Subwoofer Amp UPGRADE Advice really needed.

[Jaguar 10+ year member]

Hi guys. Well, although I'm new and a novice at the particulars of car audio I can't help but feel a certain brotherhood among car audio enthusiasts. I'm just starting to study ohms, db (the intricacies of car audio) etc, Im nowhere near an expert, but what i'd like to do is continue to attain the next level of car audio. I know even the next level of dynamics in my car audio system will still be nowhere near as great as more established enthusiasts, but I don't think there is anywhere else I could get such great advice.

Although I'm only looking to upgrade my subwoofers and Amp, these are the specs of my system as they stand currently

Current setup

Sony XPlod CDX-GT700HD

4 X Diamond D3 6.5 Speakers (one for each door) + Built in Tweeter back car door lock area.

Big 3 Upgrade 0 Gauge Included (KnuKonceptz Wire)

Subwoofers in a sealed box = 2x Kicker 12 Comp C12 8 Ohms (07C128)

Amp = Kenwood Kac-7204 1000w (RMS X2 at 4 Ohms)

There really is nothing wrong with the system, but I wish to achieve a higher level of quality bass. Not just more boom but a depth in the quality of bass as well. I'm looking to spend around 500 for new subs + box, and 150-200 for the amp.

I was looking at the following.

Kicker Solo Baric L5-L7's (2 of them) Peak Power Handling: 1500 Watt / Nominal Power: 750 Watt RMS (square subs). About 220.00 a piece if i look in the right place.

The thing about getting any of the following is I already have an enclosure for 12" circular speakers, where as if i were to consider getting L5-L7 I would also have to get a new box. I'm not against this. Quality first.

Kicker CVR series Peak Power Handling: 800 Watt / Nominal Power:400 Watt RMS (the one's with the white/grey kicker background). About 130.00 a piece.

and 2 12" Kicker 10CVR122 Peak Power Handling: 800 Watt / Nominal Power:400 Watt RMS (the one with the totally black background). About 70.00-80.00 a piece.

As for the amp, I have no idea. Would the one I have right now suffice, until I get a new one? I'm open to suggestions for Subwoofers ($500-550) and Amps (150-200) in this price range. I want to do this right. Thanks. And by the way, the car is nothing special a 1999 Jetta tricked out.

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[07denali 10+ year member]

I think you should expand your options beyond kicker. Kicker is ok but there's better out there especially for what they cost. You can find some pretty nice subs in the $200 range. Maybe even a W3, Type R, or sundown SA. AQ has nice subs and aren't too pricey or maybe you can pick up a used set of really nice subs for that amount. Point I'm getting at is to look into other brands other than kicker. If you're not in a hurry, do a lot of reading and check out your local car audio shop or check out a contest and listen with your own ears different brands and go from there. Hope that helps.

 

[Ionakron 10+ year member]

yeah definitely expand past Kicker's unless that's exactly what you want. You can get a nice set of Sundowns for that price, some Skar VVX's, or maybe some Sound Solutions GCON's. Not positive but i think Skar has their 2 VVX 12's + a custom box for $429.99 deal still around.

 

[quackhead 10+ year member]

Hi guys. Well, although I'm new and a novice at the particulars of car audio I can't help but feel a certain brotherhood among car audio enthusiasts. I'm just starting to study ohms, db (the intricacies of car audio) etc, Im nowhere near an expert, but what i'd like to do is continue to attain the next level of car audio. I know even the next level of dynamics in my car audio system will still be nowhere near as great as more established enthusiasts, but I don't think there is anywhere else I could get such great advice.

Although I'm only looking to upgrade my subwoofers and Amp, these are the specs of my system as they stand currently

Current setup

Sony XPlod CDX-GT700HD

4 X Diamond D3 6.5 Speakers (one for each door) + Built in Tweeter back car door lock area.

Big 3 Upgrade 0 Gauge Included (KnuKonceptz Wire)

Subwoofers in a sealed box = 2x Kicker 12 Comp C12 8 Ohms (07C128)

Amp = Kenwood Kac-7204 1000w (RMS X2 at 4 Ohms)

There really is nothing wrong with the system, but I wish to achieve a higher level of quality bass. Not just more boom but a depth in the quality of bass as well. I'm looking to spend around 500 for new subs + box, and 150-200 for the amp.

I was looking at the following.

Kicker Solo Baric L5-L7's (2 of them) Peak Power Handling: 1500 Watt / Nominal Power: 750 Watt RMS (square subs). About 220.00 a piece if i look in the right place.

The thing about getting any of the following is I already have an enclosure for 12" circular speakers, where as if i were to consider getting L5-L7 I would also have to get a new box. I'm not against this. Quality first.

Kicker CVR series Peak Power Handling: 800 Watt / Nominal Power:400 Watt RMS (the one's with the white/grey kicker background). About 130.00 a piece.

and 2 12" Kicker 10CVR122 Peak Power Handling: 800 Watt / Nominal Power:400 Watt RMS (the one with the totally black background). About 70.00-80.00 a piece.

