Question on running amps Bluetooth adapter

[cla10beck]

Hi Crew,

I am looking for advice on how to control my tower, cabin, and sub directly from my exile BT reciever.  A couple of notes, I am not an audiophile, so I don't need the best sound, and I want to do this cheaply with minimal noise to please don't recommend a WS420.  I also searched this, but could find the exact answers looking for

When I bought my boat a few years ago, it already had an Exile Bluetooth receiver and an Exile ZLD equalizer that is feeding the amps.  I like the system overall, but my ZLD isn't working correctly.  I send it out once to get repaired, but still wasn't working correctly after I got it back so I have decided to just get something else in its place.  So I am looking at 2 options:

Option 1, get three PAC LC-1 dials and run them directly from the exile BT via RCA splitters.  a couple of questions on that, will the splitters from the BT work correctly?  and can I just the crossovers and LP filters on the amps to get the correct frequency range?  I have two amps, one for the 4 tower speakers, and a 5 channel amp for the cabin and Sub.  cost of this would be less than $20

Options 2, get a cheap 4 band equalizer with sub volume and fader that can basically do the same adjustment.  this would be plug and play with my current Exile ZLD.  Are there any equalizers that recommended that are cheaper than the clarion EQS755 at $120

 

Thanks in advance

[Nitrousbird]

Just get the Clarion.  That will be your cheapest reasonable option.  Remember, if your source unit is bad (sound quality/distortion), the best of the best down the line will still sound like crap because crap in = crap out.

[cla10beck]

My stereo knowledge is very limited so please work with me.  My thoughts on using the LC-1 was that it would have the least amount of noise, and the most direct sound path the amps, vs any eq.  

 

When I was testing the ZLD, I direct connected the exile BT paired with my phone to the amp and it was very clear.

[MLA]

7 hours ago, cla10beck said:

and can I just the crossovers and LP filters on the amps to get the correct frequency range?

They should have already been, regardless of the presence or absence of any EQ or zone volume controller(s). The tonal adjustments on the previous EQ were not cross-over filters but attenuators that boost or suppress that particular frequency's dB.  

Thats a lot of RCA Y cables to take a single input and get 3 zones of output using simple line level POTs. 

 

[cla10beck]

I am sure the amps have already had the gains, crossovers and filters adjusted.  TBH, I haven't even gone in yet to look a the current settings on the amps as the system was sounding very good.  All of my troubleshooting has taken be back to the Exile ZLD which is why I am just trying to find a simple solution, with less chance for failure, and that is what brought me back to the potentiometers.

I have been reading more into this today, and also realizing that the max voltage output of the exile BT is 2.2V, where the old ZLD was 8V.  Not sure if this is an issue for sound quality as I would have to increase the gains on the amps.

Looks like I am back to trying to find a low priced, high quality equalizer.