Kenwood sub upgrade..

[CAT MAN 5,000+ posts]

Well at least youll admit your opinion is biased
I'll see what someone else says, so far I think its just you two that have chimed in.

if you dont mind going out we could meet and i could show you my setup for daily that might let you get a feel for yourself. would have to be next week so i can get my mids in but it would be worth it

 

[Phoenix Risen 10+ year member]

im not really biased. ive ran sealed quite a few times with pretty good results. i was doing 141 with a single sealed 15 (on nowhere near enough power to really make it move)

but for what your wanting i still think the 4th order would give you some killer results.

 

[CAT MAN 5,000+ posts]

im not really biased. ive ran sealed quite a few times with pretty good results. i was doing 141 with a single sealed 15 (on nowhere near enough power to really make it move)
but for what your wanting i still think the 4th order would give you some killer results.

141 on a 15 sealed? i feel bad knowing my score now ............................

 

[Phoenix Risen 10+ year member]

141 on a 15 sealed? i feel bad knowing my score now ............................

it was a massive dmx stage 2 rebuilt by psi

and it was in the kick.

i was doing a 143 at the headrest and 145.4 in the kick with it ported and it actually sounded better.

 

[KTMrida4life 10+ year member]

in the right enclosure on the right power a good 10 will outperform all 4 of the mixed subs your wanting to do.

Whaaaaa? I mean dont get me wrong I understand one 10 performing mayyyyybe 2 10s.. but 1 10 performing 4 10s that total 1400W rms? I dont see it.

Ive never heard 4 10s, but if sounds anything like 2 10s compared to one, it should be pretty loud..

 

[Phoenix Risen 10+ year member]

it all depends on the application.

4 weak 10s in a sealed box on 1400 vs a strong single 10 in a well built 4th order or ported enclosure on the same power (just from a single amp)

i would lay odds on the single 10 being louder. ive seen it 100 times. you dont always have to have a huge system to make it loud.

im moving back down to a 12 from a 15, and the 12 is going to be louder (mainly do to space constraints on the 15).

car audio is 5% equipment 90% install and 5% alcohol.

 

[KTMrida4life 10+ year member]

it all depends on the application.
4 weak 10s in a sealed box on 1400 vs a strong single 10 in a well built 4th order or ported enclosure on the same power (just from a single amp)

Well I could see that.. thats an apples to oranges comparison IMO. The ported box might have more boom because of the box its in (ported/4th order) but if you had that same sub in a sealed box theres no way it could outperform 4 subs in a sealed box.

So every car out there has to have the same brand/model subs if you have multiple? I have different model amps, but theyre the same year, same manufacturer and probably are very very similar inside.. besides the fact one puts out 400W more than the other.

I mean I could try to trade my kenwoods that I got + cash for 4 10s on here.. doubt anyone would do that.

 

[Bettr n' Revrse 5,000+ posts]

OP... You honestly sound like you have your mind made up on pretty much everything and no one is gunna come in here and keep trying to give you advice cuz you arent listening very well... My advice to you is sell everything you have and start reading around here to get a basic grasp of audio

 

[KTMrida4life 10+ year member]

OP... You honestly sound like you have your mind made up on pretty much everything and no one is gunna come in here and keep trying to give you advice cuz you arent listening very well... My advice to you is sell everything you have and start reading around here to get a basic grasp of audio

Well thats very helpful.

I think I have a "basic grasp" of car audio otherwise I would've had someone else install everything in my car.. I came on here' date=' as well as diymobileaudio, to learn more. Not get dissed. I dont have my mind set on anything that I [b']haven't already bought[/b] over 6 months ago and the amp I just bought!

How am I not listening? Im taking what Im being told by others into consideration. Im not made of money, in fact I currently don't have a job. 18, still live at home. I actually have a budget. I stated in the first post I was trying to stick with a sealed box and within six posts someone says go ported.

Im open to anymore advice on subs. I really would go ported on the box if I could hear how it sounded playing some heavy metal. I love when listening to songs with the double kickdrum in the background hitting crazy fast.. very punchy with the sealed box, if I go ported, wont I lose that? I wish I knew someone with a ported box, everyone I know has sealed. Never even seen a bandpass/4th order box..

It sounds like mixing the kenwoods/kickers is a bad idea. From what I've read about Kicker they aren't great either, and I know my Kenwoods arent either. What about rockford fosgates subs?

