? Absolutely^2

    ?pasted_image (resized).png?pasted_image (resized).png
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    Note that I do not use a speaker grille for the subs in my home machines. I also did not put in a cross over or equalization, since I plan to eventually have these when I put in a Pinsound or potentially a Dayton Audio amp.

    So how does it sound?

    Definitely an improvement over the stock speakers, even when driven by the stock sound board and amp with no equalization. That being said, these speakers can sounds a LOT better with better amplification, and equalization to blend them together. For better or worse, the built in WPC amp is never going to rock, but with better amplification, these speakers can definitely go there.

    My plan is to get a Pinsound board (which has a built in amp and equalization) and that should take it up several notches, esp. with the higher quality stereo orchestrations that are available for ST:TNG. When that gets here, I’ll properly wire up the speakers separately in a 2.1 configuration (speaker cable from the Pinsound to each speaker driver).

    Based on what I hear, I may get a Dayton Audio DTA-2.1BT2 100W amp (https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B07KX6MN91). I had fantastic results with this in my Godzilla with the Kickers and JBL sub (wow!). Before going there though, I’d like to hear what the Pinsound is able to do on its own.

    NOTE: If you do get the Dayton Audio amp, remember to plug it into the service outlet (not the switched outlet). When this amp loses power, it requires the power button to be physically pressed to turn the amp on. In my Godzilla, I leave the amp on all the time, plugged into the service outlet.

    As far as the speaker light kit in TNG, when I sent a video clip to my daughter (it is her game, I’m juicing it up while she’s at college), the mic drop response was “SO DOPE”. I couldn’t have said it better myself.

    #904 1 year ago

    So Dope!! I love my STTNG : ) Thanks for this write up!

    #905 1 year ago
    Quoted from jackd104:

    Dear pinheads! I’m about to upgrade my GZ premium backbox speakers to Kicker CSC5 5.25”’s. I will be using a Polk external sub with this. No external eq for now. Any pointers in terms of eq settings would be welcome. For both backbox as well as cabinet speaker. Sometimes I am thinking to just turn off the cabinet speaker as between the kickers and external sub perhaps all the needed range and quality will be there. Thanks very much.

    Here’s what I’ve found about this config so far (5.25 kickers backbox, stock cab speaker, Polk external sub). The eq setting posted earlier in the thread for the back box speakers sounds good. As for the stock cab speaker, I tried numerous eq adjustments, and in combination with adjusting eqs for the backbox, but it just seems to add mud no matter what I do and even if it was faded down quite a bit. I put fade to 30 to kill the cab speaker. And I set the Polk’s low pass filter to about 120 (dialed back from the max of 150 where it was just too boomy). In summary, backbox eq to Dave’s earlier post, cab off, sub low pass 120. Seems to provide good clean separation and there is still a nice boom in the low end. The music sounds great. Voices clear as possible I think. In general with the sound on this pin, the music all sounds fantastic, but often the call outs are futzy and muddled. I think it’s all the effects they added to make them sound like tinny radio broadcasts. Not the best for hearability. When Godzilla multiball starts it’s a sonic mess and I’m not sure any adjustments will help.

    #906 1 year ago

    I installed my Wuzhi amp and this thing is screaming loud and I'm happy with the sound quality overall. I'll probably add a spacer to the 8"jbl eventually and possibly a passive eq since when using the bluetooth mode the built in Stern is bypassed. I'm definitely going to look into anti rattle tape or possibly Dynomat that I had great results with in an automobile.

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    #907 1 year ago

    Stern speaker graveyard. Kicker is definitely the way to go!

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    #908 1 year ago

    Rando update..

    Still no word on my Rush Premium cabinet replacement. Kind of frustrating, I don't really want to complain...............................................

    I've had to do a ton at the brewery, and it is finally much closer to done and it no longer has to be the primary focus of my after hours energy.

    I should be able to get back to tinkering at home and back to sound mods soon.

    It's great seeing others posting their projects and insights and contributing in this thread! Collectively there is sooooo much information in here.

