Originally posted by SKMexiFry I believe you are burning the coating off of the voice coil, especially if you are playing them hard right out of the box. Also, when you buy new subs, they give off a funny smell for around the first 2 hours of play, which is from what I mentioned above. Basically you are supposed to give new subs a fair amount of break-in time, or play which is at a low volume level. I did around 10 hours, and then I warm my 12" up at low volume for 5 minutes every morning or when I am out of my car for a long period of time. Basically, if you just bought them and want them to last longer, don't wail on them right out of the package.