Printer Friendly Forum Posts - JL W7 really that good?

I find it hard to believe what people say when they state that a w7 can out pound 2 12"w6v2 . I dont remember quite where I read it but I am sure that many of you have also heard the same thing. This just goes beyond all logic for me. 24" of surface cone versus 12". I know that the w7 is a better sub but come one, is it really that good? I have always leaned towards memphis and some of you may know as of my last post, i have found an interest in JL audio. I am just looking for some more input. 1 12" w7.....just doesnt make sense to me.

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Memphis MC-1300
2 12" JLw6v2
Diamond audio M3 6x9
Diamond audio M3 5.25 components
Audio control Matrix
Carputer

well, have u ever heard like... 2 12" Baja subs, versus a single 12" Alpine type r? Type R blows them baja's outta the water. Its all in the design and quality man. (by they way, that was just an example, no offense to any baja owners!) lol

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1990 Honda Civic HB:
Clarion DXZ545MP H.U.
2- 6.5" Power Acoustik interiors
Diamond Audio 600.1 amp
Diamond Audio 15" M6MKII
Pyramid PB881X 4 CH. Amp

im not sure about the w6v2 vs the w7 but i know that two 12's can be blown away by 1 12 just because the surface area is larger doesnt mean that the combination of subs or sub is going to be better, the excursion also plays a role in that (ie, 2 12" subs with only a half inch of excursion can be closely matched with a single 12" with an inch of excursion.) its all about total air movement not just the surface area. now about the w6v2 vs. the w7 im not completely sure but, the 12w6v2 has an xmax of .65" and the 12w7 has an xmax of 1.15". not exactly double but close enough for me to think that a w7 could beat a pair of w6v2 under certain circumstances.

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Quad L Handyman services

yea, what he said! lol. hey ketel, doesnt sensitivity play a part in that too? i know excursion would make a big diff, but i'd think the sensitivity would play a decent role in it too. just curious.

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1990 Honda Civic HB:
Clarion DXZ545MP H.U.
2- 6.5" Power Acoustik interiors
Diamond Audio 600.1 amp
Diamond Audio 15" M6MKII
Pyramid PB881X 4 CH. Amp

so 2 12" memphis HPOs with a excursion of 1" should rock either one of those JL combinations right? I am sure some people would say no, and that JL would still win. My head hurts trying to make sense of all this.

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Memphis MC-1300
2 12" JLw6v2
Diamond audio M3 6x9
Diamond audio M3 5.25 components
Audio control Matrix
Carputer

yeha, sry im a lil tired tonight, i didn't rem. to add that there was many other contributing factors. (sensitivity and efficiency being other key factors, with others.) maybe forbidden, dyohn or bberman1 can further explain this tomorrow for anybody who is confused.

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Quad L Handyman services

man for the money u can get rockford power subs. the ones that are 2000w max power. they are the same thing but cheaper. i have heard for the money the w7 is not worth it at all. i have heard nothing but bad things about it.

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southsider

I have heard the W7 in vehicles before and it is pretty impressive. It sounds good and does play loud but I dont think its gonna preform as well as a couple w6's and I also dont think that, for the money, the W7 is the way to go. For example a MTX 9500 sounds just as good, and puts out more volume for less money. Its also a super impressive looking sub. Its more efficent too.

Most people who say that "for the money the w7 is not worth it at all" just don't want to pay that premium for a speaker. But I am a firm believer in you get for you pay for, I think the w7 is an incredible sub and anything that carries the JL Logo cost money, that is just a given, JL audio produces all of their components and that is gonna cost but they have proven to be one of the top performers in the industry. When it comes to quality and reliability JL is one of the best, period. That is not to say that there isn't alternative's out there, lot's of people make damn good subs that will cost you less and that's fine, it's all about what you feel comfortable paying and if you feel like paying a premium. I'm getting tired of people knocking JL because they cost more, if you don't want to pay what they charge fine, buy something else. Just don't knock a good company with good products because you don't want to pay for 'em, I don't hear anybody b*tching about zapco or xtant prices. It's all about personal choice.

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I wasnt trying to knock JL. And infact, while I dont like JL products at all, I think that the W0 is a solid sub in a great price range, I also think that the W3 and W6 are priced accordingly. What I said about the W7 being overpriced I stand behind. I know for a fact that there are better subs, made by mainstream, dependable companies, for less money. I also agree with you when you said that you must buy what you are comfortable with. That is why you will never find a JL product in my vehicle. I had them before and they failed me in a big way so I dont have confidence in them anymore, where as I have had orion, kicker, mtx and pheniox gold all with out a hitch so I am far more willing to spend my money, be it more or less, on these products as opposed to a product that let me down. So when I say somethings overpriced it is not nessasarily because I cant afford it but because in reality I dont think its worth it to me.

I never alluded to the fact that you could not afford a w7, in fact I purposely avoided even hinting at something like that. It would be stupid and immature to say or allude to something like that being that I have no Idea what your financial situation is, you could be rich for all I know. What I was saying is I'm getting tired of hearing this "overpriced" claim, I know several people with w7's and I have a few friend's with woofers in the same class and while I have not heard the 9500 myself I have heard good things about it. My point is after hearing subs in the same class IMO the w7 sounds better, it gives to a great combination of SQ and SPL which is what I like. Is the w7 cheap, no. Is it overpriced, IMO no it isn't. It is a solid sub by a reputable company who stands behind their products. Are their alternatives that are cheaper and still sound good yes, the brahma from Adire Audio sounds damn good and cost half of what the w7 cost. For my money I like JL Audio products, I have never had any of my JL stuff fail on me and their still not as expensive as other top tier manufacturers.