    #909 1 year ago

    I made an update to my Speaker adapters to allow for more clearance from the molding at the side of the backbox. Basically the sides are now flat spotted and I offset the mounting holes for the adapter to one side a bit. What this does is mount the speaker a little closer to the LCD. This will allow for more clearance from the angle molding at the edge of the backbox and hopefully allow for bigger speakers and various speaker lighting mods to fit better.

    https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:5182150

    I will also remind everyone that plans on putting in speaker lights that you can get the authentic metal 5.25 speaker plates just like the LEs have for half price ($25) when combined with a purchase at speakerlightkits. I ALWAYS buy these rather than use my own adapters when I plan on putting lights in. It's simply a cleaner install and the price is right.

    https://www.speakerlightkits.com/5.25-SPIKE-2-Speaker-Plates.html
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    #910 1 year ago

    so i'd like to upgrade the speakers in my Godzilla LE. i was thinking the kickers were best choice (CSC5) but they don't seem to sell that model in Australia (https://www.kicker.com.au/product-category/car-audio/car-audio-speakers/car-audio-speakers-cs/). The closest thing seems to be the 46CSC54 – 5.25″ (130mm) 75 Watts RMS 2-way (https://www.kicker.com.au/product/46csc54-5-25-130mm-75-watts-rms-2-way/) - i think maybe they are the same model with different numbers. Does anyone know? (i'm no expert when it comes to audio and don't want to mistakenly buy the wrong thing)....

    #911 1 year ago
    Quoted from dmj1977:

    so i'd like to upgrade the speakers in my Godzilla LE. i was thinking the kickers were best choice (CSC5) but they don't seem to sell that model in Australia (https://www.kicker.com.au/product-category/car-audio/car-audio-speakers/car-audio-speakers-cs/). The closest thing seems to be the 46CSC54 – 5.25″ (130mm) 75 Watts RMS 2-way (https://www.kicker.com.au/product/46csc54-5-25-130mm-75-watts-rms-2-way/) - i think maybe they are the same model with different numbers. Does anyone know? (i'm no expert when it comes to audio and don't want to mistakenly buy the wrong thing)....

    They are one in the same.

    #912 1 year ago
    Quoted from finman2000:

    They are one in the same.

    awesome - thanks @finman2000, ordering now!

    #913 1 year ago

    Upgraded my Munsters premium with the Kicker 5.25 and lighting kit from Doug

    http://www.speakerlightkits.com/5.25-SPIKE-2-Speaker-Plates.html

    No other changes (yet) but happy with the speakers and lighting. Speaker noticeable better, callouts clearer. I change from 8 to 4 ohm but didnt like it so changed it back for now. I will try again with the EQ. Settings recommended earlier in the thread...

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    #914 1 year ago

    Thanks for all the content davegauth! I’ve been trying to read through everything but hard to know some of the lingo for a newbie.

    A few newbie questions:
    1. What is the difference between the pinsound CN5 adapter ($20) and the Pinnovators sub adapter ($35)?
    2. Are those $390 pinsound boards just another amp like the ones tested here?
    3. If I just went for external speakers+sub, would an older stereo system suffice or is it still worth getting one of these tested amps before sending the signal out to the stereo? (Related, any issues with me running multiple pins into the same external stereo?)

    Thanks for any thoughts!

    #915 1 year ago
    Quoted from ReadyPO:

    Upgraded my Munsters premium with the Kicker 5.25

    I have an LE. I thought the Munster premiums and LE had upgraded sound system. You still hear major improvement with the Kicker? Enough to recommend doing it?

    #916 1 year ago
    Quoted from Pizzaman13:

    I have an LE. I thought the Munster premiums and LE had upgraded sound system.

    The premium has the four inch speakers. It is just the LE had the "high-definition speaker system with 3-channel equalizer". This includes the 5.25" speakers (Kenwood's I believe).

