line drivers?

I was wondering if anyone can tell me if line drivers are a good thing or not. I am pushing 136.9 dB and I am looking to increase that. I was told that I can use a line driver to increase the signal to the amp and in way increase the dB level. Please help in this decision.

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ohms law

it is true, also you will notice sound quality benefits.

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It will boost the volume in your case but it will also boost static and any background noise. The whole purpose of a line driver it to boost the signal so you can turn the gains on your amplifier down to a level in which you would have a lower noise floor. They do work well to get a better SQ, it would also work for what you want to do.
I use to own the P.Gold PLD1, I would recommend it.

Audiocontrol makes good line drivers also.

I just ordered me a line driver made by Audiocontrol. I can't wait until it gets to my door step.

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~The Rookie~
Rookie of the year that is...
Don't let the smoke out of your equiptment..it doesn't go back in.

Thanks for your help

I am going directly to audiocontrol on monday to get my driver

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ohms law

dont all these stops in the signal degrade it??? like make the quality go down?? y not get a higher quality deck?? i know the new eclipse are 8v preouts at 55ohms...

A Line Driver will not increase the total dB output if the amplifier is already putting out full power.

Nowhere in his post does he mention sound quality, just the 136.9 dB figure. For that reason I'll bet 136.9 was measured with the amp close to clipping (or well into clipping), so the line driver will not help one bit.

There's lots of other ways to get it louder, though. Unfortunately all of them require equipment changes - like for example a different amp, or more subwoofers, a more efficient subwoofer enclosure etc etc.

///Leif

doesnt a line driver just increase the voltage output of the signal??

Leif raises some interesting facts. It is POSSIBLE the amps were NOT clipping, but we have not heard anything at all about the component selection. If you are using a 105dB efficient driver (and they DO exist) to get to 137dB only 36 watts to make that kind of noise, but if you are using very efficient drivers, and have 1000 watts, why are you not getting any louder than that? I would suspect, though, that Leif is correct in his assumptions. How about a little bit of component information, and then I can decide for myself to be impressed or not. Also, is this a full-range output? A-weighted or C-weighted? Or were we just hitting that output level at the bassheads favorite - 80Hz?

And now to the actual point of my post: ANY gain stage will add distortion (if even a TINY bit) and noise. One should always follow the KISS rule... Minimize the components in the signal path, and you will be happier. Someone suggested a different HU. Best advice I have heard yet on this thread. I am willing to put 5 bux (my email is ddmcp2000 at yahoo dot com) that this new line driver does not increase your maximum output by more than one CLEAN dB. I WILL happily mail you the money when I see actual proof that I am wrong. Additionally, if you are already getting 137dB, why do you want to go any louder?

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It all reminds me of something that Molière once said to Guy de Maupassant at a café in Vienna: "That's nice. You should write it down."

i want to know flatulatta's question. whats the true purpose of a line driver?

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owner of
Motion Marine & Car Audio
the florida keys

OK, the "true" purpose of a line driver is to raise the carrier voltage of a line level signal.  This is used to increase the signal strength and is generally useful if using long (>25 ft) RCA cable runs, to overcome induced RF or EMI noise, and/or to amplify a weak line level signal from a source unit.  In general, they do not make a system "louder" or "cleaner," but they do enable artificially high amplifier gain in a SPL competition setup or allow use of lower amplifier input sensivity for an SQ setup.  I generally only recomend them if you have to run very long RCA cables for some reason, if your head unit puts out less than 2 volts, or if you're using the OEM head unit for some reason and you need an LOC.  A line driver can actually make some systems sound far worse, as they will amplify whatever noise or distortion the source unit produces and they can overload the input of some amps or processors not designed for their high voltages.

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i think that will put this topic to rest. thank you.

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owner of
Motion Marine & Car Audio
the florida keys