I tried posting this in the Audio/Electronics group, but appearantly no one reads that...

I have a few ideas, and I wanted to get everyones feedback.

Currently I have replaced the bose system with a premier mp3 deck, a set up Crystal mobilesound components up front (100x2), and 2 Image Dynamic 12" subs powered by a JBL 600.1 amp. I have them all in for a while, and I have been fairly happy with the sound. I am thinking however that the 2 subs is more bass than I need. I think I may want to sell the subs and get a single sub that can handle the 600 x 1 load @ 2 ohms. What subs would you recommend for that?

Also, the guy that installed my speakers tied the rear bose speakers into my 2 channel amp that I had intended to run just my fronts on. I didn't tell him to do that. Assuming the amp is putting out 100x2, would that then mean that my front speakers aren't getting the 100 amps a piece that they should be if he put 2 sets of speakers on each line? If I were to disconnect the rear speakers, do you think I would get better sound out of the front?

Thanks
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2K2 Maxima SE 6-Speed, Majestic Blue
Everything but NAV
Pioneer Premier HU
Crystal Mobilesound 6.5" Components
JBL 600.1 (300W @ 4 Ohm, 600W @ 2Ohm)
2 12" Image Dynamics Q's

 

Followup:

I went out and played with my setup. I hooked up just the front speakers and had a listen. It sounded terrible. The tweeters sounded okay, but I have some questions about those I will get to in a minute. Here's the weird thing. The speakers in the back were a lot louder and clearer than the ones in the front (the woofers not the tweeters). The ones in the front sounded very muted and crappy. I only got back one pair of the bose speakers when he did the install, so I assumed he put the Crystals in the front and kept the bose in the back. But how could that be if the back ones sound so much better than the front ones? I don't know what to think about that. About the tweeters... When I had the Crystal Components installed, the installed never gave me back my bose tweeters. I'm wondering if he just kept the bose ones in the car and pocketed my Crystals and just assumed that I wouldn't know any better. I'm gonna see if my roommate will let me borrow his digital camera. Im gonna take some pics of the tweeters, and hopefully somebody here will be able to tell me if they are the bose ones or if they are A/M.

Still need advice with the subs though...

 

Some of my friends recommend having two subs. I guess the bass is more evened out this way. Although 12"s are a bit large. Two 8s or 10s would have nice tight bass. It's all personal preference basically. I would just keep them and keep the bass levels low if it's too much.

 

It's going to be hard to help you if you don't even know what was installed where. Find that out, then let us know. No one is going to be able to help you with the info you have given us.

If you've got the bucks, a single JL Audio 12W7 would sound pretty nice. Personally, I would recommend turning the gain and/or crossover levels down a bit on the sub amp and keep your existing setup.

 

I have 3 JL 10's in my trunk pushed with a 500 watt JL amp. If you are looking to conserve space I'd go with with the W7 mentioned before. It's been my experience that smaller diameter speakers sound better than larger speakers though. By "better" I mean tighter base, less boomy sound. It also depends on the type of box you have as far as what the speaker sounds like, this makes a big difference, if it's too loud try getting a different box (sealed) for less boom... in my 02 Max I have 6 MB Quart mids, 6 tweeters, 3 JL 10's, 3 Precision Power amps, a DSP, eclipse CD player, Alpine EQ, 1 Farad capacitor, and 1 JL amp.
Jeffrey

 

I actually went out earlier and did a few things. I had a bucket of car cleaning stuff in the trunk that had spilled all over the trunk. Not like the liquid got out, just all the containers. So I took them out. Call me crazy, but when I fired the system back up, it sounded a LOT better. A lot less rattles. I didn't think that would make that big of a difference. I still need to do some re-arranging on the interior though. I swear my good woofers are in the back doors, and the crappy bose ones are in the front. That's the only logical explanation. The back ones sound so good on my external amp, and the front ones sound like trash. I think I need to get those switched out because as good as the back ones sound, it feels like all of my nice mids are coming from behind me, which I don't like. Once they are in the front I think they would sound awesome.

 

I agree with this statement. It sounds like what you really want is a couple of 10"s or 8"s in a sealed enclosure. You could even put the 12" subs in a cheap, sealed enclosure and see how it sounds. It really all depends on what kind of music you like. You should get a Crutchfield magazine if you don't already have one and read up if you aren't familiar with enclosure types.

 

I already have 2 12"s in a sealed enclosure. It's just too much bass for me I think. I like the sound of really clean, tight bass, which I just don't feel like I'm getting. My amp is a JBL 600.1. Can you guys recommend any specific 10s that this amp will run well?

Thanks!

 

Image Dynamics are very nice. I'd look at those first. Remember, you can control the power output of the amp with gain control, so any subs with and RMS rating of 300 watts each will do.

It really depends on your budget. Image Dynamics are clean, as are JL Audio 10W3's. JL's would be my first choice.