Car Audio Reviews Public Submission

Sony Xplod amps are where the money is at in my opinion. These things put out descent numbers for what you pay for. I'll get to that in my actual review below but I just want it to be known that if your going to get anything out this review, it should be that these under rated amps need more credit then what they get.

Why did you choose this product?

I guess if someone buys things from walmart in the sub department it is obviously because of price and how easy it is. I walked into that huge store ran by the special people and bought my stuff and I was out. I don't know jack about amp specs or anything. I just saw the 1200 watts and that sounded like a lot to me.. so god dangit it better bang.

On a scale 1-10, how happy are you with purchase?

Screw it, I'm gonna go with a 10 also known as t-e-n. I'm a simple guy with no money and low standards. I'm that guy that thinks his girlfriend is hot when the next guy thinks shes a bagger. Sorry, im getting a bit off topic haha. Yes a ten on the sony amp.

How many watts are you pushing to your sub/s?

As I stated above, I have no idea how this stuff works. The way I see it, the amp is 1200 watts and I have two subs.. 1200 divide 2 equals 600 watts to each sub. My subs are 1200 watts peak so they are getting half the power they need.. meaning they can't blow. I may be way off, but I guess the point is that my subs pound hard and this amp has lasted years now. I couldn't be more happy.

My 12 Dual subs are a pretty descent subwoofer for the money.

I've learned these woofers really depend on what type of enclosure and space your working with.

I myself went with the most basic sealed box and in a enclosed trunk with no moving air space.

After hearing other people's system with these Dual subs in a vented box.. I am pretty pissed I didn't go with that setup.

Don't get me wrong, I can always move to that setup but I just spent the money on it all so I'm sticking to it for now. Money really isn't my best aspect right now.

1. Why did you choose this product?

Like most people, I heard a system and was in love. The system I heard was actually the exact same. The only difference was, the system I heard was in a vented enclosure. Mine is only half as loud as the one I heard.

I'm working on getting rid of my car though. I've decided I'm going the suv method with bass. I will eventually upgrade systems, but this will do for now.

So "seeing and hearing" was pretty much number one reason I got the subs. Next, would be cause they were so easy for me to obtain. I had a paycheck coming in a couple of weeks and I knew after doing some research, I could get them with my paycheck.

2. What kind of enclosure did you choose for the subwoofers?

As I said before, I have the sealed boxes. They suck to say the least.. but they make do. It seems that the dual subs don't do so hot in the sealed boxes. It leads me to believe that these subs are completely designed for vented boxes and nothing else.

3. What amounts of power are you pushing to the subwoofer?

I have a thousand watt amplifier. To be quite honest, the amp is some off brand that I or any of my friends have ever heard of. I know the amp doesn't push out huge numbers, but it is an amplifier. So to sum it up, the amplifier is crap and I have no idea what it puts out. I would say, it would be lucky to do a hundred watts of continuous power.

4. Are you happy with the sound quality?

NO. I wish my system was air born and that is how it is. I have heard these subs in bandpass boxes or vented and they are a crap load louder. I have my 12 dual subs in a sealed box in my trunk of my car.

My backseat does not go down either which really sucks. My subs have no air to push and you hear the damage of this.. its not loud.

I'm sure if I was to get a better amplifier to really push the subs, they would sound a bit better. I'm pretty sure that ninety percent of the reason to them not being loud though, is the lack of air for them to push.

5. On a scale 1 to 10, how happy are you with the product?

Lets see.. I would have to go with a 6 out of 10. I can't really blame the subwoofers for the sound problem I was having with my vehicle. The subs are a good price and the magnets are a pretty descent size.

6 out of 10 is a pretty good rating. I think the reason most of the dual subs come with those bandpass enclosures, is because these subs are designed to be played in this method. These subs like to push air in that bandpass fashion.

I know this is a quite lengthy review but I wanted others to know about these subs and the enclosures they like the best.

A box makes the sub. I later learned that.

6. Would you consider this product to a friend?

If one of my friends came to me and asked me if he or she should buy this product for their vehicle.. I would say sure. It also depends what type of friend it is. If it was one of my better friends that was seeking the best bass quality, I would tell them to maybe make that extra step up and go with a different brand than dual.

