Adding a sub

[BadAngel]

Allright, i have done alot of research on the audio forums because i want to add some sort of sub(s) to my 2004 V6 solara. I have the factory JBL 6cd changer headunit, and i do not want to change this. You cant beat the 6CD changer, and numerous others have said that once they change the headunit the sound quality depletes. I found one thread on how to do it, and heres the link:
http://solaraguy.org/viewtopic.php?t=21 ... adding+sub

The last post by cam2Xrunner is the method i am most likely going to go with, unless someone had a better suggestion. Now, on to my main question.

I wanted to pick your brains on what kind of sub(s) to add. I was thinking one 12 inch sub since the system allredy has quite a bit of bass, and a mono amplifier would be cheaper. But would this be a good idea? Also, what kind of sub and amp should i get (company wise) i don't want to go NUTS with the price, as there are other modifications i want to make to the car aswell. But i would like to get a pretty good setup going.

Any input on the situation is mich appreciated.

-Rob

[AllShowNoGo]

What kind of music do u listen to?

[theprodigy79]

What kind of music do u listen to?

x2, this is necessary info.

[BadAngel]

Well, I listen to a little of everything, but my mainly punk and metal... (Disturbed, Green Day, Dropkick murphys) i also listen to some rap... like party like a rockstar or Crank that... so it needs to have some bump

[theprodigy79]

You may want to consider a 10" if you mostly listen to punk and metal; it would be more responsive than a 12" but would still have plenty of roll and kick for hip hop (although generally it wouldn't go as low, which usually isn't that big of a deal unless you're listening to southern bump or bass CDs, or the majority of your listening is hip hop / bass music).

But that's up to you, you can get a 12" to be plenty responsive as well if you box and power it right.

If you're not planning to upgrade the rest of your system I'd stay upper mid-range to match it up but still sound decent.

For a few brands / series to check out:

Boston acoustics G2 series, or G3 series if you want to step it up.

Alpine Type S (SWS) series, or Type R (SWR) series if you want to step it up.

Elemental Designs K series, or O series if you want to step it up.

Kicker CompVR series is alright also and would do you well.

I'd personally recommend sticking with any of the first series listed for the brands, as they are still excellent products, will give you great performance, will better match your stock setup, and their prices are right. If you really want to go higher end, the second series I mention for each brand (except Kicker) are very good speakers as well. I would not go higher end than those, as it would quickly become a waste of money unless you plan to upgrade everything else in the future (you would begin to receive diminishing marginal returns from the second series listed in each brand, but from there any higher end would be worthless).

I'm sure you'll hear "Infinity, Polk, MTX, Rockford Fosgate, etc..." as well, but IMHO those above will give you the best bang for your buck.

[AllShowNoGo]

just to add

The bigger the sub u want, the more your going to realize your interior speakers are not as loud as u thought.

go with a sealed sub box for a tighter bass respone

[theprodigy79]

^Very good points as well. Definitely go sealed box, built on the smaller side of the subs specifications (less CuFt airspace) to get tighter response.

[tacti]

I've got a Boston G5 in sealed box.
it is very very tight sub.
very accurate, and very responsive and clean.
it is slightly expensive side, but i think it worth all the penny....

Tact

[theprodigy79]

The G5 is an awesome sub, just a bit high end for a stock system.

[redgen1]

i have a dual JL W-2 series set up, in a single port fiber glass box. i got my subs used from a friend for a great deal, listen to what prodigy has to say (he knows his crap) but IMHO the older JL's if you can find em in good shape are great speakers.

[BadAngel]

Thanks alot prodigy.. SO going with a single sub should work fine i assume from your response. I'll look into the types you suggested. Also do you think the way i plan to hook them up will be good? (Its the last post in the following link)
http://solaraguy.org/viewtopic.php?t=21 ... adding+sub

i talked to some friends and in theory it should work fine but you seem to really know your stuff so i thought it would be best to ask you


--edit--
ok two more questions.... I'm stuck between the alpine and the kicker... i have an all alpine system in my other car which i installed myself (no subs) and i love it... but alot of my friends have kicker and they are also great sounding... In both cases theres two types of 10 inch.... 4 ohms and 2 ohms.... i am assuming i want the 4 ohms thats what i used when i redid the stereo in my other car. seccond question: i also need help picking out an amplifier... it will only be powering one sub so it doesn't have to be multi-channel

apon checking out prices... i can get the alpine SWS-1043D for like 85-100... andi can get the kicker for like 55-75 dollars.... what do you suggest since both are gonna be probably less than 100 dollars.

