Setup:I have 2 Kicker CVR 12's in a ported box, from Kicker (round, silver-face speakers).

I'm running it with a Kenwood KAC-9102D amplifier
Approx. 500W @ 4 Ohms and 850 @ 2 Ohms

I really don't know what it's running at since I was told I would have to take the speakers out of the box to see this ... not able to do that at this point.

What I Want:
More bass out of what I have - willing to upgrade

Question:
I'm told that a larger amp would give me more power, say 1000 RMS amp. What's best to get more bass in this situation? More subs? Bigger Amp? Better setup and box for my vehicle?

Side Beginner Question:
If I can turn up my system right now and the speakers are flexing, will a more powerful amp just permanently hurt my speakers that much quicker? How will I get MORE out of them if I'm already seeing them hit high capacity?

Reference sake: I'm concerned about the bass, but at this point there are poor stalk speakers inside the vehicle as well. Just the subs in the trunk.

 

Well, first of all, I have some questions for you.
1. How big is(are) your speaker box(es) and what kind is it? Two single sealed enclosures? One single chamber ported?
2. How is your amp wired to the speakers? Is it in series? (positive amp to positive speaker, negative speaker to the next sub) Or Parallel (negative to negative, positive to positive)

A bigger amp, meaning more power, will usually do the trick, but it also depends on the airspace the speaker is seeing, and how electricity is working through the system.

 

well it would be best if you could check to see if your running @ 4ohm if you are the switch to 2 ohm and away you go

 

stock speakers with subs and asking for more bass would probably be better NOT in the SQ section.

How many speaker connections on the box?...use a DMM to measure the impedance of the box.

or.

Pull a speaker out and have a look how they are wired, if they are showing a 4Ohm load, there is more power to be had for sure. if they are already showing the amp a 2 Ohm load, not a whole lot can be done, except have someone who knows about boxes see if they are in the best possible box.

If the speakers look like they are already at max excursion (flexing) then more power will just smoke them faster. Are you able to bottom them out?...do they still sound good when they are "flexing"??

 

OP, you have two choices, either mechanically overdrive your subs with more power, or clip the current amp and fry the coils of the subs.
Question is how much your speakers are "flexing". If by the looks of it they are moving about 2" one way (i mean forward), you are probably well past x-max and at mechanical limit of the speaker. if it is not much, then you can still push them further either by changing the box or adding more power. do you know what the box is tuned to? how do you like your lowz? maybe you need to redesign the box to give you more bump.
Another thing is maybe the subs are wired out of phase... it all depends, you got to provide more info on how it is wired.


Generally any average 2 12s ported will give some good output. maybe you're asking too much from your current set up.

Psshhhhh.... You're an old man now, possibly granpa, what do you know about SQ? Things change with time mane, knaahmsayin? SQ is about three 15s and some 4"s for them highz these days. It ain't even about SQ, the new big thing is dat SQL mang.

 

heyyy, I run a 15 !.....damn, you're right, I'm too old for this shiznit.

 

I don't see how I can edit my original thread so I'm going to post up some more info ...

Vehicle: 2001 Oldsmobile Alero (opening and closing large seperate trunk)
The 2 12" Kickers CVR122's are 400RMS ... one day I'll get something better but right now, this is what I've got.

I'm wondering if picking up another amp (the exact same one) will boost my system up and if anything, build a new box and add 2 more subs.

So 4 12" Kickers of this model (silver round face) and 2 amps (not huge, but above average IMO), am I looking for trouble?
Can this be done with this amp?

Kenwood KAC-9102D Mono subwoofer amplifier 500 watts RMS x 1 at Crutchfield.com
mono subwoofer amplifier
500 watts RMS x 1 at 4 ohms (850 watts x 1 at 2 ohms)
variable low-pass filter (50-200 Hz at 24 dB per octave)
variable bass boost (0-18 dB at 40 Hz )
subsonic filter (15/25 Hz, 18 dB/octave )
top-mounted controls
Class D design

Really appreciated.

 

well there's 3 ways those can be wired (.5 ohm, 2 ohm, or 8 ohm) so I'm assuming they are wired to 2 ohm and thats as low as that amp can go (reliably)
so as mentioned above, if you subs already aren't over "flexing" then a bigger amp will help some, might also cook the works.

if you need more bass I suggest a new bass setup (assuming yours is setup the best possible(wiring, box, gains)).

the amp and subs you have now are a good match, so doubling up to two amps and 4 of the subs will definitely give you more output......but selling what you have and buying a better two subs and bigger amp would be my way of doing it.

 

Yes, the Kicker ported box is running at 2Ohms ...
And I completely agree with upgrading ... I'd like to upgrade the subs as well as the amp one day, just not right now.

I'm still a student on a limited budget, so I'm doing the best I can RIGHT NOW.

But don't worry ... I have dreams

Edit: I just don't want to go through finding the matching amp, picking up the extra subs, getting the box made and installed (because unfortunately, I cannot do that) to find that the system is "just as good" as before.

I want a difference, so I'm either saving my money until I can afford something huge, or I'm going with this for now. That's what I'm determining with this thread.

 

You could easily get away with running a second amp the same as the first and run one per sub at 4ohms, but you won't likely hear to much of a difference with your current configuration. What is probably killing your bass right now is the fact that the subs are in the trunk. What would give you more of a gain would be to find a way to get more bass into the cab of the car. Sometimes simply removing the speakers from the rear deck (which you likely don't need anyhow) and just covering the openings with speaker grills will make a huge difference alone, that is if you haven't already done this. If this helps and you still want more than add the second amp. Some back seats will not allow much sound to get through them, some none at all. I installed the box in my wifes Saturn with the ports vented up through the rear deck and it was like a night and day difference after.