    Since the premium has the cheap 4 inch speakers, going with the 5.25" Kicker's is a big improvement. @davegauth's speaker comparison in this thread ranks the Kickers pretty high (https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/improving-sound-quality-the-diy-route/page/4#post-6782071). I could have went with 4" Kicker's but why do that when for just a little more, get the 5.25".

    For you, I doubt you would get much difference swapping out your 5.25" for the Kickers. However, in terms of rankings by davegauth (https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/improving-sound-quality-the-diy-route/page/6#post-6812899), the Kenwoods are at the bottom and Kickers and Alpine are at the top. Maybe someone else has done this swap and has an opinion?

    #917 1 year ago
    Quoted from prentice:

    Thanks for all the content davegauth! I’ve been trying to read through everything but hard to know some of the lingo for a newbie.
    A few newbie questions:
    1. What is the difference between the pinsound CN5 adapter ($20) and the Pinnovators sub adapter ($35)?
    2. Are those $390 pinsound boards just another amp like the ones tested here?
    3. If I just went for external speakers+sub, would an older stereo system suffice or is it still worth getting one of these tested amps before sending the signal out to the stereo? (Related, any issues with me running multiple pins into the same external stereo?)
    Thanks for any thoughts!

    Thank you,

    1 - Check out post #244 lots of details in that one.
    2 - Pinsound boards - I believe these are more for much older systems. Not applicable/needed in newer pins.
    3 - You can output your signal directly to any stereo you like. If the stereo has an amp already in it then you are done(most do, and you are plugging the signal into an input like Aux, tape, etc) If you have an old stereo that you are swiping the speakers and sub from, and using them separately without the original stereo - then you will need to run an amp in order to get speaker level outputs.

    #918 1 year ago

    Thanks! A very easy question: when connecting an amp back to the output, do I just snip the CN1 and CN4 connectors and plug those wires into the amp outs? Or is there a cleaner/reversible way? (T-connector maybe?)

    EDIT: After re-reading this post(https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/improving-sound-quality-the-diy-route/page/8#post-6841366) I see you suggested running new wiring through the machine - I get it now. Am still tempted to just T-tap in to existing wiring but don't know how bad using their thin stock wiring would be -- sounds like it degrades quality?

    In any case, still awaiting a long international shipment from France on that Pinsound adapter before I can wire in this Fosi.

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    #919 1 year ago

    Would this Amplifier be good, great not at all, to use with the Kenwood KFC 1366S and the JBL 810 sub.

    Kenwood KFC-1366S 250 Watt 5.25-Inch Coaxial 2 Way Car Audio Speaker (1 Pair) https://a.co/d/aqnFGcs

    JBL Stage 810 800W Max 8" Stage Series Single 4 ohm Car Audio Subwoofer Speaker Bundled with Alphasonik Earbuds https://a.co/d/5WpEeWC

    Kinter K3118-2.1 Bluetooth 5.0 Stereo Digital Receiver Amplifier 2.1 Channel Mini Hi-Fi Class D Amp 30 Watt x 2 Channels + 80 Watt Subwoofer for Home TV DIY Auto Outdoor Passive Speakers Subwoofer.
    https://a.co/d/6vknaa4

    I'm getting ready to do my 1st sound improvement. Thanks to you and all who have added useful information.. I'm on page 5 and plan on reading it all.

    #920 1 year ago
    Quoted from Sleal16:

    Think the main thing I need to be patient with is the gains/filters/etc. From random reads people say to turn off all filters and let the amp run things, but as I'm messing with the EQ vs no filter, looks like i'm getting better results with tuning an active EQ filter. Its the daunting part. What to leave at what dial setting on the amp to pair up with game audio settings. I'll do it during the day when I can crank it up louder to soak in every little tweak

    #921 1 year ago
    Quoted from shovelhed:

    Has anybody added 5.25 speakers to the original stern wooded panel? Looking to mod my Ac/dc for better sound than the 4incher’s.

