Are powered subs just a compromise or are they decent?

[bakesalee 10+ year member]

I'm not looking to shake anyone. I actually don't even want to "feel" anything myself. Just looking to add low end to my system, seriously no boom boom boom.

Is a powered sub a good option or is that a compromised item made for trucks? I have a 4 door sedan, just want to add bass w/o having to do another year of research on sub + enclosure + another amp. Screw all that.

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[silvercookie 5,000+ posts]

bazooka makes powered sub

infinity bass link.

 

[speedfreak28 10+ year member]

do 1 10 inch sub sealed with a 500watt amp and you wont lose much space and that should give you the sound your going for

 

[stophatin 10+ year member]

yea u dont want to get an "all in one" package, they tend to be pretty weak

do what speedfreak said

 

[helotaxi 5,000+ posts]

I was actually quite impressed with the Basslink that we put in my friend's truck. Good output to compliment a basic system and sounded pretty good.

 

[azimuth 5,000+ posts]

I was actually quite impressed with the Basslink that we put in my friend's truck. Good output to compliment a basic system and sounded pretty good.

i had a basslink in my sonoma 5 years back or so, and it performed pretty well. easy to hook up. easy to adjust. pretty small. you should also consider getting an 8 inch sub and building a small sealed box for it. you could get some decent bass really inexpensively that route. a little 200 watt 8 inch sub can sound really good actually.

 

[audioholic 5,000+ posts]

I'm not looking to shake anyone. I actually don't even want to "feel" anything myself. Just looking to add low end to my system, seriously no boom boom boom.
Is a powered sub a good option or is that a compromised item made for trucks? I have a 4 door sedan, just want to add bass w/o having to do another year of research on sub + enclosure + another amp. Screw all that.

A year? You should spend that time refining your research skills instead.

 

[ARK_SWAMP_RIDER 10+ year member]

I am also in the same position. I haven't heard anything about it from others, but the Alpine PLT-5 has excellent reviews on crutchfield. Here is a link:

http://www.crutchfield.com/App/Product/Item/Main.aspx?search=plt&i=500PLT5

Just throwing it out there to compare, not saying it is worth the money.

 

[jdc753 10+ year member]

I know its a little bit more money but maybe a simple setup with something like this here would give you some clean sounding base without taking up too much space.

IDQ 10"

http://www.woofersetc.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&Product_ID=4993

JBL 300w amp

http://www.woofersetc.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&Product_ID=234

 

[GAM3OVR 5,000+ posts]

A year? You should spend that time refining your research skills instead.

x2 lol

try using google. quick search results

 

[DidUHearThat? 10+ year member]

The "boom" is part of the musical content. Bass is felt as much as it is heard. If you sit in a live concert hall when an acoustic bass player bows on his strings you can feel it in your groin. When a drummer hits his kick pedal you feel it in your chest. When a church choir sings they make the room resonate and you can feel it thru your seat.

People go over the top with their giant bass systems, but you do need a fair amount of power and large drivers to play low frequencies and "boom" to acurately reproduce real music.

A single 10" can do alot to improve the sound quality of your system.