As for the amp, I have no idea. Would the one I have right now suffice, until I get a new one? I'm open to suggestions for Subwoofers ($500-550) and Amps (150-200) in this price range. I want to do this right. Thanks. And by the way, the car is nothing special a 1999 Jetta tricked out.

where to start...Ok, my first question is, have you tried locating your tweeters in the front doors?..I am just curious of the rear door placement strategy. If you are looking for better bass quality, why are you researching more of the same?....Are you really open to what is available to you for the $$, whether you are familiar with the "Brand" or not? There are many small companies that decided to offer what works for alot less than what the "Big Names" could ever hope for. And it is these smaller companies the fuels most of the fire in the folks you will meet here that compete and provide the input for these smaller companies to keep their products a cut above the "Big Boys" If you want new, I would suggest equalizing your budget a bit, say $400 for subs and enclosure and $350 for a decent amp.

 

[BrownVanMan 10+ year member]

Get the ssa Dcons a pair of them in a good ported box is what ya need.

 

[quackhead 10+ year member]

first off, how much room are you willing to give up?...there are ppl here successfully competing and winning using one sub and amp set-up well within your budget.

 

[Jaguar 10+ year member]

Thanks guys. Well of course I am open to other brands besides Kicker if the subwoofers are better. I think durabilitiy is also an issue though. I'm taking all your suggestions (JL Audio W3, Fi Q etc) and doing a lot more research so far.

There is no doubt I could get better subs for less of a price. Let's say I wanted to pay around $200.00 a sub, well with SQ and Durability, Deeper Quality Bass being what I want the most, what would the suggestions of experienced members here?

The reason I like Kickers, is because they kick hard, but again they really are my only experience with subwoofers. If possible I would like to get a deeper kick and have the SQ as well as the deeper quality bass as well as durability. What I don't want is something that hits hard sounds better, but breaks down faster. Definitely want my subs to last. Thanks!!

 

[RangerDangerV2 5,000+ posts]

tc epics, ssa dcon, gcon, or icon, dayton ho, used jlw6...

 

[Jaguar 10+ year member]

first off, how much room are you willing to give up?...there are ppl here successfully competing and winning using one sub and amp set-up well within your budget.

Well, I have a double 12" enclosure in my trunk now. Im looking for two new 12" that fall into the parameters of my previous post.

 

[Jaguar 10+ year member]

Thanks, any more suggestions are welcome. Check out reply #7.

 

[quackhead 10+ year member]

1st -1- WoofersEtc.com - DEH-P7400HD - Pioneer CD/MP3/WMA Car Stereo Receiver w/ HD Radio, iPod Control/pandora/USB Input

2nd - 1-Obsidian 15D4 Obsidian Car Audio

3rd - 1-AQ 1200D AQ1200D Amplifier

..the above totals $576.00 and I gaaruuntee, if you can do a big 3 and build the right box for that 15 on the $174.00 left over, you will not be disappointed.

I would suggest moving the tweets up front and using the Kenwood on the mids and highs, adjusting the gains, or whatever it takes for it to work.

 

[quackhead 10+ year member]

I suppose I should retract that suggestion on the Obsidian 15, since I have personally not tried one yet, and it would be "outside the perameters" you set in post #7 , but thy have been praised so far. The Kicker subs you mentioned earlier can be bought in 3 of the 5 pawn shops in my town, sitting right next to AudioPipe, Fusion and Boss...'don't know if that is a good thing or not. It makes me shy to try them for myself, but I see plenty using them.

As for durability, I have been using Powerbass XL series subs for 5+ years daily. You might find a pair of 12 2XL's for less than 200 ea if you have a local dealer. My wife beats the crap out of her 15's everyday on a Hifonics 1200 watt brutus @1 ohm..and she's been doing it for 6 yrs. I use the AQ 2200 @ 1 ohm and it has been wonderful for the last 5 yrs on a pair of 3XL 15's. I have noticed PB changed the perameters on the newer XL lines, so what I just said may be null and void on a new pair, but the construction appears the same. The Pioneer HU I mentioned may lack in one area over another, but the variability in x-over section and parametric eq makes it a winner for my system, + the power outs will make a set of tweets sound pretty dang good.

I have one of these Dayton Audio TIT320C-4 12" Titanic Mk III Subwoofer 4 Ohm 295-404

and have heard these Dayton Audio RSS315HO-44 12" Reference HO DVC Subwoofer 295-467 neither disappoint.

 

[Jaguar 10+ year member]

Thanks for the advice guys. I believe after careful consideration, the way my system is currently set up I am leaning towards SPL subwoofers. If I upgrade my amp, is there a particular type of amp I should look for as opposed to SQ subwoofers? Could I have some amp suggestions if say my new subs are 400rms/800peak. Thanks,

 

[quackhead 10+ year member]

Thanks for the advice guys. I believe after careful consideration, the way my system is currently set up I am leaning towards SPL subwoofers. If I upgrade my amp, is there a particular type of amp I should look for as opposed to SQ subwoofers? Could I have some amp suggestions if say my new subs are 400rms/800peak. Thanks,

@ what ohm? and how much?

 

[LosIsATool 5,000+ posts]

First thing. Don't ever look at the peak, it don't mean anything. Second thing. The box you have is more then likely a prefab? Your going to need a real box if you want to reach the next level no matter what equipment you choose. Third thing. Move those tweeters, you want your sound stage in front of you. It's ok for subs cause those frequancies are omni directional.