That next step up in companies, would make a world of difference in my mind. The brand dual is descent stuff if your working with all of their components I would say.. but if your going to mix products like I did (different brand amplifier with dual subs), it makes things a little more complicated.

It's real easy to go ahead and rip on dual 12 inch woofers and frankly any dual product because they sell them at cheap shopping stores.

Maybe I'm somewhat of just a cheap wad, but I'm proud of my dual system. I got the everyday dual setup you see. The two twelves in the vented box with that ever so bright blue neon.

I got the setup for pretty cheap and it does some made work on my ride. I rattle apart a lot of my stuff and it has been going that way for a couple of months now. I really don't have much more to say so I will just jump into the "review questionnaire."

1. Why did you choose this product?

I went with dual for a couple of reasons. Number one, was price obviously. These things are around the same price as the xplods and stuff like that but I decided to go with the dual 12 inch instead of the other products.

The second reason was because my local best buy sold them and was having somewhat of a deal going, and I love deal and I am very impatient with buying things. They call that an impulse buyer I think..

2. What type of enclosure are you using and why?

The whole setup came with the vented box.. or maybe it's called bandpass. Some of my friends have told me that it is a bandpass and others have just called it a vented box.. so I'm not totally sure. But it's just that box that you see that always comes with the dual subs and lights up real bright.

If you get the subs in a space where they can blow air around like in an suv or soemthing they can really do justice. Mine are air tight in a trunk that isn't able to breath, so they are not as loud as I want them to be. I have thought about changing the box to a sealed box though.. to make them sound better in my air tight trunk you know.

3. How much power is being put to the sub/s?

I really couldn't tell ya to be honest. I had best buy hook it all up and they know what they are doing and I do not. It's as simple as that. I wish I could claim to know how to do that type of stuff, but truth be told I do not. Numbers like a 1000 or so sound firmiliar though..

4. Are you happy with your purchase?

I am happy with my purchase. The dual subs really get pounding and they are a really loud sub when they can be in a loose air space environment. I wondered why my friends same system was so much louder in his chevy blazer but now I know. I went out and bought my system because his was so loud but now mine is not half as loud as his.

Guess I kind of learned a lesson on just going to impulse buy the same subs he has, but I am happy that I went with it still. For the price, the dual 12 inch subs are really worth it. I had my choice between these and other woofers, and my choice was pretty legit I feel.

I would be interested in hearing what these subs sound like in a sealed box? So if anyone out there has these subs in a sealed box, let me know by commenting below. I have this post on the feed deal, so just let me know. Thanks.

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A lot of people get the wrong idea about premier subs and that is why I am writing this. No, these are not in the same league as Sony Xplods and all that crap!

People piss me off and always are like, "Must of got them pretty cheap huh?"

Hell no these are not cheap! Take a look at the size of the magnet and tell me there cheap!

These suckers will blow away your so called expensive system of L7's or whatever the hell your pushing and thinking its SOOO loud cause you paid a couple hundo on it.

Premier Subs Questionnaire:

1. Why did you choose this product?

Easy. I heard these bad boys pounding like nobodies business in the back of my brother's car. He started with two of them but then decided to bring the cards to the table with 4 of them in the back of his cutlass a couple of months ago. If his backseat went down to push air, he would be doing hair tricks on girls, but there is no air to push. I'm trying to get him to switch vehicles..

2. What type of enclosure are you using and why?

After a bit of research, it was obvious that vented boxes were the new thing. I kept reading "double the loudness" or "if your not vented or ported, your wasting your time." After reading it on thirty or more sites from people that know what there talking about, I went with it.

I didn't have the ability to make my own box like a lot of people do, so I went with a bought vented box. I looked for a box with the closest specs to what the subwoofer specs called for and bought it on ebay.

I can't' remember the cubic feet of what the subs called for but it was a descent amount. I also knew that if I couldn't get a box with the cubic feet I needed, I could just invert the sub to gain some. And as far as the Hz of the port, I was also pretty close.

