Sub Help!!

[Green Machine Mowing]

im selling my 12" Jbl car sub in a box and need some advise on what to get. time to upgrade!!!! the spl on my current sub is 92 or 93 and i would like to bump that up as much as possable. i like tight bass i was thinking maybe 3 tens. but the high spl (around 100) of the pro 15"drivers are tempting. im in a couple shop classes so i can build whatever box i need. and it needs to run off of my american audio vlp 300, 150 times 2 at 4 ohms and 300 bridged 8 ohms. i know this is scattered but thanks very much for your help!!!

[Chris Roemer]

im selling my 12" Jbl car sub in a box and need some advise on what to get. time to upgrade!!!! the spl on my current sub is 92 or 93 and i would like to bump that up as much as possable. i like tight bass i was thinking maybe 3 tens. but the high spl (around 100) of the pro 15"drivers are tempting. im in a couple shop classes so i can build whatever box i need. and it needs to run off of my american audio vlp 300, 150 times 2 at 4 ohms and 300 bridged 8 ohms. i know this is scattered but thanks very much for your help!!!

No one here knows what to say to you. Not too many people (who like listening to music, anyway) would think of "SPL" as the main criteria for picking a sub. How low it'll go, how "smooth" it is (as in not too many dips and peaks), and probably box size, would be the main factors. Also, drivers typically don't play well with an amp when wired in threes. 2 (in parallel gains 6dB in sensitivity) or 4 are a lot more common (and sensible).

[the kid]

Let's not give up yet. Need more specifics of what YOU want. Do you want louder? Are you in spl contests? Is louder more important than quality? Have you liked the quality of your current sub? What does it sound like? Do you want techno bass? Do you want rock drum pounding? Do you want old peoples' music (fleetwood mac, styx, dir straits, springstine...)?

Narrow down some wants, so we can advise you on a good path to follow to achieve your goal.

[j_dunavin]

having been in the car audio areana for some time, i can tell you that your next upgrade should be an amp, not a sub. If your looking into highe SPL number, but also want to maintain tha "tight, punch" bass, you will need A) more power, and B) a better quality of amp. Not that what you have is junk, but there are some better alternatives.
Check out some of the JL slash serise amps, Rockford Fosgate T serise, even some of the MTX amps are ok. But you need someting in the 300-500 W range in a 4 ohm load. not 150- 300 into 8 ohm.
Also look into an audio control crossover. The 2xs is a great place to start. The steeper slope of the crossover, plus subsonic, and line driving cabablilites, will help save your amp, speaker, and give overall better sound.
Hope this helps.
The three tens would be nice though i think.
What kind of car?

[deromax]

I use and love two Pioneer Premier PRS-D2000T. They were current back in 2006 but can be had on eBay right now for very little money. 2 X 150W onto 4 ohms or 1 X 600W bridged mono onto 4 ohms. They are full range Class-D.

And they pound!

[philiparcario]

buy the 15 inch

http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?&Partnumber=290-460

99 sensitive handles 300watts is 8 ohm

build a 4 .5 cu ft box with a 6 inch wide 6 inch deep port it will play very loud the driver is 130 with free shipping. you will get a f3 of 40hz. but cabin gain will do the rest.

[Green Machine Mowing]

i would like a new amp but i cant justafy it, i didnt that jl made 120V amps?
i forgot to say that this is for my home stereo system. sound quality is very important, as is spl due to my 300 watt amp. i listen to some rap but mostly older stuff jethro-tull beatles ect. i would love to have the kick drum rip. louder would be good, going from apl of 92 to 99 or so should more then enough.im building some speakers with 10" drivers, inspired by "the woodys" sealed, which may fulfill my higher frequency bass. i do like the tighter bass maybe a 15 in a sealed box??? not so big either

[philiparcario]

completely different idea's then suggested. do you live near New jersey? if you do I have a killer sub that would be perfect for your amp 300 watts at 8 ohms. it is too big to ship it is a focal 12 inch sub in a 36 inch by 18 inch by 18 inch mdf box . you would need to pick it up. I would give you a great deal.

[Hal H]

*snip* Do you want old peoples' music (fleetwood mac, styx, dir straits, springstine...)? *snip*


Wow, I must be REALLY old...these guys didn't tickle MY fancy (well maybe Fleetwood Mac a bit:D)

[Green Machine Mowing]

dont live in nj, sounds like a nice set up!! seems like a pretty big box for a 12" must be ported

[the kid]

snip* Do you want old peoples' music (fleetwood mac, styx, dir straits, springstine...)? *snip

Going by his original post it appeared that he may not be even 2 decades old. So these groups are considered "old" by today's "youngins". Not that we're old, no no, not us...


