My system is not up to its expectations

[stainless]

I finnaly got all of my stuff in my car

alpine 9857 headunit
2x 12" type R's
PROFILE AP2000 2 Channel 2000W AMPLIFIER
and a sealed box

and its not hitting as hard as I want it to. Its probably one of the best systems I personnanly have heard but I want better. Is it possible to just transform my sealed box into a ported box? What if I just cut a hole in the middle of the box between the two subs, would that do anything?
If I was looking into completly new component speakers, would I need to get another amp? If so what kind?

I got my stuff installed professionally and they said they have it at 4 ohms because my amp wont work at two. What is the difference really, I thought I wanted it at two ohms, and I was kinda dissapointed. They also said my amp was actually only 1600 watts not 2000, WTF is that

I have the SLE 2001 solara any help would be appreciated. Thanks !

[theprodigy79]

Ok... To address your lack of SPL...

The Type R 12"s in a PROPERLY TUNED ported enclosure WILL hit harder than in a sealed enclosure...

NO, cutting a "hole" in a sealed box will NOT necessarily make it louder, and it can GREATLY reduce power handling and sound quality.

Your Profile amp is rated at 2000W PEAK power... and it sounds like your installer didn't know much about your particular amp... You can REALISTICALLY expect "only" around 960 Watts RMS (meaning CONTINUOUS), 1 Channel @ 4Ohms... At least he was correct to state that your amp cannot handle 2Ohms bridged... That's still decent power, but amps in that category tend to advertise their PEAK power ratings to lure unknowing customers... It's HIGHLY misleading, but not QUITE false advertising...

Also, the quality of power for that amp is not particularly "top knotch"... I ran a pair of Type R 12"s off a high quality 1000W amp (except that's RMS power rated at 12V and it's a very underrated amp) and they sounded phenomenal... LOUD AND CLEAN... So 960 Watts on a pair should be fine with PROPER tuning...

Your BOX can make JUST AS MUCH difference in Sound Quality (SQ) AND Sound Pressure Level (SPL) as the sub itself... Have a custom made vented enclosure fabricated to meet the EXACT SPECS for your pair of Type Rs and I GUARANTEE it will make a HUGE difference. Make sure the gain on your amp is properly set as well, but don't over do it.

Where did you get your "sealed" box? Is it custom, or is it store bought? If it's store bought, did you take any steps to properly SEAL it? I emphasize the fact that a "sealed" box is NOT SEALED unless you take the additional steps of gluing ALL inner seams and spray painting ALL inner walls. Many people forget that wood is a porous material... Also, subs have recommended air space requirements to be efficient... While it's possible for a generic box to meet the needs of the sub(s), it may not be the IDEAL size to maximize the efficiency...

The terminology "4Ohms" and "2Ohms" are simply different resistance ratings... I've been running on fumes all day and lack the patience to go into detail about this at the moment, as it's not really a short subject to get into (and it's pretty irrelevant for now if you're SURE your installer wired your subs together in 4Ohms).

Your headunit is a keeper, as are your subs... Your subs can handle more than your amp is capable of, but to be honest with you I'd stick with what you got, at least for now, and work with the box first.

Now, second subject... Components...

If you added component speakers I'd STRONGLY advise you to add a QUALITY second, 4 channel amp that MEETS THE NEEDS of the speakers of choice. Components tend to be more picky about their power source than coaxials, meaning crappy input will FAR MORE LIKELY result in crappy output... Good coaxials will experience similar results...

I'm done for now...

-James

[theprodigy79]

Also, our cars are boats and our fold down rear seats have additional padding and bracing... You may be able to squeek more output with your rear seats folded down. Also, make sure your subs are firing toward the REAR of the vehicle.

[krawzyazn]

Profile amps are not that best amps I have a amp forsale that can push your subs better then profile

[crispone]

^^^ X2


James is all over it!


Seriously... I KNOW about all the power... but I'm using a 300W RMS (bridged to achieve it, at that... but modestly rated...) OLD Pioneer GM-H200 on a SINGLE 12" sub... and it hits pretty good. (My sub is a Boston Acoustics G-Tuned unit, fairly compact box, specifically engineered to hit at 35hz, and well mated to the sub. (PORTED! MORE VOLUME... can be less accurate... but usually NOT noticable to the individual who is seeking HARDEST HIT!)


