JL Audio Fathom f110 Subwoofer Review

[admin]

The JL Audio Fathom f110 may be small in size, but its not lacking in the performance department. While there are certainly much larger subs from other brands at the same price or less, you will be hard pressed to find all of the performance attributes the f110 has to offer in such a compact box. Not once did I find the f110s output lacking as they were always able to rattle my walls and shake my couches when the source material required it. It’s clear to me that JL Audio is as serious about high fidelity in the home environment as they have been in mobile audio since their inception. Bassaholics rejoice as JL Audio has produced a reference level product that will thump, and thump well, without requiring a refrigerator sized box that you neither have the space nor the accepting wife to accommodate.

Discuss "JL Audio Fathom f110 Subwoofer Review" here. Read the article.

 

[Matt34]

I would so pimp one of these for the next three years of apartment living.


Great review!

 

[WmAx]

I would so pimp one of these for the next three years of apartment living.


Great review!

And to think... you are giving up those two incredible high performance W7 drivers in your awesome towers......

-Chris

 

[Matt34]

And to think... you are giving up those two incredible high performance W7 drivers in your awesome towers......

-Chris

Got this fixed but I still wouldn't mind having one of these subs

 

[bandphan]

It definitely bests the DD10 from velodyne in ouput. My little hgs10 plays nice and flat but doesn't have near the mid bass spl. Nice review for those looking for a compact high performance subwoofer.

 

[KODG]

jl sub

I have two JL AUDIO F-113 & I won't trade them for any other subs period!!

 

[WmAx]

If people would get their heads out of their a**es and not be so intent on owning a 'name brand' sub, they could easily get JL Audio performance like this for pretty cheap. Discount sub retailer + local car audio shop to build a cabinet to specification + pro amp and DSP hardware = high end quality for medium end price. You can buy these high quality W7 drivers for reasonable prices. I'll tell you exactly how to have the box built at your local car audio shop and how to hook up the amp and what entries to make to your DCX2496 processor.

$500(including shipping) for a 12" W7 + $150 for a finished box from local car audio shop with your choice of stone finish or carpeting (if you want furniture grade wood finishes you will have to pay much more and have a cabinet shop make the box) + $300 for the amp + $250 for the processor = $1200 (almost 1/2 price) and it will be superior to the real deal, as the DCX DSP is far more capable than that included with the JL Audio pre-fabbed home sub and the DCX DSP can do much more in addition for your main speakers as well!

The pro amp suggested (EP2500) will still produce enough power, even when used with two of the subs, so you can add another box and driver ($650) and a single DCX can control up to 6 subs individually of each other.

Or people can continue to waste money buying lower performance pre-fabbed subs....

-Chris

 

[captiankirk28]

If people would get their heads out of their a**es and not be so intent on owning a 'name brand' sub, they could easily get JL Audio performance like this for pretty cheap. Discount sub retailer + local car audio shop to build a cabinet to specification + pro amp and DSP hardware = high end quality for medium end price. You can buy these high quality W7 drivers for reasonable prices. I'll tell you exactly how to have the box built at your local car audio shop and how to hook up the amp and what entries to make to your DCX2496 processor.

$500(including shipping) for a 12" W7 + $150 for a finished box from local car audio shop with your choice of stone finish or carpeting (if you want furniture grade wood finishes you will have to pay much more and have a cabinet shop make the box) + $300 for the amp + $250 for the processor = $1200 (almost 1/2 price) and it will be superior to the real deal, as the DCX DSP is far more capable than that included with the JL Audio pre-fabbed home sub and the DCX DSP can do much more in addition for your main speakers as well!

The pro amp suggested (EP2500) will still produce enough power, even when used with two of the subs, so you can add another box and driver ($650) and a single DCX can control up to 6 subs individually of each other.

Or people can continue to waste money buying lower performance pre-fabbed subs....

-Chris

Hey Chris i am going to be geting some money in a bit and i want to build one of the W7 sub so if it is ok i will be getting ahold of you for help, to build and for the settings on the DCX.

Sorry for high jacking: Kirk

 

[bandphan]

on a related note ... Craigsub has this standing challenge that he will buy THE DIY subwoofer that will outperform the JL F113 for 3000 bucks provided the conditions below are met

Quote:Originally Posted by craigsub
Manville is correct.