3. How much power are you putting to the sub? Is it enough?

I'm not completely sure how much power is going to each sub exactly, but if I was to make my best guess I think it somewhere around 200 RMS to each sub. What the difference for me is, I am using a Rockford amp so the power that comes to the subs is actually the power that the amp claims.

Not like that legacycrap where the amps lie to you and claim to put out a billion watts but instead put out enough to power your 6x9 speakers. I already went down that road and had the amp poop out in under a week. Advice to all, ONLY BUY name brand amps that put out the numbers they claim to... not the crap from overseas. I helpful tip, look at how big the fuses are for actual power specs.

4. Are you happy with your purchase?

I have no doubts about these subs. I have owned a couple of different series of these subs and they are amazing. Some of the early series of them I wouldn't mess around with but the upper end subwoofers are not messing around.

Premier subs are serious business. The only thing I wish I would of done different is buy the fifteen inch subs instead of the twelves. Couple dollars more but decibels louder in my mind. Go big or go home is my moto.

Paragraph.

The alpine type 12 series is a big heavier of a magnet than the 10 inch series. This post was sent in from a fan that likes only the 12 inch series of the alpine subs.

The product line Alpine has been around for years and really shown their potential. They run with some of the highest end companies there are in the car audio business.

Hi, my name is John and I have fallen in love with the alpine type 12 series subs.

When I say series, I am talking about all of the 12 inch subs by alpine.

There isn't a better twelve inch sub in the market. I imagine there is some custom made sub out there that cost a million dollars, but as far as a mass produced sub open to the public they are the way to go.

Whats the number one reason you choose this product?

The alpine 12 inch type Rs and frankly and series is the perfect bass. The number one reason I choose to love these products and keep buying these products, and keep writing reviews, and keep blabbing my mouth about them is because of their sound and quality. Their quality is out of this world. You can throw the RMS at these subs and they just keep taking it day after day, week after week into years. I would say, These are the best mass produced subs for the money out there.

What kind of power do these subs need?
And how expensive are the amps to have the power to power them?

These subs can have anywhere between 200 to 600 rms continous power. I would say with a solid 300 watts of constant rms power these subs will pound. If you want to push the subs to their real max power and hear what alpine is all about your going to want a little bit more than 300.

Spend some valuable money on an amp that puts out those numbers and you will not be unhappy. As far as the price, that depends on what type of deal you find on craigslist and who got layed off that week and how bad their family needs their rent money. Ok, now I'm being mean sorry. I just had to throw in my secret to finding my car audio deals.

As far as driving to bestbuy or circuit city, the alpine type 12 amplifiers your going to want will run from a range of $300 to $900 depending on what deals you find. It's as simple as that. I can't give you an exact price because those places are crazy expensive.

Hunt a craigslist deal for your alpine type 12 needed amp. That's what I advise, but that's a different post named, "How to find deals on car audio." And I'm too lazy for that.

What are the best enclosures for your item?

In my opinion, all enclosures are great. I am a believer of sealed boxes with alpine type R's but I know that vented enclosures "are supposted" to be double the loudness now or something along those lines roughly. So really, just put the sub in a box and go with it. If your looking for the exact numbers to get the subs as loud AS POSSIBLE, then check the alpine specs that come with your sub when you buy them.

These p2 fosgate subs are out of this world. I just got done with the first stage of the punches and upgraded to these.. and wow. I had to write this review on them.

I'm not sure what to say.. I love the subs and for the descent price on them you cant beat them. A bunch of my friends have them and that's how I found out about them.

A crap load of my friends and I have the same setup pretty much.

I have the subs bumping in a sealed enclosure, but I will go over that in the list of questions I'm suppose to go over. Rockford P2 Fosgates are the way to go and I will buy nothing but Rockford Fosgate now.

Why did I choose the product?

Simple choice man, Rockford is the way to go. You can throw any rockford sub in a sealed enclosure and bam. You got yourself stiff bass. Not sure if stiff is the word for it, but it's a great sound that rockford puts out. These are a couple of steps lower than the t1 fosgate and t2 fosgate, but I really couldn't afford those to be honest. The p2 fosgate especially puts out great heavy bass. It's just that one step above their lowest quality sub so the magnet is a bit bigger.

