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dBSteve

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Posts posted by dBSteve

  1. why not try this

    divide the SPL ( of music being played ) by the peak "note" or frequency to get a score

    example

    a 145dB ( with music ) with a peak frequency of 50hz would be a score of 2.9

    while a 140dB ( with music ) with a peak frequency of 30hz would be a score of 4.66 ( more impressive )

    I have a chart for all this as a format I was looking into awhile back

    Basically, the louder the lower frequency's played is, the higher the score.

    We all know its harder to produce SPL with lower frequency's

    Example: which is more impressive? 180dB@80hz ( score of 2.25 ) or a 140dB@30hz ( score of 4.66 ). IMO, the 140dB one is.

  2. The 1st annual Midwestspl Finals was held on Sept 27th & 28th

    Congrats to these competitors and their hard work

    Basic 1 - 500 watt class

    -------

    1. 148.1 Rich Turner 148.1 148.1 146.8 146.8

    2. 146.0 Clint Buttrum 146.0 146.0 146.0

    3. 145.2 Matt Rennells 145.2 145.2

    4. 137.5 Jeff Langfald 137.5 137.5

    Basic 2 - 1,000 watt class

    -------

    1. 150.5 Rich Turner 150.5 149.8 150.3 149.7

    2. 147.5 Mike Ullrich 147.5 146.8 146.5

    3. 148.6 Brad Firgard 146.7 148.6

    4. 147.3 Daniel Arbuckle 147.3 145.9

    5. 146.5 Matt Rennells 146.5

    6. 144.6 Cliff Beal 144.6

    7. 144.0 Justin Tombleson 144.0

    8. 143.6 Brett Soendker 143.6

    9. 141.3 Shawn Willtrout

    10. 137.2 Shawn Evans

    Basic 3 - 2,000 watt class

    -------

    1. 152.5 Krissie Boyd 151.8 150.6 150.6 152.5

    2. 152.0 Kevin Ecker 152.0 151.5 151.7

    3. 150.5 Mark Hill 149.7 150.5

    4. 149.3 Mike Ullrich 148.2 149.3

    5. 148.1 Brett Soendker 148.1

    6. 147.3 Danny Cartwright 147.3

    7. 147.0 Nathan Skow 147.0

    8. 146.5 Cliff Beal 146.5

    9. 146.4 Ishmael Nunez

    10. 146.1 Nathan Walk

    11. 143.8 Chris Hendrix

    Basic 4 - 4,000 watt class

    -------

    1. 155.4 Kevin Ecker 155.4 151.7 152.9 155.0

    2. 154.2 Krissie Boyd 154.2 152.6 154.2

    3. 152.2 Ishmael Nunez 151.6 152.2

    4. 151.8 Ben Eyermann 151.8 151.4

    5. 150.8 Adam Lenau 150.8

    6. 150.6 Doug Roberts 150.6

    7. 150.4 Daniel Arbuckle 150.4

    8. 149.2 Nick Rains 149.2

    9. 146.6 Tim Narup

    Basic 5 - Unlimited

    -------

    1. 153.8 Rich Turner 152.5 152.5 153.6 153.8

    2. 153.4 Ben Eyermann 153.1 153.1 153.4

    3. 152.2 Doug Roberts 152.2 152.2

    4. 151.8 Tim Narup 151.2 151.8

    5. 150.5 Nick Rains 150.5

    Advanced No Wall - 4,000 watt class

    ----------------

    1. 156.4 Tim Shaffer 156.4 156.4 155.9 156.2

    2. 155.5 Robert York 154.9 154.9 155.5

    3. 152.6 Terry Burns 152.6 152.0

    4. 152.0 Ben Eyermann 151.9 152.0

    5. 149.6 Nick Rains 149.6

    6. 146.8 Tim Narup 146.8

    Advanced 1 - 2,000 watt class

    ----------

    1. 154.0 Jon Schmitz 154.0 154.0 154.0 153.9

    2. 152.4 Krissie Boyd 152.4 152.4 150.4

    3. 148.1 Mike Ullrich 148.1 148.1

    Advanced 2 - 4,000 watt class

    ----------

    1. 155.9 Jon Schmitz 155.9 155.9 153.4 155.0

    2. 155.1 Kevin Ecker 154.1 154.1 155.1

    3. 155.3 Brad Firgard 154.0 155.3

    4. 149.8 Sherry Patterson 149.0 149.8

    5. 148.0 Shawn Willtrout 148.0

    6. 146.9 Tru Insayne Soundz - Amc 146.9

    Advanced 3 - Unlimited

    ----------

    1. 160.7 Mark Brus 160.1 160.1 160.0 160.7

    2. 158.1 Adam Prange 158.1 158.1 158.0

    3. 153.5 Erik Hoss 153.5 153.5

    4. 148.0 Derrek Green 148.0 148.0

    Xtreme 1 - 1-4 speakrs

    --------

    1. 137.4 Jon Schmitz 137.2 137.2 137.4 134.7

    2. 131.8 Adam Lenau 127.8 127.8 131.8

