The Official JL Audio Subwoofer Owners Thread

[Brain Sturgeon]

Please discuss your JL Audio subwoofers in this thread. You can include pictures, reviews, or any other comments regarding your subwoofer.

Manufacturer’s Website: http://home.jlaudio.com/products_sub....php?page_id=7

A tour of the JL Audio factory
https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread.php?t=79916


Brain Sturgeon's New JL Audio Subwoofer:

So, in the never ending quest for Home Theater and audio Nirvana, I decided it was time for a sub upgrade.

I previously had a Velodyne DD-18 that I used as an LFE sub, and a B&W 800 ASW that I was using as a mono sub. I was running my mains (802D) full range, and they can effectively get to 35 Hz or so. This worked okay, although the older B&W sub was very much the weak link in the system.

I thought about getting another DD-18 as I really like the built in EQ in the sub. However, the price/performance ratio of this sub has deteriorated since its debut. It's still a great sub, but there are definitely better for the price.

I started looking at the top commercial subs out there (I just don't have the time to do a DIY sub), and these include the Danley DTS-20, eD A7-900, Epik Conquest, Seaton SUBmersives, SVS PB13-ultra, Genelec HTS6, Velodyne DD-1812, and the JL Audio Gotham, among others.

The Danley's form factor wouldn't work in my room as it is, and it doesn't do well in the aesthetics department (basically a long, black box). The big eD, Epik, and Seaton are a little better looking, but not by much-- basically large ported boxes. The SVS is a pretty sub, but a step below these others in performance. I've never heard the Genelec and don't know any dealers in my area. The Velodyne is a bit bigger than I would like, and the price/performance is not great as it is hideously expensive. Which leaves me with the JL, which I had on my radar anyway as I was wow'ed by Gothams in the past.

So, here she is at my front door today:



Just an absolute beast of a box-- every bit of 400#. It took four of us to wrestle this down to my theater while avoiding getting crushed by the thing...



Moving into position:



Almost there:



Final set up:




I'm going to run left and right subs through the Lexicon MC-12 and not run an LFE sub (LFE will just be rolled into the usual sub output). I'm going to run the 802's small (not full range) and cross them over @ 40 Hz, and use the THX 80 Hz crossover for the subs. I did the basic automatic setup and Room EQ through the Lex, and have got a lot more EQ'ing to do with the DD-18 and Gotham. It will be interesting to see if I can get these subs to play nice.

Early impressions in my system: The output of the Gotham is absolutely ungodly. It just smokes the DD-18, which is not a slouch in any way. This poses the problem of having to turn down the output of the Gotham, which I am doing with the Lex. Even so, I may have to reduce the gain of the Gotham manually on the sub itself to get it just right.

In very limited listening, the bass is incredibly powerful, palpable, and crisp, although I need to work on matching them with the 802D's a bit better as it feels a little too forward right now. Adjusting the EQ and crossover points will probably be in order. I had thought about going with two Gothams, but I'm glad I started with one as it is getting close to overwhelming the room at this point. I'll see how it is once I get the subs a little better dialed in-- I may or may not like how it matches with the Velodyne.

Anyways, fun stuff...

[JasonR]

Holy crap Brain!!! That is AWESOME!!!!!!!!!

We need a grill off shot!

[crazyBLUE]

SPEECHLESS !!!

I CAN"T WAIT TO HEAR YOU"RE REVIEW BRAIN !!!!

[Big Daddy]

You may have to adjust the placement of the subs. I am sure you are aware that room positioning is as important as the quality of the subs. I realize that it may ruin the aesthetics of your HT room, but try it and see what you will get. Start with the middle of the side walls or one in the front and one in the back.

Get 4 of those Gothams and I will move in to your house.

[Slec]

Absolutely crazy, in an amazingly good way. The DD18 is a beast so I can't imagine what that Gotham is like.

[aramis109]

Man, when I saw your name and then the list, I was like, "please tell me he got the Gotham," and then I scrolled down and saw the pic. What a beauty. I'm even more jealous if that was possible. Take some more pics!

[prerich]

[SDBlu]

Brain Sturgeon is my HERO!

[Brain Sturgeon]

Originally Posted by JasonR

Holy crap Brain!!! That is AWESOME!!!!!!!!!

We need a grill off shot!

Originally Posted by aramis109

Man, when I saw your name and then the list, I was like, "please tell me he got the Gotham," and then I scrolled down and saw the pic. What a beauty. I'm even more jealous if that was possible. Take some more pics!

Here ya go...





The fit and finish are spectacular. Truly a work of art.

Originally Posted by Big Daddy

You may have to adjust the placement of the subs. I am sure you are aware that room positioning is as important as the quality of the subs. I realize that it may ruin the aesthetics of your HT room, but try it and see what you will get. Start with the middle of the side walls or one in the front and one in the back.

Get 4 of those Gothams and I will move in to your house.

Yup, I would love to do the subwoofer crawl sometime, but moving the Gotham around is an enormous PITA. Unfortunately, the room is a bit peculiar for acoustics in that there is no right wall (it opens into an atrium at the bottom of the stairwell) and the back wall is another 30' back from the back row. The room is about 17'x55'x8' with about 25' of length used for the theater room. I wish it were a purpose built room for audio, but that's my next theater...

