Problem with adjusting the output of my Sub.

[killthyenemy]

I am running a 12 in. Kicker Comp. w/ a 500 watt Sony Xplod amp. I am wondering if there is a way to adjust how loud my subwoofer is seperate from the head unit (JVC KD-G420), which also controls the bass of my 4 speakers. I have read about bass controls via the RCA cables, but am unsure about how they work. Any input/good advice would be greatly accepted.

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[KickerL715 10+ year member]

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[Slammer 10+ year member]

What you have heard about going in the rca's is a line driver. It boosts the voltage of the signal from the head unit to the amp. I don't think you need to worry about a line driver yet. The Kicker Comp is an entry level sub, but it is decent. The Sony amp, however, is crap. I would put the money for a line driver toward the purchase of a new amp. Also, check your sub out setting on your deck. I would run it up first and see if that improves your situation.

 

[killthyenemy]

The problem is that I can increase the "Bass" via my head unit, but that cranks up the bass on my speakers as well. And for my amp, what do you recommend for a "wallet friendly" amp that can do the job?

 

[ONE15ISALLINEED 10+ year member]

if you want to crank up the bass on your head unit without affecting your door speakers, look for the high pass filter on your head unit(if there is one) under audio settings. or look for "HPF" and turn it on, then turn it up. it will gradually filter out the lower end as you turn it up to eliminate distortion. it will not affect your sub since your sub has its own rca output on the head unit that only sends db's. as for your amp, try selling the one you got for whatever you can on craigslist or wherever else you might be able to, try searching for a used sundown audio sae-1000d. you can try looking in the classifieds on this forum, or post in the wanted section. i just purchased a mint condition one off a guy for 150 shipped and it pushes my 15 like a champ.

 

[killthyenemy]

Any recommendation on how much i should sell the amp for?

 

[Slammer 10+ year member]

Checking the HPF setting is the way to go. You should not have to turn up the lows on your HU's EQ. This will make your door speakers less clear and will not really improve the volume of the sub very much. I will likely make it deeper, but not much louder. Turn the HPF on and pick a frequency that sounds good. Then, look for a subwoofer setting on the deck. You should have a way to control the HU's output to the sub, and I am NOT talking about the low setting on the EQ.

 

[killthyenemy]

Well apparantly I have to get a new HU too because my HU only allows for control of Bass, Treble, Fade, Balance, and the "Loud" setting... I have the KD-G420 from JVC.

 

[ONE15ISALLINEED 10+ year member]

based on looking up the specs for your HU model, i dont see anything like a high pass filter (hpf) featured on it. on my HU,(older pinoeer model about 2.5v pre outs) i would turn my hpf on , then put the Low on -2 or flat -0- depending on the song, and sub output at about -0- to + 3 also depending on the song and then do some adjusting in with my amp. far as the price goes for your amp, for a street price i dont see more then 100 out of it, 50 bottom out. for a new head unit if that occurs, you can look at pioneers entry level head units that are actually pretty nice for a standard HU. with just the right sound tuning options you need and standard 4v pre outs. you could go for a Pioneer DEH-P5100UB. can get it for about 150 shipped online. sleek looking, usb and aux output on the front. high and low pass filter and eq settings.