    3. 125.7 Chris Hendrix 125.7 125.7

    4. 124.0 Tru Insayne Soundz 124.0 123.8

    5. 117.7 Shawn Evans 117.7

    Xtreme 2 - up to 12 speakers

    --------

    1. 127.0 Erik Hoss 127.0 127.0 127.0 127.0

    2. 124.9 Shawn Willtrout 124.9 124.9 124.9

    Xtreme 3 - unlimited speakers

    --------

    1. 130.6 Doug Roberts 130.6 130.6 130.6 130.3

    2. 130.5 Derrek Green 130.1 130.1 130.5

    3. 125.4 Cliff Beal 125.4 125.4

  3. steve benton ftmfw? :confused:

    how'd you manage to rack up a hefty $7k in one short year?

    Its amazing huh ....

    SPLMax can give away $100 per show ( Estimate $5,000 )

    West Coast Finale about $3k

    I can do $7,000

    but the other much LARGER more NATIONAL organizations can't? WTF ... how come us smaller guys can but they can't

    Our finals is also FREE entry too everyone that qualifies. Thats right FREE. When we sent out invites, we're inviting you to compete for FREE .... not inviting you, then asking you to pay $150-$200 ... I never did understand that. Your being invited to pay others money :confused:

  4. Db Drag website won't put the event up until it is payed for.

    this is not the case.

    but your right, check with local show promoters for your area if you know who they are. some post potential events on their websites.

    others have events in the works but their just not posted yet.

    Its still January ... season is early, even for california. give it time ...... they'll show up

  5. No they are not the new DBDrag rules, these are MSD rules that are offered by Steve at all his shows. They are also his rules to help the new guy and those less fortunate as myself to compete and actually get to a finals of sort. MSD classes are also usually offered by DBDrag comps, unless the promoter doesn't want to offer them.

    And if you read the rules throughly and use an open mind, you would not jump to such a harsh conclusion. These rules are for his venues and are geared to make it more even for us little guys and those that don't have the cash flow or sponserships. I can't say that enough.

    I have no clue what the last part is suppose to mean about Autorama, but sure that has nothing to do with this topic.

    Matt,

    Alot of people from all over the World check out Meads forum. I would guess the majority from California. He was refering tot he Autorama event that was cancelled that alot of the guys out there were looking forward too.

    No, these are not the new dB Drag classes. But being as this forum is read by many all over the place, including the Midwest, this is why Matt decided to post over here. Sorry for any confusion.

  6. so is this guy with no money gonna travel over a 100 miles to compete?? and if you do have a big show clamping 30 cars would take FOREVER

    if anything you need better rules for guys who take it serious

    there is no real room for improvement with out going extrem

    im not putting the idea down i just see those flaws i hope it becomes big we need more competors in this industry anyway we can get them

    just not my cup a tea or any of the other competors that i travil hundreds of miles with to compete they all have big equipment and to be massed together in extreme just does not seem right

    you will defintaly attract locals

    I guess you misread the rules. No one is grouped into the Xtreme divisions. We have an "open" or an "unlimited" class in both Basic ( stock or street if you will ) and in Advanced ( Super Street or Modified ). These classes is for those that have an unlimited amount of money with killer stereo systems.

    The other classes are systems on a budget ... like 90% or more of the people out there.

