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Review 5 of 8
Price Paid:
$0.00
from Pacific Stereo Strengths:
Loud. Even though I'm driving the sub with about 100 watts less than recommended and have it in a sealed enclosure, I've got all the bass I need. Note that, at this wattage level, you won't be entertaining your neighbors or even the people in the car next to you at a red light, to do that you'll need to dedicate an entire class D amp to the sub. However, if you're simply into awesome sound this is a great way to go. Weaknesses:
I'm mentioning these in the weaknesses section because, well, they're not strengths, but these are nitpicks (especially for a sub in this price range):
Somewhat 'plastic' tone doesn't lend itself well to acoustic instruments. Sounds great for electric/electronic instruments, tho.
Not the most accurate sub you'll ever hear. In fact, not quite as accurate as the pair of 10w0s that it replaced. If accuracy is of primary concern for you, go with a smaller speaker. The 10W3v2 may even be a better choice...I didn't try it just because I was tired of changing my gear around. Anyway, its not to say this sub is inaccurate, you can definitely hear the difference between a stand-up bass and a kick drum, but you can't necessarily tell the difference between Dave Holland's stand-up bass and William Parker's. The 12 just sounds a little 'looser' somehow. Summary:
Lots of bass in a small package.
About 50% of the time I listen to jazz, with the other 50% divided up between rock, classical, hip-hop & electronica.
Had a great buying experience at Pacific Stereo in the SF Bay Area. Talk to Eddie, he's the man...works in the Fremont store (I think), but spends Tuesdays at the Redwood City store. He lets you try out your new gear in your car for 2 weeks, swapping out equipment per your request until you're absolutely thrilled with your new system.
I paid around $1300 for my entire system, including installation, cables, sub enclosure, etc.:
Alpine CDA-9807 head unit
JL Audio e6450 amp
JL Audio XR525-CX (x4) speakers
JL Audio 12W3v2 sub
...which, if you price out the indiviudal components, is an amazing deal, and reflected in my 5 star value rating.
The e6450 is a 6-channel job. I've got one channel going to each speaker, then bridged the remaining two, sending about 150 watts continuous to the sub. It has a built in crossover: typically I'll send everything above 65 Hz or so to the speakers, and everything below about 80 Hz to this. The amp has a bass boost feature (sends an additional 6db to around 50hz) which I leave off.
My head unit has a dedicated subwoofer pre-out, something I strongly recommend, because it gives you a way to adjust the subwoofer level from the head unit. I'm constantly adjusting the sub level depending on the style of music and the characteristics of the recording. The Alpine offers a range from 0-15 for the sub level. At around 4-8 it delivers a fantastic full range of sound (perfect for jazz & classical), and at 12-15 it will shake my seat (better for rock, hip hop, & electronica). Similar Products Used:
I had a pair of 10W0s before this. They were more accurate, not as loud, and (obviously, because there were 2 of them) took up a lot more space.
The cabinet for the two 10s was as wide as my whole cargo area, and required a ported enclosure and bass boost on (on my amp) to get the sound levels I'm enjoying with my single 12W3v2.
Mainly, tho, I just like having the extra room...the new cabinet takes up less than half the space, so I can still fold down one seat and get a pair of skis in my car.
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