Destroyed a subwoofer

[2003 MIB]

I swapped the factory subwoofer for a JL Audio 6.5 unit. Apparently, new subwoofers have a break in period of 20 hours. I didn't know and thought some of you may not know either.
It was a dramatic moment when the new subwoofer burst. It souded like a balloon popping and smelled kinda like burnt ATF for about three minutes. It was the Foghat's "Slowride"- for those who might wonder.
Earmark Car Audio in Addison replaced it under warranty and adjusted the amp. to avoid any return visits until after the break in period.
DOH!

[MENINBLK]

The Subwoofer driver should have been broken in at the factory as part of their QUALITY testing.

[2003 MIB]

The Subwoofer driver should have been broken in at the factory as part of their QUALITY testing.

I thought so too!!!!- I don't like being a "field tester" except for Jack Daniels....

[MapleLeafMerc]

I swapped the factory subwoofer for a JL Audio 6.5 unit. Apparently, new subwoofers have a break in period of 20 hours. I didn't know and thought some of you may not know either.
It was a dramatic moment when the new subwoofer burst. It souded like a balloon popping and smelled kinda like burnt ATF for about three minutes. It was the Foghat's "Slowride"- for those who might wonder.
Earmark Car Audio in Addison replaced it under warranty and adjusted the amp. to avoid any return visits until after the break in period.
DOH!

If you have to 'toast' a subwoofer, Slow Ride is a great song to do it with! ;)

[sailsmen]

Awesome bass song, so is World Turning by Fleetwood Mac.

[rookie1]

WHOA! the break in period is not a break in period for longevity, it has nothing to do with how long the speaker lasts.
The break in period they mention is strictly a function of letting the surround and suspension loosen up b4 the speaker produces what it is capable of. If the woofer was bought new you will have no problems returning it regardless of what amp you were running it on(OEM or aftermarket).

[2003 MIB]

WHOA! the break in period is not a break in period for longevity, it has nothing to do with how long the speaker lasts.
The break in period they mention is strictly a function of letting the surround and suspension loosen up b4 the speaker produces what it is capable of. If the woofer was bought new you will have no problems returning it regardless of what amp you were running it on(OEM or aftermarket).

100% correct and they replaced it no problem and for no cash. I've got this "independant subwoofer control" knob where the cig. lighter used to be. I had it cranked to the max. and the volume cranked to the max. and that's when the subwoofer cratered. So, if I'm reading your post correctly- that activity never should have resulted in a failure. It had to be a factory defect in the subwoofer to make it "pop"? Oh, how long would you think the "capability" break-in should be and how do you think I should I break it in?

[rookie1]

There is no special break in procedure, eventually(usually under a week depending on how much you drive/listen) the suspension components will loosen some and you might notice a slight increase in performance. You can liken it to the subtle change our MMs have after 5- 6k miles.

As for the destruction, what is the RMS rating on your aftermarket amp and what is the nominal pwr rating on your woofer?
It is unusual to destroy a woofer without severly overdriving it and even then it is ultimately distortion and square waves that will overheat a voice coil not power. Did you use the OEM sub enclosure? If so, is your woofer designed for a sealed enclosure?
JL makes pretty reliable stuff in my experience so there are other factors involved.

[2003 MIB]

As for the destruction, what is the RMS rating on your aftermarket amp and what is the nominal pwr rating on your woofer?
It is unusual to destroy a woofer without severly overdriving it and even then it is ultimately distortion and square waves that will overheat a voice coil not power. Did you use the OEM sub enclosure? If so, is your woofer designed for a sealed enclosure?

I'm not about to pretend I know what I'm talking about- I downloaded this stuff from the JL Audio website. The amp is a JL e6450 and the subwoofer is a JL 6W04 in the stock enclosure. The website says the 6W04 is suited for sealed enclosures. There are two ratings for the amp 45W RMS x 6 @4 ohm (12.5V) and 75W RMS x 6 @2 ohm (12.5V). I don't know if I'm 4 ohm or 2 ohm. the rated power handling (continuous) on the subwoofer is 75W. Thanks for the help- I'm in over my head. It sounds great now but I haven't turned the bass control knob more than halfway since the incident. What do you think?

