Ported or sealed.

I am slowly getting my system together.   I have a Xtant6001t and I plan on getting a JL audio 12W6V2 I am going to redo my trunk putting the sub in the back middle and the three amps in front of it .  I have only had a sealed box in the past and for some reason I am thinking of making a ported box.  I want to make sure I will be happy with the sound before i put the time into making it.  What would be some of the pros and cons of a ported box  I will be using the dimensions provided by jl audio.  It will be in a 02 altima not sure if it matters.

go with a vented enclousure. The pros...Output will be increased.   cons.   if designed even properly you will lose some sound quality, and some low frequencys but if your tuning frequency is low enough you should be fine there.

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2009 0-1000 Trunk WR 154.0DB 2009 1001+ Trunk WR
2007 USACI World Champion
2007 World Record
2006 USACI Finals 2nd Place

WHOA WHOA WHOA STOP NOW..!

Okay look I hate jumping on the JL haters club but I have a JL system from top to bottom ... amps, highs, and my woofer, a 13W6. To say I am "disappointed" in this $550 behemoth is an understatement.

I built 4 different boxes for the thing and until the last one (1.65ft3, 4x10'' port tuned to about 38 hz) it still sounded like garbarge. The last box is the most accurate thing I've ever heard.. the transient response puts everything else I've ever heard to shame.... but the output can't even match my friends' 5 year old Soundstream Exact 12 getting 200 watts.

The 13w6, in a fiberglassed box built to specifications that the shop recommended, getting 800 watts off of JL's own e-series amps is the *most* underwhelming woofer I've ever heard.
Boomy, muddy, shallow. . . . I dunno what kinda money JL is paying magazines to say how great its woofers are but these w6's are seriously lame.
Again, woofer is incredibly *clean* But not deep, loud, or *musical.*

Look elsewhere for your bass, take it from me. . . I traded 2 Infinity Perfect 12's for that 13w6 and it was the stupidest thing I've ever done to my stereo.

*If* you put the time into building a properly built ported box for a w6, it will sound incredibly clean... but I'd be suprised if you actually liked it...

If i was going to buy a new system I would go to as many Audio Shops i could and listen to all the subs I could and then make a choice. I sell JL so I am a little on their side but I can also say there are better out there. I will push my pl3( wich is a Rockford Fosgate Punch Stage 3 in a Vented enclosure) over  my Jl any day. But that is just me and I have never heard of anyone complaining around here, but they do not complain about the jl's either. The best sub for you is the one that sounds best to you. I can have 10 different people come in to my shop at one time and all 10 will disagree on this subject right in the shop listening to all the subs. Its all about you, What do you love if it is jl then go with it.

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yeah, jl kinda sucks unless you want accurate. i would go with a sealed box as the sub isnt very loud to start with, and it is almost impossible to get a ported box to sound right with the w6. i have the same one and tried the suggested dimensions first for the ported, it sounded like sh*T. not until my 5th box did it sound even near good. if your good at math and dont care about trial and error, go ahead and try to port it, but i wouldnt bother. the sub is overpriced as hell, but it does sound pretty good. you should save up and get a brahma, or a shiva if you dont want to wait

Yea I keep hearing about this brahma I have never heard of one until recently.  I have only owned JL and now I am not sure what to do.  I am using a Xtant 6001 600W at 2ohm.  Will this amp work with a Brahma.  I will still most likely get the JL unless i run into someone that has a brahma and I can see and hear it for myself.  What do these cost I think i saw the W6 online for about $300.

Here is the link to the Adire Audio site, they make the Brahma https://adireaudio.com/ The prices are $349 for the 10, $379 for the 12 and $439 for the 15. One oe any of those would run great on a 600W amp. You might also want to look into 1 or 2 Adire Tempests.

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go with the brahma, its the equivalent of a w7, maybe even better. you are only gonna spend $79 more on it than the w6, which with the brahma you will get the warranty but the w6 on the net you will get none. the brahma is 1600wattsrms, but will be fine with 800 or even as little as 600. check out realm of excursion to see the bad boy in action. it is impressive

Go with the W6.  A ported box will be 3 to 4 db louder.  However, it should be tuned to the type of music that you listen to most often.  Go with sloted ports.  It will slam if  you build the box right with the right air space.  Make sure your net air space is takes into the account the displacement of the sub and the port.  Many people forget this making a great sub sound horrible.  A W6 will sound great in a sealed box as well. 

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2 JL 10W7's
JL 1000/1
JL 300/4
JL VR 6x9
JL XR Tweeters
JL VR 6.5
Kenwood DDX7015
Autopage 850 LCD

well I have some time I am finishing up the front of my car right now.  I just ordered the Alpine 9835 and I want to rebuild my fiberglass enclosures for my alpine components up front spx 177A.  Then I will make my way to the trunk I already have the xtant 6001t for what ever sub I use.  By summer I want to get the sub and two more xtant amps for my components i really want the 2002T but I am having trouble finding the titanium addition so i may have to settle for the regular 2002 wich is black and my 6001T is gray I really wanted them to all match but It looks like I will have to settle for two black ones and one gray for now maybe I will find someone selling a cover for the 6001 and i can swap it withe the gray one i have. 

the weakest system ive ever heard was 2 JLW6V2 10"s. my first system i ever had would put that to shame. and it was 2 pioneer 12"s and a sony amp....hahaha. JL is overpriced and overrated.

Not to be a jerk here - but JL makes good woofers. It makes little to no sense to compare different setups in different cars.

My hunch is that most of the negative experiences were related to enclosure and/or installation issues.

On the sealed / ported question.... this choice might be part of the problem. I think too many people just pick one because of some one-liner they hear from their friends, "ported hits harder." They don't take the time to realize that poorly executed, i.e. slammed into too small of a box, a high tuning frequency can destroy low frequency extension.

That said, Jeff is right, if max output is a concern for you, then go ported. BUT DO IT RIGHT. Download some enclosure modeling software and carefully follow the volume and more importanty port specifications on the design you choose. You can then easily compare the estimated frequency response curve to a sealed box for the same driver. These programs can't estimate distortion or transient response, but they'll give you an idea about what to expect the frequency response to look like.

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New Project: 2003 Pathfinder

Once u go ported u'll never go back to anything else!