Are standard speakers good enough?

[Scott_150]

Hi,

  When i get my mk4 golf 1.6 16v i hope to put two 12" subs in the boot, was thinking JL subs ive heard nothing but good stuff about them and my mate has 3 12" JL subs and they sound v.nice.  Anyway back to the question;  Do you think the standard speakers in the golf will be ok and 'keep up' with the two 12" subs in the boot?

I will probably neeed a little help with you explanations as im kinda new to installs etc, i understand bridging and channels i think.. lol well the bare basics.

Thanks in advance for any help info you can give!

[V_Arse6]

They're not bad these days, but the sort of person serious enough to get 2 12" subs really shouldn't be asking this sort of thing....

I replaced mine with a decent component set, and I've only got one 12 incher - more than enough bass for me.  I've never really seen the point in more than one sub (unless they're different sizes, then there is an argument for it since they'd suit different music styles, but even then that would be a bit tenuous)

[Scott_150]

Ok thats a fair point lol, i would like 2 12" because it would look good but i was also thinking boot space is going to be tight and its going to cost a few bob!! I think i may just stick with one sub but a decent one, got any reccomendations..?  I want a JL audio one.


Oh yeah wile im hear...is there any difference in JL audio and JBL??  Ive seen them around and i wanted to know if there the same company? may sound dumb? lol


Thanks.

[V_Arse6]

JL and JBL are different manufacturers.  I believe JL are generally higher-end (i.e. more expensive) and JBL aren't, but I'm sure there's some grey areas..

I'm not really the guy to ask about subs and quality...  I Just grabbed a Halfrauds Mutant Sub+Mutant Amp+Box+wiring deal (£100) for mine (I was getting annoyed with lack of bass really not doing Prodigy justice).  I'm not the type to Want really really really silly loud so people can hear you coming from miles away, but some tracks require a bit of oomph...   I'm perfectly happy with it.  I'm sure if I was really paying attention I could tell the difference between mine and a higher quality one, but at the end of the day I'm listening to tunes whilst driving, so my full attention is hardly ever on the music - usually on not crashing into cars/walls/people/etc...

I think unless you're budget is really high you're better off spending the money on a decent set of components for the front, so your high/mid stuff is all top notch.  That's where you'll really notice sound quality differences IMO.  Then whatever's left over for the sub.

This is just my opinion of course - others may disagree (hell, I might disagree myself in the future!)...

[Scott_150]

HaHa yeah, have you changed or upgraded your front speakers atall? if so what with? i was thinking of getting a Vibe, FLI 12 sub they look quite good!

[S11EPS]

If you intend on running your speakers 'full-range' (that is, you're going to be putting an un-molestered signal through them) then I would recommend a change.

However, if you intend on filtering out everything below, say, 100hz then the efficiency of the speakers will increase (you're driving them less hard) and therefore their ability to reproduce sound before they start to croak will improve.

That said, a change for a good quality compnent set up front will be noticeable, even with them filtered - it does depend on how far you (or your wallett) want to go.

I personallythat because of the well constructed and sealed doors (have you ever taken apaprt a mk4 door? Wow!) the standard stuff does just fine if you give them a hand with some high pass filters.

[Len]

JL tend to specialise in subs and amps whereas JBL do the full range of speakers.

[Scott_150]

ok cool thanks,

How do the filters work? and are they easy to fit? price roughly?

[V_Arse6]

HaHa yeah, have you changed or upgraded your front speakers atall? if so what with? i was thinking of getting a Vibe, FLI 12 sub they look quite good!

Yup.  someone on here recommended some 17cm Alpine Components (can't remember the exact model number) - they were around £100 with delivery, but the site cocked up my order so they let me have some 'In Phase' components at a reduced price which are more costly (£150), but I got them for about £115 delivered I think.

Bearing in mind I have a Mk3 Golf, not a mk4, so I don't really know what the stock speakers are like in them, plus I'm not sure of what size they (mk4 speakers) are so the parts I have may not fit (I'm sure someone can chip in with this info though!  )

The filters would work by simply wiring the output from the stereo into the filter, then from outputs on the filter to the stereo.  Standard component kits come with crossover boxes which do the same thing, but they give you 2 sets of outputs - a high range one for the tweeters, and a low range one for the mid/woofers.  Not sure if you'd want something a bit more customisable than a normal crossover though.