[theprodigy79]

No problem at all.

A single sub of any of the series mentioned above powered and boxed correctly should be good for you. If your 'basshead' side reveals itself down the line you can toss in a second sub, but I'd give the single a chance for now (especially since you mentioned that your other vehicle doesn't have any subs and you're happy with it).

Yes, connecting it like cam2xrunner detailed is the best method for you.

You really can't go wrong between the Alpine or Kicker... The Kicker sub I referenced is somewhere around par with the Type S Alpine, and the Type R Alpine is superior, so make sure you're comparing apples to apples when you choose. I currently run a Type R 12" in my Supra and love it (I ran a pair of them in my Solara as well). The Type S series are actually better than the original Type R series (hence Alpine had to substantially upgrade their Type Rs). I can't really tell you what to get, but I lean Alpine in that situation.

As far as speaker impedances (Ohms), wait 'till you choose an amplifier to make that determination. Some amplifiers are stable at 2Ohms and produce more power at that load, some amps are only stable at 4Ohms and produce their highest rated output at that load, while others can handle a full range of loads and produce approximately the same output throughout all of them. You'll need to match the sub to your amplifier's specifications in order to maximize your benefit.

Honestly, one of the best amps you can get for huge flexibility, great power and good quality is the JL 500/1 v.2. It's rated 500Wx1 from 1.5-4Ohms (which gives you a wide range to work with). You may need to turn the gain down a bit depending on what you wind up with, but it'll also leave some room for expansion and it's a fantastic amp (well worth keeping in a higher end setup in the future).

If you're dead set on matching, the Kicker ZX 400.1 will push either sub about perfectly and can be had for less than the JL. It's rated to put out max at 2Ohms, so you'll need either a single 2Ohm voicecoil or Dual 4Ohm voicecoil sub to run efficiently.

Alpine doesn't really have any amps that I'd recommend for any of these subs currently (their V-Power series is alright, but I'd go a bit higher end, and their PDX series would be a bit much). HOWEVER... You can still find Alpine V12 amps on eBay and on the internet for VERY reasonable prices, and if you can get a hold of one I'd recommend it just as much as the JL. The model you'd want to go for is the MRD-M605. It's rated at 600Wx1 @ 2Ohms, so once again you'd need a single 2Ohm or dual 4Ohm setup to maximize it's potential. Realistically, although it's rated at 100W more than the JL, it'll give you about the same output (the JLs tend to have more balls per watt of output), but the Alpines tend to be cleaner (although this doesn't really matter as much for a sub). For your application, it should be nearly identical to the JL.

If you have any other questions, fire away.

-James

[theprodigy79]

Also:

it will only be powering one sub so it doesn't have to be multi-channel

You may already know this, but just to clarify... even though the amps I referenced above are all mono amps, you can still run multiple subs off of them if you choose to expand in the future. The amps cannot distinguish numbers of subs tied into them, just the load that is placed on them.

So, for example... Say you decide to go for the JL 500/1 (which gives you a usable range of 1.5-4Ohms with full or near full output) and run one dual 4 ohm Type S off of it. You'd currently have the voicecoils wired in parallel for the amp to 'see' a 2Ohm load, and you would turn the gain of the amplifier down until your sub does not clip at around 75% of max volume (which would probably be a bit over 300W output in this case).

If you decided to add a second, identical sub in the future, you would wire the voicecoils of each sub in series, which would make each sub individually 8Ohms, then run them together to the amplifier in parallel to bring it down to a 4Ohm total load on the amplifier (what the amp will actually see). This would still keep you in the amps high performance range, and since your subs combined would have an effective handling capability of 600W RMS you'd also be able to turn the gain up over what you had it at before to realize the maximum potential of the amp (probably a bit over 500W RMS). So basically, without much additional work or money you have a second sub run with around 40% more power than before!

[BadAngel]

once again prodigy thanks alot XD you have been a huge help... I am pretty set on the alpine speaker i think because i just like to stick with what i know is good... Also if i can find the alpine amp that you referenced "MRD-M605", then i think i'll go with that. If not, then i'll go with the JL 500/1. I'll check out ebay and let you know what i decide... so you can just check it over and make sure it makes sence xD
once again thanks so much for all your help

-Rob