I can't really place a sub on the left wall as the hearth is located there; so that leaves me with either their current positions, a position in front of and lateral to the mains, or a position behind the back row. I'm going to do a lot of tweaking with setting levels, EQ, and Extreme Low Freq trim in their current positions to see if I can get everything blended together. If I get frustrated, I will start rearranging things.

Four Gothams-- sheesh! After hearing the output of one in my room, I would fear for the rest of the home with quad Gothams...

I've got a copy of War of the Worlds coming in the mail tomorrow. We'll see how the "Lightning Strikes" and "Pods Emerge" scenes sound. I've also got the opening scene of Master and Commander on my list of scenes to hear...

[Canada]

Originally Posted by Big Daddy

You may have to adjust the placement of the subs. I am sure you are aware that room positioning is as important as the quality of the subs. I realize that it may ruin the aesthetics of your HT room, but try it and see what you will get. Start with the middle of the side walls or one in the front and one in the back.

Get 4 of those Gothams and I will move in to your house.

If Brian Sturgeon gets 4 Gothams his house will move to you.

[airkitty]

I had the pleasure of visiting a friend that has 2 F113s in his sound / video room. Wow, no really WOW! They sounded wonderful: blended, tight, fast, deep, and musical. They made my pants flap on Art of Noise - moments in love and cabaret voltaire - easy life. I need this type of bass in my system. Would any of you be willing to donate a JL sub to me? Please, pretty please. No really where is my check book? Damn this hobby is going to put me in the poor house.

[rio203]

I just got my Jl f113 about 2 weeks ago this is the best sub I've ever had I've had the SVS ultra 13 and that is a good sub but the Jl is better all-round

[btf1980]

For the owners of these subs, what size rooms do you have them in?

[Blu-Dog]

Originally Posted by btf1980

For the owners of these subs, what size rooms do you have them in?

I have the F113 - in a living room, half of the left wall open to another area (towards the rear). Roughly 24 feet by 26 feet, with a very high sloped ceiling, sloping upward from right to left.

The F113 fills it nicely, I couldn't use anything smaller. I have a huge problem with sub placement - still haven't figured out where to put the sub, and I have room gain problems due to the sloping ceiling and open side.

In one corner - right side rear - there is so much boost that your ribs rattle. Eight feet away, it's just smooth, not skull-busting. I have no idea how to get the propagation evened out, and I'm sure not going to buy another Fathom...unless I win the lottery. Then I'll buy a bunch of them.

Here's the thing: I think one of the smaller Fathoms would have worked as well, if I could find out where to place it. Not that I'm sending this one back.

It hits hard, without effort, and is incredibly smooth, being a sealed unit. I'd stay with a 12 or 13, unless it was a very small area.

[Blu-Dog]

What do you think of the Harmony 1100? I have to replace my old Sony Remote Commander...

[btf1980]

Thanks for that. I'm really eyeing the f112. I've demoed it many times, and I can get it for a fairly reasonable price. I like my Rel T2, it's a great bang for the buck sub and one that would keep most people happy, but it's time I upgrade, might as well do it right and proper.

The Harmony 1100 is great, no issues whatsoever. If it were my money, i'd get a harmony one, cheaper and does what it's supposed to, but the 1100 was a gift, so who am I to complain?

[Blu-Dog]

Originally Posted by btf1980

Thanks for that. I'm really eyeing the f112. I've demoed it many times, and I can get it for a fairly reasonable price. I like my Rel T2, it's a great bang for the buck sub and one that would keep most people happy, but it's time I upgrade, might as well do it right and proper.

The Harmony 1100 is great, no issues whatsoever. If it were my money, i'd get a harmony one, cheaper and does what it's supposed to, but the 1100 was a gift, so who am I to complain?

If you can snag a deal on the f112, do it and don't look back. The more I think about it, maybe even the F110 would do the job; these units have just ridiculously high output, and it's clean, which is what I need.

On the Harmony, it's got big time cool guy factor, but I need the remote extender - Amazon is bundling that stuff for about $460, a whopping discount from other dealers.

[sokrman14]

Originally Posted by Blu-Dog

What do you think of the Harmony 1100? I have to replace my old Sony Remote Commander...

For the price of it, get a Universal Remotes MX 900 or 950 and pay for the programming. It will work flawlessly and you will be much happier. I would never pay $500 for a harmony remote, because they are self programmable and always faulty to some extent (whether user based or manufacturer based.)

[Esox50]

Originally Posted by btf1980

For the owners of these subs, what size rooms do you have them in?

I cannot comment yet, but I have 2 F112's that should be installed in my theater within the next 5-8 business days. They will be in a 16 x 25 x 9 room, and I expect them to be total overkill.

[Driver_King]

Originally Posted by Esox50

I cannot comment yet, but I have 2 F112's that should be installed in my theater within the next 5-8 business days. They will be in a 16 x 25 x 9 room, and I expect them to be total overkill.

Overkill?!? Yikes! The forbidden word! We at Blu-ray.com do not acknowledge overkill as an absolute and we cannot take it as such; therefore overkill does not exist.