 

[BrownVanMan 10+ year member]

id go with a 12 in a properly built ported box. i would either go sa 12 or dc lvl 3

 

[Bettr n' Revrse 5,000+ posts]

id go with a 12 in a properly built ported box. i would either go sa 12 or dc lvl 3

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With a properly built box no you will not loose the punch you like depending on sub choice and tuning...I would sell you subs and save up for something better and IMO your amps as well... What sort of space do you have to work with?

 

[TheUnderFighter 10+ year member]

I know you wanna try to use or hold onto what you already have, but you could sell it all and get something much better for likely right around the same price. You really seem to be set on all these huge name branded crap, which is typically just low-end gear charged at a premium because of the name badge. Kenwood makes decent HU's and that's about it. Rockford and Kicker make decent amps and that's about it. Their subs (and amps really) are just too expensive to justify paying for, when you could get a much better product at much less of a price.

We've covered mis-matched subs is a no-no, good.

Going from sealed to ported you won't lose anything if it's a properly designed ported enclosure, fit for your application, you'll only gain output.

four 10's being louder or quieter than a single 10 is purely on installation. Much like many situations, it's not what you have, but how you use it. A quality single 10" woofer in a properly designed and built enclosure for that vehicle, can outperform four mis-matched 10" woofers in poorly installed enclosures not fit for that vehicle or application.

Obsidian Car Audio

Phenomenal 15" subwoofer that is very affordable and well built. Can take 1k power all day. And perform well in a sealed or ported enclosure, with decent output and sound quality. The downside to all of that? It's a small company with small production runs, so they are currently sold out and building more of those woofers.

If you're not willing to sell your current amps, tell us which ones you have, and a budget for subwoofers to match them with. And if you are going to go ported, keep in mind a new enclosure designed and built properly, will likely cost anywhere from $100-$200 if someone builds it for you.

 

[KTMrida4life 10+ year member]

//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/rolleyes.gif.c1fef805e9d1464d377451cd5bc18bfb.gif
With a properly built box no you will not loose the punch you like depending on sub choice and tuning...I would sell you subs and save up for something better and IMO your amps as well... What sort of space do you have to work with?

Thats the other problem. I have a tiny 2 door sports car. 95 nissan 240sx. Which is why I thought if I could fit 4 10s in the trunk it would be pretty sweet.. as it is with the current box I have' date=' I've lost over 75% of my trunk. Im fine with that, I just figured why not use up the rest of the space? Im pretty sure I would have to build the box in 3 seperate pieces. Thinking a middle piece to hold the 2 kickers which would have probably 1 - 1.5 sq ft of air each, and then two much smaller boxes for the kenwoods on each side kinda caddy cornered, hopefully .6 sqft a piece at least. The subs would also be facing my rear seat instead of my trunk. That was the plan.

[img']http://a2.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/228477_10150566276215720_567885719_18216016_3418060_n.jpg[/img]

Subs after tuning - YouTube

Theres a pic of my trunk. Youtube link is a crappy video my friend in the passenger seat took for me, thats how it sounds now. For some reason when I fade the music back up front, my polks sound distorted.. which I know theyre not. I think its just the crappy flip video camera mic.

Heres my amps, how I have them now.

Heres another question. How does building a ported box differ from a sealed? I get the sealed box thing, just wondering how ported boxes are tuned/etc. Could I build all the boxes sealed, and then port them later if I want to?

I understand the selling everything and start over, Ive thought about that. Im using a bridged 4 channel amp to power my polks because I decided not to use any rear speakers for fill, and now I have 2 sub amps. But I would lose so much money from doing that I dont think I could justify it =\

I still plan on sound deadening my trunk + doors too. Im gonna stuff that CCF foam crap everywhere as well. May spray the corners of my trunk + bumper.

 

[KTMrida4life 10+ year member]

I know you wanna try to use or hold onto what you already have, but you could sell it all and get something much better for likely right around the same price. You really seem to be set on all these huge name branded crap, which is typically just low-end gear charged at a premium because of the name badge. Kenwood makes decent HU's and that's about it. Rockford and Kicker make decent amps and that's about it. Their subs (and amps really) are just too expensive to justify paying for, when you could get a much better product at much less of a price.We've covered mis-matched subs is a no-no, good.

