AE AV15-X or DC Audio LevelFour 15", For Sealed SQ?

[SmoothSQ 10+ year member]

I'll never get to hear either of those subs prior to purchasing one of them, so I need some advice / opinions on which to choose.

My power source at the moment as a Phoenix Gold X600.1 that puts out about 700 rms @ 1-4 ohms, according to the birthsheet.

Either sub would be going in a custom made sealed box -- no larger than 2.5 cubes though.

I'll have the sub crossed-over @ ~70hz.

Btw, the DC sub's coils would be used in parallel for a 1 ohm load.

The AV sub would have dual 4 ohm coils,wired in parallel for a 2 ohm load (Since I have a choice with the AV sub I wanted a higher impedance, because my amp will still put out the same power, and I'm assuming it'll put less strain on the amp as well.)

Here are the specs for each sub, in case those are relevant to your suggestion:

AV15-X

FS: 24Hz

Qms: 4.1

Vas: 197L

Cms: .22mm/N

Mms: 200g

Rms: 7.4

Xmax: 23mm

Xmech: 32mm

Sd: 794sqcm

Vd p-p: 3.67L

Qes: .39

Re: 1.6ohm (parallel)

Le: .38mH (parallel or series?)

Bl: 11.0Tm (parallel)

Pe: 1000W

Qts: .36

1WSPL: 90.4db

2.83V: 91.53dB

DC Audio LevelFour 15

Fs: 25.6Hz

Qms: 6.07

Vas: 160L

Cms: 1.83e-04 m/N

Mms: 211.60g

Xmax: 23.5mm

Sd: 791sqcm

Qes: 0.47

Re: 0.9ohm (parallel)

Le: 1.0mH (parallel)

Bl: 8.07 (parallel)

Pe: 1000W

Qts: .44

SPL: 89.4dB

Btw, I dunno how the DC sub is listed as having the same cone area as the AV. The surround on the DC looks wider to me. But oh well.

All advice / suggestion / comments will be appreciated. Thanx //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

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[SmoothSQ 10+ year member]

Price could possibly be a factor here. I couldn't find a price on the DC LevelFour 15 and they won't answer their phone.

The AV is priced very reasonably.

Does anybody know the price for the DC model that I'm considering?

 

[SmoothSQ 10+ year member]

Okay, I called a DC Audio dealer to get a price, and the price he gave me was not what I'm willing to spend.

I don't have any dealers in my state, so I figured I might be able to get a better price direct from DC Audio. I FINALLY got in touch with a sales person there, and the price she gave me was much more to my liking. I won't share the price because, based on a few threads I've skimmed through, I don't think they'd appreciate that.

Since the shipped prices for the 2 subs aren't far apart, all I need now is some input, advice, opinions, etc.

Are the DC LevelFour series subs accurate? Are they geared more for SPL or what?

Does n one know anything or have any opinions about the two subs I'm considering??? Help me out here. lol.

 

[05fronty 5,000+ posts]

that lvl 4 you probably will need like 2k to come alive.

 

[5cr4ppy 10+ year member]

that lvl 4 you probably will need like 2k to come alive.

i had 1 it didnt need much to get it loud....the xl would need 2k

 

[SmoothSQ 10+ year member]

that lvl 4 you probably will need like 2k to come alive.

They listed the thermal power handling as being 1000 rms though... //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/confused.gif.e820e0216602db4765798ac39d28caa9.gif

On paper it looks pretty efficient. It doesn't seem like it would need a hell of a lot of power to get reasonably loud.

I'm not an SPL guy anyway. It seems like 700 rms on a 15" sub with a rated efficiency of about ~89dB, with 23mm xmax, would be plenty to fill in the 30-70hz range.

I need to know if it's accurate though -- or more of an SPL sub.

 

[SmoothSQ 10+ year member]

i had 1 it didnt need much to get it loud....the xl would need 2k

So how did it sound to you?

 

[l7runner 10+ year member]

I don't think that anyone here would suggest the DC over the AE for SQ. Those subs are built for different purposes

 

[SmoothSQ 10+ year member]

I don't think that anyone here would suggest the DC over the AE for SQ. Those subs are built for different purposes

What makes the AE more of an SQ sub than the DC?

Have you heard either of them before?

I'm not asking because of disbelief, I'm just trying to understand as much as I can about the two subs before I make my purchase.

 

[05fronty 5,000+ posts]

i had 1 it didnt need much to get it loud....the xl would need 2k

maybe that is what i was thinking of. i think the dc is more of a spl sub though.

 

[UMWDawg92 10+ year member]

I've been told by several people that the DC lvl 4 is a "SQL" sub... it's designed to get loud but to still sound good, not an all out SPL sub. I have no personal experiance with it but I was looking into buying one and that's what I was told

 

[T3mpest 10+ year member]

The AV will be MUCH better for what you want. Both woofers are actually better on paper in ported boxes. The AV's have less motor noise, much lower inductance and inducatance variation over it's stroke. Both woofers are well designed, but realistically for being accurate the AV's are on another level vs the DC's. The DC is a overbuilt woofer designed to sound decent in a car audio install. The AV is a woofer used in reference systems in studios, homes, etc that is overbuilt in order to provide high SQ. The AV's will also get loud if you want to use them for that purpose as well. Anyway I have two in my car right now AV15h's in 4.9 cubes at 24hz tuning. Currently crossed over at 125hz@24db/octave. No complaints whatsoever.

 

[RAM_Designs 5,000+ posts]

I'd take the AE15. Lower inductance, and I'd bet good money that it uses a lower distortion motor as well.

 

[Cruzer 10+ year member]

ae15 hands down. i have a dc lvl 3 15, with lvl 4 soft parts, sealed 2.4 cubes.... i know there has to be better SQ wise...

 

[SmoothSQ 10+ year member]

Thanx for the input guys. Those replies were very helpful. I'll just go with an AV15-X in about about 2.3 cubic feet sealed, net.

I was confident beforehand that either sub would be plenty loud for my taste. I just didn't know which sub would be more accurate, have better transient response, etc.

So yeah, I'm gonna try the AV out. It'll be mid-September before they're available again, but when I get it hooked-up I'll be sure to share my thoughts about it's performance.

Thanx again guys //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif