First system not sure how to wire to amp

[blazian87 10+ year member]

Kickers L7's are not THAT bad, but it's nothing special either. I just never liked the sound of it. The engineering is crap considering how much it costs. If it was half the price, it would actually be a decent budget sub but for the price, I would expect more. That is why I would never get one. Plus you always hear everyone blowing them. No recones available either. Everyone's been talking about kickers ever since I can remember. They did one helluva good job on marketing I give you that because people just can't stop talking about their square shaped subs.

Take a look at this video. Guy cutting up kicker L7 so you can see for yourself what's inside.

 

[jzanca]

There's alot to clear up for you. First of all, don't use that capacitor.. it does more harm than good.. You can find plenty of article why. Second, you said you have a honda pilot.. I think you need a D5100R, not the D5100.. Which side is your positive terminal at? Left or right? Check to see if you got the right battery because the terminal could be on the wrong side. If you got the wrong one, cancel the order right away. I made this mistake and had to use my D2400 as a rear battery instead.
Just because you run more power, doesn't necessarily mean it's louder. It's how you use that power. If you go anything over 1200w, you need to upgrade electrical and it gets expensive quick. Instead, you should do more cone area and get an efficient ported box that will utilize your power the most. You're lucky because you have the extra space to use for bigger subs. Space makes bass. Cone is king. Remember that. I have a corolla running more than 2000w and I bet you can be louder than me with 1000w.

The 2 Dayton 15's would definitely be a better choice than 2 15" kicker L7's and sound way better too. You have to factor in the enclosure you're gonna put it in too because those Dayton Ultimax's require 6 cubic ft for EACH sub ported and you need to get a 2000w amp to handle that also. Yes, you would need a H/O alternator and a 2nd battery for that. That is why I recommended just 1 of them or just get 2 lower powered 15's like the SSA Dcons in a good box and you should be bangin'. The 15" Dcon's would only need 3.5 - 4 cubic ft per sub and 1000w would be more than sufficient for that. If you're not trying to spend thousands of dollars on electrical and equipment, then I would suggest you stick with 1200w or less.

RMS numbers do not neccessarily mean louder. You have to look at the Thiele small parameters and the actual parts they use to make the subwoofer.
seriously man, get an 18" you'll be loud as FFF and save a lot of money. Put that money into a proper amp, ****PROPER CUSTOM BUILT PORTED ENCLOSURE******(Most important fking aspect) and upgrade your battery along with a big 3 upgrade kit. Use sky high or knukonceptz wire.

These three 18s would smash those kickers no problem. They'll take whatever power you'll throw at them too so make sure you get a D2 and wire down to 1 ohm. Unless you are planning on getting a kicker/alpine/rockford amp that does power at 2 ohms.

HDC3.118 Copper Coil Subwoofer

American Bass XFL1822

Ethos 18" Subwoofer - 1800 watts - directsoundsolutions.com

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Okay thank you both for responding. When do you need a second battery? I'll take a look at the terminals after I get out of class, thank you for catching that. In regards to the 18'', should I go for one 18'' or play it safe with one 15''? I'll order a multi-meter to hook up today so I could keep up with reading the voltages.

 

[jzanca]

You were right by the way, positive is on the right side. Saved me from a big mistake.

 

[Jeffdachef 5,000+ posts]

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Okay thank you both for responding. When do you need a second battery? I'll take a look at the terminals after I get out of class, thank you for catching that. In regards to the 18'', should I go for one 18'' or play it safe with one 15''? I'll order a multi-meter to hook up today so I could keep up with reading the voltages.

measure up the LxWxH that you are willing to give up and we'll see what sub will work best in that space.

 

[blazian87 10+ year member]

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Okay thank you both for responding. When do you need a second battery? I'll take a look at the terminals after I get out of class, thank you for catching that. In regards to the 18'', should I go for one 18'' or play it safe with one 15''? I'll order a multi-meter to hook up today so I could keep up with reading the voltages.

If space allows it, you should always go with the bigger woofer. An 18" with 1000w will hit harder than a 15" with 1000w if they are the same brand and make. 2 15's would be louder but then you would have to dive into upgrading your electrical most likely so it would actually be safer for you to go with 1 nice 18 and make the most out of it. Would save you the most money as well. Can you get a measuring tape and find out exactly how much trunk space you are willing to give up because it will take up a lot.

A 2nd battery would be needed if you see your voltage drop down too low. Otherwise you might be fine with a good front battery.

 

[jzanca]

measure up the LxWxH that you are willing to give up and we'll see what sub will work best in that space.

If space allows it, you should always go with the bigger woofer. An 18" with 1000w will hit harder than a 15" with 1000w if they are the same brand and make. 2 15's would be louder but then you would have to dive into upgrading your electrical most likely so it would actually be safer for you to go with 1 nice 18 and make the most out of it. Would save you the most money as well. Can you get a measuring tape and find out exactly how much trunk space you are willing to give up because it will take up a lot.
A 2nd battery would be needed if you see your voltage drop down too low. Otherwise you might be fine with a good front battery.

Okay I just have a couple of more questions; my friend told me when he had his system which were two 18'' subs (forgot the brand) he had a second battery hooked up to his cars front stock battery. Is it okay for me to use two different batteries like he suggested? Do not want to invest in a second battery if I don't have to. Also with his car while I don't know the wattage his amp was, he ran okay with two batteries and the big 3. Do you think if I attempted to put in two 15's with a stock alternator, two batteries and the big 3 upgrade there could be any chance I won't have to buy a h/o alternator?

 

[Jeffdachef 5,000+ posts]

Okay I just have a couple of more questions; my friend told me when he had his system which were two 18'' subs (forgot the brand) he had a second battery hooked up to his cars front stock battery. Is it okay for me to use two different batteries like he suggested? Do not want to invest in a second battery if I don't have to. Also with his car while I don't know the wattage his amp was, he ran okay with two batteries and the big 3. Do you think if I attempted to put in two 15's with a stock alternator, two batteries and the big 3 upgrade there could be any chance I won't have to buy a h/o alternator?

totally depends if your alternator on your car can handle it. I had the same dual agm battery setup with a stock 80 amp corolla alt with a kinetik battery in the hood and one in the trunk with 0 gauge big 3. No problems at all with a power hungry 2k amp.. However other people with weaker alts or inefficient electrical systems get crazy voltage drops even from 1000 watts.

I googled up the honda pilot trunk man. Looks like you can barely squeeze and 18 in there. No chance in hell you are going to fit a pair of 15s. They will struggle for air. Your choices look like 2 12s with some trunk space, 1 15 with trunk space or 1 18 with ZERO trunk space.

actually you might not even have room to properly load(reflect the sound wave properly) the subwoofer with the 18. Stick to a powerful 15 in a proper ported enclosure subs facing up, port back, allow 4-6 inches of free space from the port to the rear so it can breath.

You cannot cram subs in tight spaces and expect it to get loud. You'll lose a lot of output if you do that. Never skimp on usuable airspace

 

[jzanca]

totally depends if your alternator on your car can handle it. I had the same dual agm battery setup with a stock 80 amp corolla alt with a kinetik battery in the hood and one in the trunk with 0 gauge big 3. No problems at all with a power hungry 2k amp.. However other people with weaker alts or inefficient electrical systems get crazy voltage drops even from 1000 watts.
I googled up the honda pilot trunk man. Looks like you can barely squeeze and 18 in there. No chance in hell you are going to fit a pair of 15s. They will struggle for air. Your choices look like 2 12s with some trunk space, 1 15 with trunk space or 1 18 with ZERO trunk space.

actually you might not even have room to properly load(reflect the sound wave properly) the subwoofer with the 18. Stick to a powerful 15 in a proper ported enclosure subs facing up, port back, allow 4-6 inches of free space from the port to the rear so it can breath.

You cannot cram subs in tight spaces and expect it to get loud. You'll lose a lot of output if you do that. Never skimp on usuable airspace

Understood, i'm going to see what the stock alternator in the car is and do a little research; thank you. As for the dimensions, are you sure you found the right ones? I have, from the wheel wells Width x 49'' Height x 36'' Depth x 45''. Comparing that to the sub box that would come with the 2 15'' L7's which dimensions are Width 38" x Height 18" x Depth 18"

 

[CSCStang]

Understood, i'm going to see what the stock alternator in the car is and do a little research; thank you. As for the dimensions, are you sure you found the right ones? I have, from the wheel wells Width x 49'' Height x 36'' Depth x 45''. Comparing that to the sub box that would come with the 2 15'' L7's which dimensions are Width 38" x Height 18" x Depth 18"

Lotta room, but will it fit through the trunk opening would be the question.

 

[jzanca]

Lotta room, but will it fit through the trunk opening would be the question.

Well if I flip the box so the length is facing parallel to the car then I'm sure I could get it to fit in if it were an issue.

 

[jzanca]

@jeffdachef found in the manual the stock electrical info, I'm not really 100% on what I'm looking at could you advise please?

link: http://www.piloteers.org/forums/attachments/performance/33606d1208406027-alternator-question-2006-honda-pilot-service-manual-page-2-2.jpg

 

[CSCStang]

@jeffdachef found in the manual the stock electrical info, I'm not really 100% on what I'm looking at could you advise please?link: http://www.piloteers.org/forums/attachments/performance/33606d1208406027-alternator-question-2006-honda-pilot-service-manual-page-2-2.jpg

You have a 130 amp alt. Not bad man. I have a 135 and I'm running roughly

2k with very little dip in voltage.

 

[jzanca]

You have a 130 amp alt. Not bad man. I have a 135 and I'm running roughly2k with very little dip in voltage.

Ahh great thank you, do you think if the voltage drops too low it would be a good idea to drop in a Optima Yellow instead of a new alt as a money saver?

 

[CSCStang]

Ahh great thank you, do you think if the voltage drops too low it would be a good idea to drop in a Optima Yellow instead of a new alt as a money saver?

Yes sir. I'm still on the stock batt btw. Big 3 done.

 

[Jeffdachef 5,000+ posts]

Ahh great thank you, do you think if the voltage drops too low it would be a good idea to drop in a Optima Yellow instead of a new alt as a money saver?

no optima, overpriced for the performance it gives, Xs power, kinetik and odyssey batteries is where its at. 130 amps is good enough, just upgrade the battery and monitor voltages.

Thats a lot of room so i'm assuming you are not using your 3rd row seats? that makes things a lot easier(i was assuming you'd want the 3rd row seats), you can even fit a pair of 18s if you want. If you are a crazy basshead, you can plan ahead for the future and build a seperate chamber dual 18" enclosure, run only 1 now and in the future you can add another.