im purchasing a JL w7, havent heard one before, how do i tell if its blown or not?

wut? you mean yer buyin it used from someone???? If the voicecoils are fryed or are in the middle of being fryed then the sub will only make sound if you press on it or it will make sound but will cut out all the time. And if it is really really really blown it won't have a cone attached to the coils (ya, you guys know who im referring to )

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Vehicle: 2004 Chevy Aveo Hatchback
Battery: Stinger
Wire: W.S. 0 Guage (ground/power strait to battery)
Head Unit: Eclipse CD3000
Speaker Amp: Infinity Reference 7521a
Subwoofer Amplifier: Infinity Reference 1211a
Speakers: Kicker Titanium 5.25"
Subwoofer: Image Dynamics IDQ 15"

so i should test the sub at all volumes, with different kinds of music, how long is good enough?...the second thing you mentioned...the black cone was literally torn off the coils?! wtf...so if you were checkin to see if a sub is blown...what would you do?

well this might be out of my hands now cuz i am fairly new at this stuff but if they are selling you a sub in two peices it is possible that the cone was punctured and the took it off to recone it but if they are selling the sub MY GUESS is that it was blown although they would need a shiot load of power to do that to a w7 (i think, i heard those subs are beasts).

Testin the sub to see if the coils are stilll good may take a while of testing or it could take like 1 min. If the coils just started going bad then it could take an hour or so of playing (i am judging this using my hands on knowledge with the first woofer I ever had, haha). Oh, and if you play it it will prolly smell bad.

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Vehicle: 2004 Chevy Aveo Hatchback
Battery: Stinger
Wire: W.S. 0 Guage (ground/power strait to battery)
Head Unit: Eclipse CD3000
Speaker Amp: Infinity Reference 7521a
Subwoofer Amplifier: Infinity Reference 1211a
Speakers: Kicker Titanium 5.25"
Subwoofer: Image Dynamics IDQ 15"

literally smell bad?!

im going to this car show where the guy is going to show me the sub at work. Im going to pick up after the car show...he said hes using it for SQ, and it has only been powered by a JL 1000/1....

he is also part of a reputable group in BC...WCES i think....

dude it sounds good to me, what gave you the idea that it might be blown?

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Vehicle: 2004 Chevy Aveo Hatchback
Battery: Stinger
Wire: W.S. 0 Guage (ground/power strait to battery)
Head Unit: Eclipse CD3000
Speaker Amp: Infinity Reference 7521a
Subwoofer Amplifier: Infinity Reference 1211a
Speakers: Kicker Titanium 5.25"
Subwoofer: Image Dynamics IDQ 15"

A sub is the single most abused item in a stereo system. Regardless of who the person is and how they may have treated the item, it is a used item and once a sub is damaged it is a downhill spiral until it becomes a paperweight. A fine sub like that JL hopefully will have some kind of warranty left on it. Otherwise it is a total crapshoot. Thus the reasoning stands as to listen to it at all volume levels with a different type of music. This person is a member of a SPL based group and is now selling his sub. Personally the red flag is hitting me in the face based on that alone. While the deal may be a good one, a deal is only as good as the product and the person that stands behind it. Nobody likes to get the shaft buying something and if I were buying a used sub that commands a good price, I would want some kind of backing behind it as well.

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Forbidden Audio Ltd. (1995)
Rob Atkinson

Eclipse / MB Quart / Soundstream / Power Acoustik / Parrot / Pioneer / Pioneer Premiere / Kenwood Excelon / Morel / Focal / Scosche / EFX / MTX / Bass Slammer / Audio Control / Blaupunkt / ARC / Stinger / Streetwires / Metra / Pac Audio / Bassworx / JBL / Infinity / Compustar Pro / Audiovox / Clifford / Autopage / Fusion / CDT and whatever else you need.


"Randomhero wrote: The xplodes sound best in a pretty large enclosure. Optimally I prefer a trash can or dumpster. "

I agree, I personally would never buy a used sub unless I knew the guy well enough to know how he used the sub.

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Personally, I don't think buying a used sub is such a big deal.

Sure they take abuse, but that's what they're built for. Things I consider when buying a sub:

* if it's a decent brand, and a decent model
* how old it is
* what it was powered with, what does the rest of the system consist of
* how does it look/sound!
* what sort of deal am I getting!

If it's a sub with a good reputation, and not too old, I'll consider it. If the rest of the guys system is decent, install isn't crap, its a good indicater to me that he's a little more knowledeable about car audio, probably treats his gear a with more respect than the average user.

If the sub looks decent (cone isn't trashed, surround isn't worn/torn, magnet isn't scratched to sh*t), let's hook is up and listen. I've got a few choice bass tracks that I've listened to on every set of subs I've owned - I know when something doesn't sound right. At that point, if the price is right, go for it!

I'm not sure about the rest of you, but I'm usually switching up my bass at least every year. If I can pick up a sub for half of what I'd be paying otherwise... why not? Just means I'll have more money for the next setup, and will be able to recover a much great portion of the purchase price. I've even made money on a few deals!

If the subs you're looking at are just $150 new... well I'd spend the extra $50 rather than buy used. If I can get a $800 sub for $300-400, that's worth it to me. I've bought over a dozen speakers used, and haven't been burned once.

My 2cents!