Kenwood sub upgrade..

[KTMrida4life 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.

Thanks for being understanding man. Yeah I normally would be asleep by now as well since this is usually a school night, but my college semester is over and Im on break. Im usually up till 4AM anyway..

That amp is very very tempting. Had I known about that I wouldnt have bought the amp I just did. I havent paid for it yet, maybe I can message the seller and get myself out of this. Yeah that amp looks like its beat to hell, but I can fix that with paint....... 1500W @ 1 ohm sounds amazing... but how much would I be looking at for a used set of 10s that could take that power? lol

Im messaging the guy on ebay now. Probably going to **** him off.

 

[zako 10+ year member]

Right now I have 2 Kenwood 2513 10" subs in a sound ordnance sealed box powered by the 8105d amp. 500W RMS @ 2 ohms.
It sounds great, but after bridging my 4 channel amp and giving my polks the power they apparently wanted, its not loud enough. I want more thump, even for the music I listen to. I listen to rock, all sorts of metal, and once in a blue moon.. rap.

I

And what is the point of your current reference regarding what constitutes good, correct bass sound in the first place?

I suggest to try this. If you have a decent set of headphones, something like Koss PortaPros, select a few of your favorite tracks and listen on those headphones. These $30 headphones have plenty of bass. Some would say, they have too much. Certainly they will not make you _feel_ that bass since they don't cover your entire body, but you should hear through them the audible part of bass. They are decent headphones, but of course far cry from high end headphones. However, I bet that most DIY cars do not have the flatness of FR or resolution that these provide. Headphone audiophiles know that these are good for the money. Compare that to what you get in your car. Remember one important rule, in home and car audio you can't bring up the level of something that does not exist in the first place. I have some older acoustic rock CDs which will never make you hear much bass, even if you set the sub on +15dB level. It's just like that. Also, download some test tones and play them. 30Hz, 40Hz, 50Hz, 60Hz, all the way through 150Hz and try to hear what's missing. If 30Hz is a little less loud than 40Hz that's normal. Human ear is less sensitive below 40Hz, but if you can barely hear any of the tones below 70Hz, that could be a problem. Also your front mids could be a problem. You front speakers should be responsible for playing most content above 80Hz. (Note you can't do this type of "test" with a lot of other headphones. Headphones, just like other audio systems may good lows. However, the Koss PortaPros have pretty good bass is well known. I would personally describe their bass as a little too thick imo)

The problem could be that you're looking for some effect that does not exist in the music in the first place. The second problem could be that your subs, your speakers, or both sukc. Neither of these problems should be solved by throwing more watts at your subs. I must say that playing some rock and rap CDs at an enjoyable volume level by itself does not constitute a justifiable reason to run multiple subs. I have a single 12inch 350watt sub with even less watts running from the amp, and I can't complain that I miss anything in the lows. I like loud music, but certainly I don't listen at gunshot volume level, though the sub has enough to bring some nausea when cranked up for a few minutes.

 

[Bettr n' Revrse 5,000+ posts]

First question is what sort of room do you wanna give up?

 

[TheUnderFighter 10+ year member]

A pair of 10's that could take 1500w, used? Well at first glance through the classifieds I see these: http://www.caraudio.com/forums/subwoofer-classifieds/529583-%5Bfs%5D-bnib-rd-sonance-10s.html But they are deal 2 ohm, and for a pair that'd mean a final 2ohm load, which you don't want. Although a single one of these could probably be ran ok at 1-ohm on the amp if you turn the gain down just a tad. That's what I'm doing with my single SA-10. That said, you could also probably look at a single SA-15 instead of two 10's. Sundown Audio SA-12 600 watt sub woofer Again, it's rated at a very conservative 600w, I'd be comfortable giving it 1200w all day no problem.

There's also this single Icon which could definitely take that power and sound very sexy doing it: ICON-15 D2

I'll browse through the classifieds when I get to class for some more affordable options.

Also if you're are able to get out of the eBay sell that'd be awesome, cus that Treo amp is a great deal. Might wanna offer the ebay guy like $5 or $10 for inconvenience and to cover listing fees.

 

[Phoenix Risen 10+ year member]

that treo will love a .5 ohm load from those sonance as long as the electrical is there.

 

[TheUnderFighter 10+ year member]

that treo will love a .5 ohm load from those sonance as long as the electrical is there.

Truth. And they are quite efficient, but at .5 probably looking at 2k+. Which would be several more hundred dollars in electrical upgrades. Big 3 (which he should be doing anyway), batteries, runs of 1/0, possible new alt. So I'm trying to keep recommendations that wouldn't require much in the way of expensive upgrades.

