Sub recommendations
Sub recommendations
I just bought a new JL 500.1 Amp and plan on adding a sub or subs to the car. For the power thats coming out of the JL what is the best Sub to get? Im looking for Clear Bass. Nothin too harsh. Just overall great sound. and What kinda box should i get with these subs? I am running an Avic D1 right now if that changes anything. And will i need a capacitor for the amp? or can i just plug it straight in?
There are a limited amount of boxes and a nearly unlimited amount of subwoofers so when I was faced with the same problem I picked the box first and then the sub-woofer to match the box. The are a matched set and some speakers will sound better in some boxes.
I've always wondered what people did with their life as they wait for the tow truck and their flat to get fixed if they pull the spare tire out of their trunk. I suppose that works for show cars with their support vechicals but it just doesn't strike me as practical to put my life on hold while I suffer a flat tire. So that meant that I could go with one of the two designs of under the rear strut bar boxes or one of the corner ones. I third option I didn't want was a universal amp/speaker/box but they may work for you.
Of the two under strut boxes one gives you a bit of space between the box and the back seat and the other eats all that up. I went with the smaller one which is sold by Zenclosures on e-bay for $99. Good quality, great fit, haven't had an issue with it. Turns out that its 0.75 cu.ft. size is just right for a pretty wide selection of subwoofers. I ran the numbers and picked a pair that worked.
I'm getting 112 dB worth of bass now (as measured
) with the gain set all the way down and bumped up a tad from bottom on my amplifier. That's the kind of bass that vibrates the car, your eyeballs, and your brain. When I was testing the system's SPL I was wearing double hearing protection.
The AVIC N1 has a pretty good amplifier section which puts out about 22 watts for the front speakers. You'll want much more than that for the power hungry sub-woofer and I would look at 120 watts and larger amplifiers. It's not until you get into big amps that you really "need" a cap but any size one can benefit some.
Have a listen to a couple of different Z's and pick the sound you like. I went with twin 10" sub-woofers but I've seen everything from one 8" to people that talk about five 12" woofers. I work at a radio and television broadcast facility as an engineer so I have to retain my hearing. The two 10" woofers are a bit much so I keep them as low and as balanced to the rest of the sound as possible.
Once I removed my hearing protection I tested what I thought was a good loud enough level and then checked it with the dB meter - 82 dB or about 1/100th of the power at 112 dB (-30 dB).
I've always wondered what people did with their life as they wait for the tow truck and their flat to get fixed if they pull the spare tire out of their trunk. I suppose that works for show cars with their support vechicals but it just doesn't strike me as practical to put my life on hold while I suffer a flat tire. So that meant that I could go with one of the two designs of under the rear strut bar boxes or one of the corner ones. I third option I didn't want was a universal amp/speaker/box but they may work for you.
Of the two under strut boxes one gives you a bit of space between the box and the back seat and the other eats all that up. I went with the smaller one which is sold by Zenclosures on e-bay for $99. Good quality, great fit, haven't had an issue with it. Turns out that its 0.75 cu.ft. size is just right for a pretty wide selection of subwoofers. I ran the numbers and picked a pair that worked.
I'm getting 112 dB worth of bass now (as measured
) with the gain set all the way down and bumped up a tad from bottom on my amplifier. That's the kind of bass that vibrates the car, your eyeballs, and your brain. When I was testing the system's SPL I was wearing double hearing protection.The AVIC N1 has a pretty good amplifier section which puts out about 22 watts for the front speakers. You'll want much more than that for the power hungry sub-woofer and I would look at 120 watts and larger amplifiers. It's not until you get into big amps that you really "need" a cap but any size one can benefit some.
Have a listen to a couple of different Z's and pick the sound you like. I went with twin 10" sub-woofers but I've seen everything from one 8" to people that talk about five 12" woofers. I work at a radio and television broadcast facility as an engineer so I have to retain my hearing. The two 10" woofers are a bit much so I keep them as low and as balanced to the rest of the sound as possible.
Once I removed my hearing protection I tested what I thought was a good loud enough level and then checked it with the dB meter - 82 dB or about 1/100th of the power at 112 dB (-30 dB).
Thx for the input. Im thinkin about puttin 2 10" alpine type r's. I havent heard the new ones but ive had 2 12" dvc ones in my maxima and those thing pounded hard and i had overall great sound. How will the 10's compare to the 12's. And im readin the stats and its sayin the new 10's are 500watts rms. So will my Jl 500.1 be enough to power 2? and are these really that much better then the old ones because my old 12's were 300watt rms and 900 peak ratin i believe
Define "pound" 
There is a trade off as speakers get larger and that's "control" of the moving mass. You're not going to find 18" woofers in a home speaker of quality. Many $1000-$5000 mid-fi speakers come with 10" woofers, a few with 12". That said most people aren't listening for, nor looking for accuate sound they're looking for "pound". A 12" speaker isn't that bad for a true sub-woofer as long as you cross it over at the correct point and maintain some sanity in driving it.
How loud a speaker is a complex combination of the sensitivity of the speaker, the wattage output of the amplifier, the input power supply regulation (there's that cap), the size and type of the box, and finally the room (car).
500 watts worth of JL amplifier will drive you deaf in a matter of a few hours a day across a bit of exposure. Please practice safe sound and just have a look at the OSHA recommended exposure limits. Having that size amplifier gives you the reserve to hit the transients (not the homeless people) that use to exist in music (listen to music pre-1990 or so).
Paul ('old fart with two subwoofers driven with 600 watts of amplifier, a degree in electrican engineering, certification as a professional television engineer, some permanent hearing loss, and some conversations with Ray Dolby, Bob Orban, and Jay Brentlinger)
There is a trade off as speakers get larger and that's "control" of the moving mass. You're not going to find 18" woofers in a home speaker of quality. Many $1000-$5000 mid-fi speakers come with 10" woofers, a few with 12". That said most people aren't listening for, nor looking for accuate sound they're looking for "pound". A 12" speaker isn't that bad for a true sub-woofer as long as you cross it over at the correct point and maintain some sanity in driving it.
How loud a speaker is a complex combination of the sensitivity of the speaker, the wattage output of the amplifier, the input power supply regulation (there's that cap), the size and type of the box, and finally the room (car).
500 watts worth of JL amplifier will drive you deaf in a matter of a few hours a day across a bit of exposure. Please practice safe sound and just have a look at the OSHA recommended exposure limits. Having that size amplifier gives you the reserve to hit the transients (not the homeless people) that use to exist in music (listen to music pre-1990 or so).
Paul ('old fart with two subwoofers driven with 600 watts of amplifier, a degree in electrican engineering, certification as a professional television engineer, some permanent hearing loss, and some conversations with Ray Dolby, Bob Orban, and Jay Brentlinger)
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