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[Derek Richards]

Ok, So I am in charge of all the stereo equipment at my fraternity. Our current setup is a Crown XLS 602 powering two Peavey Sp5's and a Carvin SW 1801p.  The sub is starting to go out now. Whenever we turn the volume up, we turn the sub down. It will still sound good as long as you dont turn it up too loud.

So, my idea is to get a new sub to add to the system. I am gonna keep the old one and just keep it turned down. I am choosing between two subs right now. They are the American Audio PXW18P, and the JBL JRX118SP. I want a powered sub so I dont have to buy another amp. I am trying to do this somewhat cheap so Im tempted to go with the American Audio since its $100 cheaper. It is also rated a way higher RMS. I did find a JBL on craigslist for $475 though.

Our main room for parties is 30' by 30' and we play mostly rap/hip hop and also some electronica/house music.  Whats your guys opinion on how these rank against eachother and which one I should get??

Thanks in advance

[Duncan McLennan]

The JRX is total junk, so I can't even imagine what the American Audio sounds like.

I'm not trying to be rude, or make fun, but you can't expect to get a quality powered sub for that much money.

In addition, using non-matched subwoofers together is not generally a good idea.

I would either get another sub to match your Carvin, or live with it for a bit until you can save more money. Then sell the Carvin sub to get more money, and buy a quality piece of equipment.

[Derek Richards]

So what would you recommend? And how much would it cost? Keep in mind that this is mainly for college kids that are drunk and dont know what quality audio is anyways. I guess I should also ask how that compare to the carvin I already have

[Art Welter]

Derek Richards wrote on Wed, 02 February 2011 22:55

So what would you recommend? And how much would it cost? Keep in mind that this is mainly for college kids that are drunk and dont know what quality audio is anyways. I guess I should also ask how that compare to the carvin I already have

Carvin, Yamaha Club series, JRX series are all fairly low output subs.

You will need at least two of any of those to remotely keep up with a pair of tops.

These subs would get you rocking for cheap, they compare well to a JBL SRX 728, which is about what you want to get loud and low:

http://srforums.prosoundweb.com/index.php/t/56770/19717/

Art Welter

[Duncan McLennan]

Derek Richards wrote on Thu, 03 February 2011 00:55

So what would you recommend? And how much would it cost? Keep in mind that this is mainly for college kids that are drunk and dont know what quality audio is anyways. I guess I should also ask how that compare to the carvin I already have

Rap and hip hop tends to have a lot of very low frequency content, so having a sub that actually produces really low stuff is critical to those types of music. Something that doesn't play low may be fine for live music, but when you try to use it for something like hip hop, it will run out of gas before you think it should, because it's trying to go lower than it's designed to.

We can recommend subs until we're blue in the face, and not necessarily come up with a good option. Do you have a budget to begin with?

For relatively inexpensive to mid-price point powered subs, the new Mackie HD series has got some good reviews. There are also options from RCF, Yorkville that might be good.

The UCS1-P comes to mind, as well as the HD-1801. I'm not too familiar with the RCF stuff.

The new JBL PRX line might be worth looking into as well. I believe they have a powered unit with the same driver as the SRX 718, which is pretty well respected and goes low enough to work for more hip hop and rap without tearing itself to shreds.

[Derek Richards]

I guess what I should have really asked is how good was the carvin sub I had? And what subs would compare to it? We were happy with just that but since i want to replace it I would like to maybe upgrade a little bit. I absolutely can not go over $1000. I was gonna buy those two JBL JRX118sp's for 900 but they just sold. I definitely want to buy powered subs just for convenience. Also, I dont care about weight at all cause its never going to move once I hook it up.

[Derek Richards]

Quick question...

What would be better, the JBL PRX 618s which is a powered sub with I believe 600 watts RMS from the amp, or a Cerwin Vega AB 36C Afterburner with about 600 watts RMS at 8 ohms running from a separate amp?? Obviously the Cerwin Vega is going to be a little more expensive since I have to buy a separate amp, but is the folded horn sub worth the extra money?

[Nathan DePaulo]

Derek Richards wrote on Mon, 14 February 2011 19:20

Quick question... What would be better, the JBL PRX 618s which is a powered sub with I believe 600 watts RMS from the amp, or a Cerwin Vega AB 36C Afterburner with about 600 watts RMS at 8 ohms running from a separate amp?? Obviously the Cerwin Vega is going to be a little more expensive since I have to buy a separate amp, but is the folded horn sub worth the extra money?

The short answer is that the Cerwin Vega is trading increased efficiency in the "high bass" range at the cost of the low bass.  It's a typical trade off of folded horns, which I am a fan of, however the CV stuff is not on my good list.  

The JBL would sound more "musical" having a more even response from the bottom to top of it's range.  The CV will have certain notes that are significantly louder, and then some that will disappear completely compared to the PRX.

I think the afterburner would be a terrible decision for you.  Not only would it need an external amp, but it will need a low pass (crossover).  That could be built in the amp, or a separate piece of equipment, but either way it'll cost ya.  It will likely get blown, and then you have to go to the trouble of fishing the driver out of that folded horn.  Anyway, for that sort of money you could buy a real sub and be much happier.

My genuine recommendation for you is the LS801P.  It is very loud, powered, bulletproof (has a "even if you break it" 2 year warranty) and more portable than the CV option you were looking at.  The previous model the LS800P could be found used as well.

I did a gig recently with 2 of the JRX118 subs that were provided.  The amps were 1000W into each driver.  While they produced bass, my single LS800P was certainly a more capable option.

I don't have personal experience with the UCS1P, but by all accounts I hear it's a great option as well. So if that size/shape appeals to you more I think it would be just as good.

Don't worry too much about power handling/rating.  It's usually inflated or misrepresents what's actually going on.  I realize what's been said might contradict general intuition, so if you have any questions we could go into further detail.