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Old 08-25-2004, 01:44 PM   #1
plunk10
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Default Rock music subwoofer suggestions?

I'm considering picking up a subwoofer that will sound better with rock music, as I don't listen to much rap these days. I'd much rather feel a kick from the drums than a really deep bass note. I've searched a little, but cannot seem to find exactly what I'm looking for.

It will be powered by an MTX Thunder 2160 which I believe makes 320 watts x 1 RMS.

I've listened to a Kicker solobaric 12" L5, which had perfect deep bass notes for rap music such as eminem, but was lacking in the "punch" or "kick" department for music such as Metallica or Van Halen. About 10 years ago, I had a pair of 10" rockford fosgate punch subwoofers that had this kind of kick to them. I haven't heard a pair of subs with that kind of kick since then.

I'm considering either a single 10" sub, or possibly even two 8" subs wired in parallel.

Suggestions?

Thanks in advance.
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Old 08-25-2004, 02:13 PM   #2
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The best way to go for good "punch" is either a pair or one good single 10" sub in a sealed enclosure. Stay away from bandpass or ported boxes if you want to keep those bass lines tight. I have 2 JL 12's in a sealed enclosure and they still sound very clean and tight.

the box makes a big differance in how the speakers will sound and act.
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Old 08-25-2004, 02:39 PM   #3
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sealed sound better all around IMO but he's right, ported boxes generally make the bass sound good for rap and sealed sound real good with rock, regardless of the sub.

BTW, Rockford still makes subs if you were curious. Not to bad for the price...
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Old 08-25-2004, 02:41 PM   #4
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I'm assuming that solobaric is not where I should be looking then, since the box I tried was sealed. I was just thinking the 12" was too large for such punch. I will need to reconsider JL audio. I had a pair of 10" JL's a long time ago as well, but they were in JL's factory bandpass enclosure (well suited to the music I listened to back then).
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Old 08-25-2004, 03:11 PM   #5
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Alright, you finally forced my to post my long ass buyer's guide. Time to start sharing the info I guess.

http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=618889

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Old 08-25-2004, 03:17 PM   #6
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I have two 8" Kicker Competitions in a bandpass box and it's just the right amount of bass. Not to harsh and the highs are still crisp. Me likey my setup.
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Old 08-25-2004, 03:21 PM   #7
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I have a JL 10w7 in a custom built sealed enclosure. It keeps up with Unearth pretty well. Just look them up...doesn't get much faster.
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Old 08-25-2004, 03:24 PM   #8
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i have 2 10" solobaric's that are dual ohm. They sound very good all across the board and of course its a sealed box built to their exact recommended specifications. I'd think a single 10" solobaric with the proper power which your amp should give it will sound fine. I have a 600watt amp running both of them and its a rockford and it sounds very good
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Old 08-25-2004, 04:57 PM   #9
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1 - if you want added punch, focus on your midbass drivers, not the sub
2 - a sub in a ported box can sound every bit as "fast" or "punchy" as in a sealed box, like I said that really comes down on your midbass, not the sub. Pretty much everyone who says that ported boxes are slow or muddy or that they're not punchy have either never used a sub in a properly designed/built ported box, or they have a crappy front stage.
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Old 08-25-2004, 05:40 PM   #10
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What's a bandpass box mainly good for then? I bought one back in the noob days because "it looked cool"
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Old 08-25-2004, 07:12 PM   #11
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A prefab bandpass box will get very loud at a small range of frequencies and have almost no response outside that range, so basically the frequency response will look a bit like mount everest and it will sound like crap.

