A crossover/equalizer is any device that limits the range of frequencies sent to a speaker.

Features and terms relating to the various car equalizer are as follows:

Bands: This is the number of frequencies an equalizer can adjust at one time.

Center Channel Output: An output that contains the musical information found in both the right and left channels.

Continuously Variable: This is a crossover's ability to be adjusted to a range of frequencies rather than a set of a few frequencies.

Curve (Equalizer): This is the way that the car equalizer is set from frequency to frequency.

Decibel (dB): This is the measure of how loud a sound is based on a scale of zero decibels being the threshold of human hearing. Doubling the amplifier power gives an increase of three decibels while ten decibels is needed for a sound to be perceived as a sound twice as loud.

Delay: The amount of time, usually in milliseconds (ms), that a signal processing unit adds to a channel of music. This is usually used to delay the rear channels with respect to the front channels to give a sense of greater space.

DSP: Standing for digital signal processing it is most commonly found in processing units to recreate or simulate a specific acoustic environment such as a concert hall or a disco club.

Graphic: This car equalizer has only a set of fixed frequencies that can be adjusted. Most often found on in-dash units.

Octave: Refers to the distance between two frequencies. One octave is twice the reference frequency. For example, 200 Hz is one octave away from 100 Hz and 400 Hz is one octave away from 200 Hz and two octaves away from 100 Hz.

Parametric: This type of equalizer has the ability to have the frequencies of adjustment be varied as opposed to a graphic equalizer with fixed frequencies.

Phasing: Refers to how far a signal varies, in degrees, from another signal. For example, if two subwoofers are wired with their terminals (+ and -) reversed with respect to one another they are one hundred and eighty degrees out of phase. This means that while one speaker is moving out the other will be moving in. Phase can also be changed by changing the distance two speakers are from the listener(s).

Presets: Some equalizers can be programmed to have more than one equalizer curve to adapt to different music and driving conditions.

Q: This is the degree that a range of frequencies will be affected by an equalizer. A high Q will have a narrow range of frequencies that will be affected while a low Q will affect a broader range.

Quasi-Parametric: This is a parametric equalizer that may also have the Q of the bands adjusted as well.

Real Time Analyzer (RTA): Sometimes called a "stick", this is a sophisticated tool for measuring the frequency response of a system over the entire audible spectrum. A type of sound which is equal at all frequencies, called "pink noise", is usually used in conjunction with these meters.

Slope: This is the rate at which a crossover attenuates a signal in decibels per octave. For example, a low pass, 12 dB per octave slope, at a frequency of 100 Hz, will be twelve dB less at 200 Hz, 24 dB less at 400 Hz and so on. Most active crossovers have an adequate slope of 12 dB per octave while higher numbers such as 24 dB per octave will give a better cutoff, especially useful for subwoofers.

Spectrum Analyzer: A display of bouncing lights on the face of an in-dash equalizer that correspond to the equalizer frequencies that can be adjusted. While eye catching on a sales floor these can become annoying (and dangerous) when driving.

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