Here's a single 12, can take 1500w EASY, I think it'd be a very good match for that underrated Treo. Custom built beast, he's down to $220 shipped and it's BNIB, freshly built: http://www.caraudio.com/forums/subwoofer-classifieds/528658-tc9-psi-subwoofer-brand-new-never-used-12-d2-2.html

 

[KTMrida4life 10+ year member]

Truth. And they are quite efficient, but at .5 probably looking at 2k+. Which would be several more hundred dollars in electrical upgrades. Big 3 (which he should be doing anyway), batteries, runs of 1/0, possible new alt. So I'm trying to keep recommendations that wouldn't require much in the way of expensive upgrades.
Here's a single 12, can take 1500w EASY, I think it'd be a very good match for that underrated Treo. Custom built beast, he's down to $220 shipped and it's BNIB, freshly built: http://www.caraudio.com/forums/subwoofer-classifieds/528658-tc9-psi-subwoofer-brand-new-never-used-12-d2-2.html

Alright so I called the ebay seller and since hes a huge company it was no big deal. That was easy... 30 seconds literally on the phone. Back where I started :]

Also, I havent done the big 3 upgrade yet but I am before I put in the bigger amp. Also going to try and run either 0 gauge straight to the amp or to a block that splits into (2) 4 gauge outputs.. is that enough for that amp? I already have a new alternator.. got it from an alternator dude on ebay. Highest output I can get for my tiny little car. Stock is 90A, mine is 150A. Dont have anything special for a battery, Duralast gold.. but its overkill for my car.

Headlights dont dim or anything at night as is with no cap or anything but I guess Im not putting any real power down yet. 2 people on DIYmobileaudio recommended some Dayton H/O 10s.. whats everyones opinion on those? Dayton 10s link

Only downside is I *think* theyre SVC so I couldnt wire them both to 1 ohm for the amp. Thanks for all the help.

 

[TheUnderFighter 10+ year member]

Yea 0 gauge to a block with 4 gauge run-offs would be fine, plenty for it. Big 3 will help, Duralast Gold is good, and the new alt will definitely help, you should be solid. The Treo should perform well on all of that for sure if you still wanna snag it. And probably give closer to 1600-1700w. The Dayton HO's are a good sub, definitely SQ oriented, and perform very well in smaller enclosure, sealed or ported. I believe they are SVC 4 ohm as well which would mean a 2ohm final load, and probably close to 1,000w from the amp since it is a bit underrated. If you wanna take full advantage of everything you have with the amp and electrical, you'll need a larger single d2 sub like the one I linked above, Or a pair of 10" D4 subs, to wire down to 1 ohm. I found a few more ideal subs I'll post when I get back on the laptop.

 

[KTMrida4life 10+ year member]

Alright thanks man.

Im trying to get that treo amp, guy selling it isnt online =\ Im just hoping no one beat me to it, I dont think I can get anything like that around that price range.

 

[TheUnderFighter 10+ year member]

Here's another crazy good sub deal.

http://www.caraudio.com/forums/subwoofer-classifieds/529785-fs-rd-audio-alpha-v3-15-subwoofer-d2-brand-new.html

And I just talked to the seller, he says the deal is pending from a local buyer, so if it falls through I'll let you know. If you keep an eye out and know what to look for, these pop up pretty often //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

 

[KTMrida4life 10+ year member]

Here's another crazy good sub deal.http://www.caraudio.com/forums/subwoofer-classifieds/529785-fs-rd-audio-alpha-v3-15-subwoofer-d2-brand-new.html

And I just talked to the seller, he says the deal is pending from a local buyer, so if it falls through I'll let you know. If you keep an eye out and know what to look for, these pop up pretty often //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

Alright thanks man. If you see anything else let me know! Still open to whatever, but it sounds like two 12s or two 15s or one 15 is the way to go.

I tried talking to my step dad about it tonight since he used to have a system in his car as a teen and actually used to sell car audio gear.. he just laughed. Said it sounds fine as it is. Of course he says that about everything I do.. hes not much on making things better if they work as is. Im the opposite. I have to tinker with something..

 

[BrownVanMan 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?

never said anything about loosing punch...

 

[KTMrida4life 10+ year member]

Maybe Im using the wrong word. Not so much worried about losing punch as I am accuracy when the drum kicks get fast. Dont want it to sound like one big loud bass hit...

Either of these amps decent?

http://www.caraudio.com/forums/amplifier-classifieds/520525-older-autotek-mm1400-1d.html

http://www.caraudio.com/forums/amplifier-classifieds/526890-fs-avionixx-cxd-2800m-class-d-1ohm-stable-1300wrms%3B-brand-new-unused.html

 

[TheUnderFighter 10+ year member]

Both of those are decent, and I actually saw the Avionixx. The reason I didn't link it because 250+ shipping is a bit much, granted it is brand new. I got it's exact same cousin model (which I think is sexier), for $190 shipped, granted it was used, but it still looked good.