It is ridiculous to have to continue to tolerate these meaningless posts from people who have never even auditioned a Fathom, and who have no interest in one, either.

This trend to poke fun at people buying the Fathom for "having more money than sense" and the constant claims of "I could build a sub with twice the performance for half the price" gets really old.

When called upon to prove it, of course there is a plethora of excuses why the DIY guru cannot do so. I particularly like the "I cannot afford to build you a subwoofer" excuse. Afterall, based on the claims, I would be doubling the DIY guy's money when purchasing the sub from him.

In fact, I will go one step further ... if someone takes on this challenge, I will pay the shipping to get it here for testing.

Here is the deal ... It was said the one could build a DIY sub for half the money of a Fathom and it would deliver twice the perfomance, too.

1. We need someone who can build a sub that has the same dimensions as a 113, with the exception that one wall can be 1.7 inches larger in dimension.

2. It must deliver more performance than the 113 - but rather than double, we will call it 3 dB higher output from 16 to 80 Hz.

3. It must be finished to furniture quality standards, as the Fathom is. It does not have to be a Piano Gloss Black - A wood finish is also acceptable.

4. It must also have the necessary LT circuitry, and EQ, to allow it to be eq'ed flat to within +/- 3 dB in our room.

5. The cabinent can have no audible resonances.

If someone builds this sub, and posts pics of it beforehand, I will pay to have it shipped here.

If it meets the above criteria, and you can show receipts that you paid less than $1500 for everything required for the project, I will purchase it from you for $3000. However, if it fails in any way to achieve the above perfomance parameters, I keep the sub.

Diyers ... Here is your chance.





Has anyone taken that challenge yet?

 

[WmAx]

Quote:Originally Posted by craigsub
Manville is correct.

It is ridiculous to have to continue to tolerate these meaningless posts from people who have never even auditioned a Fathom, and who have no interest in one, either.

This trend to poke fun at people buying the Fathom for "having more money than sense" and the constant claims of "I could build a sub with twice the performance for half the price" gets really old.

If you apply this to me, I don't poke fun at anyone, not in any serious way. I don' t know about 'twice the performance' of the Fathom for 1/2 the price, I have never made any such claim as possible with a sealed cabinet of comparable size to the Fathom, but you can certainly build it's equal for about 1/2 or a bit more the price. There is no secret to this: you can buy a variant of the W7 13" driver JL used in the Fathom for about $600. You can build a virtual clone of the unit for just a tad over 1/2 the cost of the authorized retailer selling price of the Fathom 13", and the DIY will be superior because the DSP I will specify will be more powerful and have more capabilities to seamlessly integrate the subwoofer with the main speakers. Although, 'auto' setup feature will not be present - you will have to do manual setup instead. The amplification and processing hardware will be external, not internal to the sub, as I am not aware of an appropriate internal mounting set up for this subwoofer that is available to the general public.

You can even exceed the JL version if the person wants to go to a larger cabinet size and go ported; LF output will be dramatically increased and distortion radically reduced. If cabinet size is increased, one can even mount the pro-amp and processing unit into the cabinet.

When called upon to prove it, of course there is a plethora of excuses why the DIY guru cannot do so. I particularly like the "I cannot afford to build you a subwoofer" excuse. Afterall, based on the claims, I would be doubling the DIY guy's money when purchasing the sub from him.

This sounds so bold and impressive, but it's not. Why would anyone spend $1500-$1700 to build a sub and send it off to some person just to look superior on an internet post? How could the DIY version be any worse than the commercial one? You are using the same technology driver and using superior amplification and DSP hardware. You could even exceed it if an Audiopulse ULTRA LMS or AXIS driver was available in 13", but they are not, and it would be 'cheating' to use the 15" version against the 13" W7. But if you want to compare to the 12" Fathom, then there are 12" LMS ULTRA and AXIS drivers available - which are superior to the W7 drivers - as verified in Klippel analysis.

-Chris

 

[chris357]

how about picking up a nice used one for about half the money ?? doesnt that accomplish everything?

