Kicker SoloX 18 or.... not?

[412 CVX]

so much arguing.

[kam311]

so much arguing.

That's the thing, I feel like I'm coming off wrong here, it's always hard to tell the context when your just reading what people are saying.

I guess mainly what I'm trying to say guys is that I think we are jumping the gun with the whole getting a new sub option. I feel like the OP has never even seen 1/5th of this subs true potential, and that just telling him to get a sub won't make him happier with his set up. I feel that the OP has a very capable sub of making him very happy but just needs to learn a few other things to really bring it to life. And mainly what I'm trying to say is that if he gets a new sub or two or ten, he is still in the same boat, with no knowledge of how to make his very capable set up sound good. I am just stating my opinion, but I think if you really look at the situation you will see, its not the sub.

OP it's my honest opinion that you should try changing a few things in your set up first and keep your sub, because i feel like you will be VERY happy with that sub if you could see it's true potential. I honestly feel like it has more potential than the other subs mentioned in this thread, except for maybe two 15's and even that is debatable in the right box. Take it for what it's worth, I'm not trying to argue I'm just trying to Save you time and money

[Hifonics]

He wants to run 2600 watts, I'm pretty sure it's his best option. And you jumped the gun on your system mate, you should have planned better. I'm just saying he has the sub to make a great system, why are we here suggesting other companies highest powered subwoofers when he already has one the can hang with any! We should start concentrating on how the hell he blew up a BTL on such small power. We should be teaching him how to make a box, how to tune it, how to set his gains and what amp to get. The sub was definitely not the problem in this set up. We should dial in and find the actual problem, not just make a bunch of sub suggestions that will blow up just as easy or easier! That's fucking horrible advice "mate"...

Alright.. I live in Canada. I've been trying to hook up with a club or some shows but most of them are a 4 hr drive from me. So basically you guys are my people!! haha. I totally agree that it was user error and that I need to learn, which is what I have been saying. But the reason why I want 2 15's is because I want something that I can learn safely on. I want the best bang for my buck and the best setup I can possibly get. 2 15's is all the room I have. I am willing to listen and learn. Start teaching!! This is what my amp gains looked like at the time of the blowout. (Installer set it up)

Currently my eq is flat, bass boost is off on the headunit, subwoofer is set to +6 (max). I have two questions:

1. I have "BASS EQ" setting on my amp.. should that be set to 0?

2. I have a "level" knob that connects to the remote connection on the amp. Should I ditch this? The installer cranked the amp gain 100% and is using the remote as the gain. Is this good?

I am willing to learn. I am going to be making a new box for my new build. 6cu. I am waiting for a reply from AQ to see if they ship to Canada. If so, I will most likely be getting 2x 15" AQ HDC3's because they look beast and will give me a good pounding system. But I will be very grateful for any more suggestions/advice/help. I havn't bought anything yet.

(P.S I'm not a kid... I have a $60000 dollar truck man plz don't offend me lol)

[kam311]

Okay I can't see the pic cause I am on my phone, but having the sub on +6 on the HU is already enough to tell menthat you are clipping, and the gain at 100% the amp is definitely enough to know you are clipping! You don't want any bass boost turned on either. I'm almost possitive you just clipped the poor btl to a hot death. You need to set the gain on your amp perfect and then use the bass boost remote only to turn it lower, but the gain should be at the highest unclipped point.

And about the new subs or even the old one. Your going to need a ton of power to power them correctly, I'd say 3k-4k an that will require some significant electrical upgrades or you will be replacing amps next. And I have nothing good to say about most audio shops, learning to do it yourself will be the vest thing you ever do :cheers:

[Hifonics]

Thanks for the help. Ok so subwoofer level on the deck is a nono? So should be at 0? And the remote that hooks to the amp... it's a gain control. So should I just ditch the remote or set my amp gains to 4v and have my remote set to full blast? Will the remote on max be the max setting that's on the amp (4v) or will it override the amp settings and play it at max? Shit this is confusing... and bass eq on the amp is a no go? or should I keep it up there? This is so helpful you don't even know!!