Is the product powered properly for best sound quality?

I'm no genius, but the subs pound. I have two p2 rockford fosgates and they are getting around 200 rms I think.. yeah around that. I have an amplifier that is meant for speakers originally but I have it set up to put around that, times two to each sub.

What style of enclosure are you using and why?

My buddy has a single p2 fosgate sub pounding in just one custom enclosure that is homemade and kind of crappy, but it still hits pretty hard. So I figured if I bought a nice spl enclosure that was actually air tight and not leaking air (like my buddies that doesn't seem to think leakage air matters). So I chose a sealed box because I had evidence of it working in a crappy sealed enclosure so I knew it would be great in an good sealed enclosure. Don't know much about vented boxes..

Do you have any regrets on the purchase / choice?

Regret number one. I wish I would of got dual voice coil p2 fosgate subs instead of single voice coil. The other day I wanted to upgrade my amp to really get these subs going to their full potential but I was informed that I can't do much with the single voice coil subs and a two channel amplifer.. I dont know. Maybe the guy I talked to about ugrading was totally wrong.

Regret number two. I wish I would of not settled for a cheap amp to begin with. Because of me buying the crappy amp I could afford right away for my subs, I bought the cheaper of the two p2 fosgate subs and went with single voice coil. I could of payed maybe.. fifty dollars more and this system would of been a hell of a lot louder.

Regret number 3. Has nothing to do with the p2 fosgate subs but instead wiring. I ran too small of wiring for this setup. I had no idea the system was going to take this much power. Instead of running 8 gauge like I did, I should of ran 4 gauge. Not your problem, but mine.

Word to all - Run bigger wire over smaller in case of later upgrades.

Subs = 5 stars

My dub 12 in my Chevy Impala really does the job. In my mind, these subs are huge steps above their leading competitors.

I figured I would write a little review on them to show some love for the dub subs that do not get enough love. I would of posted a pic of the actual system, but people around here steal things!

Why did I buy the sub?

The sub's price vs the magnet size are really what made the choice for me. I took a look at the design of the sub and knew that it would be loud from there. If I have learned anything about car audio it is that the size of the magnet is a big deal when talking bass decibels.

How much did you pay? Was it worth it?

A true baller never tells the price, but I feel I got a pretty good deal on the sub. I bought it online of course instead of letting those big commerical companies rip me off and then some. But yeah, I feel it was totally worth it. If I didn't feel it was worth it, I would not of done it. I research my stuff before I buy it because I am a total tight wad.

Are you powering the sub correctly?

I think I am. I am no expert on subs and amps but I feel that the sub is pretty damn loud so you cant really go wrong there. I believe the continous power is somewhere around 400 watts to the sub at all times.. whatever that means. And it is loud. Is shacking the windshield loud? yes.

What enclosure are you using and why did you choose it?

I chose a sealed enclosure because it's old school and I have seen it work. All these high tech vented boxes scare me. I'm a man of old school patterns and wasn't about to change it up now. The box is loud, but way loud with the back seat down. Maybe if I was pushing the system in a SUV I would maybe put my dub 12 in a vented box.. but its good for now.

Do you have any regrets on the system?

My only regret is not getting two of them instead of one. The sub bumps hard but two of them would bump even harder. The saying two is better than one works here. Or bigger is better.. same thing basically. I'm a simple guy and the louder the better for me.

I have competed a bit with some of my friends with other subs but it's tough to tell which subs are louder without an actual decibal meter ya know. To be completely honest though, this sub makes me happy to get into my car everyday. I am a huge car audio fan but just don't have the money to run with the big boys so this is my best I can do.

By the way, I love the idea of this site.. kind of gives us "average joes" a chance to get our hands on stuff on the internet and our actual opinions on things. Cause that's what people want to hear, is what the person thinks or their story on the equipment they are about to buy. Ok, I am sick of typing, just go buy the sub and trust me. You will never be sad you bought it.

The Xplod 12 inch woofer has blown my mind away with quality. I barely paid much for this woofer and my friends and I are believers that these products are worth the money.

