MTX , L7 , or JL Subs?

I am so tired of reading reviews and comments about all the various Subs you can buy. This is my last chance to get advice before i buy something in the next couple of days. This is my situation; I have 3 Alpine 12" Typer R's in a sealed enclosure with a Phoenix Gold 8.0.1 now( i just took out of my truck) i want to upgrade to 2 15" whatever but cant decide on what to buy. For the amp i have just purchased the Phoenix Gold Xenon 1200.1 to drive whatever i buy for subs. I am looking at the Kicker L7 15" , The MTX 8500 or 9500 , and possibly the JL W6v2 or W7 series. i dont really think that the Xenon 1200.1 is enought to drive the W7 or MTX 9500 they they need. (someone correct me if I am wrong) Price isnt too much of an issue but i dont want to go crazy and blow a grand for one sub. Thanks for the input and suggestions.

Sigh. We can't recommend a sub without knowing your goals. So many people omit this information.

What do you seek to gain over your current 3 12" system?

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New Project: 2003 Pathfinder

opps ! Im a newbie..... Well it is not for competition or anythign like this. I just like good clean bass and alot of it. I listen to hip-hop, R&B, and some electronic music. I really am just looking for deeper harder hitting bass. Maybe i could do this without going to 15" i just have never owned 15" and wanted to try the sound of them for my own as i have heard 15"s and they are loud. Does that answer my goals?

First let me stating the fact that JL's W7 answer to the 15" is the 13" and since this is their largest offering it should be compared equaly against 15"s

I only have personal experience with the L7's but let me give you my take on things as I have done retarded amounts of research. The L7's are monsters of SPL in that group. They have decent SQ but probably not as good as your type r's. The W7's and 9500's have way better excursion than the L7's but the L7's surface area make up for that. The MTX 9500's SPL abilities are close to if not better than the W7's. The W7's are the hand-down winners in the SQ department and all around quality reguardless of MTX's "mechanical superiority". As far as db per dollar, the L7's are your best bet because you can pick up about three of them for the price of 1 13W7. The MTX and the Kickers are going to be easier to match to an amp because of their standard 2 or 4 ohm setups versus JL's 1.5 or 3 ohm coils. I hope I don't cause some kind of forum riot with my observations. And keep in mind that audio is all about personal opinion, nothing more, nothing less.

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My wife will never understand why, lucky for her!

customsound79 wrote:

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And keep in mind that audio is all about personal opinion, nothing more, nothing less.

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I beg to differ. It is ALSO about using a brain when making buying decisions based on goals.  The best driver in the world will not meet expectations if the buyer has unrealistic expectations based on a lack of information or thinking.

If you want deeper you need something that will play lower in an alignment that fits in your space.  This means you must model your current system against any system you hope to buy to make the most informed buying decision.  You can use WinISDpro or any other free enclosure modeling program or spreadsheet.

That will take care of the deeper part.  If you want it louder at all - or at least the same SPL level - then you'll have to pay attention to the aggregate efficiency of the system you hope to buy, relative to your current efficiency. 

The enclosure modeling program can also help you compare efficiency. 

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New Project: 2003 Pathfinder

That  was what I was trying to get across in that statement. Your goals ARE your personal opinion when it comes to what you think your system should sound like.

And audio IS about personal preference, not what everyone tells you to think. Having mixed live concert audio for years , there were always many 'experts' voicing their opinion on what was lacking or what was overbearing, or that it was perfect all in the same show(hence the creation of the 'go away' shirt). All of them contradicting the other. I personaly like to bump up 2khz where my friend cuts it completely out. What you like is what you like and that's all there is to it. Find the best driver to suit your needs within you price range and consider their performance in different style enclosures.

kfr01- Where can we get WinISDpro, because I would like to utilize that as well.

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My wife will never understand why, lucky for her!

i'd keep the r's...they are very clean and get loud..i think your problem is what amp you were using..those cheap gold's dont put sh!t out for power.....i had the 15:1 or what ever and then hooked up a mtx 1501d and was amazed...i doubt the gold was putting out more then 800rms...

OK you guys are providing good info, but do  you think i am making a mistake by going with 2 15's over the 3 12's. What would the 15's have or lose over the 12's? anyone have experience with the xenon 1200.1 (good powerful amp?) ? thank you all for your advice and opions. At this point i might just hook up the new xenon 1200.1 to my 3 type r's and build a new box and see what i cant come up with , then maybe go to the 15's later. I am one of these people that love change things all the time. i am always looking for soemthing different or better. maybe that is why i want the 15's.

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"I don't play games. I play Nakamichi and that for real yo" - Probably some japanese kid said this in the early 80's trying to sell stereo out of his trunk lol.

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"I don't play games. I play Nakamichi and that for real yo" - Probably some japanese kid said this in the early 80's trying to sell stereo out of his trunk lol.

I think you should model your setup in winISD and compare it to two 15s. You would probobly see that the 15s will play lower and will be about as loud as your three 12s. www.linearteam.dk Go there and download WinISD.

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I agree with customsound79's assessment of the subs. 

Steven Kephart

Adire Audio

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