I think it's your sub-box tune/setup, and/or something with your sub roll-off point, slope, or general power delivery... ie: gain, etc...

DAMN I love my EQ setup!!






GL on your sound...


-crisp

[krawzyazn]

damn crisp old skool amps

[crispone]

damn crisp old skool amps

YUP!! Even OLDER below!





^^^ NO KIDDING, you CAN bake an EGG on the Orion when it is cranking!


-crisp

[stainless]

thanks for all of the input !

the box was store bought, I just picked it up at the place I got it installed at. I didn't glue or spray anything.

I have a sort of wild question that will probably sound dumb......
Would it be possible to use that profile amp for some components and then I would get a new amp for my subs..

I think the first thing I am going to do is take my stuff up to where I got it installed and have them make me a custom box.

[theprodigy79]

Nah dude... The Profile is #1 WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY too much power for most mids/highs, and #2 sloppy power that is sufficient for subs but will beat the hell out of any quality speakers, along with your ears...

Before you go jumping all over and keep replacing everything, start with the box and what you already got... I guarantee DRAMATIC improvement if done properly... Make sure you emphasize to the person who builds your box and tunes your amp that you want it LOUD... Sometimes installers will keep the gain down in order to better "balance" your system (because most PROFESSIONAL installers, maybe not so much Best Buy or Circuit City folk, are into musical quality over thumping, and thus they assume).

If you're still not happy with the power on your subs, get rid of the Profile like a hot potato... You can do much better.

If you go with upgraded speakers around your car, definitely go with something better quality to power them... If SPL is all you care about, I wouldn't bother with components, as they would be a complete waste of time and money (seriously, why waste the money on components and a good quality amp to power them and the money / time on custom installing them just to have them droned out buy your subs?).

What is your purpose with this system? The more you keep talking, the more it sounds like you just want to annoy people at stop lights rather than enjoy your "music"... Everything you speak of refers to SPL over SQ... I'm not trying to be offensive, but you really just need to establish your purpose, cuz you're tossing in a lot of garbage with quality, whether as a money saver or due to lack of experience...

The best piece of advice I can offer to you as of now is stop skimping on some things in order to go better elsewhere... Consider it to be a balancing act... You'd get a LOT more out of a mid-range set of subs running on matched mid-range amplifier in a box tuned specifically for it than you would with even the best subs in the world running off the best matched amp for it in a sh!t box...

So basically:

Fix your box... Tune your Profile properly... If it's not enough power, get rid of the Profile and buy a QUALITY amp...

Decide on what you really want... If you just want to thump around, go for a decent set of upgraded coaxials and power them on a DECENT 4 channel amp that pushes the EFFICIENT power range for them... Most mid to upper range coaxials handle around 40-60W RMS (some handle 100+), so there's no need to buy a 400+W RMS amp (meaning 100Wx4 RMS, which is a VERY powerful amp) to power speakers that can only handle 50W a piece.

[stainless]

the only reason I got the profile was because I askked a crutchfield.com tech guy and he said that the amp would be perfect for two type R's. He told me that they would run at 480 RMS each at 2Ohms, which would be perfect. To bad he was wrong about the 2Ohms part.

The only reason I got a sealed box was because the guys who installed my stuff said a ported box wouldnt fit in my trunk.

I wasnt trying to half ass anything on this system... it just sorta worked out that way.

I do like to bump at stoplights and be annoying, but not all the time, so that is why I would like some components

[theprodigy79]

Bro, as previously stated I wasn't doggin ya. Just trying to get your purpose out.

Follow the advice above and you'll be fine.

You can certainly fit a ported enclosure in your trunk, many of your Gen1 peers have full blown systems in their cars, including vented enclosures. Browse some audio threads and look at their pics to get some ideas.

As for components, they won't make you "bump" any more than coaxials will, and to be honest with you I think a good set of coaxials would be better for you. Definitely your choice though... Just make sure to power them right, either way.