kicker ????
- Thread starter coopiesb
- Start date
Disclaimer: Links on this page pointing to Amazon, eBay and other sites may include affiliate code. If you click them and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission.
Hey, if you aren;t tuning to 22-25 hz then any ported box isn't truly SQ. Yeah, its a HUGE box and yep it is a HUGE (or very LONG) port. That is the price you pay for wanting to play with porting in an SQ application. You should not be playing belowthe tuning freq, and you should have a 12db or better HP 'infrasonic' filter at the box's tuning freq.
I lol at both of you bashing on each other and me, when in fact we agree on so much.AV8er, I think we agree on everything but tuning freq, for SQ 30 jsut doesn;t cut it, IN MY OPINION, not when there is another 1/2 octave below that and even music that extends a FULL octave below it or more.
on a more serious and hopefully helpful note...
Blue: you are thinking of the S12c and the S12d old school round woofers... and yes those were GOOD sounding subs (especially for the time), and were sealed only. 4 of those in 1.2 cubes each was a KILLER OG setup back in the early 90s.
The L7zs couldn't win an Sq award even if the judges were legally deaf. They "GET LOUD" and that is what Kicker is about today. Period. NO personal problem with it, I 'got loud' for years too when I was a teenager or in my early 20s and it was novel to do so. I also sold L7s and L5... trust me or don't, the 'small' enclosure sizes are there for propaganda, aka ADVERTISING.
Yes they work, but not well. It isn't just Kicker though, JL, PG, ALpine, Eclipse, And Critical Mass are just a few of those where the "manual's" box size is completely different than what any box building/calculating program, as well as the manufacturer's own reps and competitors will tell you to use for best results...
Why would they do that? PEOPLE SHOP BY ENCLOSURE SIZE. If it will WORK (even if not correct) they can print a spec 1/2 or 1/3 the needed size. People will buy twice as many woofers for the same space, or fit woofers where they honestly shouldn't, but everyone is happy. (until they hear what it would sound like inthe correct enclosure).
As I recall, the small PORTED spec was and IS about the correct SEALED spec for the L7 and L5 and my experience recently bears that out.
Subs should not "HAMMER". Period.
A sub that "hammers" is a sub that is distorting.
A dsub should play a bass note so cleanly you can;t evne tell the sub is there. ANything below 50-60hz should be OMNIPRESENT, not localized to the sub.
Yes, L series are known to 'Hammer" in ported enclosures, they also have so much cone cry that you can not hear the mechanical noises that would normally warn you the sub is being pushed past its mechanical limits... especially in a car. That was my point and an L7 typically sounds just like it is about to blow up in a typical kicker spec ported enclosure to begin with.
No offense man, but people who say silly thing s like
"all subs are for 'loudness', why they are called subwoofers"
( A: they play frequencies below Woofers)
or "Enclosure size has nothing to do with cone shape." in reference to someone trying to explain why a 12" square possibly needs a larger box than a 12" round.
(a 12" square has nearly the displacement of a 15" round, so assuming everything else is the same the enclosure would be closer to a 15" than a 12")
ANy sorry OP for dragging this so far off topic.
1: put a meter on those things and check that the gains are not up too high.
2: Be VERY judicial in using things like "media expander" bass boost, increasing the bass level on the EQ, or turnign the remote bass knob up.
it is very easy to hit the mechanical limits, or to cause the amp to clip.
+3 db of bass EQ requires 2x the power. 6 db of bass boost requires 4x the power. When you amp attempts to do that at high volume, it just ain't gonna have the balls, and the sub isn;t going to move 4x as far either.
Be careful and you will have many years of enjoyment, don't and they'll be toast in 24 hours.
Good luck, I hope it is everything you dreamed it would be and thank you for your service.
OP
OP
coopiesb
Full Access Member
doing big 3 200 ** alt and an optima
Thanks Eagle for backing me up on cone area and SQ L7 woes.
