XXX overrated?

[daos 0]

what are you guys opinions on the RE XXX line of subs? are they worth the money or overrated? also, whats the smallest vented enclosure one of those XXX 15" subs can fit in tuned for 30 hz? what type of power is needed to push one?

[mrray13 30]

yeah, i think they are overrated, especially for the money. now, i'm not saying they are bad subs, they're not. i'm just saying all the bandwagon hype is unjustified.

they are picky about their boxes too. i started in 1.25ft^3 sealed. sounded good, didn't get low, but got loud. went to 2.5ft^3 tuned to 30hz like re recommends, got nice and low, sounded like ass, didn't get loud. then slugged that box to make it 2ft^3 tuned to 34hz, the xxx couldn't have been happier. got loud, got low, sounded good!

power wise, most of what i did was just off 750wrms. plenty of power in my opinion. if u want really loud, run the rated 1.6kw. but i wouldn't recommend a whole lot more! i tried 2.5kw on my 12 in the 2ft^3 ported box, it didn't like it at all!

overall, not a bad sub. in the right enclosure they do what they are supposed too. but there are subs out there that do the exact same job, SS rl-p and si d2 to name a couple, without the extra expense.

hope that helps..

wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

[02BlackOnBlackSS 1]

I wouldn't say it is overrated. It is one hell of a sub, and I love the way it sounds. My 12 went through hell and back. It sounded great and got plenty low for me. I don't know what kind of lows you werent getting, but with 2kw in a box 2.5 cf box tuned to 30 hz (for a 12) it sounded damn good. The best sounding sub I have heard (needless to say I haven't heard many subs). It also got plenty loud for me. 137.7 on the new termlab in a convertible in the trunk sure as hell isn't bad. In my friends car (hardtop trunk car) it was much louder and sounded even better. The lows it was missing in the convertible were there in his car.

And as far as money-wise. Sure it may not compare to the price of the rl-p, but for a great mix of sq and spl, it is all there. And at 400 bones, I think it is worth it.

Here is a list of subs that I have heard:

JL 8w7x1 ported (I think the sheer output of the xxx was what won the contest here, obviously the 8 couldnt keep up, but the w7 also had a different sound to it than my xxx, it didnt blend as well with the music and didn't sound as solid)

Alpine Type R 12"x3 (Wasn't impressed with these subs. My one 12 was capable of getting as loud and sounding better without taking up the space for 3 12s. XXX was an obvious winner here)

Kicker L5 12" x2 (These things just don't sound good at all. Sealed they sound hollow, ported they pick up a solidness, but still have an off color sound. Output: the XXX was the winner still)

Kicker L7 8" (Now here is an 8 with a lot of output. In the kicker ported box it was putting out some serious bass. Only flaw is, it takes driving it to its max to put out the desired amount of bass, which fried the VC's. SQ wasn't nearly as good as the xxx, but that 8 was impressive while it lasted)

Adire Tempest 15" ported (This thing is a low end monster. It plays lows that tear the car to shreds. Upper end bass just isn't there as much however. We had it in 2 ported boxes, 1 tuned to 24 hz and 5.5 cubes, one tuned to 30 hz and 6 cubes.. Very impressive sub for the money, but xxx still had it in output and sq.)

Magnum D2 12" (I don't have much listening experience with this sub, my buddy bought it and had it in a convertible vw bug and it was stolen 2 weeks later. I recall that it sounded clean but the output wasn't there like my sub (I can't describe more however because of the limited listening experience)

RE HC 15" (This thing sounded very clean, almost as clean as the xxx. It was great all around, but my xxx had it beat in output and sq once again.)

DD 9515 (This thing was a spl beast, but with a box tuned to 40 hz, not much could be expected as far as sq. It had the xxx beat in output, but it didn't sound very good)

Other subs that I liked it better than:

2 Kicker L7 10s ported (sq and output)

4 Kicker Comp C15s (sq)

2 Kicker Comp VR 10s (both)

2 JL 10W0's (my first setup, again both)

2 Polk GNXR 10's (both)

4 of the older orion subs (not sure of the model) I SQ was much better

The rest aren't worthy to mention.

Now, hopefully I have cleared up my opinions in depth about the XXX. I am trying to talk my buddy into getting a pair of RL-P 12s and we can compare those to my XXX 15. I will let you know my initial responses about the 15 whenever Jamie is finished with my box.

[02BlackOnBlackSS 1]

yeah, i think they are overrated, especially for the money. now, i'm not saying they are bad subs, they're not. i'm just saying all the bandwagon hype is unjustified.

they are picky about their boxes too. i started in 1.25ft^3 sealed. sounded good, didn't get low, but got loud. went to 2.5ft^3 tuned to 30hz like re recommends, got nice and low, sounded like ass, didn't get loud. then slugged that box to make it 2ft^3 tuned to 34hz, the xxx couldn't have been happier. got loud, got low, sounded good!

power wise, most of what i did was just off 750wrms. plenty of power in my opinion. if u want really loud, run the rated 1.6kw. but i wouldn't recommend a whole lot more! i tried 2.5kw on my 12 in the 2ft^3 ported box, it didn't like it at all!

overall, not a bad sub. in the right enclosure they do what they are supposed too. but there are subs out there that do the exact same job, SS rl-p and si d2 to name a couple, without the extra expense.

hope that helps..

wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Heres a few quick questions if you don't mind me asking.

