Spent 2k on a sub and amp..but bass seems quiet..help!

[mbrooky 10+ year member]

what is JL? //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/confused.gif.e820e0216602db4765798ac39d28caa9.gif

 

[BlactimusCrime 10+ year member]

what is JL? //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/confused.gif.e820e0216602db4765798ac39d28caa9.gif

Overpriced shiz

 

[hispls 5,000+ posts]

The shop is telling me that I played them too loud before the subs were properly broken in. Could this be my fault that I had the head unit volume turned up too loud while the cone was too tight, causing the voice coils to heat up? The shop is accepting zero blame for this mess. Could it have been my fault?

Speaker Break In: Fact or Fiction? — Reviews and News from Audioholics

"breaking in" your woofer should happen in seconds. This is pure and utter ********. IF they have the sub in a correct box and set the gains and crossovers properly you should not have blown up that sub with 1KW amp. IF you paid them for the install IMO it was their obligation to set things up so you wouldn't damage equipment.

Put it this way, if they KNEW you needed to "break in" your woofers did they mention it to you when you picked up your car? Probably not because that's ********, they realize they goofed and they don't want to eat the cost of making it right.

 

[audioholic 5,000+ posts]

I'd take the W7 over any subs mentioned in the replies any day of the week.
My substage cost double what the OP payed. But it's loud as **** and sounds perfect!

You payed $4k for two Hertz Mille ML3000's and a LRx1.2K?

 

[The HACKER 10+ year member]

//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/suicide.gif.a649d21efc0d1fd4890a6428166586c1.gif

 

[doe boy 10+ year member]

You payed $4k for two Hertz Mille ML3000's and a LRx1.2K?

That's roughly what they cost up here in Canada bro //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/crying.gif.ec0ebefe590df0251476573bc49e46d8.gif

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

the key sentence is that your amp gain, remote level, and head unit were maxed out.

who did that? did the shop max out the gain or did you do that to counter the low bass output?

most likely, your subs are wired incorrectly, causing either electrical or acoustic cancellation. or it's a bad amp and they pawned it off on you.

either way, you should have a warranty claim. if they will not honor the warranty, call JL and file a complaint against the shop and find out if they are an authorized dealer. if you maxed out your own levels, you may not have a claim due to "abuse" but you may be able to argue that something was wrong from the beginning.

your next step should be bench testing each sub and the amp - which means removing each sub and the amp from the car and testing them with known equipment. it is possible the LOC is wired wrong as well. if the left and right channels are wired out of phase, you would get a very low output when the amp sums those channels.

if you cannot find a competent shop, look to an electronics repair shop. people who repair electronics typically understand how they work. people who just install electronics typically do not.

ignore 70% of the posts on here. in three pages you've only had 2 or 3 members actually give you useful advice. JL makes nice equipment that should give you decades of faithful service if properly cared for.

 

[carguy83 10+ year member]

Funny how any threads that deals with any JL products turns into a bash fest. But I digress...

John, I would seriously take the equipment back to them and demand another tech (if available) to install it for you. This sounds like an install error on their part. The W7 is a very capable subwoofer, and should yield very good output when installed correctly.

 

[audioholic 5,000+ posts]

most likely, your subs are wired incorrectly, causing either electrical or acoustic cancellation. or it's a bad amp and they pawned it off on you.

My first thought was incorrect speaker wiring as well. But, he has a single 12W7, which is 3ohm SVC, so the only way to wire it wrong would be to wire it out of phase, which wont affect impedance. Incorrect phase positions can/will affect perceived speaker output, but not by the drastic amount the OP seems to be describing. And, the slash series of amplifiers have the same output anywhere from 1.5 ohms to 4 ohms, thanks to the r.i.p.s. design of the power supply.

How would speaker impedance affect acoustical cancellation?

I agree the amp could be the problem, and a simple swap with another one at the shop where he bought it would tell them that, but I still think the mostly likely place the problem lies is in the signal chain somewhere. High level outputs from the h/u (speaker wires), LOC being used, odd reaction to gain settings... these all point to it probably being a signal issue imho.

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

^ i thought i read he had two W7's, good catch. Those HO enclosures only use a single W7. I felt $2k was a good price for a pair of W7's, the box and the amp... //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

i was referring to acoustic cancellation from a pair of out of phase woofers and electrical cancellation from a pair of out of phase voice coils. neither of which are the case with a single SVC sub.

even using a mp3 player fed into the amp (gains turned down) would help identify if the amp is the culprit.

most LOC's are crap. David Navone has a nice LOC.