neillio

A friend of mine replaced his 2 RF P3 15's with these HDS315's. Direct drop in to a 7ft3 net @ 35hz box. They sound better and more output. Only 1200wrms on them, he wants to get a 2200d soon.

The Soundqubed HDS312's might be a good value option. American Bass HD12. There's the ICON 12's. Fi Q or BL depending on sealed or ported. The new Stereo Integrity Mag v.3 is on pre-order. Won't be out for a couple months. Sundown X-12. Addictive Audio Version 3. Tantric Sounds MD or HD.

Do you plan on a sealed or ported enclosure? Budget? Goals? Power available? The JL is the benchmark...of being priced very high.

There is no way he'll find a CM UL 12 for $200. If they're around, I'll buy one. The MB Quart PWE352 is $170 and will do very well in 2ft3 net sealed. Really only needs 800wrms so you could do the PWE354 and wire it to 2 ohm. I believe that AQ1200D does 870wrms @ 2 ohm. While a single 15" sealed might not be as loud as a pair of 12's(everything else equal)...it will most likely sound better, have solid/controlled transient response from 20-100hz, and will be an efficient set up.

Sometimes it takes time just with placement to get the sound to be a little 'fuller'. I have heard the ID's in your list, and they sound very good for the $180 price IMO. Alpine SPX-17ref's are around $190. The JBL GTi C608's($250) mids are very beefy and might be a pain. The JBL's need at least 150wrms to shine however. The Pioneer Premier TS-C720PRS have a nice sound but they are up around $270. No matter what, I'd either try to find a little more power(on the cheap)or bridge the amp to the front soundstage.

The single 18" Fi Q is a 'major increase' than the pair of DD9500 series 12's? Were they f's or g's? Wow. What enclosure were the DD's in? How much power did you have? The pair of 12's would have been at home in 2.8ft3 net @ 38-40hz(in most cases). No doubt about it though...the Q is geared more towards sealed or smaller, low tuned enclosures. I've found that most Maxxsonics products in the last 6+ years are overrated by about 20%~ and the first year failure rate is on the high side. The only amps by Maxxsonics that are decent(usually)are the XX series. They are much more money. The XX-Goliath I believe it was, did 92% of rated output @ 14.4V. Actual output - 4636 watts.

The design is still very solid, although slightly outdated compared to some of the drivers out there in the last year. The apx15 has taken 2500wrms all day. I've seen a few run around 3000wrms+. I kinda see the apx15 as the go-between to the Fi BL & the BTL. It will be louder than the BL all things the same but the BTL should be louder with 2500wrms all things the same. That's the best I can do. I've seen a single apx15 do 144.8 in a 4ft3 net @ 32hz enclosure. I'd say 4.5ft3 net @ 35/36hz would be a very loud daily box.

AA makes very solid drivers. The Havoc series is very well built. I've installed a pair of Arsenals and a pair of Chaos 12's in the past few months. The Chaos 12's were powered by a Cadence iA7 in a Golf GTI and they were stupid loud & clean. I'm nearing 29 and I don't handle that kinda bass like I used to. Took a few seconds to get used to the output. If you decide on the sae-1200d or the saz-1500d...a pair of 15" AA Chaos subs(or the Z15's) is really all you'd need. Spend on the power, save on the subs.

The new Sonance is a very solid sub. The cost on the 15's are around $325 I believe. I was told by someone that owns a pair of 12's that 3.75-4ft3 @ 32-34hz seems to be a really good fit. 145+ will depend on install,enclosure,etc. but should be very doable with 1500-2000wrms.

The Audioque HDC3's are built solid and actually sound pretty decent in the right ported enclosure. With a true 1600wrms... the alum coils would be needed. However, when testing the bxi1206 and 1606...I was hardpressed to get within 20% of rated power.

I haven't actually benched the amp you have. I have a vfl-150.1 and I get a little over 2770wrms @ 13V. I'd say if your electrical system can keep up around 14V...you should get 2200wrms+ out of it no problem. A kid from the Punxsy area has the vfl-100.1 and gets just over 1550wrms out of that amp. My first post on this car audio forum but have been a long time member of CAF and formally Elite('99).