Going from sealed to ported you won't lose anything if it's a properly designed ported enclosure, fit for your application, you'll only gain output.

four 10's being louder or quieter than a single 10 is purely on installation. Much like many situations, it's not what you have, but how you use it. A quality single 10" woofer in a properly designed and built enclosure for that vehicle, can outperform four mis-matched 10" woofers in poorly installed enclosures not fit for that vehicle or application.

Obsidian Car Audio

Phenomenal 15" subwoofer that is very affordable and well built. Can take 1k power all day. And perform well in a sealed or ported enclosure, with decent output and sound quality. The downside to all of that? It's a small company with small production runs, so they are currently sold out and building more of those woofers.

If you're not willing to sell your current amps, tell us which ones you have, and a budget for subwoofers to match them with. And if you are going to go ported, keep in mind a new enclosure designed and built properly, will likely cost anywhere from $100-$200 if someone builds it for you.

Missed your post, my bad. Mustve posted while I was typing.

Yeah I do.. and the reason the big name crap keeps coming up is because I know the names. When going through the classifieds on here for subs/amps/etc I personally have no idea what Im looking at other than size and wattage, and I cant tell if the brands Im seeing are sketch like boss, crunch, etc. or are better than what I have.

But yes, the more I read on here and diymobileaudio the more I understand that the stuff thats generally considered good/great is overpriced and isnt as good as you may think. I've got that. Just trying to learn what is good and whats not.

I have a Kenwood 8105d, and as of a few hours ago on ebay, a Kenwood 9105d. 500W @ 2 ohms and 900W @ 2 ohms respectively.

I have 2 perfectly good amps (one brand new, one 6 mo's old) that I want to use. Heres why. If I sell them, its going to take forever, not to mention I probably cant get what I paid for them. But lets say I did sell both somehow, I cant get a great amp on here (for the price of the other 2) that puts out the power I want, even used. I only paid 120$ shipped for the refurbished 9105d, which even if its Kenwood and not the greatest, you cant get one cheaper. Those reasons are why I want to keep the amps.

Howwwwwwever, the subs.. sure Ill gladly ditch them for some better ones going off everyones recommendations. I know theres better out there and you all know what to look for off the top of your head. I dont "NEED" 4 subs, nor do I really WANT 4 subs.. but I would like to use the amps I now have on-hand, and stick with 10s. The reason I chose 4 subs is because unless I had DVC subs, I wouldnt get the full power out of my amps @ 4 ohms with a SVC sub. I have a H/O alternator and plan to upgrade my amp power wires (0ga from batt to blocK) and my distribution block, as well as the power wires for each individual amp to 4 gauge from the block.

Edit Ok heres a question. OK lets say I get 2 higher quality DVC subs instead of 4. Wouldnt I have to have 2 different subs? One would be getting 900W and the other 500W. How the heck is that gonna work? Thats the other reason I was thinking 4 subs, I can split the power up a bit more evenly. Or at least it sounded more even in my head. ????

 

[TheUnderFighter 10+ year member]

I should've been in bed an hour ago so I'm gonna give a brief response now and I'll be back for more in the morning.

The speaker amp is fine, that's all good bridging it to the fronts. For the subs though, you can only use one amp, or 2 of the same exact amp "strapped" together in high powered situations.

Something to keep in mind with Kenwood's amps is that they aren't known for actually putting out their advertised power, or doing it "cleanly". A dirty signal can ruin your equipment. I'm not trying to talk you out of your current amp really, but you have to choose one. So keep the 9105d, anticipate it to maybe put out 800w. But sell the 8105d and take the hit to the pocketbook as much of a bummer as it is, and use that money towards subs. You just can't properly use both amps.

As for a used amp around the same price... http://www.caraudio.com/forums/amplifier-classifieds/529587-treo-750-1-a.html

While it's outer case is beat to hell, I guarantee that tiny amp will outperform 2 of the 9105 kenwoods combined, and with ease. That's a great amp right there from a great seller too, just something to keep in mind.

You are new, and I was in your shoes not too long ago, it's hard to know what to look for. Fortunately most of the stuff for sale on here and on DIYMA is quality gear. And when you really know what to look for, you can find it at some great prices.

Just some food for thought, I'll check back in here when I get to school.