plans for system

[pro956]

you should've got an amp that will do around the recommended power @ 4ohms

pm me if you need more help

[AzN_DrAgoN48]

when i play my music a little louder that usual, i have distortion. i'm try to adjust everything to make it sound good but its just not working. i have my subs wired at 1 ohm. the subs are dvcs. i tried wiring at 4 ohms but i have even more distortion. my friend who hase a jbl bp600.1 wired to his mtx thunder6000 12"s don't have distortion and they are only 175 watts. i dunno why mine has distortion. i have all the settings the same as my friends with the mtxs. can it be the box?

[WunLoudSolara]

First, how many cu.ft is the box you have?
Second, Set up your X-Over on the amp to about 80-100Hz
Third, make sure your gains are set up right, a lot of people say to set them with no EQ's on the head unit and everything flat, but I set it up by setting everything on the head unit how I want, then going to the amp and setting my gain untill I read out what volts I need.
Refer to JL Audio and go to tutorials, then interactive gain setting, they'll explain there.

[AzN_DrAgoN48]

the box i have is a 1.25 cubic feet

[WunLoudSolara]

Well, what I've been reading alpine recommends .85 cu.ft. for sealed and 1.25 cu.ft. for a ported enclosure. and from what I hear with these speakers they want what they recommend, also I read that they really came alive ported, so your enclosure probley plays a pretty big roll here. I'd recommend 1.25 ported with a 4" port, 13" long, each speaker

[AzN_DrAgoN48]

can i just port my enclosure? will it help the distortion? if so how do i port it?

[WunLoudSolara]

you could, but you have to compensate for the volume a port is going to take up, it should help with distortion because if you have a sub sealed in an enclosure that is to big it will start acting like it is in free air because there is to much room inside for the sub to push, basically it is unloading, I mean if your speakers right now sound like absolutally crap, go ahead and port the enclosure you have and it SHOULD sound better and be louder but if it isn't because it needs to be 1.25 cu.ft. after port and sub displacement, go to an audio shop that sells alpine subs and get them to make you a ported enclosure, that will be the best thing to do but also pricey.
Also is the enclosure a pre-fab ie. Q-Logic, Sub Zone?
I will draw up what your port should be on WinISD if you give me the specs on the box you have

[AzN_DrAgoN48]

i don't have the specs yet i'll go measure them later, the sub box is a prefab but a no name company. i bought it at a place. thanx for all the help. should i try to get another enclosure sealed at .8 cf?

[WunLoudSolara]

If your looking to go sealed, yes get one that is .8, but from what I read a lot of people say they really come to life in a ported box but if you want to remain sealed go for the .8

[AzN_DrAgoN48]

if i wanted to go ported i need a 1.25 correct?

[pro956]

his problem is somewhere else
his box isn't EVEN CLOSE to a free-air application
large box simply means it'll be deeper and take less power to push to full excursion

the recommended dimensions are:
Sealed Box Volume (cu ft) 0.7-1
Ported Box Volume (cu ft) 0.75-1.75
for EACH sub-- NOT BOTH

azn_dragon, don't listen to wunloudsolara, he's sending you in the wrong direction and you're going to waste more money as you did before
no offense wunloudsolara...

the box you have is already too small for a sealed application (and a joke for ported), something around 2cubes would be MUCH better--espcially considering the amount of power you're getting from your amp (DO NOT RUN IT AT 1ohm like you say you have it now) you will kill the amp, it is jbl which in no way can handle lower impedence than recommended as they aren't very well built-- still good bang for the buck

wunloudsolara is sending you in the complete wrong direction, if you go ported u need a MUCH bigger box

your problem is elsewhere, it could be the quality of your box, but that's not what it sounds like, you need to be really specific, when you say distortion, what do u mean exactly-- how does it sound? to me it sounds as if the subs are busted

if you really want, i'm going to be in chicago during spring break (19th or so) to visit my half bro, and i can check it out for you

anyway, good luck

ppl that don't know too much about car audio, be careful giving tips to people, azn_dragon has already been sent in the wrong direction once

[AzN_DrAgoN48]

ok pro thnx. instead of a bump its more of a brrrrr. maybe i can take a sound clip or something. my box is 1.25 cubic feet per side. both of these subs are new

[B_Master_Flash]

Sounds like you have a rattle. If this is true, you should make sure the rattle is coming from the subs, and not from your car. Put your head right next to the sub while its hitting to tell if the rattle is actually coming from the sub. Next, find out if it only does it when at full excursion (being pushed all the way) If so, you might be bottoming out, but I doubt that in a sealed box. You most likely have a vc or tinsel lead that has blown and is basically flapping around when the sub is moving. If that is the case, you need to buy a new sub. Wiring the subs to 1 ohm on a 2ohm stable amp could very possibly be the problem. the lack of impedance could pull direct current out of the amp which would overheat your voice coils very qucikly. This is all assuming that what you're describing is a rattle. If not, please describe the problem in more detail.