12in vs 10 in Subwoofers
- Thread starter pattywak
- Start date
SykVSyx
Well-Known Member
Unless it's Kicker!
There are 10" subs that will sound better than some 12" subs and vice versa. Depends on the sub design/box setup and vehicle the setup is used on. If you just want to have some bass in your system, research various 10" subs, I'm sure you'll find something you'll like that has just the right sound.
i still stand with my theory. we're talking about subwoofers and not sub boxes. unless you are talking about both. but you can fit a 12" sub in a 10" box by cutting it by 2" on each sides if there's space. you still won't notice a thing from the differences. but i'm stating is, sub boxes is another story. and subwoofer size is the other. if you do notice a difference, then damn, you have good hearing. but it's all about the brand, which is the power and the material they use for the subs.
Wildman
Read the rules
there's this myth that small subs can't play low, and that big subs can't sound good. honestly when I very first got into audio stuff I fell for that too, but it's simply not true.
the size of the sub isn't what determines the sound quality of the sub. it's the materials & engineering behind it. larger subs have bigger cones, and thus a bigger moving mass. when you are talking about crappy, cheap subwoofers, they are going to have crappy, cheap suspension systems. That's where this whole "big subs have muddy bass" myth comes from. It's just like the suspension on your car, the suspension on a subwoofer can be good or bad. And a bad suspension trying to keep up with a larger moving mass is going to sound crappy. But if you spend money on good materials, and time on engineering the sub properly, the suspension should have no problem keeping the cone under control.
Give me $30 for wood to build a pure SQ box and I'd put my current 15" sub up against any smaller sub you'll find in a retail store.
Small subwoofers can play just as low. The problem is, small subwoofers are smaller than bigger subwoofers. So they're quieter. So they don't have the same output at lower frequencies. It's not that they are somehow incapable of reproducing certain frequencies. This is another myth that's hung around because of cheap, crappy subwoofers. There are plenty of 10" subs out there, and even 8" and 6.5" subs, that are capable of 110+db at 30hz. Most quality 8-10" subs can easily put that out at 25hz as well.
The other huge factor in this is the kind of box you plan on using. With any speaker, you can manipulate the performance of the speaker depending on what type of box you use. You can shift the range of frequencies it can satisfactorily reproduce up or down the frequency scale, tune for output peaks, and to match the amount of power you plan on using.
Some 10" subs require more airspace than some 12" subs too. It all really just depends.
Long story short, you need to figure out what you want, and what your reasons are for considering changing subwoofers. That's the starting place, after that you can narrow down what you need out of the sub (what kind of music do you listen to, space constraints, etc) and a price range. If It's a space issue, try going with just a single 12. If you're afraid of a 10" sub not being loud enough, well that really just depends on what you're used to and what you consider "loud".
the size of the sub isn't what determines the sound quality of the sub. it's the materials & engineering behind it. larger subs have bigger cones, and thus a bigger moving mass. when you are talking about crappy, cheap subwoofers, they are going to have crappy, cheap suspension systems. That's where this whole "big subs have muddy bass" myth comes from. It's just like the suspension on your car, the suspension on a subwoofer can be good or bad. And a bad suspension trying to keep up with a larger moving mass is going to sound crappy. But if you spend money on good materials, and time on engineering the sub properly, the suspension should have no problem keeping the cone under control.
Give me $30 for wood to build a pure SQ box and I'd put my current 15" sub up against any smaller sub you'll find in a retail store.
Small subwoofers can play just as low. The problem is, small subwoofers are smaller than bigger subwoofers. So they're quieter. So they don't have the same output at lower frequencies. It's not that they are somehow incapable of reproducing certain frequencies. This is another myth that's hung around because of cheap, crappy subwoofers. There are plenty of 10" subs out there, and even 8" and 6.5" subs, that are capable of 110+db at 30hz. Most quality 8-10" subs can easily put that out at 25hz as well.
The other huge factor in this is the kind of box you plan on using. With any speaker, you can manipulate the performance of the speaker depending on what type of box you use. You can shift the range of frequencies it can satisfactorily reproduce up or down the frequency scale, tune for output peaks, and to match the amount of power you plan on using.
Some 10" subs require more airspace than some 12" subs too. It all really just depends.
Long story short, you need to figure out what you want, and what your reasons are for considering changing subwoofers. That's the starting place, after that you can narrow down what you need out of the sub (what kind of music do you listen to, space constraints, etc) and a price range. If It's a space issue, try going with just a single 12. If you're afraid of a 10" sub not being loud enough, well that really just depends on what you're used to and what you consider "loud".
eggyhustles
Well-Known Member
botang47
Well-Known Member
if youre worried about space, 1 high quality 10 will outperform 2 crappy 12's anyday. like wildman said, its all about the materials and engineering behind the sub
AFAccord
Well-Known Member
f23accord2000
Well-Known Member
me personally i like 10's they sound 10x better clarity, doesn't go as low, more punch , overall they just sound better, i had 2 10's jl's with a kenwood 1000w amp and it hit harder then my friends 12's ,i think 12's get distorted on some music, so i think you should go with 10's and plus i dont like to lison to my music as loud as i used to and have that hard smashing trunk rattling car that i used to like 5 yrs ago, so if you find your self wanting to lison to some nice music with some bass and you dont like it loud go with 10's, PLUS TRUNK SPACE FTW
tnguyen600
Well-Known Member
I use to have 2-12" subs then I decided to move down to one sub because my amp blew out. Personally, I like having one 13.5" sub as opposed to two-12" subs.
BKLYN ACCORD
Well-Known Member
try this song to experiment young jeezy feat akon- soul survivor, and tell me which sounds bettter 10" or 12"