What made the re spec box sound like ass? I was running that box with a little extra airspace and I thought it sounded damn good.

Also, is the 2.5 cube figure the gross volume or net volume?

Also here are a few questions about the other times you had it set up:

How much port area were you using?

Bracing?

How much power (on each box)?

How were your gains set? Bass Boost?

I have heard of many people sending 2.5kw with ease, as long as the gains arent cranked up all of the way. I will be feeding my 15 that much.

I didn't like the output of my sub sealed. I also didn't like the output ported with a small port. Once I let it breathe (40 square inches of port) it just amazed me with how much louder it became. Also, I had a Hifonics 1500 on it, and it sounded good, but once I put a Planet Audio 2250 on it, it cama alive, and sounded much better than before.

[Tirefryr 1,742]

It's all really going to come down to the listener. Let's see. I can't begin to list all the drivers I've had experience with but most commonly the XXX is compared to the W7, Brahma, and IDMAX. I have yet to hear a W7 in an application I like. I like the IDs, but they've had problems as of late.

I have OWNED the XXX, the Brahma, and most recently the Magnum. I chose the Magnum out of the three.. I can't tell you why, it just sounded better to me. And I've had all the drivers in just about every imaginable application.

[Supa_c 1]

Even quasi 8th order series tuned dual reflex bandpass ??

[Nikuk 1]

Even quasi 8th order series tuned dual reflex bandpass ??

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Have you ever tried the ABC's? they aren't bad designs for output...

[KickinAudio 5]

Wait about 40 days...

[mrray13 30]

Heres a few quick questions if you don't mind me asking.

What made the re spec box sound like ass? I was running that box with a little extra airspace and I thought it sounded damn good.

Also, is the 2.5 cube figure the gross volume or net volume?

2.5ft^3 net, after port and sub. it did sound good at lower volumes. try to turn it up, it just fell flat on it's face, q and spl wise...and this was both the rl-p and xxx.

Also here are a few questions about the other times you had it set up:

How much port area were you using?

whatever it is that re recommends...42.25in^2 of port..actually a lil larger then re recommended,

Bracing?

overrated...i don't use any unless it's a really long flat stretch. and i've got two world champs that will tell you all this talk of double baffles and double walls and bracing is retarded unless ur running 10kw or better. under that and all ur doing is wasting wood and the mic agrees.

How much power (on each box)?

[Aaron Clinton 2,372]

Wait about 40 days... 

what happens then?

[o42o 1]

Kent i demand a refund!!! IM GETTING AN RL-p NOW!!!

ROFLS JK

thx again for the sub man, appreciate it, great seller

[mrray13 30]

Kent i demand a refund!!! IM GETTING AN RL-p NOW!!!

ROFLS JK

thx again for the sub man, appreciate it, great seller

u wasn't supposed to read this thread..lol....

enjoy it man!!

wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

[KickinAudio 5]

Wait about 40 days...

[Aaron Clinton 2,372]

Wait about 40 days...

[Bigrick31 0]

Ive owned a 15xxx and 15 brahma and loved them both. they aare both great subs however despite them being very simular id have to go with a brahma jsut for the fact that its more efficient. smaller amp= saved money. they are great LSQ subs and i dont think that either are over rated (atleast not by the Manufacturers) now people tend to hype them up so it may not be as spectacular as you as the hype is leading you to beleive. so it really depends on which type of over rated you are refering to

[Aaron Clinton 2,372]

Ive owned a 15xxx and 15 brahma and loved them both. they aare both great subs however despite them being very simular id have to go with a brahma jsut for the fact that its more efficient. smaller amp= saved money. they are great sql subs and i dont think that either are over rated (atleast not by the Manufacturers) now people tend to hype them up so it may not be as spectacular as you as the hype is leading you to beleive. so it really depends on which type of over rated you are refering to

well said

[mrray13 30]

now people tend to hype them up so it may not be as spectacular as you as the hype is leading you to beleive. so it really depends on which type of over rated you are refering to

exactly the overrated i'm talking about....

though i don't think the performance is any better then a handful of other subs out there.

but u nailed it right on the head!

wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

[Subpar 0]

In terms of overall sound quality/performance, the XXX's are definitely amongst the Sub elites.

As for the asking prices and power feed from your car, ehhhhh...

Just put it this way. There are subs out there with quite an emulating performance that don't cost nearly as much.

[Aaron Clinton 2,372]

In terms of overall sound quality/performance, the XXX's are definitely amongst the Sub elites.

As for the asking prices and power feed from your car, ehhhhh...

Just put it this way.  There are subs out there with quite an emulating performance that don't cost nearly as much.

welcome to SSA

[Warbleed 1]

I think the XXX's have their niche. They are by no means budget/bargain oriented drivers. They are intended to get the customers who want near W7 linearity/performance, but don't want to dish out that kind of money. They aren't exactly intended for your average teenager who wants to get bass for cheap though, as their price is certainly not low.

That being said, their performance to cost isn't bad at all, nor is it the best out there. They are very high performing competent drivers, although I would agree that they have been rather excessively hyped, but you can't really fault RE for that, since they aren't really responsible for them getting hyped up.