Opinion on JL audio
 

ok so i just bought a new car and have heard that JL is good and i do like alot of there products... i have been loyal to boston acoustics for yrs and love what they do, there subs r just to crazy they'll rattle my sweet lil S2000 to peices...
so let it fly need everyones opinion, good or bad

in every aspect of jl audio i have to say they are good from a to z i love their products very much and would put them in my car any day

i currently have a full JL setup tweeters, 6.5" components in the front and back a 1400d amp and an 8" w7....i would say go for JL i am very pleased with their products...ya they are a bit pricey but remember you get what you pay for...

also if you are interested the 8" sub and 1400d amp is for sale right now

What is your intended application for this system? Do you want something geared towards sound quality or SPL?

There's nothing wrong with BA. Both manufacturer's have an excellent lineup of products to choose from at different pricepoints.

What you want from your system, your power levels, space, etc. will narrow down the proper choices.

IMO, there isn't a comp set from JL that will hang with the upper-end BA drivers but those BA's need a BIG dose of power to really shine and if you're only running a 75x2 amp they aren't going to be the best choice. In the same regard the G5 and JLw6/w7 are fantastic subs but if you've only got 200w to run a sub I would recommend a w1 over a lower line BA.
etc. etc.

JL a great brand, they have made tons of good stuff, their amps are strong and effecient. I use to have 2 of their slash series amps, and they worked awesome for me, sounded great.

I wanna try out one of their 6-channel amps, the A/E-series 6450. As well an 8W7, but i don't wanna give up the room for that box it needs.

ya boston is awsome for massive out-put... had 2 SPG-555's in my trunk gettin 1000 watts a peice... and my god it was insane... but the car rattled to high heaven w/ 2 layers of dynamat...
this being a tight light lil S2000 i dont wanna load it down and shake it apart... if i decided to do a sub it would prolly only be a 8W7 feed by like 250 watts and compents all around

may I sugest the 500/5 jl amp for your setup, it will have enough power for the 8w7 sub and your front and rear speakers

i would agree with this b/c the 8W7 only requires 250wrms, and dependent what speakers you get, the 500/5 puts out 100x2/25x2/250x1. So it really does have enough power for a great setup. Also if you really wanted to just run a front stage, it maybe perfect for a 2-way active setup. I just am not sure about how the filter for the 2 rear channels are.

Here is my take from a dealers perspective. Would my customers buy something from me if they considered it massively overpriced (this is regardless of build quality and brand). Chances are that they would not. I too am a customer just like most of you. I am a customer to the manufacturers and distributors and unlike most of you, I purchase way more equipment than you ever will. I also have the experience behind me to know how to make a educated and informed buying decision. When I purchase lines to sell to you, it is based on value.

Value is

(1) price
(2) performance
(3) capabilities
(4) warranty
(5) build quality

JL Audio is a great company and in some markets it has great value. JL Audio makes some incredible equipment. In Canada though, the pricing, the outrageous pricing that the CDN distributor charges the dealers is what makes it not good value for the CDN consumer. Some dealers sell JL Audio in Canada as the best there is based on the extreme high price that it commands. There are some customers who will purchase JL Audio and be quite happy with it as it may suit their needs and their budgets. I have no issues with people who want to support a good line. I choose to keep it in the back pocket as a line to retail for these very customers. So, my view is based on value, I think that in Canada there is far more value in other comparable lines.

Fair enough Rob.....I'm pretty happy with my XR comp's and I just finished putting a pair of 10W3V3's in the family grocery buggy. Having said that, the mids and highs in the new buggy are now handled by Focal, and they sound pretty good too.....:smilie_da

Begs the question what you would recomend as an alternative out of the brands you carry.....and yes I think GemSen is fairly generous with their markup.....:cheeky4: :laugh:

I think that the correct response would be to find the item best suited to the customers application. That is what is nice about being a specialty shop, if I don't have it, I find it for the customer.

Ok what do you think i should put in my car then MR2NR? I am not going for seriously intensive output like i did w/ my mustang and bostons... i am aiming for awsome sound quailty and a some bass, but not enough to rattle my car and it cant be exesivly heavy considering its going in a S2000

Warranty is a tough one though, especially in car audio. Warranties on almost all parts in car audio is void if self-installed, because part failure is in fact 99% caused by installation error/reckless use. Subs especially, will not be replaced by even the illustrious JL because they will blame you for the coil melting, or cone breaking/etc.

This statement is incorrect for the most part. All the brands I carry have no issues with self installation. I have had to warranty a few pieces and never an issue. Some dealers play the if I don't install no warranty to get the install as well. I know a few that have outright told me that too.

The brand may not, but the vendor is usually the one who refuses to fulfill the warranty. You private/small vendors for the most part have amazing warranty service, but all I'm saying is buy a W7 from a big shop, go home and blow the thing, and come back and tell them it was the subs fault, and you're gonna be leaving with a blown W7.

Industry-leading products, but some (like the W7's) are very overpriced.

whats compareable to a W7?

Output wise or Quality Wise?

everything, if you gonna avoid getting a JL W7 then the alternative had better be just as good in all aspects but cheaper

The sub itself might account for 20% of the quality. Enclosure, power, box type, all have a huge impact on quality and/or output.

Personally, for the price I'd take my 4 15" MAW's over 1 W7 any day, because they sound just as clean, and are far louder than any W7 I've ever heard.

Maw's... louder than the W7... LMAO

If you know what you're doing its definitely feasible.

Yes, definitely feasable.

you saying you need 4 15" subs to sound better then a single W7? if so then thats saying a lot for the W7's

You can easily buy 4-Maws for the price of the W7.

If you want a recommendation, Ill recommend a SI Mag, I heard one while I was south of the border in fall and it was clean, loud, and very nice to listen to.

Quit sucking JL's cock and get real you moron. 4 15" MAW's slaughters 1 (any size) W7.

In output, I'm quite certain that's the case, but in other respects...maybe not quite so much. Certainly a good contender with that quantity, though.

I have a hard time saying that the W7 is overpriced, based on the work put into the design and the quality of it. Still, there are a lot of products that come mighty close, and better it in some respects (albeit with different approaches), that are available at much more affordable prices.

will you mention what those products are?

wow.
4 maws and 1 w7...

thats like apples to oranges.

I was comparing from a price-bang for buck ratio, not for any sort of legitimacy.

price/bang ratio isn't always the .
unless u have a space for 8.5cube box in ur car. :D

i wouldn't buy a w7 for shop price. too much. :D

I know it isn't, just an example big guy.

Ya... alot of you guys are way off to left field, if u actually read what i posted... i dont give a a rats ass about excissive output or else i would take the SPG-555's outta my mustang and beat the lot of ya's but thats not what i want... i want clean output... but i have decided to go w/ Morel Hi-Fi speakers for sure but i am the jury it still out on the amp... proably lookin at audison

In my opinion? Mag, for sure. Old XXX and Brahma as well. In fact, I would rank all three of these ahead of the W7: more output (sealed and ported) and the Mag sounds terrific. I loved the sound of the XXX and Brahma, but some people don't like the slightly sterile sound of really low distortion products.