What type of amp should I get for 2 JL Audio 12w3's?
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bakke_23 Unregistered guest | I recently bought 2 JL Audio 12w3's. They are in a JL bandpass box and are wired in series. I was wondering what brand of amp and how many watts the amp should be that I have hooked up to them. I also don't know how many ohms the subs are. Thanks in advance for the help. Jordan |
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Bronze Member Username: Comet345Orlando, FL USA Post Number: 51 Registered: Sep-04 | are they w3's or w3v2's ? |
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Gold Member Username: Jonathan_fGA USA Post Number: 1963 Registered: May-04 | Depends on how much you want to spend. I'd go with a JL 500/1 for either. |
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bakke_23 Unregistered guest | They are w3's, not w3v2's. Also is there any other suggestions for what type of amp I should use? |
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Gold Member Username: Jonathan_fGA USA Post Number: 1975 Registered: May-04 | What's your budget? |
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bakke_23 Unregistered guest | Right now I'm just looking for what would work best for the subs, I'm not worried about the money. |
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Silver Member Username: FishyTamarac, FL USA Post Number: 247 Registered: Sep-04 | Are they 12w3d2's, d4's or d6's? I have a pair of 10w3d2's and I'm pretty sure it states the model on the back of the motor(magnet). See if you can sneak a peak. -Fishy |
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bakke_23 Unregistered guest | The reason that I said I didn't know how many ohms the subs where is because the stickers on the back of the subs arnt there anymore. |
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Gold Member Username: Jonathan_fGA USA Post Number: 1981 Registered: May-04 | Best w/ a 500/1 then. That way you know you're getting the power. Start off w/ the subs in series(just in case they're the D2s). If they sound underpowered, then wire in parallel. You can also set the gains w/ a meter then check the voltage of the amp once you have the subs connected. |
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Silver Member Username: FishyTamarac, FL USA Post Number: 258 Registered: Sep-04 | If you have a multimeter you could also just measure the dc resistance at the box or individualy for each sub. If you add about 10-20% you should get the aproximate impedance of what you're dealing with, i.e. a lil over 3.5 ohms dc resistance means about 4 ohm Znom, or just look here: http://www.jlaudio.com/subwoofers/pdfs/12W3_MAN.pdf -Fishy |
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New member Username: Bakke_23Post Number: 2 Registered: Oct-04 | I've been having trouble figuring how to check the ohms. Do I have to have power running through the subs to check them? I've tried everything else and it always says 0. Also, is JL the only type of amp I should use? I've been reading the boards and most people say that rockfords are good. What other amps would go good with these subs? Thanks |
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Silver Member Username: FishyTamarac, FL USA Post Number: 386 Registered: Sep-04 | I assume your using a digital multimeter. It shouldn't say zero. That means you've shorted the multimeter leads somehow. Try touching the leads together and see if it reads "0". When I'm not touching anything with my meter it reads "0.L" which means "no load". Once you get that part figured out you need to measure across the positive and negative speaker terminals of your box(with speakers hooked up). First of all make sure you have your meter set to resistance(ohms). There should be a lil greek omega sign or "R" there. Stick one end in one box terminal and the other in the other(polarity doesn't matter when measuring resistance). If you get "0" when you do this it means somethin is wired wrong in the box. If you get "0.L" or no load it means you have a bad connection somewhere. Either a wire has fallen off or if the subs are wired in series, one of the voice coils is shot. If you can't get a reading try measuring the resistance of a lightbulb(a working one, thats cooled off, lol, one lead in the metal in the middle of the base, other on the threaded part). A 75 watt 110 bulb is gonna have a resistance somewhere around 14 ohm, lower wattages will have a bit higher(I just measured a few :P). If you can't get a resistance your gonna haveta pull the subs outa the box. Get back to me with some results and we can see about gettin this figured out. You sure there ain't a model # on them things? good luck  -Fishy |
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Silver Member Username: FishyTamarac, FL USA Post Number: 387 Registered: Sep-04 | There's plenty of good amps out there, but if you don't mind spending the cash the JL 500/1 is a great choice. It puts out the same amount of power from 1.5 to 4 ohms and is capable of matching impedance with any combination of the same 2 w3's, regardless of what model you have. We may have to run the subs in parallel instead of series but thats what I would recommend anyways. It also has a lil one band parametric EQ which you can use for bass boost or for fine tuning your low end response. You could probably safely purchase a JL 500/1 right now and we could figure out how to wire your subs later. And no, no running system. You want to measure resistance with things shut off. -Fishy |
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New member Username: Bakke_23Post Number: 3 Registered: Oct-04 | First of all the multimeter I have isn't digital and when you touch the 2 leads together it reads 0, the exact same as when I touch it to the terminals on the box. I know its not the subs that are the problem because I also have a pair of 8w3d6's that I just took out of my pickup, that I know work great. ;)I just tried it on a light bulb and it did the same thing, my multimeter must be bad or something, I'll have to get a new one this weekend. Also my box is wired with 2 DVC drivers with Voice Coils in Series / Parallel. I looked it up on the JL website and its the same way that their wired in the box. Thanks for all your help so far, I really appriciate it. |
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New member Username: Bakke_23Post Number: 4 Registered: Oct-04 | I got a different multimeter and its 4 ohms at the terminal. So is there any more suggestions for wiring 2 12w3d4's in series/parallel? |
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Silver Member Username: FishyTamarac, FL USA Post Number: 442 Registered: Sep-04 | For a typical 2 channel amp stable to 2 ohms(4 ohms bridged) you're probably fine. I'd make sure that they are wired with the voice coils in series like this: http://home.comcast.net/~guppyrig/wsb/media/322068/site1050.JPG Wiring the voice coils in parallel and then the actual speakers in series isn't as desirable. Another amplifier option would be to find a good monoblock stable to 1 ohm like the JBL BP600.1 everyone recommends here. :P In this case you'd wire BOTH the voice coils AND speakers in parallel to achieve a 1 ohm load. -Fishy [note] analog multimeters usally have scales which you have to manually set when measuring resistance like Rx1, Rx10, Rx1000, etc. If you have it set on Rx1000 any single digit load will appear to be "zero". Analogs need to be "calibrated" as well whch means after switching scales you zero it out by touchung the leads together and adjusting a lil dial. I have and use both types. When I want to measure with "acurracy" I use the digital but for "confidence" I use the analog. Digitals can be quirky at times. |
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