Ok this one is for RM...............
As some of you know, when I first ever logged on here, almost a year ago, I had a set of Cerwin-Vega's 8" dvc 4ohm subs in a 3^3ft ported enclosure tuned to 45hz. When first installed, they were powered by a Legacy LA500 amp rated 500x1@4ohms. While the subs sounded good off this amp, they were not being pushed to their limit. I then had a Sony Xplode Mobile ES XM-1902GX installed. This amp is rated to produce 380x1@4ohms. Now, while on paper this looks to be a step down, in reality it was a big step up. The subs proceeded to last about one week on this amp. The right one actually started to pop after about 45 minutes after the amp was installed. After turning the settings on the amp down and adjusting the head unit, I gave them their week long chance. This is what I found out..................
rating: 1(worst)-10(best)
1) Metal/rock; Metallica, AC/DC, System of the Down
the subs were very responsive. SQ was high. the 8D4's were quick on the bass and carried to the mids nicely. I think they would have sounded even better in a sealed enclosure. The volume was more then enough, as this music wasn't extremely heavy into the bass. Here they get about an 8.
2)Rap/ r&b; Xzbit, Ludicris, ICP, Eminem
here the subs did okay. While the sound of the bass was again clear, with the bass heavy tracks of Xzbit and Ludicris, they started to show some shortcomings. With higher volumes, the subs seemed to reach their "peak" to early and it seemed as though they were being overpowered. Here they get about 6.
3)Country; Alan Jackson,Garth,Reba
I don't listen to much country, so they didn't get heard playing this alot. What little I did listen to was pretty similar to the rock catagory. Though it seems some of these country songs have some pretty have bass lines! Due to this, their rating drops some from the rock catagory, I'll give them a 7.
4)Bass; Technobass,SPL Competition
here,unfortunely,is where my relationship with the Vega's ended. It was playing a burnt cd of tracks like these that drove the final nail into the coffin. Again, the SQ was high, even for the ported box, but the subs just couldn't handle their rated power recommandations. Maybe a got flawed subs, maybe I used them wrong or maybe they were just in the wrong enclosure. Yet I'd expect subs rated at 250wrms, to handle 190wrms easily. They didn't for whatever reason. Because of this and the fact that even when they did play, their volume was just average, I give them a 4 here.
In summary, I believe that these would indeed make a good mid-bass driver, especially in a sealed enviroment. As to being all-out subs, their performance, while commendable, was just average. At the end, their durability was their downfall, that's why I'm going to drop their overall rating from 6.25 to 5.75.