    Just started reading this DIY forum this week. I stop here to answer it so if it's already been addressed, my bad. I purchased a 2007 Dale Jr three weeks ago and started my speaker upgrade. It too has a wooden panel. So yes it can be done. See pics I replaced the clear acrylic with Red. Not a fan of the orange color from the 2007 line up. Probably not going to add a amplifier in this pin yet. I did replaced the 15 year old cabinet speaker and it did have a rip in paper cone.. ok back to reading so I can get my Aerosmith, Metallica and other pins upgraded after I get some knowledge.

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    #922 1 year ago
    Quoted from Puffdanny:

    I installed my Wuzhi amp and this thing is screaming loud and I'm happy with the sound quality overall. I'll probably add a spacer to the 8"jbl eventually and possibly a passive eq since when using the bluetooth mode the built in Stern is bypassed. I'm definitely going to look into anti rattle tape or possibly Dynomat that I had great results with in an automobile.

    I just grabbed one of amps as well to test it out as a cheaper option than the Fosi. However, it seems like once you get a power supply to go with it (I got: https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B0131VAEEG), you are almost back at the Fosi price range. What power supply are you using? Is cost the only potential advantage of this cheap amp over something like an $80 Fosi?

    #923 1 year ago
    Quoted from Spiderpin:

    Just started reading this DIY forum this week. I stop here to answer it so if it's already been addressed, my bad. I purchased a 2007 Dale Jr three weeks ago and started my speaker upgrade. It too has a wooden panel. So yes it can be done. See pics I replaced the clear acrylic with Red. Not a fan of the orange color from the 2007 line up. Probably not going to add a amplifier in this pin yet. I did replaced the 15 year old cabinet speaker and it did have a rip in paper cone.. ok back to reading so I can get my Aerosmith, Metallica and other pins upgraded after I get some knowledge.[quoted image][quoted image][quoted image]

    Get a pin2dmd screen and replace that energy eatinng plasma. You can run the pin2dmd (led) in any colour you want.

    Plus the game runs much quiet when in attract mode. No more plasma “fizzzzzz”.

    I make my own pin2dmd for all my games.

    #924 1 year ago
    Quoted from prentice:

    I just grabbed one of amps as well to test it out as a cheaper option than the Fosi. However, it seems like once you get a power supply to go with it (I got: amazon.com link »), you are almost back at the Fosi price range. What power supply are you using? Is cost the only potential advantage of this cheap amp over something like an $80 Fosi?

    This is the power supply I'm using. https://www.amazon.com/5-6-5A-100V-240V-Transformer-Switching-Supply/dp/B074CJ8GNP

    #925 1 year ago

    For the power supply, I just used the power supply that comes with the amp along with a simple Iot Relay to turn it on and off with the game:

    https://www.amazon.com/Iot-Relay-Enclosed-High-Power-Raspberry/dp/B00WV7GMA2

    This allows the amp to plug directly into an a/c power outlet and provides additional outlet(s) for other mods. For instance, it would be easy as can be to plug in a small fan and point it at the flipper coils to keep them from over heating. Or plug in a power supply or USB power supply to power any number of mods without taxing the Stern boards at all.

    The one lesson I quickly learned was to connect the Iot Relay 12v input to the 12v source in the backbox rather than connecting it to the coin door board. The 12v from the coin door goes off and on when you open the coin door unless you change the settings in the menu. Better to use the backbox power node as the trigger to turn the amp on and off. The 12v supplied to the Iot Relay is simply used as a signal to turn the power on and off and doesn't load down the Stern power supply AT ALL.

    #926 1 year ago

    Bass-heads: Any trick to anti-rattle tape? Just stick it where needed?

    Put a couple strips of painters tape at the top of the glass where it was rattling, there's a spot on the side that's noisy as well.

    Should I be looking into replacing the glass guides under the rails?

    20220905_235400 (resized).jpg20220905_235400 (resized).jpg
    #927 1 year ago

    Just some black electrical tape on the edges of the glass worked for me. This is in a room with 2x18s so I had lots of rattles to sort.

    #928 1 year ago
    Quoted from Puffdanny:

    I totally agree with 8 ohm on both speakers just sounds way crisper to me. I set the fade at -2 for the 8 ohm settings.

