Want to make your KDMAS sound much (much) better?

Equalizer APO: Equalizer APO download | SourceForge.net
PEACE (GUI for APO): Peace Equalizer, interface Equalizer APO download | SourceForge.net
Online Tone generator: Online Tone Generator - generate pure tones of any frequency
Spectroid (android): https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.intoorbit.spectrum

Equalizing my Home Theater:

As I was reading some unenthusiastic feedbacks on the KDMAS audio I have had the idea to use this equalizer I was already using for my home theater system (PC>HDMI>TV>Optical S/PDIF>PreAmp>Amp>Speakers). It is part of a wider software called REW (Room Eq Wizard) but we won’t need that.

For my HT I had initially tried to flatten the response using the online tone generator and Spectroid android app, but I was not satisfied with the result and in the end the best result was obtained by equalizing by ears. I post the generator/Spectroid links as it could still help to precisely spot frequencies where there is an issue.

KDMAS out-of-the-box feedback

For the KDMAS I have only equalized by ears at the moment. Note that I don’t have the issue of the earcups non getting in contact with my ears. When I first tried the KDMAS I have immediately noticed the earcups pressure was increasing on my ears as I was tightening the knob. When tightened strong the earcups are pressing well on my ears and I have lot of bass, but the comfort is not very good as I feel too much pressure at the forehead and nose. If I tighten less I have less pressure from the earcups but they still touch my ears and I keep the bass. Now I have not forced to bypass the hinges endstops like some people do, and I wonder if doing that (or using modded hinges with more angle travel) could make the earcups not touch my ears anymore (in this case I would then lose the bass).

I have only tried the KDMAS with music for now, as this is the best to challenge the speakers and equalize by ears. For me the bass are too strong by default (I have read a few feedbacks saying the same). On top of that they sound “boomy”. I have also noticed the high-mediums and trebles can saturate at some frequencies, creating spitting voice effects and tiring listening. On the good side, the voices seem always well defined.

Equalizing the KDMAS:

To adjust the KDMAS, select “USB audio device” in the list in the PEACE APO interface. It should prompt to install something and will ask for restarting your computer once done.

Don’t set your expectations too high, equalizing can vastly improve the audio but it has limits: it can balance the frequencies to give a more harmonious result, and it can also remove (tone down) issues happening at very specific frequencies, like a frequency at which the housing would vibrate, or the frequency is amplified by resonating, or frequencies the speaker is unable to render good for any reason.

I have tried equalizing by ears using musics from The Cranberries, The Prodigy, Kate Bush, White Zombie, Zazie, and these more specific titles: You Know My Name (James Bond OST), Opera (Revolver OST), Scream and Shout.

I have had the best result with Scream and Shout, this is the only song that made me dance on my chair after finding an equalization working well for me (this is the one in the picture at the top).

White Zombie was maybe the poorest result. With other songs the bass always cause issues because they render “boomy”. You have to find the best bass level compromise between lack of bass and too present. I have also reduced the trebles I find too present and too aggressive. Some voices (The Cranberries) were also saturating when singing in the high frequencies. In this case the best you can do is try to identify at which frequency this is happening and reduce it.

This is one of the strengths of this equalizer: you can manually set the frequencies of the bands you want to adjust. This is why the Tone generator and android app could still help to precisely identify an issue at a given frequency. The final equalization must still be done by ears, the generator is more about speeding up the process.

So it will require some work to find the best improvements that can be done, and posting your results in this thread could help.

Now as often with equalization, you certainly won’t find one setting making a good sound for any content. Most often a setting giving good results with one song will not be as good with another song. You may then be able to adjust it to obtain a good result with that new song but this new setting won’t work well with the previous song.

However games could be more tolerant than music. Although I can still imagine adjustments should be required when switching between cars in a racing game, for example. That’s what I was saying above, equalizing can bring significant improvements but it has limits. I guess the less quality from the speaker itself the more you need to make specific equalizing for various contents.

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Two days and counting.:crazy_face:

Well, it would have been there yesterday as promised if the thread wasn’t removed.

I just see the thread is now back, but it is the middle of the night again^^, so I can just post a self-speaking picture for now.

I will add a description and also download links if you have not found the right files to install this.

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I just got my KDMAS(backer box), and I am disappointed/confused that the driver arms don’t rotate to angle the cups over the ear. I was hoping this was some solution to that, and I’m surprised I haven’t seen this brought up yet(?).

I am probably going to come up with my own solution using bigger/oval earcups to completely cover the ear to (hopefully) improve the sound/fitment.

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I have updated the first post to add the links for the software and a description.

From my initial test with some music I don’t expect those speakers could become really nice for listening to music, whatever the equalization. But this Eq still brought massive improvements for me, and the result was fine with some titles, and acceptable for other titles with which the default result was much more unpleasant.

I still have to experiment with games. From what I have heard with music I think Eq will at least be able to make engines sound fine in my racing games or flightsims.

Note using virtual desktop helps a lot !

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