JL Audio home subs?

[darien87]

Hey all,

I apologize if this has already been discussed, but I tried to do a search for JL Audio, but the search drops "JL" and only searches "Audio", so I got just about every thread ever written on this forum.

Anyway. I know that JL Audio has a stellar reputation for their car woofers. But until recently, I didn't even know they made home theater subs. Has anyone out there heard them? If so, how good are they?

 

[darien87]

Ya know what? Screw it. I just called a local dealer and they want $3,200 for a single 13" sub!!!!! I don't even want to ask about the model that has 2 drivers. I don't care how good the thing sounds. No way am I paying 3 grand for a sub!!!

 

[WorldLeader]

Just build an IB sub and you will be in audio heaven.

Find the Cult.

 

[mtrycrafts]

Ya know what? Screw it. I just called a local dealer and they want $3,200 for a single 13" sub!!!!! I don't even want to ask about the model that has 2 drivers. I don't care how good the thing sounds. No way am I paying 3 grand for a sub!!!

What is your budget? Try the Hsu VTF3 Mk3, just reviewed in T$S. Impressive for $900.

 

[darien87]

What is your budget? Try the Hsu VTF3 Mk3, just reviewed in T$S. Impressive for $900.

About a grand is the absolute max that I would ever spend on a sub. But I HATE paying retail! I got my Earthquake from a local distributor for $350. I think it retails for about $800.

 

[abboudc]

Ya know what? Screw it. I just called a local dealer and they want $3,200 for a single 13" sub!!!!! I don't even want to ask about the model that has 2 drivers. I don't care how good the thing sounds. No way am I paying 3 grand for a sub!!!

They're awesome subs. The one you were quoted was probably the F113. There's also an F112 (12"). They're definitely the top of the food chain right now, would eat my sub for breakfast.

 

[Geno]

There's a story about the company and their new product line in this month's TAS.

 

[darien87]

They're awesome subs. The one you were quoted was probably the F113. There's also an F112. They're definitely the top of the food chain right now.

Yeah, I seriously doubt that losing that 1 inch is going to bring their subs into my price range. I think I'll look into buying one of their car subs and making my own box. Has anyone here done that, (make their own home theater sub out of a car stereo sub)? A woofer's a woofer right? I think I'll go check out the DIY section.

 

[abboudc]

Yeah, I seriously doubt that losing that 1 inch is going to bring their subs into my price range. I think I'll look into buying one of their car subs and making my own box. Has anyone here done that, (make their own home theater sub out of a car stereo sub)? A woofer's a woofer right? I think I'll go check out the DIY section.

You can still get a great sub for $1000. The Hsu VTF-HO w/Turbo is a great sub for the price. If i had 1k to spend today, it's what i'd buy.

But the F113 is in a different league. It's a Ferrari, whereas the VTF-HO is a Mustang. Both are fun to drive, but one is a bit more fun (and a lot more expensive) But you shouldn't expect a Ferrari on a Mustang budget

 

[zumbo]

Yeah, I seriously doubt that losing that 1 inch is going to bring their subs into my price range. I think I'll look into buying one of their car subs and making my own box. Has anyone here done that, (make their own home theater sub out of a car stereo sub)? A woofer's a woofer right? I think I'll go check out the DIY section.

JL is the cream of the crop. However, you will be MUCH better off with a pre-made sub vs a JL car sub with your homemade box.

The best thing to do is list your max budget. Then, everyone will hit you with the best options.

 

[Ketsueki]

i first got into audio from car audio (im still way young so dont quote me on any of my experience because i wouldnt doubt that it could be wrong) and from all the JL stuff ive listened to it sounded fairly high end, but not at the price tag its offered for, and from talking to friends who are in the car stereo retail market, there is a huge mark up on JL stuff and the dealers get a fat slice of that cash, so from what i understand about JL its over rated and over priced.

and as far as using car stereo subs for home stereo subs, i did it (remeber im still young and can do stupid stuff like this and not know if its the wrong thing to do) =D crutchfield is clearanceing there infinity kappa perfect subs for a buy one get one free deal, so i got 2 infinity kappa perfect 10" subs for 150 shipped and the sale still might be going on, 75 bucks shipped for a 350rms watt car sub makes me happy

 

[zumbo]

so i got 2 infinity kappa perfect 10" subs for 150 shipped and the sale still might be going on, 75 bucks shipped for a 350rms watt car sub makes me happy

So you purchased two 4ohm SVC woofers?

I guess you plan on running them in series for an 8ohm load?

How do you plan to power them?

Gonna take alot of power for two subs run in series.

You may be better off selling one, and just running one @ 4ohm.

Here's why. If you run two of them in series @8ohm off of an amp EX.(DAYTON HPSA1000 1000W SUBWOOFER AMPLIFIER), you will get 512W. Now divide that by two, and each sub will get 256W.

But, if you run one @4ohm, that amp will give you 1024W. This is a better option, no matter what amp you choose, as long as the amp is 4ohm stable.

