2 alpine type Rs or 2 kicker L5

Printed From: the12volt.com
Forum Name: Car Audio
Forum Discription: Car Stereos, Amplifiers, Crossovers, Processors, Speakers, Subwoofers, etc.
URL: https://www.the12volt.com/installbay/forum_posts.asp?tid=21040
Printed Date: May 14, 2024 at 11:57 PM

Topic: 2 alpine type Rs or 2 kicker L5

Posted By: ottobell22
Subject: 2 alpine type Rs or 2 kicker L5
Date Posted: November 05, 2003 at 1:41 PM

I'm building a system with either the JBL 1200.1 or the hifonics brutus. Which pair of 12" subs will be louder with the above amplifiers. I know that the alpines have better SQ than the kickers, but i'm willing to trade off a little SQ for SPL if and only if the kickers will be considerably louder than the Type Rs.

Do you guys recomend any other 12" subs that are comparable or better performance and price wise?

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Pioneer/JL audio XRs,W7 Orion Hcca/DEI Hornet

Replies:

Posted By: forbidden
Date Posted: November 05, 2003 at 2:22 PM

Look at the Eclipse aluminum drivers and the Orion H2. bigger, badder, better posted_image

. The kickers are ok but to get them loud you usually require a monster ported enclosure. Even though I do not sell either of the subs you chose, If I had to choose one of them is would be the Alpine. Are you after sq with a little bit of loudness, say over 135 db or are you a bass freak and want to annoy the neighbourhood?

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Top Secret, I can tell you but then my wife will kill me.

Posted By: ottobell22
Date Posted: November 05, 2003 at 2:32 PM

I want to annoy the neighbourhood.............I'm selling the car its going in and guys around here are bass heads............My car is all JL.......W7/XR 653/VR 690...........but this system is going to be cheap and loud.

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Pioneer/JL audio XRs,W7 Orion Hcca/DEI Hornet

Posted By: wrencher_25
Date Posted: November 05, 2003 at 8:49 PM

Hey Ottobell22,

I worked for Visions electronics as an installer in Red Deer and Kamloops (canada) and we dealt exclusivley with the Kicker stuff. Kicker is by far the way to go. The L5's won a Grand Prix award (an award that is based on overall quality all around stuff) in each one of their classes: 8", 10", 12", and 15". They are an extremely effecient sub that will run absolelutly BEAUTIFULLY given the right amount of power. You have to remember with having a square cone, you have a larger cone area....so that 12" actually plays closer to a 15" - and how do we gain DB?...by either increasing the power or the cone area. The entire surround is SEWN on, not glued. Ripping through these subs are extremely tough to do. Kicker (so I was told) is the world record holder for SPL in general. Being such an effecient sub, you can put them in many different box arrangements and they will boom (especially ported). A finaly great feature about them is that they come in two different arrangements - a 2ohm DVC or a 4ohm DVC....design the system that will rock for you man.....But remember, science doesn't lie - and square subs rock the house live.

Livin Loud Baby

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Andrew Weitzel

MECP First Class Installer

Posted By: MAXST
Date Posted: November 05, 2003 at 8:53 PM

shiva's will give you good sq and spl...and they are only 125 a piece..take a look.

https://adireaudio.com/mobile_audio/drivers/shiva.htm

the brahma i hear is insane for a sub...but that amp wouldnt power one..

https://adireaudio.com/mobile_audio/drivers/brahma_series.htm

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I need quality equipment, feel free to donate.

Posted By: forbidden
Date Posted: November 06, 2003 at 1:11 PM

Not to knock wrencher 25, but do you believe everything that you are told. Kicker is a good product line that was sold by some great people over the years, however he neglected to tell you that after numerous years of the line being distributed in Canada by the same distributor, the distributor dropped the line, why ?,a greater than 30% failure rate on their product. Even the rep who had done the line for years (In BC where I am, no longer sells the line) Yes the Kicker subs are square and has more surface area, but the travel of the cone is nowhere near that of let's say a 3" travel of Eclipse aluminum. posted_image

(Autosound Grand Prix award for design and excellence in Engineering). Bottom line is that for every brands plus there is a minus, for everybrands claim to fame, there is always one better from somewhere else, It is up to you to make an educated and informed decision on your choice of subs, keep asking questions to find the subs you want. Now I'm sure that you know of the saying "the jedi mind trick" the professional people in the industry are somewhat immune to this. For a company like Best Buy or Visions that are large companies, a brand like Kicker is the top of the line that they carry, it is what they get trained on (the jedi mind trick) and it is what they push. Myself having worked for the large company, now own my own 2 stores and can react much quicker than the big guys and generally come armed with more knowledge and basis of fact from more outside sources in order to get the job done. I have to be able to listen to my supplier on training night and have it go in one ear and out the other, not have it stuck in my head because Kicker gave me a free T-shirt or a free amp, now of course this would change my mind, would it change yours? I'm not here to start a pissing contest between people, as we all are entitled to our own opinions and I for one can go into great detail and fact on why I would have an Eclipse aluminum over a Kicker (a line that I have available to me if I want it by the way). I did not choose many lines to sell in my store based upon value, this is price, performance, capablities, sound quality and warranty. If things change for Kicker in the future, maybe I will consider them again. Kicker has some good equipment for some good applications, the question is does it fit your application and what else is there would do as good or better job at it!

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Top Secret, I can tell you but then my wife will kill me.

Posted By: Alpine Guy
Date Posted: November 06, 2003 at 7:33 PM

alpine, or eclipse, what ever you can get your hands on for the best price.. They are both nearly identical subs, and both slam like a 400 pound mom kicking the sh!t out of a 10 year old.....get my point? haha

And there both good in the power handleing department.

The alpine type-r was rated the best performing sub out there in that price range in mobile electronics magazine a year ago.

Posted By: wrencher_25
Date Posted: November 06, 2003 at 9:53 PM

To forbidden,

I completley agree that two people have their own opinions about what is in "their mind" the best product on the market. And to tell you the honest truth, I havn't heard the high end eclipse stuff so I can't go and give you much of a debate on it. Sure I could BS my way through it and tell you more facts about kicker but I'm just not that type of guy.

I also agree that a person should make an informed decision about what they are purchasing - go with what sounds best to you. Let's face it, a person can take radio shack subs, put them in an extremley well built enclosure and they too will pound nice and hard. Where you get your stuff installed is another extremely important decision to make because how your enclosure is done will predict how your subs sound. If you want to throw it in a McDonalds Exciter POS box, then you'll only get half ass sound (although sometimes it works out good.) So take good care in deciding that.

But as for the subs - again, go with what works for you. Important things to look for when buying are of course:

1)Price 2)Warranty (1 year over the counter with kicker) 3)Effeciency 4)"True" RMS power handing and of course, doing what you're doing right now.....5)Researching the history.

Don't listen to measly 12volt fourm-ers ....decide for yourself what works best for you. Use your ears and listen to what sounds best in every category that's possible. You want loud - I'll always believe in the L5's, L7's and for those of you who have seen them (and I have had the pleasure to work with them as part of our Red Deer demo car) the Solo X's. (Broke the world record in canada for SPL @ 163.7DB - Super Street 1-2). >>>Just thought I might throw that one in there for final regard. posted_image

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Andrew Weitzel

MECP First Class Installer