Nico Yazawa
Junior Member
Hi all! New to the forum and am hoping you guys/girls can steer me in the right direction.
So it has probably been half a decade at least since I've really done much with car audio other than installing a few head units so I've pretty much forgotten everything I used to know. I'm hoping to get a little advice on what to do.
I recently purchased a 2004 Lexus LS430 with the Mark Levinson premium sound and navigation. It has a subwoofer in the rear deck which unfortunately is partially blown and sounds really rattly. When I push down slightly on the sub, it sounds fine but I can't see any tears in it or anything. Anyway, I just want to replace it.
I figured I would use this as an opportunity to upgrade a bit but I plan for it to be temporary. I want to replace it with a nice system later this year. I am not ready to upgrade my headunit yet as I will be doing a custom Android tablet with a DAC install. That is a summer job when the weather is nice. So I will be using the factory head unit for now.
So I'm looking at buying a free air sub so I can just drop it in the deck. I will be using an aftermarket amp for it though.
I have an old school Alpine 3555 sitting around that I would like to use to get some extra bump. I was able to find these specs on online:
Maximum Power Output........................................500w total
Power Output (2020 Hz to 20KHz, at 14.4v battery voltage)
4 channel mode: 50W x 4 (into 4 ohm with 0.08% THD) or
75W x 4 (into 2 ohm with 0.3% THD)
3 Channel mode: 50w x 2 + 150w x 1 (with 0.3% THD)
2 channel mode: 150W x 2 (into 4 ohm with 0.3% THD)
Fequency Response.......................................... ....10 Hz to 50 KHz
Signal to Noise Ratio............................................ 105dBA
Slew Factor............................................ ................ Greater than 5
Input Sensitivity .................................................. ... 100 mV to 2V
Input Impedence......................................... ........... 10 K ohms Min.
Power Requirement....................................... ....... 11-16V DC Neg Ground
I'm thinking about buying the Kicker Comp S 40CWS84 8". I can drop this right into my rear deck but I also have the option of putting it in a box later. I can get it for like $60 on Amazon. Here is the thing though, I'm hesitant about buying such a cheap sub as I used to spend a lot more on subs... Do you guys think this will be decent enough to hold me over six months or so? I really don't want to spend over $100 on the sub as like I said, it is temporary. I'd buy something higher end used but I want to get this going quickly so I don't want to deal with trying to get a deal going. The older model, the Kicker CWCS84 CompC, is also available. I would assume the newer one is a bit better but the old one is a Prime item so I can get it here fast.
I was also looking at a Pioneer TS-SW2002D2. It is a little more at around $70 on Amazon. I have no experience with Pioneer subs though. I'm not sure what to expect. This is a Prime item too which means I can get this thing here very quickly.
I listen to a lot of pop and electronic music. Lot's of J-pop, EDM, trap, vaporwave, trance and other electronic based music. So I think something tight will be a good option. I'll probably go with a 10" down the road for a better middle ground between tight and deep bass though.
I already purchased the speaker line to RCA converter so getting sound to the amp will be no problem but I'd like some individual control for the sub. The amp has no remote for adjusting the bass. What would you guys recommend to accomplish this?
Any advice would be much appreciated. I haven't done anything car audio related for so long, I feel like I've forgotten everything I ever knew. So I feel like a total noob right now lol.
So it has probably been half a decade at least since I've really done much with car audio other than installing a few head units so I've pretty much forgotten everything I used to know. I'm hoping to get a little advice on what to do.
I recently purchased a 2004 Lexus LS430 with the Mark Levinson premium sound and navigation. It has a subwoofer in the rear deck which unfortunately is partially blown and sounds really rattly. When I push down slightly on the sub, it sounds fine but I can't see any tears in it or anything. Anyway, I just want to replace it.
I figured I would use this as an opportunity to upgrade a bit but I plan for it to be temporary. I want to replace it with a nice system later this year. I am not ready to upgrade my headunit yet as I will be doing a custom Android tablet with a DAC install. That is a summer job when the weather is nice. So I will be using the factory head unit for now.
So I'm looking at buying a free air sub so I can just drop it in the deck. I will be using an aftermarket amp for it though.
I have an old school Alpine 3555 sitting around that I would like to use to get some extra bump. I was able to find these specs on online:
Maximum Power Output........................................500w total
Power Output (2020 Hz to 20KHz, at 14.4v battery voltage)
4 channel mode: 50W x 4 (into 4 ohm with 0.08% THD) or
75W x 4 (into 2 ohm with 0.3% THD)
3 Channel mode: 50w x 2 + 150w x 1 (with 0.3% THD)
2 channel mode: 150W x 2 (into 4 ohm with 0.3% THD)
Fequency Response.......................................... ....10 Hz to 50 KHz
Signal to Noise Ratio............................................ 105dBA
Slew Factor............................................ ................ Greater than 5
Input Sensitivity .................................................. ... 100 mV to 2V
Input Impedence......................................... ........... 10 K ohms Min.
Power Requirement....................................... ....... 11-16V DC Neg Ground
I'm thinking about buying the Kicker Comp S 40CWS84 8". I can drop this right into my rear deck but I also have the option of putting it in a box later. I can get it for like $60 on Amazon. Here is the thing though, I'm hesitant about buying such a cheap sub as I used to spend a lot more on subs... Do you guys think this will be decent enough to hold me over six months or so? I really don't want to spend over $100 on the sub as like I said, it is temporary. I'd buy something higher end used but I want to get this going quickly so I don't want to deal with trying to get a deal going. The older model, the Kicker CWCS84 CompC, is also available. I would assume the newer one is a bit better but the old one is a Prime item so I can get it here fast.
I was also looking at a Pioneer TS-SW2002D2. It is a little more at around $70 on Amazon. I have no experience with Pioneer subs though. I'm not sure what to expect. This is a Prime item too which means I can get this thing here very quickly.
I listen to a lot of pop and electronic music. Lot's of J-pop, EDM, trap, vaporwave, trance and other electronic based music. So I think something tight will be a good option. I'll probably go with a 10" down the road for a better middle ground between tight and deep bass though.
I already purchased the speaker line to RCA converter so getting sound to the amp will be no problem but I'd like some individual control for the sub. The amp has no remote for adjusting the bass. What would you guys recommend to accomplish this?
Any advice would be much appreciated. I haven't done anything car audio related for so long, I feel like I've forgotten everything I ever knew. So I feel like a total noob right now lol.