    As far as clamping cars, this is no different that a certified dB Drag event where you have to use a volt meter and measure voltage on each individual car ... same deal. I could clamp 30 cars with this format and be done in 3.5 hours :)

    These classes are designed for first time competitors, those with limited amount of money and those vetrien competitors that are tired of spending an assload of money on equipment.

    Now a person can use a stock battery ( instead of a $1,000 Catus or DD battery ), 1 run of 4 ga ( instead of 20 runs of 0ga ) a 2 channel amp bridged to 500 watts ( instead of 2 - 5,000 watt mono blocks ) and $80 subs ( instead of $500+ subs each ).

    As said, this may not be for everyone and thats ok. Competition is about creating interest for dealers and we're hoping dealers might want to use us and this format to do that.

  7. I like the part about "someone that has higher skills or knowledge than others in their class" being discouraged from competing. IMO this is discouraging the people with love, passion, and enthusiasm from competing. You think this will take off with nothing more than a bunch of noobs competing.

    yup, local classes are designed just for that ... locals. Thats why these rules are inplace. Ask any retailer out there. They do not want their local consumers getting beat by pro's chasing points.

    We've been running this exact set of rules for 7 years now with no problems and retailers love it.

    For those serious competitors we have a points class where you have a chance to earn some prize money at the end of the year.

  8. not this event.. but he did complete the task.. 180.1 OFFICIAL World Record.. first dBdrag competitor to have an official certified score of 180+ db

    later

    Doug

    Actually, Alan Dante was the first person to get a certified score over a 180. He got certified last year at a 2X event with a 180.5. This was done in 2007 season.

    Now, Alan Dante could not back this score up nor was this a World Record event.

    During the 2008 season, Scott Owens was the first person to get a certfied score above a 180. Scott Owens was also the first person in dB Drag to "back up" a 180+ at a certified event ( doubles or triples ) and also he did this at a Triple Point event (3X) which means he got the World Record.

    Good Job Scott

  9. it all depends on the organization you want to compete in.

    I say, build the vehicle the way YOU want. Nothing else matters. If your legal for an organizations rules, great. If not, F'em! and go enjoy your system anyways. The only thing that matters is if your happy or not.

  10. I wrote a post one time when I was drunk about how cool it would be to have an anything goes db event, where there would be classes based on peak db/freq, autos/trucks/vans, and even a class where anything goes class where you can bring your own "Invention" that you can bring- pressurized air, moving panels, horns, whatever as long as its 100-80hz on down- but again, it would only be maybe 80-85% car audio based

    Usaci Super Mod Extreme .. anything goes class. Must be a vehicle

    Usaci Mini Spl ( powerwheels ) ... "Invention" class

    Usaci offers may different classes for everyone no matter your skill

  11. I heard you did something similar to driveby at one of your shows, but the cars just sat there. More safe, and probably just as fun. :)

    Yeah, sorta, kinda, not really. We just placed the mic on the outside and had competitors pull up. It was just for fun to kill some time. I did a 50/50 pot for it. $10 to enter, 8 cars, winner got $40

    I've been known to do stupid stuff at shows like this to keep the excitment going. Back in the early 90's before Meca or dB Drag even, we used to do this in Springfield, Mo at a local shop. I think there it was 20' away using one of the old mics.

  12. To give my opinion on some of these, I would like to see competitions setup more for your average Joe street competitor. I'd like to see stricter rules in beginner/street classes keeping the pros and their spl fart boxes out. IMO they should use sub and fuse amperage limitations as well as a lower cap on the frequencies being used. I know I don't play my daily setup at 60-70hz so why should I have to compete with someones trailered-in fart box that does.

    What would DbDrag's Street classes be like if they were limited to a max fuse rating of 150a-300a (depending on class) with a 40hz cap on the peak frequency? Would it become more competitive or would it drive people away?

    How do you define a beginner/street car? Well I'm not sure how to define that exactly but I know what shouldn't be there. IMO if you have a wall of subs, over 4Kwatts, a modified vehicle (lexan windows, external clamps/bolts build outs, bracing, etc.), multiple alternators, 3+ runs of 0awg wire, multiple extra batteries, or a 15+v charging system then you're not a beginner.