[Hifonics]

edit: accidental double post

[kickass audio]

For your deck you can sometimes raise the subwoofer level but id see what the voltage is on the subwoofer outputs. My old radio i had would clip as soon as i set the subwoofer output to +1, my current radio i have to have all the way up or the subwoofer output wont get its full output power and kill my bass. Some manufacturers approach this a different way. What i always do and recommend is to set your headunit to have the eq all the way flat and keep it that way too. Dont have your bass, mid, or high set up past 0 and if you have any loudness equalization/bass boost turn it off. Take it from a guy who has fried several speakers and woofers costing over $4000 of useless crap until i learned.

Also for your amps gain you do not want it cranked up all the way. Remember the gain knob on the amp is not a volume knob, it is made to adjust the voltage level of your rca's going into the amp. For example lets say your radio like you said puts out a constant 4v output on the rca's when playing a test tone and there is no clipping present, you would want to set the level on your amp so that the arrow is point near the "p" on phase, i wouldnt go any further past that point unless you have a o-scope or a dd-1 to ensure its not clipping at that point. As for your bass eq turn that down all the way until you get a scope or dd-1 to make sure its not clipping. Those little knobs present clipping so damn fast its unreal. For your subsonic knob you need it to be as close as the lowest freq of your box's tuning. Lets say your box is tuned to 35Hz, you want to have the subsonic near like 34 or 33Hz. This will take frequencies below that setting and help minimize them from playing because if they do play your sub will bottom out and blow.

As for your question about the remote knob, its just an external level adjustment for your amp. When you are setting the gains on your amp with either a scope or the dd-1 you either will need to turn the remote knob all the way up in the testing process or just unplug it from the amp. The reason for this is because if for example you set your gains with the remote knob turned all the way down or even at the halfway mark and turn the gain up just prior to clipping and you then turn the remote knob up all the way it will start to clip hard.

And just as a friendly fyi if you cant afford a dd-1 or a o-scope you can do the cheap dmm way of setting your gains but its not very accurate and can still present clipping in your system.

[kam311]

^ x2

[ReggieB]

Dc lvl 5. Or sundown ns

I wood not put lv5 on 2600 not enough juice

[Hifonics]

For your deck you can sometimes raise the subwoofer level but id see what the voltage is on the subwoofer outputs. My old radio i had would clip as soon as i set the subwoofer output to +1, my current radio i have to have all the way up or the subwoofer output wont get its full output power and kill my bass. Some manufacturers approach this a different way. What i always do and recommend is to set your headunit to have the eq all the way flat and keep it that way too. Dont have your bass, mid, or high set up past 0 and if you have any loudness equalization/bass boost turn it off. Take it from a guy who has fried several speakers and woofers costing over $4000 of useless crap until i learned.

Also for your amps gain you do not want it cranked up all the way. Remember the gain knob on the amp is not a volume knob, it is made to adjust the voltage level of your rca's going into the amp. For example lets say your radio like you said puts out a constant 4v output on the rca's when playing a test tone and there is no clipping present, you would want to set the level on your amp so that the arrow is point near the "p" on phase, i wouldnt go any further past that point unless you have a o-scope or a dd-1 to ensure its not clipping at that point. As for your bass eq turn that down all the way until you get a scope or dd-1 to make sure its not clipping. Those little knobs present clipping so damn fast its unreal. For your subsonic knob you need it to be as close as the lowest freq of your box's tuning. Lets say your box is tuned to 35Hz, you want to have the subsonic near like 34 or 33Hz. This will take frequencies below that setting and help minimize them from playing because if they do play your sub will bottom out and blow.

As for your question about the remote knob, its just an external level adjustment for your amp. When you are setting the gains on your amp with either a scope or the dd-1 you either will need to turn the remote knob all the way up in the testing process or just unplug it from the amp. The reason for this is because if for example you set your gains with the remote knob turned all the way down or even at the halfway mark and turn the gain up just prior to clipping and you then turn the remote knob up all the way it will start to clip hard.

And just as a friendly fyi if you cant afford a dd-1 or a o-scope you can do the cheap dmm way of setting your gains but its not very accurate and can still present clipping in your system.

Thank you so much for helping me! I really appreciate it!