    I got both the Kicker 4s (GZ) and the 5.25s (DP). With the 4s it seemed like 8/8 sounded better to me than 4/8, but I don’t understand the science of it— the box says 4 Ohm, but does that just not matter?

    I’m currently using a more midrange cab speaker, if that matters, but a JBL sub just arrived so I might swap in.

    #929 1 year ago

    I just read all 19 pages! I have a LZ premium. I am not interested in adding an amp. My plan is to buy the kicker CS5 and new speaker plates from pinballlife. What is the best recommendation for the cabinet speaker? I see some have a mid range speaker like a Skar while others went with a sun like a JBL 8 inch for the cabinet. Thoughts?

    Thanks
    Mike

    #930 1 year ago

    Pinball life has a $99 kit that includes the kenwood 5.25" speakers, the plates, and a speaker light kit. I know many didn't rate the kenwoods as high as others, but its a pretty solid deal for the kit.

    https://www.pinballlife.com/rgb-led-round-speaker-upgrade-and-light-kit-for-most-stern-spike-2-pro-premium-machines.html
    Or for 60 bucks you can get the kit without speakers. So pretty much lights on top of the plates for only 10 bucks extra.

    https://www.pinballlife.com/rgb-led-speaker-light-kit-for-stern-spike-2-machines-copy.html

    I have the 99 dollar kit coming. I am not sure if I will put it in Godzilla or Deadpool yet though.

    #931 1 year ago
    Quoted from DudeRegular:

    Pinball life has a $99 kit that includes the kenwood 5.25" speakers, the plates, and a speaker light kit. I know many didn't rate the kenwoods as high as others, but its a pretty solid deal for the kit.

    That is a great price for a quick all in one solution.

    #932 1 year ago

    I bought the Kit, it's pretty awesome but recently went with the Myth Kit for my Godzilla machine and no longer need the RGN LED that goes around it. If anyone wants to buy this kit Minus the speakers I'm willing to let it go for a cheap price of $40. DM me. I still have the manual and everything that comes with it minus the speakers. Thanks.

    Added 19 months ago:

    Thanks for all that messaged me but this kit has now been sold to Rdoyle1978. (To clarify it did not include the speakers nor the plates.)

    #933 1 year ago
    Quoted from prentice:

    I got both the Kicker 4s (GZ) and the 5.25s (DP). With the 4s it seemed like 8/8 sounded better to me than 4/8, but I don’t understand the science of it— the box says 4 Ohm, but does that just not matter?
    I’m currently using a more midrange cab speaker, if that matters, but a JBL sub just arrived so I might swap in.

    Yeah just use the 8, it sounds definitely better.. the same is true on AVR receivers I've got a Yamaha aventage 3080... And even the audio file YouTube channels say they run it at 8 ohms even if your speakers are four or six ohms I think it has more to do with the digital processing than the actual power output...

    To my ear 8 sound great and there's no way I'd be turning them up past 16 most of the time in my room anyways... You'd have to be cranking them at full blast to really do any serious great damage to the amp and I think you go deaf before the machine would break

    I know Pinwoofer says to use the 8 ohm setting as well

    #934 1 year ago
    Quoted from davegauth:

    Yes, exactly. The sub output is just dangling from the CN5 Pinsound adapter. What I have going into the amp is just the L+R stereo output from the CN5 pinsound adapter. The 2.1 amp is then creating the lower frequency sub output to drive the subwoofer inside the cabinet, from the L+R CN5 output.

    So in this setup, do you set the balance fader to full Backbox speakers since you are now driving the cabinet speaker from just the L+R output?

    #935 1 year ago

    Set in the middle at zero and fugedaboutit

    #936 1 year ago
    Quoted from davegauth:

    Set in the middle at zero and fugedaboutit

    thanks, yes when playing around with it I realized anything 0 or greater was the same effect.
    Follow-up: How would you suggest changing the suggested EQ curve since the cab levels don’t apply? I’m still set at the suggested ones from pre-amp days. Apologies if I missed this in the thread, I’ve sifted through all pages a few times.

