Subwoofer Problem

[WiGGleZ]

Hey, I bought and isntalled a 12" Pioneer TS-W306C in a ported box. Now when I play it and turn it up reasonably loud (nothing major) it sounds like crap... It can hit the deep bass fine, but when it has to hit the higher types of bass (the kicks I think) it sounds like its fluttering. I can't think of what it could be... The amp I'm running it off is a 4 channel 440 Watt Blaupunkt amp (GTA-440 I think). Any help would be appreciated!

[Tommy]

thats what happens when you have the wrong box. premade ported boxes sound like crap.

[thoughthard]

Do you have some sort of polyfill inside the enclosure?

Is the sub have some sort of crossover?

[xet]

what is the box tuned to and what did u set your amp to

[fredberg]

I dont know much about Pioneer subs, never owned one. follow the manual as to what recommended enclosure its made for. then it will tell u the range of box volume it will work ok in. sealed boxes are more forgiving than a random premade ported box. unless u make a custom ported box, u wotn get the best sound out of that box. sealed boxes tend to be more forgiving.

[WiGGleZ]

Tommy - The guy I bought it off had the same sub, just a year younger and it sounded fine.

Thoughthard - There is cotton inside the box, and no there is no crossover.

Xet - I don't know what the box is tuned to, but it didn't make a difference what the amp was tuned to, it still done exactly the same thing.

Fredberg - It actually shows the ported boxes have the most equal range of sound, but then again I don't know how much litres the box it or anything...

[Tommy]

subs will sound different depending on what you put them in. Ported boxes require tuning of the box and of the signal more so than a sealed box.

You said it sounds good in your friends car, but your friends car isnt the same as yours, and the settings on the amp will make a difference too.

You need to adjust the crossover on the amp to eliminate the higher frequencies, higher notes are for the mid's. That or go for a sealed box.

[thoughthard]

I would make adjustments to the Bass Boost on the amp, and see if the intermal low-pass Blaupunkt crossover is on, or needs adjustment as Tommy suggested...

[JayMax03]

I have those subs also, but never used them in a ported box although I'm tempted to. I still haven't made up my mind yet given what the previous statements are -- If I get 1 though let me know if you still have problems with them. I recommend these in a sealed box anyway unless proven otherwise

[thapranksta]

First thing you need to do is set the low pass filter (should be one on your amp). You don't want that sub trying to play notes that are out of its range. If you are not sure what range it plays in, consult the product box or manual that came with the sub.

Next, adjust the gains on your amp. There are different techniques for this but most agree that you should initially set your gains to the lowest level. Turn your stereo up 3/4 or a little over 3/4 of its maximum value. Turn your gains up gradually until you start to hear distortion from your sub. Once you hear distortion, turn your gains down a little from whatever setting the distortion started at. This is basically your "sweet" spot.

If you have done all these things already or they don't help, then it is something else wrong like the sub box as everyone mentioned.

I'm a car audio newb but the information above should be very accurate. I've been doing my research.

[WiGGleZ]

Ok...

Tommy & Thoughthard - The low-pass filter is on

thapraksta - like i said above the low-pass filter is on, and according to the box it plays 18-500hz. I have set the gains to what I think are pretty close to max (always depends on songs as well...), it's not the volume, or the reproduction of low/deep bass, its the reproduction of the higher bass. I can upload a song that is a prime example of what I'm talking about if you think it would help. I am now also thinking its the box, but if I was to purchase a sealied box, should I buy a genuine Pioneer box, or a generic sealed box? Any other help would be appreciated also!

EDiT: Just one more thing, does anyone think it might be the amp?

[thapranksta]

Originally Posted by WiGGleZ

EDiT: Just one more thing, does anyone think it might be the amp?

That was my next question. Is the amp rated at 440 watts max or 440 watts rms per channel? Do you have it bridged? Give some more information about how you have the amp set up. That just may be the main problem.

I see that your subwoofer needs 400 watts of power running to it constantly to perform best, from the description on pioneer's page.

[CamrySExxx]

i have two of these in a ported box connected to 1 2ch 200w kicker amp...very underpowered... at lower volumes it sounds really nic and clean but at higher volume the bass sounds like....um its hard to describe but it sounds bad kinda like thres too much air gettin into the box..it might be the same problem as you..i built my box tho i got my specs from a guy on a local forum and he said it should be tuned to roughly 35hz..im not sure it could be or it might not. but any ways these subs pound!

[thapranksta]

Originally Posted by CamrySExxx

i at lower volumes it sounds really nic and clean but at higher volume the bass sounds like....um its hard to describe but it sounds bad kinda like thres too much air gettin into the box..

[WiGGleZ]

Originally Posted by thapranksta

That was my next question. Is the amp rated at 440 watts max or 440 watts rms per channel? Do you have it bridged? Give some more information about how you have the amp set up. That just may be the main problem.

I see that your subwoofer needs 400 watts of power running to it constantly to perform best, from the description on pioneer's page.

Ummm, to be honest, I couldnt' tell you, I bought the amp off my brother, who didn't have any documentation, on the amp just says 440 Watts so I'm presuming its 110watts x 4 RMS... But I don't know...