Green Machine...what's your budget? We know some of your quality concerns so tell us how much you can afford and we will give you plenty of options.

[philiparcario]

dont live in nj, sounds like a nice set up!! seems like a pretty big box for a 12" must be ported

yeah it has a 4.5 inch port. it is about 4.8 cubic feet. 1.5 mdf except the baffle 2 inch mdf. it is about 900 new custom built by www.zalytron.com I got it really cheap but it is big and the wife said no. I have offered for pickup only on this board and no takers. I got 2 sold one. see link

http://s237.photobucket.com/albums/ff73/philipma1957/focal%20subs%20as%20speaker%20stands/

[Green Machine Mowing]

to bad u have to sell it, sounds like your gunna loose some major cash, put some flyers up for it at the nearest collage and i bet it will move prety fast. anyways i was hoping to spend no more then $200 on the driver plus lumber for a box ext. im kind of thinking ported now, i think the 2 10's im gunn build should take care of the tight bass, maybe some low ported bass???

[the kid]

ok. 1st opinion: How much space can you give for boxes? I'm thinking that in order to give you "more spl" you will need 2 subs which of course means more box space. In fact 2 separate subs will produce more bass and fill in your room more evenly and is recommended by many. That said, 2 of dayton 15" #295-470 would give A LOT of deep bass. Though you will need 2 big ported boxes perhaps 7 cu ft each. If your amp has a low crossover on it, then dial in where it sounds best. These will run about $166 + shipping. A little over budget with materials, but BASS!

You can even check with Philip for a small inline tweak you can do to a sub.

If you want just a single sub, let us know. I know you are looking at Pro Subs, but they need a lot of box and probably won't give the kind of bass you are searching for at home. Looking strictly at the printed spl numbers won't necessarily reflect the spl you will end up with. Given the same power and external parameters, a budget big speaker with a high spl rating may not be or "sound" as loud as a little smaller but higher quality speaker.

And be careful, you don't want to wash-out your "tight ten inchers" with over done sub bass. Then you will wonder what is wrong with tens.

[wlb]

Let's not give up yet. Need more specifics of what YOU want. Do you want louder? Are you in spl contests? Is louder more important than quality? Have you liked the quality of your current sub? What does it sound like? Do you want techno bass? Do you want rock drum pounding? Do you want old peoples' music (fleetwood mac, styx, dir straits, springstine...)?

Narrow down some wants, so we can advise you on a good path to follow to achieve your goal.
Gee, I listen to those bands .I didn't realize that I was old,no wonder I don't like rap music. I had better check and make sure my life insurance is payed up. Oops I dropped my cane .

[the kid]

I noticed he listed Jethro Tull. Maybe there's hope after all.

I get the "that's old" often from the teens I work with. They all seem to enjoy this new "hate the world" music. I try to get into it sometimes, but not much of what I hear seems happy or musically listenable. I remember songs for dating, love & parties. Not hate your woman, I'm no good, blah blah blah...

In fact I was recently enlightened that I am "so old" from a kid that sometimes comes to church. Now at 44 I would not have thought this, but if it keeps coming around I may have to sit down and take stock in myself & see what's wrong. Maybe I don't wear the right bling!

[Green Machine Mowing]

i think that i would like to stick to 1 15.should be pleny, ive already had complaints of my 12 rattling stuff at the neighbors house.if i did 2 they would probly be on one big box with a huge port between them. i certanly want good quality sound, and a good driver.

[the kid]

ok...using your amp that bridges into 300 watts @ 8 ohms, and to keep things simple but decent, try this sub #295-130. Runs 126 bucks + shipping. This should keep you in your $200 budget of parts & materials.

Install into a 6.5 ft3 net box (ex: 18x18x37 inside dimensions) with a 4' x 7.25" port. Looks like an F3 of about 22hz. Don't worry about the spl number. Room gain will add a little more. Bridge it on your amp, dial in the crossover and crank it up. I think you will be surprised. Check the reviews.

I'm sure there are more opinions out there. I am just trying to match what you are asking for without a lot of wizardry that some of these guys can do.

[Green Machine Mowing]

but if its in the same room as my current sub with a spl of 93 won it sound quiet in contrast???