To make it easy, I have come up with the top ten list of questions that people have asked me about the subs and things about them. Please enjoy the list, I do not write a lot so enjoy it.

1. What does the bass sound like?

That really depends on what type of box the sub is in.. but I would say that I think the best box for the xplods are the sealed enclosures. But I have also done some digging around youtube and found that the xplod 12 sounds amazing in the right vented box to the correct hz.

I think that the bass is comparable to heavier magnets then their competitors. Sony Xplod really brought the products to the game for the price they offer. Yes, they sell them at wally world and yes they are cheaper than other products, but man do they put out bass numbers.

2. How did you make it so loud in your car?

I do not know much about car audio but one of my friends gave me some good advice. He told me to match the "rms" output numbers and the system should sound the best of it's quality. I matched the sub numbers with the best amp numbers I could for. Of course sony makes their amps to compate with their subs the best.

Secondly, I tried to think of the best box for my car. I wasn't really about to spend the high numbers of money to put out for the correctly tuned box to be vented. So I went with sealed. The easiest method to go with a system in my mind, would be to go sealed for the box.

Thirdly, I thought about the placement of the box in my car and what would be the loudest. My backseat goes down in my car, so I knew that the bass would filter through the car a lot better.

3. How much were the subs?

Easy. The subs were around fifty bucks a piece. Yup you cant get any cheaper than that. I know some higher end stuff where subs go for a couple hundred dollars. Ha! My system isn't in sound competitions and won't rattle my brain loose, but it bumps pretty hard and my friends think I'm somewhat cool for having it.

4. How did you set it all up? And how much is that? how hard is it?

To tell you the truth, my friends and myself hooked up the system. Not gonna lie, the setup took some crazy hours of researching online and some bloody knuckles BUT I had no idea on what the heck I was doing.. I couldn't even tell you what an RCA cable was. So if you are somewhat worthy of doing this type of stuff, you wont have too much trouble. My xplod 12 inch woofer was easy to get bumping and the wait was worth it.

WRAP UP:

So there you have it. That's my review on my xplod 12 inch woofer. I'm not sure if they even make different classes of this woofer or whatever but mine is straight up from wally world if that tells you anything. On a scale of ten stars, I give this setup 9 out of 10 stars because for the price.. you cannot beat it. My friend has a set of p2 fosgates and I think I can compete with him.

The Fosgate 800a2 is an out of this world amplifier. At first glance, anyone that somewhat knows car audio will know that this amp puts out the numbers and is going to do it for your lifetime.

Rockford old school amps really paved the way for what amplifiers should run like for the rest of mankind's time to live. Rockford has always been at the top of the list for car audio and they will to of seemed to stay.

When you look at the amp, it almost looks like the sucker was built with concrete! I know it's cool when the amp looks like I can throw it at the ground as hard as I want to and it will walk out the act still working.

Here's my man made list of what an amplifier should hold up to:

1. Does the amp stop running after hours of pounding and ground slamming RMS numbers?
2. Are the amp fuses large enough to backup the specs on the amp listings? How cool is the amp structure?
3. Is the material it is made of going to last?

Anyways, the amp puts my list to shame. My list keeps going on but you have the general idea. It's basically just like any other electronic or item your looking to buy.

My Fosgate 800a2 Specs Walk through:

• First of all, unlike new amps lying about numbers this amp DOES NOT lie about it's numbers. The numbers that are listed, are concrete numbers of what will get pushed out.
• This two channel amp doesn't go for cheap anywhere. Check your local ebay for evidence.
• Year 2000 was the last year this amp was manufactured. Tough to find, but worth it.
• Most of all, this amp does around 1000 RMS at 4 ohms which is awesome.
• When split, it does around 500 RMS at 2 ohms or half of that at 4 ohms.

I have had this amp push a t1 fosgate and a 15 inch t2 fosgate and I turn heads to say the least. I've seen it push a couple of p2 fosgates, but it us up to you on what you push. The old school rockford amps like this fosgate 800a2 push out solid numbers all day and all night. I like to tell people that have been in the car industry for tons of years because when I tell them what I am pushing power with, they just smile. It's obvious how well these numbers put out.