What to do about the 8" woofer

[jeffmsp]

hey everyone,

I know very little about car audio. i have hooked up a system before and understand how to do simple installs etc. I have a question regarding the 8inch sub that comes stock in the msp. It really is a pos and yesterday it just stopped working. (even though Ive had the nf level at -2) I inspected the rack unit and the amp is lighting up fine so i have decided the sub is gone, or isnt worth looking at it to repair. Now here is where i am stuck. I have 2 10" sony explod subs that are brand new in box. i was debating putting both in, however I am not crazy about having a big box or the weight of 2 subs + box in my car. Should I remove the stock rack and replace it with a box that will bolt into the rack that has one 10inch xplod in it (powered by a 500watt amp i already have) or just replace the 8 with some sort of a highher performance 8 inch woofer. Are there any reasonably priced 8 inch subs that can compare to a single 10" sony xplod?

Also, when i am installing the system, should i just re-use the power, ground etc. from the stock or should i run a powerwire seperately and ground seperately also. (i already have the wires, just dont want to cut and clutter the car if i dont have to)

Thanks for your time guys, Jeff

 

[jeffmsp]

lots of views, no posts (poke)

 

[hayula]

1sty advised me to swap out my dead 8" with JL 8w3 and i was very pleased with the upgrade. ~120 bux well spent.

 

[jeffmsp]

I took a look at some nicer 8s, but I ended up buying a sheet of mdf and making a encloser for one 10inch. Then I made a new amp rack for it to mount.(The amp mounts beside it on the drivers side)The box is 26cm by 32cm. I sealed it with silicone and lined the inside with foam pieces. Then carpeted everything with black carpet that matches the trunk carpet. Now the only thing I have left to figure out is whether to use the stock power/ground/src wires or to run my own. i really dont like the thought of butchering my msp, but the sub is rated i believe at 600w and the amp at 500w(MA Audio). Can anyone give me any idvice on what I should use? I already have a 6 gauge power wire and ground wire but I like not having to run wires through the car, do you think i could get away with using the stock wires or will it comprimise performance? (dunno)

 

[MSP #167]

1sty advised me to swap out my dead 8" with JL 8w3 and i was very pleased with the upgrade. ~120 bux well spent.

Did you use the stock kenwood amp for the w3? How much power is that amp putting out?

 

[MSPinVA]

I believe its 250 peak watts and ~125-150 RMS

 

[AutoBox]

haha i pulled my rack and put in a 12" alpine type r....i keep blownin my kenwood amp on that damn thing (hand) .....sony 500w on the way though

 

[hayula]

with the 8w3d2 (dual coil 2ohm) wired in series, you'll be at 125W rms with your stock amp, which is just right for the woofer. the stock kenwood woofer has 8ohm impedence.

Did you use the stock kenwood amp for the w3? How much power is that amp putting out?

 

[EYEben53RV3D]

best place to buy the JL 8W3?

 

[MSP #167]

best place to buy the JL 8W3?

probably ebay, i've seen them going very cheap.

with the 8w3d2 (dual coil 2ohm) wired in series, you'll be at 125W rms with your stock amp, which is just right for the woofer. the stock kenwood woofer has 8ohm impedence.

Thanks, i'm going to be getting one.

 

[servoeyes]

actually, what you want is the 8w3v2d2. Then you'll have to invert the amp so that it doesn't overheat. You can get it at Tweeter or any other JL audio dealer...you can find local JL audio dealers on JL's site. Don't buy ebay, because you get no warranty what-so-ever....if that thing goes you're SOL.

The MSP's amp is dropping ~67W RMS to the stock sub, which is 8ohm. I, as well as 1sty, believe this is because the amp is inverted...they didn't want it to fry itself. Fixing this is simple...you can invert the amp or get some active cooling on there. It might also be a good idea to upgrade the wiring to 8ga. It's cheap to do, so I highly recommend it.

I know I may be repeating some stuff said in here, but I'm just trying to summarize it all into one message here. You can also check the actual car-audio forum on here and check out the Audio FAQ if you want. There's good info in there.

 

[EYEben53RV3D]

Servoeyes, what is the difference in the JL 8W3 and the 8W3v2d2?? I'm not looking for an extremely bumping ride, just something that doesn't bottom out listening to Blues Traveler! The stock woofer kills me. If I leave the stock MSP amp like it is will the sub still sound good? Do either of these mentioned JL subs fit the stock box WITHOUT modification?

p.s. Just went to tweeter.com They only carry the 8W04 for $79. good buy or what?

 

[servoeyes]

Servoeyes, what is the difference in the JL 8W3 and the 8W3v2d2?? I'm not looking for an extremely bumping ride, just something that doesn't bottom out listening to Blues Traveler! The stock woofer kills me. If I leave the stock MSP amp like it is will the sub still sound good? Do either of these mentioned JL subs fit the stock box WITHOUT modification?

p.s. Just went to tweeter.com They only carry the 8W04 for $79. good buy or what?

Tweeter has local stores...that's where you'd want to go...or a local JL dealer The 8w0-4 might not have the power handling for the MSP's amp. It should if you keep the gain down, but I haven't had an opportunity to find out yet with the setup that I've got with an 8w0.

the difference with the 8w3 and the 8w3v2-d2 is that they're different models. The 8w3v2 is newer...they don't make the 8w3 anymore...so finding a new one from an authorized dealer will be tough.

As for fitting without mods, as I understand it from those that have done it, yes...both will fit with zero to minimal mods.

 

[EYEben53RV3D]

very nice....my next mod then!

 

[servoeyes]

Just make sure if you get the 8w3v2 you get the d2 not the d4. The d2 is a dual 2 ohm voice coil model. Then you can wire it for 4ohm operation to get the full 125W RMS from the kenwood amp.

 

[jeffmsp]

holy threadjacked lol

anyways, i decided to use the stock amp and the stock wires with one 10" sony explode. It worked fantastic for about a week then all of a sudden, nothing. I checked the amp. The lights are only and everything looks fine. Everything is hooked up on the stock wires. I then plugged in my other amp and tried it. Once again nothing, no sound. Could I have blown my 700w sub with the stock 250w amp? Has anyone else had any problems with the stock wires?

 

[hayula]

oh yeah listen to servoeyes he helped me a lot. as to the original question. use the kenwood as magnetic wrist pain reliever or soemthing

 

[CChris704]

uhh what happens if i get the 4ohm as opposed to the 2ohm. My local tweeter says that the 2ohm will take like 3 weeks to order but they have a few 4ohms in stock. Do i gotta wait for the 2 or will the 4 work?

 

[skilletrx]

when u wire the 4 ohmed one it will come out differently i think it will come out to 2 ohms or less... um happy bday i guess, answered it one year later lol

 

[Mystic21]

Just make sure if you get the 8w3v2 you get the d2 not the d4. The d2 is a dual 2 ohm voice coil model. Then you can wire it for 4ohm operation to get the full 125W RMS from the kenwood amp.

How do you wire it for 4ohm operation?