Subwoofer-JL or Rockford Fosgate

[mtnsmith]

I was wondering if any of you have any experience with either the JL 10" marine sub or the Rockford Fosgate 10" marine sub. I want a direct fit for the hole that is already there from the Clarion and I have a JL marine amp to power it. Thanks in advance!

[dogbert]

You may want to ask NICKYPOO about the 10" RE he just installed. I think he's real happy with it.

[akdoc]

Don't waste your money buying a "marine" sub. They are way overpriced for what you get. How many watts will your amp push to a sub? JL subs are better than rockford subs, RE audio subs are really good also. Tell us the wattage and then you can get some good recommendations.

[talltigeguy]

I agree with AKDOC, Marine subs are a waste of money. I suppose if you put it in the right spot, it might need to be marinized, but if my sub is getting wet, I've got bigger problems at that time.

[Tequilasun]

What is RE? I remember Nicky prasing them, but I can't remember what RE stood for.

[mtnsmith]

I know this will drive most of you crazy but I am using my boat in salt water about 50/50 and was told that the non marine subs will not last. I am running the JL e1400dm amp-240W RMS @4ohms.

[Tanner]

Your right... your sub will not last in a saltwater environment if it not a marine sub. The salt is also in the air, not just the water. Quite honestly I'm not sure a marine sub will last that long either.

As for the subs.... IF you really want to get the most out of your sub, I'd like at an IDMAX. It'll handle small power if that's all you have, but it'll also more or less as much power as you want to throw at it. Of course that all depends on your budget, as you will pay for the performance of that sub. Personally I prefer JL over the RF subs. Although I kind of hate that JL went to foam surrounds instead of the rubber surrounds a longggggg time ago. If you can't afford the IDMAX, the other Image Dynamics subs are VERY GOOD. Just another option.

[dyldebus]

The Rockford marine sub is basically the equivalent of a P2 (if you have used/heard their standard subs). They actually sound and look pretty good for a marine product. If your climate is fairly dry and the boat is for fresh water only you won't need a marine grade sub.

[mtnsmith]

I'm leaning more to the JL, I have a friend that put the two speaker specs into LinearTeat.com ISD software and he said the JL driver came out ahead of the RF anyways.

[mtnsmith]

That should have read LinearTeam.com...not LinearTeat.com...ooops

[dyldebus]

Even though I work for Rockford I'll be the first to say JL does make a killer sub. However, I would do a pepsi challenge with our amps over theirs any day

[inspectorscott]

Kicker Subs?

Anyone had any experience with the Kicker CVX subs in their boat?

I have an 05 22v and the Clarion marine sub sucks(bottoms out all the time). It needs a box and Clarion support blows. They just told me that it is a free air design and they do not have box size criteria.

The boat has a Kicker amp so I called to see what they would suggest for marine applications. They basically told me that the marine grade was a testing criteria that they had to put their products through to get the certification and that most of their subs are made with the same resistant materials, just not certified as marine grade. BTW Kicker has great customer support; unlike Clarion!

So, I am thinking two CVX 12" under the driver kick panel and building a 5 sided ported box to fit in that storage area. I think I will need about 1000 watts. Anyway, I have been out of the stereo seen for a long time but, the new boat has me reinterested. I do not want to enter sound offs, just have good clean, hard bass. I am ok with the kids listening to their rap but, the kind of system that sounds good for "dirty bass" will probably not sound good for my music choices (alt & rock) It would be really cool to ripple the water too!

Any suggestions on this idea or others would be helpful! I probably do not want more than 2 quality subs and do not want to get into dual alternator setups, etc.

Thanks,
Scott

[dyldebus]

Kicker is more comparable to Sony or MTX. There stuff is good but not great. Honestly you would probably be better off buying a single high end 12" sub. A single T212D2 (rockford) or W6 (JL) would put off a much cleaner bass and probably the same volume as two mid-grade kicker subs. Just be sure to have enough power

NEVER run any sub with free air, especially in a boat. I can't tell you how many people mount their subs in the driver side firewall and use the compartment as the box... The proper size box with proper ports will more than double your bass output over running it boxless. You may want to consider building a box for your clarion and hearing the difference it makes before upgrading.

[dyldebus]

PS. Take a cup of water into a kicker dealer and throw it on the sub... then watch the dealers reaction

Only marine grade products are built to handle all weather applications. If your not deep sea fishing however, you'll be fine.

[inspectorscott]

Interesting...

Ok, the world has gone full circle since I was in the stereo scene. Rockford was the king of dirty power and subs. Kicker was good to better quality. I certainly would not want anything in my boat of the MTX or Sony (ie Walmart) quality. Can anyone second this opinion of Kicker? I really like their customer service. They will design a box and take the time to make sure I am happy with their recommendations just for using their products. BTW the Comp VX is their high end round sub.

Someone should give Tige' your advice regarding boxes (they installed it). I believe you are correct. Try and tell that to the IDIOTS at Clarion. I just assume use their stuff as anchors than run that crap after I got off the phone with them! $50 on ebay or the satisfaction of really testing the "marine" certification. Hmmm.

Scott