[rookie1]

How many speakers did you have them install? If you had them install 4 speakers and the sub I suspect that they bridged the last 2 channels to power the subwoofer.
Your amp specs bridged:Rated Power (bridged):
90W RMS x 3 @ 8 ohm (12.5V);
150W RMS x 3 @ 4 ohm (12.5V
This would mean that the subwoofer is being marginally overdriven at full power. This is not uncommon so if it is indeed the case don't worry. Your amplifier has a bass boost feature built in to it which adds low bass frequencies electronically much like a tone control and this is what your remote bass contrl knob controls. If you prefer the sound of your system with the bass cntl turned to max most of the time you will need to adjust the gain down slightly for channels 5/6 to avoid repeating the destruction of the subwoofer. This is easy and will take all of about 30 seconds. Also, remember, power alone does not overheat voice coils, distortion is almost always the culprit.

You are most likely at 4 ohms since that is the nominal resistance of most car speakers. BTW, did you go with JL speakers in the front and rear also?

[2003 MIB]

How many speakers did you have them install? If you had them install 4 speakers and the sub I suspect that they bridged the last 2 channels to power the subwoofer.
You are most likely at 4 ohms since that is the nominal resistance of most car speakers. BTW, did you go with JL speakers in the front and rear also?

Thanks so much for the help!!! :up: I installed the Kenwood 6889ie series in the doors and rear deck- way easy on a 300A. They roadkilled the front doors and deck and ran big wire to all the speakers. I saw the bass boost switch on the amp (it's on now)but I haven't touched anything or turned any screws. They made the settings and knew more about it than I did.

[Rangero]

I don't know or pretend to know anything about speakers or the like. I just wanted to get some clarification while you guys were here. A buddy told me that the factory sub is a 16 ohm unit and there is no direct aftermarket replacement for it. Is that correct and is that why you went with another amp in place of the factory?

Thanks in advance

[2003 MIB]

I don't know or pretend to know anything about speakers or the like. I just wanted to get some clarification while you guys were here. A buddy told me that the factory sub is a 16 ohm unit and there is no direct aftermarket replacement for it. Is that correct and is that why you went with another amp in place of the factory?

Thanks in advance

I wanted a louder stereo. Not some rattle the windows show unit but something the sounded clear at high volume. I wanted the stock deck- stealth is cool. The only way to make the stock deck louder was to amplify it. That's why I chose the amplifer. I thought the stock subwoofer was weak but wanted to keep the stock appearing enclosure. The 6.5 size does limit the options available- the JL unit sounded good so I went with it. The factory amp only powers the subwoofer and won't do anything for the other four speakers. I hope this helps.

[MYSTA KANG]

Put some old skool bass tapes in it and blow it again. :rock:

[2003 MIB]

Put some old skool bass tapes in it and blow it again. :rock:

Oddly, it's the Nellyville CD that let me know they fixed it right- I told you I was all about diversity... :up:

[ilpimp]

that doesn't even count as a subwoofer, it's only 6 inches. If i was you, i would put two 10 inch JL audio W7s powered by a JL audio 1000 watt amplifier in the trunk. That would put out close to 200 decibals. But you're probably better off saving your money, and getting something basic like a kicker solobaric L7. just check out caraudioforum.com (http://www.caraudioforum.com).

[2003 MIB]

that doesn't even count as a subwoofer, it's only 6 inches. If i was you, i would put two 10 inch JL audio W7s powered by a JL audio 1000 watt amplifier in the trunk. That would put out close to 200 decibals. But you're probably better off saving your money, and getting something basic like a kicker solobaric L7. just check out caraudioforum.com (http://www.caraudioforum.com).

You make me smile, Pimp!!! :up: - I believe we have a generation gap because that was the same advice my 16 year-old had....way cool.

[ilpimp]

ya, i'm 16. I have a 10 inch W7 in my car, and it was really nice until i broke my head unit. Yous should defenitely look into a bigger sub though.

[rookie1]

that doesn't even count as a subwoofer, it's only 6 inches. caraudioforum.com (http://www.caraudioforum.com).

Hasn't anyone told you yet that size doesn't matter

[ilpimp]

Hasn't anyone told you yet that size doesn't matter

the 10 inch subwoofer in my car hits harder then a pair of 15s. but a 6 inch subwoofer doesn't really hit that hard. check out elemental designs (http://207.36.230.62/storecatalog.asp?userid=2), they make an 8 inch sub that is really nice, and fairly inexpensive.