 

[bandphan]

If you apply this to me, I don't poke fun at anyone, not in any serious way. I don' t know about 'twice the performance' of the Fathom for 1/2 the price, I have never made any such claim as possible with a sealed cabinet of comparable size to the Fathom, but you can certainly build it's equal for about 1/2 or a bit more the price. There is no secret to this: you can buy a variant of the W7 13" driver JL used in the Fathom for about $600. You can build a virtual clone of the unit for just a tad over 1/2 the cost of the authorized retailer selling price of the Fathom 13", and the DIY will be superior because the DSP I will specify will be more powerful and have more capabilities to seamlessly integrate the subwoofer with the main speakers. Although, 'auto' setup feature will not be present - you will have to do manual setup instead. The amplification and processing hardware will be external, not internal to the sub, as I am not aware of an appropriate internal mounting set up for this subwoofer that is available to the general public.

You can even exceed the JL version if the person wants to go to a larger cabinet size and go ported; LF output will be dramatically increased and distortion radically reduced. If cabinet size is increased, one can even mount the pro-amp and processing unit into the cabinet.


This sounds so bold and impressive, but it's not. Why would anyone spend $1500-$1700 to build a sub and send it off to some person just to look superior on an internet post? How could the DIY version be any worse than the commercial one? You are using the same technology driver and using superior amplification and DSP hardware. You could even exceed it if an Audiopulse ULTRA LMS or AXIS driver was available in 13", but they are not, and it would be 'cheating' to use the 15" version against the 13" W7. But if you want to compare to the 12" Fathom, then there are 12" LMS ULTRA and AXIS drivers available - which are superior to the W7 drivers - as verified in Klippel analysis.

-Chris

my point was is, has anyone taken craig up on this? I have zero doubt that a better sub can be built with 3db more output with a large ported design, but does anyone in the dyi group(which includes me) want to take the challenge? The head up the arse comment prompted me to re-post the challenge, as some just do not care to go dyi or want a one box small footprint solution regardless of the cost, thats all. I guess some are not wanting to be called dumb arses beacuse they dont want to follow your end all design plans. Its nothing personal, as i respect your ability to build high quality products. Sometimes you come across as a demi god, especially when discussing products you havent measured or listened to.

scott

 

[WmAx]

The head up the arse comment prompted me to re-post the challenge,

That comment was simply an outburst of my annoyance that so many people prefer to just buy a name brand pre-made item, rather than do minimal work to end up with much more for their money. No DIY is even needed in many case - as you can have the box easily built by any car audio shop for cheap and I offer to guide anyone along the process - or they can even choose among pre-fabbed/prefinished cabinets from some sources.

Sometimes you come across as a demi god, especially when discussing products you havent measured or listened to.

scott

I can understand why some people may think I am crazy to discuss products I have not personally analyzed. But when someone gets to the level of knowledge that I have in regards to physical behaviour/limits of specific construction and principles and the measured result expectations, it's just no mystery at all to me; I know the specific limitations and potential performance possible - and I can accurately make comments based on these pre-known performance windows. Of course, an unknown factor could throw me way off base... but in the case of the Fathom F113 and the JTR speaker in another thread... I have seen no evidence of a special factor/variable being present that would allow for something I can't already accurately guess. In the case of the Fathom 113; it's already been measured accurately b a credible 3rd party (so I have extensive data on it's actual performance) add I have used 'raw' JL audio drivers, including W7 units (same tech used in the Fathom, with minor changes), I know their performance abilities/limits.

-Chris

 

[lsiberian]

This thread I feel has been unecessarily hi-jacked. I've seen the work put into these subs and it's not something I'd expect from very many places. Every sub uses fiber dampening and has very good bracing from the pictures I've seen in the factory. It also uses an exceptional driver and has a very sleek look. Of course a person could build something cheaper with better overall performance, but I remind you that these types of subs are usually sold at a fraction of the retail cost on the audiogon website come with warranty for everything.

I suggest this sub to anyone with the funds and lack of desire for the effort required to orchestrate a DIY project.

Chris this really is an exceptional deal commercially speaking. Can a kappa style box with the 12w7 best it? I'd be willing to bet so. But seriously it's not as simple as it's stated. Even coordinating such a project costs money and time. Ordering a JL Audio takes a click and a check.