I'd really like to stay with one sub. I had considered mabye porting the box because of the size of the box. But after talking to my buddy I think I'm going to stay sealed and upgrade my amp and see what happens with that...He's got 3 JL 500x1 amps and he's going to sell me one of them...The specs below are on my sub, amp(current amp, not the JL) and box..What do you guys think about the JL 500x1 amp? It should just about max the speaker right? Also the music I listen to is a little bit of everything but mainly hip hop/rap/rock...

Speaker - Kicker L5 12
•ported box volume: 1.75-3.25 cu. ft.
•power range: 50-600 RMS watts (300 watts per voice coil)
•peak power: 1200 watts
•frequency response: 20-100 Hz
•sensitivity: 88.9 dB
•mounting depth: 6-7/8"

Amp - Kenwood Excelon KAC-X621
•179 watts RMS x 2 at 4 ohms (CEA-2006 Compliant)
•305 watts RMS x 2 at 2 ohms
•612 watts RMS x 1 bridged output at 4 ohms
•stereo or bridged mono output
•4-ohm stable in bridged mode
•Tri-way capable (Tri-Way crossover required)


Box I build - 3/4 MDF, Wood glued and screwed
Outside dimensions - 30w
13d
15.5h

Interior Volume - 2.65538

 

You have your amp bridged into 8 ohms so it is about 350 watts. Into what impedance does the JL amp put out 500w? 1 ohm? You can't wire your sub to 1 ohm. 2 ohms? You can do this wiring configuration.

To get a 3db increase in sound output, you need to double the input power and that is under the best conditions. In real life with thermal compression you are looking at about a 1db to 2db increase with that JL amp if you can get the full 500w.

 

jl should put out 500w from 4ohms to 1.3ohms.. but its not 1ohm stable...so NEVER run it lower than 1.3... the R.I.P.S. tech in the amp guarantees the it'll give u 500w..an only 500w... no more...no less

that said i'd change the woofer to get the full 610w from the kenwood... makes more sense...

 

here is what a well built enclosure should look like. i build them myself.

 

they look good... well built, if not overbuilt, for sure...

as far as your SPL in your sig, 15 years ago, I ran 4 8" RF subs and was at 144.8 db... a buddy of mine was using a pair of 10's and was consistently at 143 dB... you have enough power? seems a little on the weak side for those subs...

 

i definitely do not have enough power! im running a mmats 3000,5 with 2 ssa xcons now with 1 xtra battery. i need to do an high output altenator, but due to warranty issues now is not the time. when my warranty is up in 5 more years ill do it and add 2000 watts to each sub. my lexus is not taking the abuse too well,the rear shade busted all apart and the sunroof wants to fly out! lol
my setup sounds better than most cars with 4 twelves! i know because i own a car audio shop in chicago and i always get people saying " my four 12's dont slam like your two 10's" but thanks for the nice comment....probably 15 years ago cars were metered with an audiocontrol unit, now its termlab, but you probably know that already. audiocontrol meters were not as acurate as todays termlab.

 

I would bet that a big portion of the difference is the car... mine was in a 3000GT, which is a hatch style... Sedans like ours now just aren't built for that kind of SPL it seems...

It is always funny to have a very simple, even small system, and be better and louder than guys that have twice the amount of equipment...

 

yeh , i always get customers who spend tons of money on all jl or alpine stuff, and they always say "how come mine dont sound like that ? "

sounds like you know quite a bit about sounds and tech stuff. good to know.

 

Thanks, I'd like to think I do... always wanting to learn more...

for now, mine is stock as can be, minus an external input wired in and an awesome mp3 player that lets me tune the factory system a little...

thinking about doing 2 or 3 of the little Tang Band 6.5" subs... those things are pretty darned impressive, and seeing as how my focus is more on performance anymore, I don't want to add much, if any weight at all...

This will date me a little, the very last DB Drag Race event I attended was when an Orion Honda hatchback with 56 10's set a world record of 173.0 dB... that thing was pretty impressive...

 

What are you wanting with this setup?

 

just save yourself all this and go to www.ddaudio.com get a 2512 with the dual 2 ohm voice coils, build the box they recommend, which fits on the shelf in the trunk by the way, power it with and audiopipe 1500 mono amp and call it done. this setup will kill your hearing and rattle the crap out of your car. its cheap, easy, and sounds great. there is no guesswork with the box as they give plans on their website under the "tech support" tab. enjoy....subs made in usa amp made in korea. sub 250.00 bucks, amp 179.00, box 25$ worth of 3/4 mdf. you will blow away most dual 12" system and some dual 15" systems with on 12.