irocdreamer

What size should I go for? 10s? 12s? What are the better brands? Also, anyone know where I can get a box for my truck, that'll hold both subs, under my rear seats, one on each side? I already have the Amp, it is a Kenwood 1000 watt amp. So whatever I get it should match up to that well. What do ya'll think?

Threxx

10s for better control - 12s at the absolute largest, JL Audio W0, unless things have changed a lot in the couple years since I've lost interest...

Audiophiles generally don't have much interest in big *** subs in cars, by the way. Audiophiles generally strive for a natural sound curve, accurate response, and leave volume as an afterthought. Just my .02

97FormulaWS-6

How much volume do you have to play with? that will drive most things.

irocdreamer

I don't know exactly what you mean, but I have the Bose system in my truck. That will replaced, but way off in the future, because if you replace anything in the Bose system, you have to change everything. Luckily you can add subs/amp though.

CrazyJim

Cheap good sounding subs.

JL W0's (cheaper) W7's (harder hitting)
Kicker Solobaric's (get 10's, they'll respond like 10's but hit like 12's)
Audiobahn subs are decent, not great.


Expensive;

Memphis subs.


If you REALLY want your truck to sound good get MB Quart or Memphis components all the way around... With a decent matched sub. What is the model number of the amp. A Kenwood 1000w amp could mean about 1000 different things Nate has quite a bit of knowledge on this topic also.

KyleBlue85Iroc-Z

What are you looking to do/listen to? Loud rock or rap without a ton of quality I'd go 12's, but if you want any kind of decent response I'd stick with nothing bigger than 10's. Sealed box is a must, especially in a truck. The boxes that fit under the rear seat usually aren't going to have much more than .9 ft^3, meaning you're probably going to need some decent "tight space" subs. Also make sure and check the mounting depth to be certain it will fit in your box.

Subthump makes some really good custom boxes for trucks. Check them out.

Threxx

I recommended the W0 because he's obviously not TOO serious about sound if he's keeping the factory system and using a kenwood amp.

I've got MB Quart QSDs (~$1800 3-way component set) sitting in my attic... I'm debating selling them on ebay where I'd probably get 600 bucks for the set, used, or trying to custom build some home audio speakers with the drivers and crossovers.

My car audio days are over, though. It helps that most of the cars I get these days have pretty decent sound systems from the factory and I don't really have interest in losing my hearing anymore.

I never really heard of Memphis being considered on par with MB Quart, though. Rainbow is about the only one I remember being on par - even among the various opinions out there. Has Memphis come out with some improved lineup in the last couple of years or do you just have a unique opinion of them for some reason?

irocdreamer

The number on the top of the amp is KAC-929.

Underneath on a sticker is 10301562.

another number:y08-6420-10.

Dunno if that helps.

I listen to mostly rock and rap.

JoshGuitar

the W0's are JL's bottom of the line...I've been outta the loop for a while but IIRC the W3's were more of the SPL-type subs, and W6's were their higher sound quality type subs...by your mention of "audiophiles", the W6 might be a better choice for you.

I have an Audiomobile MASS 10" in my trans am, it's a helluva sub, but the company's been out of business for years . For a single 10 (and not getting as much power as it really should), it slams but still sounds damn good.

Depending on how loud you want it, what type of music, yadda yadda yadda, a single sub might be fine, but if you're going for sound quality (while still getting plenty loud enough to go deaf), 2 10's, or maybe 2 12's, in a sealed box. In general, 10s would be tighter, 12s deeper, sealed box tighter (and flatter frequency response), ported box louder but not as flat (and it'll drop off more on the extreme low end). If you can, you'd be better off building a custom box instead of buying one for a tight/irregular space like that. Probably a combination of MDF and fiberglass, if the floor is contoured instead of flat. Plus fiberglass can be thinner, so in a tight area you can squeeze out an extra fraction of a cubic foot with fiberglass. (typically you're gonna need somewhere in the neighborhood of 1 cf of air space per sub, in a ported box - maybe a little less for a 10, a little more for a 12).

Obviously you should eventually go for the "total package", get some decent component speakers for your mids/highs, and an amp to run those, instead of running them off the head unit. For that I have a CDT 6.5" component set...sounds yummy . But adding a sub to an existing decent factory setup is a good first step.

irocdreamer

If it makes you feel any better, i didn't pay for the Kenwood, my old roommate traded to me for some junk I had lying around.

Future_Z_Owner

Okay.. The whole 10's hitting more accurate and clear, its a myth.

Is that kenwood amp a class d amp? If so can it go down to 1 ohm? If the amp is not a class d amp, then its highly likely that its not made for subs. Personally i think you should sell it. I love my music to sound good thats what im all about. In my 94 i have a Diamond D3 sub, powered by a DEI amp, and CDT components powered by an Alpine V12. EXCELLENT sounding system!

Im gonna say you should go with a single 12 inch Diamond D3 in a sealed box. Diamond is one of the leaders in the industry not for sales but for sound quality and build. The D3 is an amazing bang for your buck. I LOVE mine. The 2 best amp companies id say are Memphis or USamps. Diamond also makes amps that are VERY solid. They make some of the best component speakers aswel but i went with CDT and am happy with my decision they perform very well. If theres any questions you have, ask me

KyleBlue85Iroc-Z

I've personally never heard of anyone using car audio stuff for home theater, but I've always wanted to try it! I don't see why hooking up some decent components to a good receiver and putting them in a custom enclosure wouldn't sound good? The only thing I would think would be the problem is the frequency response of car speakers compared to the output signals of a standard home theater amp.

JoshGuitar

only pain in the *** thing about doing that is car audio speakers are usually a lower impedance - those are probably 4 ohms, and most home equipment is 8 ohms (at least last time I checked...but alot's changed since then). If the stereo you're hooking them up to isn't stable to 4 ohms, you can fry your amp. Of course you can always buy a second set, and run them in series for an 8 ohm load

KyleBlue85Iroc-Z

So there's another problem I didn't think of!

Threxx

The 10s are cleaner than 12s things isn't a myth, it just doesn't necessarily hold true across all lines of subs just depending. Generally if the design of the sub is kept exactly the same but just made larger, then yes the 10 will allow for tighter control, especially if you're using an amp that's already being 'pushed' when running the 10 - controlling the 12 will just be that much more of a challenge for it.

But no it's not something you can necessarily just assume across all lineups, either.

I have a Rotel RB1090 2 channel amp at home that is rated at 4ohms but easily still stable down at 2 and even 1ohm from what I've read. I also have impedance matching switches from Niles Audio all over the house that can artificially raise the effective impedance any set of speakers shows my amp.

I wouldn't be using them for home theater - just for another pair of speakers for playing music in the house.
I also have some 8" CDT Audio subs that I'm wondering if I could incorporate somehow into the design of the speakers... they require very little sealed space - I want to say 3 tenths of a cubic foot as the minimum.