[philiparcario]

G M M It may sound quiet at certain sounds and not others. I had the JBL you have at 70 hz the JBL will be louder if maxed at 45hz and lower this sub will play louder. The JBL rolls off around 45 to 50 hz. This sub gets under 30hz without rolloff. so home theater explosions, dinosaur footprints, helocopter noises all will play louder. MOOG bass for techno music will play better. other songs will not sound the same as your JBL which tends to go BOOM BOOM BOOM . your old sub was good for disco bass beats and dance beats. I liked it enough to build 2 of them. It never played as deep as this one will.

[the kid]

didn't you state in your first post that you were selling your 12 inch?

so...you are building a pair of speakers using 10's as the woofers. You want a subwoofer to get you some good lows because the 10" you are building should take care of the tight bass. You are selling your current 12" sub thus needing a new one. You are thinking 1 15" in a not-to-big box and certainly not 2 boxes. You have an amp (i am assuming it is a car amp?) that can bridge to 8 ohms @ 300 watts. Your budget is $200 for parts and materials.

Is this all correct? Any more info we need to know?
IF NOT...look at my choice, read Philip's reply, ask others if you wish. You have a 45 day return if you want to try our idea and you don't like it.

Or feed us more info and desires and we can try again.

[Green Machine Mowing]

yes the kid thats corret, its not a car amp its an american audio dj amp, i wish i never bought it, the fans are loud. i was thinking 200 max just for the driver

[the kid]

pro amp, ok...

does your amp have variable (dial) xo adjustment or does it have a switch? This could possibly affect the sub choice if you cannot cross low enough.

several budget options:
1. use the sub #295-130 as suggested anyway
2. (cool idea) get 2 12" dvc #295-490...wire coils parallel making each spkr 4 ohm...2 boxes...3.5cu ft each w/port 4" x 9.5"...fills in a lot of bass and adds more spl
3. NOT QUITE BUDGET - purchase a PE sub amp #300-805 for $109 (extremely popular amp)...this gives you at least 240 watts rms into a 4 ohm speaker, giving you a wider range of subs to choose from, has a variable xo & includes a low bass boost - NO LOUD FANS
4. add a sub #295-190 to the PE amp in a 6.5 cu ft box w/ 4"x9.5" port
5. add sub #295-470 to PE amp in a 6.5 cu ft box w/ 4"x7.25" port
6. IF using PE amp, choose among other 4 ohm subs that may work better, but more money

I am just suggesting some simple 'budget' type subs and boxes. And I am trying to get you your 'low' extension rather than just loud to add to your 10's. If you get just 'loud bass' (too high of spl) it will muck up your 10's and quality. Wanna keep ol' Jethro clean yet thick as a brick (good song, got it myself, somewhere).

There are many more ways to get sub depending on your budget (or no budget) and sometimes your building partience. If you have a wad of measuring equipment. And the learning to mathmatically put it all together. **the above statement does not apply to me**

So simple I can suggest. Ask others for more help. Keep feeding us info if necessary.

[Green Machine Mowing]

my amp just has a switch for the low pass filter, but i dont know what frequency it is set at, it dosent say anywhere, my hk avr 335 lets me set the crossover for all 7 channels, but not the sub, i have a ht omega striker sound card, cost $100 seems like there should be a low pass filter in there somewhere, but i cant find one.

p.s i like the jethro-tull refrence!!!

[the kid]

Green,

If you can swing it, buy the $109 plate sub amp. This will give you a lot of xo & bass boost adjustment and you will be able to integrate your sub into your system more the way you want it to be. With only 1 xo on/off switch now, it is a crap shoot.

Or, if you can, get a bigger sub amp. More power to play with. May not need it all now, but you may want to expand later.

Use your current amp for a computer spkr project. That's a lot of juice for gaming! And who really needs audiophile anyway for guns, grenades or sword fights? Battle scenes are just cool loud.

[Green Machine Mowing]

150 watts/channel at 4 ohms is pretty powerful for a computer set up. its all hooked up to my computer though, have you heard of any low pass software???

could be a pretty sweet garage set up tho!!

[the kid]

No low pass software. Others can help you with that part. Just music. Some gaming - currently Titan Quest. And occasional sound effects I managed to find. Try the early version THX movie intro if you can find it. It may be my favorite. There's one on the DTS selection of The Patriot that is really cool too. You will definitely want to play it when you get your HT going.

Personnally I don't need much on my computer, even though I have decent power & sound. It just makes for a satisfying 'wow' factor when company comes over.