Random sub question

[92ex]

I know nothing about electronics, but I do want a system, and most my friends know about systems, but I am curious. Are sub systems setup differently for rock and rap? According to my friends there is a difference, now I listen mostly to rock, but I do throw some rap on now and then. What would be the best setup, either brand wise or sizewise. And would a ported box be better for the rock bass?

[Smokinspeeds]

I know nothing about electronics, but I do want a system, and most my friends know about systems, but I am curious. Are sub systems setup differently for rock and rap? According to my friends there is a difference, now I listen mostly to rock, but I do throw some rap on now and then. What would be the best setup, either brand wise or sizewise. And would a ported box be better for the rock bass?

very good question! Yes and no, depending on quality of the speaker/amp and whether or not it's ported or sealed. If it's sealed, the range is usually more tollerant, and according to many ppl supposedly has a quicker response. Imo I'm not sure about this, from what I can tell my sealed setups seem to have to move more because there's nowhere for that air to go but push the sub out! But looks aside my sealed 8's in my studio monitor speaker towers I built are upsetting me, because they are superb for rock but lack for hip-hop, which is what I Really need them for. However I have a 12" in a ported box in my car, it does awesome for everything for me. Ported will basically give you more volume with the same setup than a sealed box, but with a smaller, tuned range. Imo ppl are too scared of it sometimes, but a properly tuned ported box setup can serve any purpose. My slot ported 12 has a very sharp kick with rock, and it doesn't just produce 'low muddy notes', you can hear the different notes of a bass guitar and you can hear the difference between different bass kicks as well.

everyone has their own opinion, I HIGHLY recommend the 12" sub I'm using, it's from elementaldesigns.com and it's the oem style EHQS 12" model. It runs 25$ now and I will anyone that you can't match it otherwise overall for less than $100+ from anything retail stores carry... and that's what tons of audio professionals say about this thing as well. I'm using an alpine 300w mono amp, ran me about 95 on ebay almost new, with the cost of a box you are looking at as low as $150 and it can both slam and still sounds clearer than 9 outa 10 systems, heck even other systems I've heard in cb7's. Not to mention it doesn't weigh much, the sub and box (a big 2.75 cuFt one) are about 15 lbs...

[TurboZach]

^ Everything he said.

But one thing you gotta learn is that your friends know nothing. It's possible you've got some pro's, but it's most likely just a bunch of dudes who learned by screwing around. Do your own research. In the end you'll have the better system.

IMO if you want a system it's best to do it yourself. You know what your preferences. Do you want a certain sound? Do you want Ipod compatibility? EQ? Remote? A good starting point is reading up on Crutchfield.com-they're hella expensive, but the info's free and useful. Good luck with the set up man.

[accordztech]

I know nothing about electronics, but I do want a system, and most my friends know about systems, but I am curious. Are sub systems setup differently for rock and rap? According to my friends there is a difference, now I listen mostly to rock, but I do throw some rap on now and then. What would be the best setup, either brand wise or sizewise. And would a ported box be better for the rock bass?

everyone gots good points. but i think for rock, a sealed box is more punchy where rap for most people want bass with a vented box. i honestly dont like how "slappy" a vented box sounds though it is louder, im more of sound quality and love sealed boxes.

there is alot to learn

www.the12volt.com

[Smokinspeeds]

everyone gots good points. but i think for rock, a sealed box is more punchy where rap for most people want bass with a vented box. i honestly dont like how "slappy" a vented box sounds though it is louder, im more of sound quality and love sealed boxes.

there is alot to learn

www.the12volt.com

this is the common belief, that ported boxes are sloppy. Actually, it's mostly because the subs are crappy, and they don't have a strong enough control system to return the sub back to normal position quickly. Better subs can be very tight even in a sealed situation. Go to an audio store, and push in the middle of a sub and feel how much resistance you get. Not entirely acurate some ppl will argue, but generally, when it's already really loose it's going to be easier to push with less power, but won't take as much at max, plus it won't be as tight in a ported box. The 12 I have has a TON of resistance. Go feel a sony explod, they move a lot with your pinky. I can barely move mine with my whole hand... If you get something from a company that is made well vs just to sell a ton of them there's a HUGE difference...

the 25$ 12" I have??? rated at 200-250rms, so double that is what most speakers would be rated at max... well they have a video hooking this thing up, and it went to 1170 SOLID watts (not a quick bump test!) before it blew. That's a well built sub...

[accordztech]

i understand where your comming from (pretty good cause im super buzzed right now) cause i work at circuit city as a installer and of course our stuff that we have isnt really top notch. but with what we had i compared sealed to ported to match what people like to listen to, thats where i based my beilief of...trust me there are subs out there that are wayyyyyy better than what we have, and alot that are wayyyy worse. i just like that punchy bass that the sealed boxes gives.

i think bottom line here, is that he has to listen to the subs. in a sealed and ported and see what best suits him....thats what i did hehe.

[Smokinspeeds]

i understand where your comming from (pretty good cause im super buzzed right now) cause i work at circuit city as a installer and of course our stuff that we have isnt really top notch. but with what we had i compared sealed to ported to match what people like to listen to, thats where i based my beilief of...trust me there are subs out there that are wayyyyyy better than what we have, and alot that are wayyyy worse. i just like that punchy bass that the sealed boxes gives.

i think bottom line here, is that he has to listen to the subs. in a sealed and ported and see what best suits him....thats what i did hehe.

very true, you need to hear for yourself. but at the same time you don't get to just try systems in your own car, and I find best buy and circuit city sub stands/rooms are made in a way that they give a huge increase in bass output due to room resonance, and can be VERY misleading, beyond even the speakers/boxes themselves. The solution to this is to go to higher end stores like cartoys, where they properly build their rooms, and other small shops (again, some will be good some will have rooms that give too much boost). Take a couple cd's of your own music to test... And if you get a chance to test the Focal subs in a car audio or another higher end shop, OMG!!!!! slot ported and clean as you'll ever hear!! albeit too much for even the basic level, like 250$ for a 10. But still that's a good comparison to a quality speaker in a ported box.

[accordztech]

haha yea rooms were made to sound differnt in the bass rooms. but our stores is crap...it sure does sound wayyy beter in the car, in the room some of the subs sound like crap compared to the car.

dont listen to how much bass there is, listen to the tone and the level of the bass to see if it sounds "correct" to you....some subs will be really bassy and some will be midrange bass....