A bass knob may seem like an unnecessary accessory to your car audio system – particularly if your stereo comes with a subwoofer level control. But being able to control your bass level at the flick of a wrist will not only keep your eyes on the road, instead of navigating through the menu, and give you more control over your sound track by track.
A bass knob will not change the gain on your amplifier, but the bass level. Like any electronics, remote level controls are designed to be either universal or a brand specific accessory. For example, the JL Audio HD-RLC was made for select amplifiers from their product line.
Most bass knobs are universal like the simple PAC LC1 or NVX XVRC2. These are connected to your system via RCA cables that are hooked up between your source unit and the amplifier input. The PAC LC1 offers basic level control at a fair price, constructed with a round knob that can move between minimum “-” to maximum “+” settings.
Others, like NVX’s XVCR2 come equipped with level control, blue LED display, a power light indicator, as well as a voltmeter that displays the amount of power flowing through your system. The latter is handy for any audiophile to monitor and prevent damage to their equipment.
Take into account where you would want to access your bass knob before purchasing an accessory. Depending on the brand or type of controller, they can either be surface or flush mounted to your vehicle’s dashboard. An additional hole may need to be drilled into the panel of your dashboard to run the wire to its desired location.
When your building your system, there are more elements at play than the amount of power a set of speakers can handle. Consider how flexible you need your system to be, like if you listen to more than one genre of music, and what accessories or functions need to be integrated into the audio equipment to keep the music going just the way you like.