    #937 1 year ago

    I think that the amp chips on my Iron Maiden are bad because I hear crackling sound when there no audio and during gameplay sometimes the sound is completely gone. If I would use the pinsound line out cable and use an external amplifier would that fix my issue? In other words will that setup completely bypass the amp chips on my CPU board?

    #938 1 year ago
    Quoted from Sjoend:

    I think that the amp chips on my Iron Maiden are bad because I hear crackling sound when there no audio and during gameplay sometimes the sound is completely gone. If I would use the pinsound line out cable and use an external amplifier would that fix my issue? In other words will that setup completely bypass the amp chips on my CPU board?

    I think the pinsound sits between the stern dsp and the stern amp, so you’d be able to skip the onboard amp, which may be the problem. Worth trying!

    #939 1 year ago
    Quoted from prentice:

    I think the pinsound sits between the stern dsp and the stern amp, so you’d be able to skip the onboard amp, which may be the problem. Worth trying!

    Thanks I’ll give it a try and will report back.

    Is it a known issue that the sound chips on the Spike 2 cpu boards are failing? Could the DSP also fail and what would be the symptoms when the DSP would fail vs the amp chips?

    #940 1 year ago

    Swapped out the JBL for the Kicker CS 8" Sub.

    Yeahhhhhh..... The kicker is tighter with a bit more snappy punch to it.

    I dont have the greatest 1 to 1 going on here. Everything is being pushed with the higher powered amp - that I still do not have the low band pass filter and DSP setup correctly(it's curving off at 100hz).

    I can say - I've really missed playing awesome sounding pins at ridiculous volume levels.... Playing my location pins has been .. O-K ...... but damn a good sound system is just a whole new level.

    Still waiting for the replacement Rush cabinet... sighh....

    20220911_211516 (resized).jpg20220911_211516 (resized).jpg20220911_211823 (resized).jpg20220911_211823 (resized).jpg

    #941 1 year ago
    Quoted from Sjoend:

    I think that the amp chips on my Iron Maiden are bad because I hear crackling sound when there no audio and during gameplay sometimes the sound is completely gone. If I would use the pinsound line out cable and use an external amplifier would that fix my issue? In other words will that setup completely bypass the amp chips on my CPU board?

    what prentice said.

    There are no known issues with the Stern amp section of the Spike 2 boards. Not to say there are no failed ones etc. Just no known issues... If you are getting some rackling etc. You could just be pushing to hard for the amp. You could also still have the plastic mesh on your cabinet speaker..

    Sometimes the bass is set a bit too high for the backbox speakers and the amp chip will clip the backbox. You can drop the lowest bass freqs in the EQ a couple notches and it can help the clipping.

    But get that adapter, stick in a mini amp - and stretch those legs...

    #942 1 year ago
    Quoted from davegauth:

    what prentice said.
    There are no known issues with the Stern amp section of the Spike 2 boards. Not to say there are no failed ones etc. Just no known issues... If you are getting some rackling etc. You could just be pushing to hard for the amp. You could also still have the plastic mesh on your cabinet speaker..
    Sometimes the bass is set a bit too high for the backbox speakers and the amp chip will clip the backbox. You can drop the lowest bass freqs in the EQ a couple notches and it can help the clipping.
    But get that adapter, stick in a mini amp - and stretch those legs...

    Many thanks for your reply, I’ll check my EQ settings.

    I’ve ordered the adapter & amp and will report back if all my sound issues are gone.

    #943 1 year ago

    EQ questions!

    I’ve got Deadpool set up with the Kicker 5.25s, the Skar FSX8-8, the Fosi 2.1 amp, and an external cheap sub (using both pinsound and pinnovator adapters).
    I’m clueless about how to properly balance the EQ between the amp knobs and the backbox EQ, which I think I currently just turned off.

    I can definitely hear quality differences but just don’t know the right steps/order to tweak, nor the audio science well enough to theorize where the cutoffs should be (or what a good curve looks like).

