i think i messed something up

[jonbearsmt 919]

did you ever pull the subs?

[Curtis96olds 1]

i havent yet, no, to pull the subs i have to get the box out of the trunk, which is a PITA, even if it was wired wrong wouldnt the polarity of one be reveresed? i would be able to see that by looking at the subs, and they are moving in unison, not to mention my DMM says they are wired to 1.3 ohms, i dont see how it can be wired wrong? i attached the positives from boths subs to a bolt, and the negatives from both subs to another bolt, and then ran wire from the bolts to the amp.

[jonbearsmt 919]

like i said.. i have fixed a few peoples install.. with the SA series sub.... same issue... weak output, HOT dust caps, and eventually smoke.

for some reason people wire the SA series subs incorrectly ... i cant tell you why.. but it happends more with these subs then i have ever seen any other subs....

my co worker did it with a SA 12 i sold him... and he has installed plenty of stereos...

[Curtis96olds 1]

hmm i guess i will pull them out tomorrow then, if its not wired wrong, where do i go from here? because like i said, ive had smaller systems and they were alot louder then this, hell my 2 10" sony xplodes from my first system would of gives these a run for there money they way they are playing right now.

[jonbearsmt 919]

well , we'll cross that bridge when we get there....

but i think your issue is in the box, so do 1 thing.. when you remove your box, and pull the subs.. take pics of how its wired.. and hopefully your wire is clearly marked + and -

be very detailed in how its wired and post pics and wait to re install it ...

[Curtis96olds 1]

i just took the subs out to check the wiring, i triple checked it, and everything was wired correct, but just to be sure... instead of using jumper wires from coil to coil like i had... i did an individual run of wire for each coil down to the + and - bolts, then had my dad double check the wiring as well. put it all back in, turned it on, and it sounded the same.

so im not sure where to go from here, like i said, maybe i was just expecting too much? i dunno, but even on low notes the subs barely move. an example is the song "betcha cant do it like me" by D4L, the low note on that song really got my BTL moving, and that box was tuned to 32hz as well, so i played that song on the sa-12's and they barely moved.

[Jason Witt 65]

The problem could be your amplifier, or a bad connection. Also, firing forward without having the trunk sealed could effect your output as well. Troubleshooting will most likely lead you to the issue. Check everything.

[Curtis96olds 1]

all connections to the amp are solid, good grounds, DMM reads 12.53 volts at battery and 12.52 volts at amp (with car off)

box is 30x24x14 with a 4"x12.5" port that is 35" long, gives me a tuning of 32hz, box sounds looks good to me, like i said, im stumped.

[jonbearsmt 919]

odd... make a topic reaching out to experienced member in your area.. perhaps there is someone that can meet you and find something you may be over looking.

there was a Eldorado on here with 2 SA 12's on a 4500 D doing 150's if i recall

[Curtis96olds 1]

thats just it it, there is no one in my area into bass, i live in northern new hampshire... we have forest.. and thats it lol, i dont even get cell service at my house. thats why i turned to you guys

[shizzzon 461]

I decided to reread everything you posted, OP, since you are running out of ideas here...

First off, if the clipping light is coming on, then rest assured without other tools present, it appears you are applying expected power to them, especially at the same time they are getting hot.

Now, one thing has really got me interested-

Final load reading- 1.3ohms. This is incorrect..

The Sundown SA 12's in Dual 4ohm have an RE of 3.55ohms per coil.

Wire one D4 in parallel and you will get 1.77ohms.

Wire two D4s in parallel and you will get 0.89ohms.

I would unscrew the subs out of the box, remove EVERY SINGLE wire coming off of the subs and measure with DMM each coil individually. That means you will have 4 different readings here.

Another note-

Your actual NET volume is about 3.0cuft because you need to factor in sub displacement too and i came up with roughly 3.0 on the dot.

3.0 for these 12s is small for tuning low therefore your box's peak potential will not be in the lower end of the play range but possible in the mid40s to mid 50s Hz range. This is quite possible why they are not moving so much on the low end.

Another note-

No 2 12s can compare to a single 18 via cone area.

Your BTL also is probably more efficient than both of these 12s which results in greater SPL when comparing same amp.

Another note-

Firing forward out of a trunk limits some of the low end anyways as you have lower cabin gain with that firing direction for lower notes.

Firing to the rear can increase cabin gain ASSUMING there is enough room around the box for the sound to come into the cabin easily.

However, based on other likely events, this would only be a bandaid for getting you better low end.

[Curtis96olds 1]

would i have been better off to go with lower port area in favor or a larger box? because i litereally cant build a bigger box to fit into the trunk, i had to take trim panels off to get this one to fit to begin with.

if i went with a port thats 3.5" wide and 25" long, it would still give me a 32hz tuning but i would be up to 3.5cuft while still being within acceptable port area, would that make that much of a difference?

i havent tried firing to the rear yet, but like you said it would have to have enough air space around to box to get back into the cabin, in which my case wouldnt be enough, i only have about 3" on each side of the box and the box goes to the top of the opening, so i figured firing forward would give me better airflow into the cabin

Edited May 21, 2012 by curt96olds

[shizzzon 461]

if u serious which isn't insane.. you can always build the box IN THE TRUNK.

That will allow you to get bigger volume and be theft proof

[Curtis96olds 1]

i would love to do that, but i need to be able to take the box out from time to time

[shizzzon 461]

if u built it in the trunk.. that wouldnt be possible.. IF you really can't get any more space.. What i would do is find a single 12 that would love that space!

[Curtis96olds 1]

what i may do, instead of finding a single 12... is do a few electrical upgrades and get a crescendo bc2k to run on the sa-12's, that way i can overcome the smaller box by running more power, ive pretty my came to the conclusion that im not doing anything wrong, its just not as loud as i would of expected.