I plan on buying one 12w3 and I have a few questions. It is a 4 ohm speaker. I would like to buy a ~300w class D amp. What the specs I need to look for when deciding on the amp? I am prettysure (but not 100%) the sub is a dvc so how would I wire that up and again, what specs on the amp to match this. For the box should I go ported or sealed. Space isnt really an issue. I am not looking for only spl but a mix between that an sq. Any suggestions

 

Is this the newer 12W3v2 line? Or the older 12W3 line? How many + and - connections does it have? One set= single voice coil and two sets= dual voice coil. Assuming it is a 4 ohm dual voice coil sub, you will want to conect both +'s together and run them to the + terminal on the amp. Do the same for the negatives. This will give your amp a 2 ohm load. The W3's aren't exactly small box woofers.....and you'll notice this even more with a ported design. So what I'm saying is that I don't think it's worth the massive increase in space over a sealed box. Stick with sealed. How much you looking to spend on an amp?

 

It would be the v2. What are the differences in the two? Just number of voice coils? If i wire two 4ohm voice coils in parallel with my amp it will create a 4 omh load? I thought it would be still 4 becuase each circut only has one 4 ohm resistance to go through. I know if I wire two 4 ohm vcs in series it would be an 8ohm load. I would like to spend about $300 or so on the amp. I was looking and I can get the jl 250.1 (300w@2ohm) for that area. How would I tell if an amp is going to be stable at @ 2 ohms. I've been trying to read up on audio tech but I've been so busy I havn't really had time and there is alot of info to absorb

 

Number of voice coils has nothing to do with it. Any woofer can have any number of coils. 1,2,4 or I've even seen 8 coils on one sub! The V2 line is just JL's "revision" on the old W3. Just a few upgraded features. Is this a typo? Did you mean two 4 ohm coils in parallel create a 2 ohm load? Because it does. A single 12W3v2 with dual 4 ohm coils. You should wire the coils as I stated above and find a solid mono amp to drive it. DO NOT buy a 2-channel amp and try to bridge it. Most 2-channel amps are only stable to 4 ohms when running in bridged mode. And you will be running at 2. You don't HAVE to spend $300 to get a quality amp to push that sub. But a lot of people are hooked on all JL's gear. That's cool. Great amps....just a little over priced IMO. The JBL BP600.1 is $175 and would provide enough power to push the sucker through your hatch! How do you know if an amp is 2 ohm stable? It should say that right in the specs. Look at the link I just gave you. It says 600W@2ohms. That tells you it's 2 ohm stable.....not to mention it actuallys spells it out right below that, but most specs don't.

 

More stupid questions

The 12w3 is rated at 300w rms and the jbl puts out 600w rms. Would any problems arise mating these two together or could I detune the amp somehow? I know you are safe going over the recommend rms power rating but to what level? Does anyone have an experience in JBL's amp reliablilties? One reason I chose the 12w3 was JL is a good brand and the amp has a semi low RMS rating so I could buy a lower powered amp for better efficiency. Does this sound right?

 

Your questions aren't stupid at all. That's why we're all here. To learn and help.
Power handling is completely dependant on the box. Have you made a decision on the box? Even in a small sealed box, I can't see the W3v2 taking 600WRMS every day all day. Of course you can turn the gain down a bit. Where you should set it depends on which headunit you are running. So? Ask around about the BP600.1 and the BP1200.1 Tons of people own this amp due to it's high power output and low cost. You've got a good match of gear. Should be plenty of low end for your music.