New sub purchase help

[jrwalte 10+ year member]

I've been running 3 x JL Audio 8W3 D6 (dual 6 ohm) since '99 and I found out one had crapped out on me when I installed a new PG Ryval V8001 (600RMS) . I went to purhcase an 8W3v2 D6 from woofersetc but they just told me they don't have it in stock and no longer carry it. But they do have the D2 and D4. And I can't find the D6 anywhere.

So now I am contemplating what I should do. Could I buy a 2 ohm or 4 ohm DVC for $130 and wire it with my 2 DVC 6 ohms and stay between 2 ohm and 4 ohm on the amp? Does it matter to the amp if it is running in decimal at 2.6, 3.4, etc instead of 2 or 4?

Or

Is it time to purchase new JL subs? I have someone who will offer $100 for my two 8W3s. I like the sound of the 3 8s - a hard hit with a clean boom. I'm wondering if I should stick with 3 8W3v3 or 2 8W3v7 or go to 2 10W3v3, etc. But I'm concerned if the 'boom' becomes too much? Is it something I can control with my P800PRS EQ & crossover?

I'm not familiar with how different sized subs change the sound.

Thanks for your input!

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[goonandbuck 10+ year member]

no you cant mix different vc subs. current travels the path of least resistance and if one sub has less resistance than another it will get more current. so no dont mix

 

[jrwalte 10+ year member]

They'd all have DVC. But are you saying you can't mix a 2 ohm DVC with a 6 ohm DVC because most of the power would travel to the 2 ohm one?

 

[goonandbuck 10+ year member]

no you cant mix 2 ohm with 6 ohm...........ohms is a measure of resistance........so read my above post

 

[jrwalte 10+ year member]

that's what I figured. You only mentioned not mixing different vc (voice coils) so I was just making sure I understood.

So that means I need new subs.

This brings me to the amp question. It is rated 600RMS at 4 ohm. If I could reuse my 3 8" box, the 8W3v3 @ $480 comes in 4 ohm or 8 ohm. That's 2.66 ohm (from 4 ohm) in series/parallel or .66 in parallel. My amp doesn't do 1 ohm stable (it is 2 or 4). Do I get lower quality sound if I'm running 2.66 ohm instead of 2 or 4 or is anywhere between 2 and 4 good? I'm also used to 4 ohm sound. Would 2.66 sound not as clean to me?

If it is better to run at 2 or 4 ohm then I'm looking at a new box with 2 8W7 @ $720(which would be 3 ohm) or 2 10W3v3 @ $380 (which would be 4 ohm). Is it really worth twice the price for the W7s? They even require more cubic footage than the 10s.

 

[helotaxi 5,000+ posts]

The rated impedance for the amp is the min impedance into which it is designed to be stable. Anything over that and you're fine. The odd impedance isn't an issue at all. There is no such thing as "4 ohm sound," get that though out of your head. In fact the nominal impedance of a sub is just that, nominal, in name only. The actual impedance that the amp "sees" is more than the nominal impedance of the subs because of the nature of a reactive load.

If your amp is only stable to 2 ohms, you can't go with the 8W7s because they are 3 ohms each which would wire to a 1.5 ohm final load. If you are stuck on JL and want to reuse the box that you already have, go with the 8W3v3-8 and wire the 3 in parallel for a 2.66 ohm nominal load.

 

[jrwalte 10+ year member]

I'm not stuck on JL but without hearing another one I'd trust buying a JL because I'm used to them. I plan on going with the 2 10s in custom enclosures on both sides between the wheel well and the back of the trunk. A lot of dead space there.

Someone mentioned to me RD Audio if I like JL.