Now, that amp is $398.80. Your subs were $150.00. A cheap box will be around $100.00. Total of $648.80, and you still need wire to hook-it up to the amp. Plus, you have to hope the box is tuned for the sub. No way to compete with a company that does this.

A much better option, for the same amount of money, ready to plug-and-play.
http://www.hsuresearch.com/products/vtf-3.html

I would send the subs back Jack.

 

[WorldLeader]

Just build an IB sub and you will be in audio heaven.

Find the Cult.

Not to quote myself, but I think that an Infinite Baffle sub would perform much better than an HSU or a JL sub, especially since you've shown interest in building things yourself. Here is a quote from an IB owner:

The preliminary results are insane. I moved from dual SVS 16-46 PC+'s, wow, who knew they were falling on their faces so much! If the SVS pair could be called impressive, then the IB is simply scary. Where I was scared to pump the SVS up for fear of it bottoming, I'm now scared turning the IB up for fear of bringing my home down on top of me!

These things are also very affordable.

http://ibsubwoofers.proboards51.com/index.cgi

 

[zumbo]

When running two subs, the idea is to use two 8ohm subs parallel. This will give you a 4ohm load. Home audio amps are rated @ 8ohm. Most increase their power when presented with a 4ohm load.(amp must be 4ohm stable) Mobile audio amps are rated @ 4ohm. If you bridge two channels of most mobile audio amps, they will increase their power as well.(amp must be 2ohm stable)

 

[WmAx]

Here is a quote from an IB owner:

I don't know whom that fellow is that you quoted, but to be blunt, his statement sounds silly.

Two high quality, properly designed 10" subwoofers in an average room will provide much more output than can be practically used. They would never "fall on their faces" or any other such thing, unless they were improperly designed or improperly used/set-up, which I suspect one of these things apply to the person you quoted, or it may be a case that they just like to make vivid commentary at the sacrifice of reason.

-Chris

 

[WorldLeader]

Probably he was being overly gracious, but then again his IB does run down to 10 Hz flat, which is better than the SVS subs. I'm just saying that DIY stuff usually turns out better for the money.

Take it with a big grain of salt, but then again, that's how everything works these days

 

[InTheIndustry]

I'm a JL Audio dealer (home products only) and would like to chime in on this subject.

To the poster that claimed that JL Audio car products have high margin... you're right. But so does every other car audio product. 65 to 70 points (meaning, if MSRP is $1000 dealer pays $350 - $300) is not un common in car audio. Sometimes, it's even greater than that. This is true for almost any car audio manufacturer.

I can tell you for certain, that JL Audio home products carry the same margin statement as just about any other home product out there and definately nowhere near where car audio is at. The price for the f113 sub is well worth it for people shopping for a great sub. It's a high-end product with high-end performance and is priced accordingly. It has been reviewed with huge success and has won many awards.

The entry level sub from JL Audio is a 10" model (f110) and MSRP's at $2K. I have yet to hear this model because it just began shipping. I'm eager to give it a listen because as a stand alone subwoofer the f113 is the best I have ever heard.

As far as using a car audio sub as a home sub, I'm with Zumbo. I have serious doubts as to how a car audio product transitions because if it were that simple, other car audio sub manufacturers would have penetrated the home market years ago. JL's car subs are well regarded and established in that sector, but it took years to design, develop, and bring to market a product for home use.

I have serious doubts to the truth of a DIY product going down to 10hrz. I refuse to belive that some guy in his gargage can easily build something that manufacturers with millions of dollars in research and production capabilities can't.

EDIT: after reading this post over, I want to make it clear that I am speaking not to all DIY owners and hobbiests, but to the fact that one person is claiming to have made one product that performs astronomically better than most anything else (if not everything else) out there. I fully understand and recognize that speaker makers like Polk Audio exist only because Matthew Polk started building his own speakers in his garage.

The dual driver sub, the Gotham retails at $9000. Both I and the JL rep for my area choked on that and agreed that a client would get better results with 2 f113's in the room and save around $2K in the process.

Hope some of this explained a little bit about the JL Audio home product. If you have any other questions about the product I'll be happy to answer as best I can.

 

[jchag]

What is the price I could expect to buy a F113? I went to there web site and could not find a dealer within the 100 mile radius. I 'm interested in this beast and willing to drive to bay area or LA for a good price from a certified dealer.

 

[Matt34]

What is the price I could expect to buy a F113? I went to there web site and could not find a dealer within the 100 mile radius. I 'm interested in this beast and willing to drive to bay area or LA for a good price from a certified dealer.

I've seen owners say as low as $2300 but then again I only believe 33.3% of what I read on the internet.

 

[InTheIndustry]

The glossy piano black finish on the f113 MSRP is $3300 and the standard black is $3200.

Every market is different (yours in particular because cost of living might not allow dealers to give very big price breaks), but I would think that a dealer would be able to give you a good price on one. Explain to the dealer (and be honest when speaking to him/her) why you're driving so far to audition the product. DON'T CALL and ask for a price. Drive out and listen to it and speak to the dealer face to face. You should be able to work out a fair deal. I'm in Ohio, and have the luxury of not always having to charge full retail. Every market is different though.