[toniok]

I am building an HTPC with a Sound Blaster Z for audio. The Z will feed via analog (phono) connections into a 5 channel amp. (Yes I know, horrors!, no HDMI.) That is a plain amp, not an AVR, so the Z acts as the preamp and all equalization has to happen in the HTPC.


The card has a 10 frequency band equalizer, 31Hz to 16KHz, but no way to EQ a room, and that frequency range isn't overly impressive. It does however have a microphone input. What is the best way to EQ the room using only the HTPC (and a mic of course)?


I would of course prefer a sweet automatic method, but I'll be happy with any workable solution.

 

[BllDo]

I could be wrong, but I don't think the mic input on your card is for eq'ing. You'll likely need a calibrated USB mic to measure your room response. Take a look at Cross-Spectrum Labs. Both the UMM-6 and the UMIK-1 are good quality mics.

If you want to use the eq on your card, check out REW . That will allow you to measure the room and graphically see the response. You can then tweak the eq on the card to suit your needs. REW has a bit of a learning curve, but there is lots of help here on AVS as well as HTS .

You don't really say what you are using as the front end of your HTPC. I'm a big fan of JRiver. JRMC has built in DRC that you can use to tweak the sound of your room if you wanted to bypass your sound card and have a little more control.

There are also DRC software packages like Acourate, Audiolense, and Dirac that are more money, but considered higher end products.

None of these are really a "sweet automatic" method. Best bet for that will be a receiver with Audyssey or YPAO.

Good luck!