At low volume my subs really hit hard but it seems as if the higher the volume the less of that deep bass i can hear/feel. My head unit goes to volume 62. At 40 i can really hear the deep notes. Should i tune subs for the lower volume and just not turn it up passed that?

Those numbers are somewhat arbitrary, ie: I could technically have my subs playing the loudest at volume 10 on my head-unit, even though it goes up to 35.

As you raise the volume on the head-unit, it increases the signal voltage going to the amplifiers. This causes the amp to produce more power, but the relationship between how much you adjust the volume on the head-unit to reach the amp's max output is based on the gain setting on the amp.

IE: gain set low on amp, so you have to turn the head-unit to 25/30 to get the amp to it's max.

IE: gain set high on amp, so you have to turn the head-unit to 15/30 to get the amp to it's max.

Don't use these numbers for setting anything up, just a crude example. If you haven't already, search for the forum for "setting gain" or "setting the gain."

Once the proper / high signal voltage is reached in combination with the gain set correctly, the amp will produce it's max power, and turning the volume up more will only introduce clipping and distortion.

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So perhaps your reaching your amp's max power at volume 40 on the head-unit, and anything past that is not getting louder, but clipping and distorting.

Otherwise I don't see any reason as to why the bass would be quieter when you turn the volume up.

You tune a ported enclosure to a frequency, and depending on what frequency you choose, will have different effects on the loudness at different frequency ranges.

So you would NOT tune your enclosure to "40" or "62" because those are the numbers from your volume.

Generally for car audio, most people tune around 30hz to 40hz, but there are always exceptions for different applications.

Edited March 30, 201213 yr by stefanhinote

This kinda sounds like a box issue. Like he can hear notes below tuning at low volume but once he turns it up and the subs start to unload then the frequency response isn't as balanced.

I guess I should have started with the basics.

What drivers? Enclosure specs? Where is the sub-sonic filter (ssf) set to? Low pass filter (lpf)? Has the gain been adjusted, or set accordingly to your max listening volume on the head-unit?

I guess I should have started with the basics.

What drivers? Enclosure specs? Where is the sub-sonic filter (ssf) set to? Low pass filter (lpf)? Has the gain been adjusted, or set accordingly to your max listening volume on the head-unit?

gain on amp is half lpf is 90 enclousre specs are unknown as i brought the box for 60 bucks off amazon. The drivers are 2 12 inch pioneer Champion pro series. ts 3002d4.

^{also the amp im runnig is a planet audio 2600.2. claims to be 1800 rms}

ssf on amp?

Ported enclosure?

No ssf setting and yes ported enclosure

ssf on amp?

Ported enclosure?

No ssf setting and yes ported enclosure

if you bought a cheap enclosure, its probably tuned pretty high and lacks enough port area.

Thats just an assumption, but you can measure the box and the port to get the specs.

i have found that your enclosure will allow your subs to shine or sound bad....i would look into upgrading that enclosure, most amazon enclosures i looked at are tuned too high and do not have enough port area as above poster touched on...i would look into getting a box built for your subs IF that is gonna be your set up for a while. just my 2 cents

Couple things:

Once the amp is maxed out, it will not get louder. Depending on the gain setting, the amp can be maxed out at 10/30, 15/30, 20/30, 45/60, etc. So your volume numbers and loudness doesn't equate too much.

The prefab enclosure is probably tuned somewhat high in comparison to what people normally do, and since your amp has no sub-sonic filter, your sub woofers are being "allowed" to play a large frequency range where they can reach their mechanical limits, xmax, excursion. This can possibly damage your sub woofers, and it's limiting the rest of their potential in the "useable range" being enclosure tuning frequency to 90hz(lpf setting).

Whether or not your enclosure is decent, or up to par for your needs, I don't know.

You could use an f-mod inline ssf from harrison-labs, but that would require knowing the enclosure's tuning, which you could find out with a dmm and clamp meter I believe.

Or use some adjustable crossover system.

Personally, I would sell the amp, get something with a ssf, and possibly replace the enclosure with something custom built.

Edited March 30, 201213 yr by stefanhinote

I looked up your amp specs, and it does have a ssf, aka hpf, high pass filter, but it only goes down to 45hz, which isn't very helpful in your situation.

Where do you have the hpf set to? It goes from 45 to 90.

lol does your subs look like this??

if i took a DMM and measured .93 volts at 50 out of 60 volume from the preamps, does that mean that i would nearly max out the gain on the amp if the sensitivity was .15-5volts?

lol does your subs look like this??

if i took a DMM and measured .93 volts at 50 out of 60 volume from the preamps, does that mean that i would nearly max out the gain on the amp if the sensitivity was .15-5volts?

def not lol my box looks like this

heres another pic

I looked up your amp specs, and it does have a ssf, aka hpf, high pass filter, but it only goes down to 45hz, which isn't very helpful in your situation.

Where do you have the hpf set to? It goes from 45 to 90.

my hpf is turned all the way down which i guess would be 45