All I know is my friend just sold the his Kicker L7s used yesterday for $400 and just ordered two brand FI SSD 15s with the Copper coil option for exactly $430 lolol.
I just freaking built him that old box too haha.
Kicker has a nice line up of speaker and subs that surprise people with their output. I just sold my custom built 15'' our of my integra and building a box for a 12''cvr this weekend.
Putting it in 2.7 cubes tuned to a hair over 25hz with a 4'' aeroport 17'' long.
I know about tuning low but for the average person this is no need to in a car audio application. Most music people "Bump" or "Ride" to doesn't dip low enough and a relatively flat enclosure response is available at higher tuning.
Kevin
All I know is my friend just sold the his Kicker L7s used yesterday for $400 and just ordered two brand FI SSD 15s with the Copper coil option for exactly $430 lolol.
I just freaking built him that old box too haha.
Kicker has a nice line up of speaker and subs that surprise people with their output. I just sold my custom built 15'' our of my integra and building a box for a 12''cvr this weekend.
Putting it in 2.7 cubes tuned to a hair over 25hz with a 4'' aeroport 17'' long.
I know about tuning low but for the average person this is no need to in a car audio application. Most music people "Bump" or "Ride" to doesn't dip low enough and a relatively flat enclosure response is available at higher tuning.
Kevin
OP
OP
coopiesb
Full Access Member
box i want something ported that pushes them to there full potential but i think i want to try to something cool with it not sure
OP
OP
coopiesb
Full Access Member
eclipse double din
blueflamed03
Supporting Member
you obviously don't know what I do. I work for Kicker and have for 20.5 years, back when the C was introduced, as well as the L7 in 2000. I know what they can do. We have demo cars with the L series in small sealed. while they are more suited and more optimal in ported, or larger sealed ( betetr butterworth .707 SQ alignment) they do play nicely in small sealed. Like the C and now the redone Solo Classics, introduced again last year.
ah, they have, and have been winning a ton of local and national SQ awards, maybe to you they don't sound good, but national SQ judges have chosen them many, many times. I know, traveled with Gary Biggs, Mark E, Rob Rice for years doing KCG team, and I actually ran Team Kicker up to last year. (SPL and SQ team)
But again, SQ on a street level in personal, I like chocolate ice cream, you like vanilla. Two opposites, doesn't make either right or wrong.
Solo Classic, retro small sealed woofer
QS SQ components
RS components
Speaker manufactures make what sells, if people want 4000 watts and two 15's, you can't blame the manufacture for selling loud.
enclosure size is aldo dependant on what user wants.Some can say SQ, but build a box to offer more low bass extenstion or add bass boost, that's not SQ.
simple terminalogy with today generation, I see and hear it used almost weekly at shows.
and I disagree, you obviously possibly have lost touch with the changes done to them since your early 20's. I luckily have access to many stages of listening to them.
again, disagree, but your welcome to your opinion, I just know the guys that designed them. The L has more cone area, but that does not mean it needs more airspace to make it work. Xmax, Sd, motor type, etc all play a role, but what the listener wants plays a more important role. The box rec's on the site are tuned in the mid 40's, so it's a great 'street beat' box. Not a 20hz box where you loose the chance of controlling your driver and it's pushing mechanical limits.
< in closing> I can't 'make' you believe anything I can say, trust me, spent many years on car audio forums, and it's not worth my time. But I have a little inside knowledge when it comes to this brand. People have different taste and i'm quite Ok with that. But i have to clear some mis-information sometimes with facts, and people can take it as they want.< off box>
joes 00 Hoe
Full Access Member
Hey Coop.....do L7s! I did my own box for my two (2) Cvrs (15s) with four (4) 4" round ports (pvc) and I only have about 1350 watts going to them, and it beats the hell out of the Hoe! You should go with four (4) twelves, and two (2) 2000 watt amps, big 3, & ** alt! It will be enough to make you want to puke!! I like Skip and all.....but you might pay out the ass for what you are wanting.......I'm just saying!
