thefunkybunch 10+ year member
Senior VIP Member
So in my search for a new set of components, i've found something for the budget minded folks... TMA (total mobile audio) is a company owned by jl audio, and they produce entry level priced stuff that is really pretty nice stuff for dirt cheap. these components retail for $200 a pair. as a background, i've personally run boston Z6's, pro 6.5 and pro 6.53, jl audio xr, vr, and tr, and many other sets. the only reason i state that is so you don't see my review and think, 'well he's probably only owned pioneer, sony, or infinity junk before so anything compared to that crap is gonna sound good...' i've always had good stuff, and i am extremely particular when it comes to sound.
the equipment i am running with these is as follows...
alpine cda-9855
boston GT20 running a boston G1 10" sub, sealed.
old school ppi a204 bridged running the TMA's in heavilt deadened doors. this amp is (under)rated at 25x4 @ 4 ohms, and 100x2@4ohms bridged @ 12.5v.
sub is crossed over at 80hz with a 12dB slope. components are running full range.
first thing that caught my eye when opening the box, these things are pretty beefy. decent sized voice coil, nice looking speaker. crossovers look kinda cheesy, but hey, it's a $200 component set. installation was straight forward, no surprises here.
first disc i put in was dave matthews - crash, track was say goodbye. this track has a bunch of drums playing in many different tones and octaves... my first impression was simply 'wow'. the drum hits were sharp, clear, and deep. when the vocals came in, his voice was very natural and warm, and clear above the rest of the music. dynamics were very impressive, in short the track sounded great.
next up was Bela fleck and the flecktones cd, live art. sinister minister was the track, this track has some wicked solos. the slap bass absolutely rocked, and the speakers showed no signs of stress whatsoever. talk about some spankin midbass, these actually do as well as my pro's, and though not as good as the boston Z's, they're 1/5 the price of them. compared to boston's new lines, i'd say they do better than the SL's, and almost as good as the pro60's. these get very loud as well.
i also listened carefully to jon faddis - rememberances (chesky records), dispatch - gut the van, mussorgsky - night on bald mountain, sublime, and a few others. these speakers continue to impress me. they are smooth, midrange and vocals are clear and imaging is very good, and midbass response is superb. there are too many positive points to list, it is easier to list the negatives, cause there really aren't many. first, my only real complaint is that they are not bi-ampable through the passive crossovers. my only other slightly negative things i noticed, as stated above, the crossovers look kinda cheesy cosmetically. i also am not really a fan of the 'spun aluminum' look for the cones. but honestly, other than that, there really isn't a lot bad i can say about them.
conclusion, for a $200msrp component set, i have yet to hear anything in that price point that sounds better. these actually sound better than a lot of higher end speakers i've installed. i give them a 9out of 10.
the equipment i am running with these is as follows...
alpine cda-9855
boston GT20 running a boston G1 10" sub, sealed.
old school ppi a204 bridged running the TMA's in heavilt deadened doors. this amp is (under)rated at 25x4 @ 4 ohms, and 100x2@4ohms bridged @ 12.5v.
sub is crossed over at 80hz with a 12dB slope. components are running full range.
first thing that caught my eye when opening the box, these things are pretty beefy. decent sized voice coil, nice looking speaker. crossovers look kinda cheesy, but hey, it's a $200 component set. installation was straight forward, no surprises here.
first disc i put in was dave matthews - crash, track was say goodbye. this track has a bunch of drums playing in many different tones and octaves... my first impression was simply 'wow'. the drum hits were sharp, clear, and deep. when the vocals came in, his voice was very natural and warm, and clear above the rest of the music. dynamics were very impressive, in short the track sounded great.
next up was Bela fleck and the flecktones cd, live art. sinister minister was the track, this track has some wicked solos. the slap bass absolutely rocked, and the speakers showed no signs of stress whatsoever. talk about some spankin midbass, these actually do as well as my pro's, and though not as good as the boston Z's, they're 1/5 the price of them. compared to boston's new lines, i'd say they do better than the SL's, and almost as good as the pro60's. these get very loud as well.
i also listened carefully to jon faddis - rememberances (chesky records), dispatch - gut the van, mussorgsky - night on bald mountain, sublime, and a few others. these speakers continue to impress me. they are smooth, midrange and vocals are clear and imaging is very good, and midbass response is superb. there are too many positive points to list, it is easier to list the negatives, cause there really aren't many. first, my only real complaint is that they are not bi-ampable through the passive crossovers. my only other slightly negative things i noticed, as stated above, the crossovers look kinda cheesy cosmetically. i also am not really a fan of the 'spun aluminum' look for the cones. but honestly, other than that, there really isn't a lot bad i can say about them.
conclusion, for a $200msrp component set, i have yet to hear anything in that price point that sounds better. these actually sound better than a lot of higher end speakers i've installed. i give them a 9out of 10.