You can design and build a custom bandpass box for your specific sub(s) that will sound very good, but this takes a lot of designing and in the end you wind up with something that's only marginally better than a custom ported box, so there's no real point in spending all that time. In general, bandpass boxes are good for bassheads who don't care how it sounds, they just want it loud.
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Old 08-26-2004, 11:08 AM   #12
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Chalk up another recommendation for the IDQ 12". I have it in a really small .5 cu ft sealed box and it sounds great, can't wait to put it in a slightly bigger box or possibly port it. Its widely recognized as one of the preeminent sound quality subs. I listen to rock and alternative exclusively.
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Old 08-26-2004, 11:34 AM   #13
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A subwoofer for rock must integrate with your midbass as much as possible, and the "shaking" bass (40hz and under) must not overpower the "musical" bass (40hz+). This is not likely to happen with a kicker solobaric, even in a sealed enclosure, because they tend to have not enough high end. What you should look for is what I call a "light" subwoofer. They have better reference efficiency, but higher resonant frequency (cause partially by lower moving mass, that's why I call them light), so their low frequency extension is just as loud, but they have better midbass performance, so they integrate easily with frontstage and give a more natural sound. One subwoofer that do this job and will be a good match to your amplifier is the image dymanics IDQ12 V2 (witht the impedance choixe that match your amp). Put that in a 0.8 sealed enclosure and it will have the tight punch that you want in rock music. The IDQ12 is a very good choice, but it will handle sligtly less power than the V2 (will be OK witth your amp but not really more), I would use a 0.9 cu.ft sealed box. For a more affordable alternative (that I strongly suggest if you use the stock system otherwise), there's the dayton quattro 12, in a 1.2 cu.ft sealed enclosure, it will handle 220w rms.

For the Lobbyist, if my IDQ12 spec are right, you should not wait to use a bigger box. the bass will stay tight, but just 3db louder. If you have a strong midbass, you can go with a ported enclosure, but the response will shift about 10 hz down so your frontstage should be ready to take up or it could sound muddy. I suggest you 1.25 cu.ft tuned to 24 hz. this is a SQL box. same kind of response of a sealed box, just more efficient. from a 0.5 cf sealed box, the vented one is a huge 6 db gain in the lowest octave.

Last edited by NicEJ25; 08-26-2004 at 11:53 AM.
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Old 08-26-2004, 01:38 PM   #14
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Thanks for all of these intelligent responses.

Just so you know, the front stage has Kicker RS6 components driven by a Precision Power Art series A600 (over 10 years old I think) 150w x 2.
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Old 08-26-2004, 02:37 PM   #15
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i have 2 diamond audio M6 12" w/ Ti core in a brand new sealed box
ide love to sell them for cheap ($400 for the 2 subs ($250 ea) and box ($185)) everything was used for less than 3 months
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Old 08-26-2004, 04:21 PM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by plunk10
Thanks for all of these intelligent responses.

Just so you know, the front stage has Kicker RS6 components driven by a Precision Power Art series A600 (over 10 years old I think) 150w x 2.
That is a beautiful amp, and I mean in terms of quality not just visual appeal. I don't think you will find an amp to make a worthwhile upgrade beyond that for a long time. Now my opinion on the Kicker comps on the other hand... Actually I like their comps a lot better than their subs, but I still like a lot of others better. Now you just need to decide on how to fill out the bass.

BTW, whenever anyone says IDQ12 I always assume that they are talking about the v2 model of it. So I am not sure NicEJ25 if Lobbyist was actually recommending the original version or not. If not, then it does seem a lot of people in this thread agree the IDQ12v2 is a good way to go for a small box solution with loads of SQ that match your amp. Just make sure and double check that your amp is 1ohm stable, and if so then get the dual 2ohm version and you should be all set.

.:.5teve.804.:. - Those subs are pretty nice, but just don't seem right for plunk's application. You should try posting them in the classifieds though as I am sure someone would like to have them.

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Old 08-26-2004, 04:26 PM   #17
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Yea, I was talking about the IDQ12 v.2. I think I paid $150 plus shipping.
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Old 08-26-2004, 04:43 PM   #18
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I listen to a lot of techno metal (like NIN, Orbital, etc), as well as classic rock like AC/DC, Zepplin, U2 and others.

I tend to like 2 small subs versus one large. I used to sell Kenwood (not bad), Pioneer (little "tight" sounding until you wear 'em in) and MTX (not great, but if you want somethin' that "thuds", it'll do ya).