    Fuse ratings is the dumbest thing ever! People can modify fuses or wire around fuses which involves more inspection by judges. Usually fuses blow when twice the amperage actually goes through them. I believe Meca does these.

    Meca Drive By is cool - but they've taken something sooo simple and made it difficult. Having moving vehicles as part of your competition seems dangerous to me. Also, they have an extensive set of rules for something as simple as booming your system with your window down. This format ( rules ) and other organizations rules/classes should be less about the rules/organzation and more about what matters ... the music.

    dB Drag Racing format is very fun. Everyone enjoys the head to head match up. But, everyone involved will agree, its the more expensive formats. " You got to pay if you want to play ", is the resounding comment. Downside is vehicles are shut up during competition and there is nothing to hear.

    We need local classes that doesn't involve a "World Finals" When people think they have a shot for a World Title, this brings out the "bad" competition side of them. This is when you see people competing against locals.

    Bass Race is ok, except - You must play music ( then require an 80 frequency limit ) this is stupid

    - There is not an RPM limit ( a competitor can red line their engine ) this is dangerous

    - There is not any installation rules ( Competitors can build their enclosure all the way up to the mic ) this is crazy

    - Random bracketing ( the best person doesn't always win ) imagine having the second loudest vehicle of the entire show and getting 5th place in your bracket.

    - offering a 119.9 class and a 160+ class( then not offering it at World Finals ) crazy eh?

    Usaci Outlaw SPL is cool ( minus the power ratings ). The power ratings seem to work ok for Usaci ( for now ). Being able to put the mic anywhere you want, opening your doors so the crowd can hear is awesome! Down side is noise ordance laws. Usaci offers classes for anyone. Port wars is a perfect example. Suck at one format ... try another. If thats not the one for you, then try this one. Usaci classes cater to all types of competitors and systems.

    4ohm ratings suck aka cheater amps. Max rating sucks cause of amps that play .25 ohms. Using a clamp meter on speaker wires and having a true wattage class would be the easiest. Example( smaller classes ): Clamp a volt meter(s) around all the speaker leads going to the enclosure. When system competes, voltage/amperage is checked. Math is done. If your in a different wattage class, you move up. VERY SIMPLE and also VERY FAIR for those of you who like wattage classes.

    Cone area classes are good. Easy to judge.

    Usaci Street Beat is cool. It does use the average spl format, it uses cone area classes ( sorta ) and it measures how LOUD you are! Isn't this why we buy and build these systems to get loud?

    Average SPL classes - Ok for a side format, but not an actual format. Imagine saying your the 139.9dB Champion telling a newb. This newb does a 145dB ( Outlaw or dash ). Now this newb thinks he's louder than a World Champion. Ok, so now you have to explain yourself why your the champion in your class. When your done explaining, the newb is still louder.

    Average SPL classes can be fun as a side event. This puts alot more strain on the system. This sees who actually can PLAY their system.

    Peak SPL = Drag Racer ( maximum performance )

    Average SPL = Cross country runner ( endurance )

    Sound Quality is where everything started out at. Before SPL EVERYONE competed in Sound Quality. Then the SPL score was introduced for Sound Quality. Then a SPL format was created. Then the industry died. Car Audio became exciting, but not cool.

    100,000 watt systems, 15K lbs vehicles, 170+ decibles .. all this is exciting, but not "cool" The average John Q customer can not related to these systems. This type of system in his vehicle does no purpose THUS he has no reason to buy a sound system.

    Sorry but ... SPL competitions has killed our industry

    <<<<< BUT >>>>>

    Most important thing of all is, car audio competitions must benifit the dealer / industry. The purpose of these contests is to bring attention to the person holding the event and to sell product to future enthusists. The "icing on the cake" if you will is the organiztion holding World Finals for those that participate in these events.

    Currently, the organizations are doing nothing for the dealer. There is no incentive for them to host a sactioned event over a nonsanction event. This needs to change if we want to see this industry service.

    What got people ( YOU ) into car audio anyways? What got you first excited? We ( as an industry ) need to focus more on what matters and what got us into this sport. For most of us, it is our compasion for music, cars and electronics.

    Sincerely,

    Car Audio Enthusist

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