    Is there a great website that talks through the basics well enough for newbie tinkering?

    Or can someone share recommended EQ + amp-dial photo setup as a starting point, for me to tweak?

    (Random side question: does the sub out on the Pinsound adapter act identically to the pinnovator sub adapter? They hook in at different spots, but wonder if I could harvest the pinnovator adapter for another machine)

    Separately, I also have a GZ with stock amp, Kicker 4s, JBL 810, and external sub, and am using the EQ guidance seen earlier in this thread. That sounds pretty good, but even there I wonder if I should somehow cut off low freqs to the cab sub since I have the external woofer? (No idea what numbers to do so so or how to curve it out)

    #944 1 year ago

    Did the PBL speaker upgrade with the light kit. So Kenwood backbox and then added the Skar cabinet. Nice improvement. Just picked up two pairs of the kickers of ebay for 86 shipped. So I will see which games those go in. One set probably in Deadpool. Then may swap out the Godzilla speakers and put the Kenwood's in my IJ. I am planning to swap out that speaker panel with one that does 5.25 speakers along with the 3 jackpot light cutouts.

    #945 1 year ago

    Just found this, on Amazon and it cost less than a 50' roll they have for sale.
    14AWG Speaker Wire, https://a.co/d/fKsxCIS

    Got to head to ebay now and find the speaker two pair kickers that DudeRegular found

    #946 1 year ago

    Ok, so I have been playing pretty much just Godzilla with the upgrades mentioned previously and my Rick and Morty which has the amp and speakers, etc. Was kinda wondering just how much of an improvement the upgrades were... Went to play Deadpool tonight with the stock sound and yep, sounds way different. It will be getting some upgrades now soon as well. Its crazy just how fast I got accustomed to the upgrades on Godzilla.

    #947 1 year ago

    Well it was just a matter of time before someone put a box around the subwoofer. This build it for the JBL STAGE 810
    3D Printed port, pipe length a 5.8" long and inter diameter 1.97". Get the Sub Box for the JBL Stage 810 here: https://subbox.pro/en/b/DQ19arlvM#

    PXL_20220918_191358533.PORTRAIT (resized).jpgPXL_20220918_191358533.PORTRAIT (resized).jpgPXL_20220923_201114705 (resized).jpgPXL_20220923_201114705 (resized).jpgPXL_20220923_203006693 (resized).jpgPXL_20220923_203006693 (resized).jpgPXL_20220924_005424015 (resized).jpgPXL_20220924_005424015 (resized).jpgPXL_20220924_005758444 (resized).jpgPXL_20220924_005758444 (resized).jpgPXL_20220924_005818616 (resized).jpgPXL_20220924_005818616 (resized).jpgPXL_20220910_193049603 (resized).jpgPXL_20220910_193049603 (resized).jpg
    #948 1 year ago

    @Spiderpin... Anxious to hear you opinion on this boxed application.

    #949 1 year ago

    Let me say that I'm late to this topic.

    Just start and read all post a few weeks ago. I ordered and received the Amplifier and subwoofer after seeing davegauth recommendations.
    I already had the 5.25 Rockford Fosgate in my Aerosmith. So this is the pin that received the update.

    Only played one song (Bluetooth) I had to feel the air coming from the port. Check that box. Then I played one game (with glass off) still didn't achieve high score before I had to go to work.

    Tomorrow I'll mount box to cabinet and do the crossover after I read what I need to do. As of now I do hear Big Better Sound coming out of my Pinball/Jukebox.

    Thanks davegauth

    #950 1 year ago
    Quoted from Kerry_Richard:

    Spiderpin... Anxious to hear you opinion on this boxed application.

    I'll do my best, I wasn't going to add box until after listening to pin at least a week. So I could hear if there would be a different. But I built the box before the Amplifier arrived. And then the gotta have it now kick in. I purchased two of everything (Amplifier/Subwoofer) so maybe I'll do the other pin boxless. Then I can do a same song Bluetooth side by side comparison.

    There are 1,828 posts in this topic. You are on page 19 of 37.

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