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all being said you do get what you pay for and i know this from my experience w/ my 500/1 JL amp, it was faulty and bc i baught it from a dealer as opposed to online, JL gladly replaced my amp and w/ a 2-3 year warranty behind expensive gear, to me its worth it
memphis makes great subs as well i dont kno anything about their warranties or that stuff but all in all you do get what you pay for wether it be a good product w/ sq and spl along with a warranty or not, price reflects the overall value of a product not just its performance capabilities

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Alpine cda 9813
jl 500/1
eclipse aluminum 15"

The w7 sounds great. My friend has a 12w7 in his mustang in a custom ported box powered by a JL 500/1 amp. I have never heard it distort and it gets really loud. He has placed first in two local competitions.

I have two 10w6v2 in a custom sealed box in my mustang powered by a Directed 1500d 1100w@1ohm. My subs also sound great and I have never heard mine distort. Mine are as loud and possibly a little bit louder than his one w7. I imagine if I had a ported box I would easily outdo his one 12w7. :)

Ravendarat wrote:

I wasnt trying to knock JL. And infact, while I dont like JL products at all, I think that the W0 is a solid sub in a great price range, I also think that the W3 and W6 are priced accordingly. What I said about the W7 being overpriced I stand behind. I know for a fact that there are better subs, made by mainstream, dependable companies, for less money. I also agree with you when you said that you must buy what you are comfortable with. That is why you will never find a JL product in my vehicle. I had them before and they failed me in a big way so I dont have confidence in them anymore, where as I have had orion, kicker, mtx and pheniox gold all with out a hitch so I am far more willing to spend my money, be it more or less, on these products as opposed to a product that let me down. So when I say somethings overpriced it is not nessasarily because I cant afford it but because in reality I dont think its worth it to me.

How did they fail you in a big way? Mechanically or other? Or were your expectations greater than the reality?

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VEHICLE: 2002 GMC Sonoma ZR2
Alpine CDA-7940
AudioControl EQT x2
JL Audio 1000/1
JL Audio 10W6 (originals) x3
Kicker ZR120
Kicker ZR460
Polk GXR-6 x4
Polk GXR-4 x2

They failed me in build quality. I have had A single W0 10" from them and the surround fell apart in a little over a year. That sub was in a down firing box so it wasnt anything stupid like the sun wearing down the surround which is the bullsh*t excuse I got from JL. I also had 2 15"W6's and I blew those things up in less than a year so I got replacements and sold them. I had those before I began doing this professionally and had the shop I bought them from install them. I ran them off a couple nice PPI amps that matched up RMS power perfectly and I was well aware of what distortion sounded like so I was no some dumb ass kid who just pushed his stuff to far. That is how JL failed me, and to add to it I have a friend who is on his third 500/1 in just over a year. His amp is running a single Kicker 12"L7 and the amps just keep on frying. Once again this amp was installed professionally and the install has been checked over to be sure that it is not a install related problem. I have to point out that JL has been good about warrenting the failed products and in fact just replaced the 2 15's and the two failed amplifiers, there was no fixing involved. It is just a big deal to have to pull things out of a vehicle when it is a custom install so even if thy do replace it it is still a matter of tearing down an install to get the damaged product out. Good service but to me still an unreliable product

That is the first time I have ever heard of reliability issues with JL products, I have had the same 300/4 amp for over two years now. I ran that on different component sets and in different configurations and never had a problem with it, my other JL stuff is pretty new so no issues yet but I'm not worried. Sorry to hear you have had problems with their stuff, I just never ran into those issues and neither have any of my friends.

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we sell alot of w7 and 9500's at my workplace. so far it seems to me that the w7 bangs and is very clear. if it is underpowered it kind of falls on its face. the 9500 is louder in my opinion, but you lose some clarity. when someone comes in and says "i want to bang the trunk off my 86 caprice" i install the 9500" usually 2 each on there own 1501d. i personally prefer the w7 for clarity and it is still very loud. again this is just my opinion

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I don't like JL....just throwing my opinion in.

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~The Rookie~
Rookie of the year that is...
Don't let the smoke out of your equiptment..it doesn't go back in.

With a screen name of Teamrf that is not surprising, I suppose that you think RF makes better products?

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haha agreed biased opinion...

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Alpine cda 9813
jl 500/1
eclipse aluminum 15"

Ketel22 wrote:

im not sure about the w6v2 vs the w7 but i know that two 12's can be blown away by 1 12 just because the surface area is larger doesnt mean that the combination of subs or sub is going to be better, the excursion also plays a role in that (ie, 2 12" subs with only a half inch of excursion can be closely matched with a single 12" with an inch of excursion.) its all about total air movement not just the surface area. now about the w6v2 vs. the w7 im not completely sure but, the 12w6v2 has an xmax of .65" and the 12w7 has an xmax of 1.15". not exactly double but close enough for me to think that a w7 could beat a pair of w6v2 under certain circumstances.

hey guys i wondering what is the excursion, how do you do that to a sub?
Ernie