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Three good subs, ruined... WHY!?!?!

4K views 32 replies 5 participants last post by  Grifnsqest 
#1 ·
Ok, so I have an old school Rockford 200ix amp I bought used on eBay. I originally hooked up a used JL 10w3V3-2 to it. About 3 months later, I found that one of the tinsel leads on the sub had torn out. I thought it was a fluke. So I bought another used JL 10w3v3-2. Same thing, about 3 months later, torn out tinsel lead.

So I said, screw it... I'll step it up a lil and try something new. So I bought a NEW Morel Primo 10. It's a 4ohm sub, rated at 500w RMS. Since the 200ix was underrated and a 2ohm monster, I figured I would be safe at 4 ohms. NOPE!!! Tore yet another tinsel lead.


What's going on??? Do you think there is an issue with the amp???
 
#5 ·
I have the gain set at 50%. The Pioneer head unit has its crossover set to 40hz and a 3+ on the levels. I've ran similar settings on almost a dozen different cars, with no issues.

The box is sealed, with about a foot of cubic space. A basic cheap'o box...
 
#6 ·
Surprisingly, 50% may be too much. Hard to say. My JL 900/5 gain on sub channel is roughly set to 40-ish %

Try this:

Flatten out all EQ controls.
Turn down gain all the way.
Set crossover (not sure why you want to play it so low. I would do 80 or so)
Set volume to 75% of max.
Play a very musical and bass heavy track, preferably on CD.
Turn gain clockwise until you hear distortion, then back down a tad.

There's a way to do it with a multi meter, but it's a little involved and I feel the above yields similar results.
 
#9 ·
Nevermind,

I used 400 watts RMS from amp and a 4ohm load.

Set voltage at amp speaker terminals to 28.2 volts AC. ( Somebody help me on this. I used 2 ohms since the amp is seeing a 2 ohm load when bridged.)


When setting this, be sure speaker wires are disconnected and volume is 75%, crossover set. Also, you'll be wanting to play a 50 or 60 hz sine wave with 0db attentuation. Can make this or download in iTunes, etc.
 
#11 ·
Well, here's the update...

After trying to solder the Morel Primo 10, I found I couldn't get a good connection. So either the voice coil is shot to hell, or my soldering skills aren't that good. Either way, with the ohms fluctuating like crazy, there's no way I could reuse it.

I tried the same thing with the other JL 10w3 subs, same results. Ohms all over the board.

So, I pulled the trigger on yet another sub. I'm going to try the Morel Ultimo SC 104. It can handle more power than the JL 10w3s, as well as more than the Primo 10. My goal is to NOT screw this one up too, obviously!


So, from various people's feedback, I'm going back to the setup of my headunit and amp. The consensus is that the gains on the amp were too high, which caused too much excursion in the sub, which is what was pulling the leads apart. So, in order to prevent it, I'm going to follow the next couple of steps:


1) Set headunit to a flat EQ

2) Set sub out of headunit to 80hz with 0 on the levels

3) Set the amp gains at 0

4) Set headunit volume at 75% max listening volume

5) Use tone app ( https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.jm.android.frequencygenerator&hl=en ) via my bluetooth connection to play various low frequencies, while slowly turning gains up on amp.

6) Once clipping/distortion is present, back off amp gain a bit

7) Make mild adjustments to EQ in headunit

8) JAM ON!!!



Any other suggestions?

Anyone want any of the "bad" subs to play with...?
 
#13 ·
You only want to play the test tone if you are using a multimeter at the speaker output terminals of the amp. If you are going by ear, play normal music with a heavy bass line and go by that. If you use a test tone and tune by ear you'll most likely not get it right.
 
#12 ·
Gordon Norah, I am just sooooo glad I travel in silence!
 
#18 ·
That size won't affect the sub in terms of over-excursion. Little on the small side and, if anything, will affect output. Do you have fiberfill in the box loosely stuffed? If not, add some to get a little more low end out of it.

I wouldn't spend too much money on a new box. If you go ported, chances are, it's going to be significantly bigger...I'd venture to say somewhere around 1.5 cu ft.
 
#19 ·
I was looking at this one...

http://m.ebay.com/itm/BLACK-10-SINGLE-SEALED-EXTRA-LARGE-BOX-/251990947011


I don't have any fill in my current box, but can add some when the sub arrives tomorrow.

With that other box, I figured I may get a lil better sound out of it. I'm confident, based on the research and responses, I just didn't have the power set correctly on the previous subs.
 
#20 ·
So the sub came in today and I got right to work.

I started by filling about half the box with some poly-fill material. I wired it up and screwed it in. I played around with the settings on both the Pioneer headunit, as well as the Rockford amp. I set my Pandora channel to DJ Snake (club music) and here's where I am at...

Pioneer Headunit
Volume = 30 (my "normal" listening volume)
EQ Settings = (100Hz +1) (315 Hz -1) (1.25kHz +1) (3.15kHz +2) (8kHz +1)
Loudness = Low
SubOut = Normal
SubEQ = 80Hz +2
Bass Boost = 0
HPF = 80Hz

Rockford 200ix
X-Over Card = Low Pass
Treble Knob = If 4pm is 0 and 2pm is 10, its at 0
Bass Knob = If 8pm is 0 and 4pm is 10, its at 1pm
Left/Right Gains = If 7pm is 0, and 5pm is 10, its at 11pm

For the most part, I feel like I'm missing out on some of the boominess I got out of the other subs. The slightest tweak towards 2pm on the Bass Knob, I get it. But I'm fearful of damage.

Is it safer to make adjustments to the Bass Knob or the gains?

Would it be worth removing the poly-fill and leave the settings as is?

Should I leave all the electronics alone and go with a bigger (or ported) box to get the boom?

Thanks YALL!!
 
#21 ·
BONUS POINT!!!

I forgot... so I noticed two wires hanging off the sub when I was looking at the pictures from the auction. I never really asked what they were, cause I figured they were just left over from a previous install.

Turns out, there was a custom LED trim ring that they had on it. So add some power to it and BAM!!!



The Red Ring of DEATH!! JK... I know some of you old school Xbox people are probably going into convulsions or something...
 
#24 ·
Set the MULTI-METER to Volts AC. Connect red lead to + on speaker terminal of amp. Connect black lead to - on speaker terminal of amp.

This will measure the amp at the speaker output terminals.

The voltage will change as you adjust the gain on the amp.

Remember to set everything to flat on the head unit. Zero equalization. If it's a sub amp, play 50 or 60 hz test tone with volume at 75%. If it's a mids and/or highs amp, play a 1khz test tone.
 
#25 ·
Ok, I followed these instructions, and left the head unit and amp as is, and got 27.1 on the multi-meter.

I set the Pioneer EQ to flat, turned off the Loudness, left sub out at 80Hz but knocked it down to 0 instead of +2, with no other adjustments to the amp, and got 7.8
 
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