All in all, I'd agree with the RF Punch series comment. RF may be woefully overpriced at times, but they do make a great sub...
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Old 08-26-2004, 05:58 PM   #19
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Don't let my information lead you wrong, I considered the IDQ12 and the IDQ12V2 as beign different. the first one have shorter Xmax and larger box requirement, the V2 have smaller box requirement, longer Xmax, it can get about 3 more db of clean SPL, but need about 3 times more power to do so, but that's about what it can handle. (I rate in term of mechanical power handling, how much power is needed to reach Xmax in a given enclosure, on paper. I use the lower value, typically at 20 hz for sealed enclosure, but it can be any frequency using a vented or bandpass enclosure)

the evolution between both show today's car audio trend. power is cheap, so use a ton of it, most of it will turn into cone control (I cross my finger that this is what happen) and SQ is better.
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Old 08-27-2004, 02:54 PM   #20
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Well, I just returned from Tweeter with a recommendation. The sales dude is recommending a single JL Audio 8W7 for the type of bass that I am looking for. I think I'll need to listen to it inside the car before I make a final judgement. These run about the same price as a 10W6v2, but they recommend the W7 series over the w6v2. after looking at jlaudio.com, I noticed a prowedge enclosure loaded with an 8w7 (model CLS108RG-W7).

thoughts on the prowedge?
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Old 08-27-2004, 03:37 PM   #21
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Of those two, I'd get the 10W6V2. It'll get louder with the same power and IIRC, it can use a smaller box than the 8W7. manville smith of JL Audio tends to recommend a W6V2 sub of one size bigger than the W7 most people are thinking of getting unless they go to higher power levels.
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Old 08-27-2004, 04:16 PM   #22
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JT Clark
Of those two, I'd get the 10W6V2. It'll get louder with the same power and IIRC, it can use a smaller box than the 8W7. manville smith of JL Audio tends to recommend a W6V2 sub of one size bigger than the W7 most people are thinking of getting unless they go to higher power levels.
Agreed, I think a 10W6v2 will make you happy. The W7 line is seriously power hungry and in many installs (but not all so don't start this argument again) it can be hard to get a W7 to match up with a comp set in the frequency range they cross at. Of course either of the subs are probably going to be a pretty hefty price. Unless they cut you a seriously good deal, or you aren't as concerned about budget, I still vote for the IDQ. But money no object the W6v2 would be a little better performer.

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Old 01-15-2019, 08:10 AM   #23
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I know this very ancient thread, I know this is a very ancient topic, but I can't resist and I want to answer, because I am a fan of metal music

Well, the simplest way to go would be to get just about any head unit with pre-amp outputs (since the head unit alone won't do you much good if you're wanting power and volume). Find a decent 200-400 watt amp (prefferably 4-channel) then...
1.) Install better door speakers. You can either use the standard-size 6.5" speakers which gives you a considerable number of options. Or you can try upping the size a bit. I've had 6x9's in my doors for about a year now and love 'em. Another guy on the board has 8"s in his.
2.) Forget the headrest speakers. Either install a pair of 8's in the rear deck (full instructions are located in the Garage's Audio section). Or you can take the quick-and-dirty route like I did and buy a pair of small 6x9 boxes (yes, I have a thing for these speakers) from any audio store (I just bought mine at Wal-Mart; very inexpensive route), buy a pair of speakers with high power handling, hook them to the amp, and you're all set!

With my current setup I have a pair of Pioneer something like this https://soundrating.com/best-12-inch-subwoofer/ (can't remember the number...) 6x9's in the doors (the trick to using these is NOT to have a set with large magnets or they'll interfere with the door hinge). And just this weekend I got my hands on a pair of Audiobahn AS69Q's which just blew me away once I got them hooked up. 95db sensitivity, 200w RMS power handling, and they're just about the nicest-looking and cleanest sounding speakers I've ever heard.

Oh yeah, and they're LOUD. I listen to everything from Techno to Grunge and Industrial myself, and it sounds incredible. Just don't get yourself in trouble.

Last edited by Jareric; 01-22-2019 at 03:48 AM.
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Old 01-15-2019, 08:38 AM   #24
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Why talk about 6x9 speakers when the topic is subwoofers for bass?
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Old 02-26-2019, 03:37 PM   #25
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I'm a fan of strong 8" subwoofers for good "punch".

Massive Audio Hippo 8
Sundown Audio SA8
Alpine Type R 8
Kicker L7

All are dual voice coil to make them compatible with 1ohm or 2 ohm stable amps. Also grab one of these if you plan on using the stock stereo to make getting the signal easier/no wiring needed.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/132870918826
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