Kenwood KSC-SW11 Compact Powered Enclosed Subwoofer for CAR

Who Shouldn't buy this?If you think of what you want from your system and use words like: "Hit" "Thump" or "Punch", you won't like this sub. It's a tiny 150W speaker. You'll be disappointed if you buy this. Remember: the DECIbel scale is logarithmic because it takes 10x the power to double the sound pressure level or audible volume. If you want to find the resonant frequency of your neighbor's dentures, you're going to have to splash out for the 1500W amp and the pair of 12s in a sealed box that your friends told you to get. And the noise ordinance ticket.Who Should Buy This?If you think of what you want from your system and use words like: "Full" "Balanced" "Rounded", you'll love this sub. It's a tiny 150W speaker, but the amp and speaker are perfectly matched and the enclosure is flawless (subs REALLY like perfectly sealed enclosures). I wouldn't use it as an upgrade by itself, because it's intended purpose is to offload bass from your component speakers, allowing them to do their job. For that reason, it doesn't shine in this role unless you have a head unit that has a subwoofer out and high-pass/low-pass filters (so that only frequencies below, say, 120 Hz go to the sub and only those above that cutoff go to the normal speakers). Likewise, you'll get more bang for your buck by upgrading your other speakers first. But once you've done that, you really need a sub to round out your system and this one is perfect in that role. Also, provided you're not in the first group, you will be surprised by how loud it is (try "Pyramid Song" by Radiohead and watch your rear view mirrors). Finally, it's output is small enough that most people can find a spot in their fuse box (10A) to power it with a fuse tap rather than boring a hole in their firewalls.Things that Almost cost it a star: Installation and cables. The cables are not awful, but they're insufficient. I spent a good 2 hours soldering to make sure that this worked well because the handy quick detach cable plug (think a computer power supply plug) has a bunch of awful and tiny cables (the ground and power are divided into two 14 ga wires). If you have a head unit with an RCA subwoofer out, the provided cables won't help you- they only provide cables for a speaker wire tap (which is a horrible idea....do NOT do that....pick from any one of 8 reasons not to). If you're mounting it under a front seat (which I assume most people do for the sake of convenience), the wires are much too long. Make sure that you cut the ground wires down- you don't want them more than 18". Mine had to be longer than that, but I bought some 10 AWG copper wire and soldered the grounds to that (which is likely more than most people want to go through for a kit that is supposedly nearly complete). Finally, the mounting hardware is awful. DO NOT MOUNT THIS LIKE THE INSTRUCTIONS TELL YOU TO. I have no desire to drill 1/4" holes in the floor boards of my car...maybe I'm just strange that way. Here's a much better idea which worked very well for me: Buy a 1/4" sheet of polycarbonate or HDPE. The subwoofer that you see in the picture has small metal tabs which screw into the bottom and stick out about 3/4" with two mounting holes each. You're supposed to screw the provided metal screws through these holes and into the newly drilled holes in your floorboard. Again, don't do that. Instead, but a set of 4 machine screws and nuts/washers from your local hardware store. Drill holes in your new plastic sheet that match the holes in the mounting tabs and then use the machine screws to attach the two. Now get some industrial velcro strips (6 of the 4x2" strips work perfect) and attach the HOOK side to the bottom of the plastic sheet. Press this down on your carpet in your chosen mounting location and you've got a great fit but no new holes in your car. You can cut a corner off of the plastic sheet to make it easier to plug the cables in, but you could probably plug it in and then screw the plastic sheet on after. Finally, you might ask, "why not just put the velcro strips on the bottom of the subwoofer versus all of this complicated business with machine screws and drills and plastic sheets?" Well, the bottom of the sub is the heatsink for the amp, so if you velcro that to your insulated automobile carpet, you run the risk of overheating the amp or getting random burning plastic smells. Is that bad outcome guaranteed? No, but YMMV and I wouldn't take the risk.

So I'm an MECP Certified Technician Professional Installer. I bought my truck a little over a year ago (2000 Chevy 2500) So please pay attention to what I'm going to tell you about this subwoofer. The installation is much easier than installing a Kicker Hideaway system. The sound is close to it (The Kicker has a little bit better lower sound). Now I had plenty of options to put in my truck I could have went with a custom built box however I have tools under the seats that I keep away from the elements and tend to use my back seat for storage (It's rained for the past 53 weeks in my area). So keeping in mind that I Needed something that was going to deliver enough bass that I enjoy without breaking the bank or getting my pulled over for a noise violation (3 communities in my area have Noise Ordinances that are STRICTLY Enforced with $400 fines). So when I bought the truck the previous owner blew the speakers, the AC Delco Radio was trashed, so I decided to install a high end pioneer touchscreen single-dinn radio with back up camera. Fronts I went with the new Kenwood 6 1/2's and swapped out the suicide door speakers with Rockford Fosgate 5 1/4's since I was going to have a hide away subwoofer. The Installation can be done a few ways if you have a good understanding of your vehicles electrical system. Running aftermarket I decided to go with the RCA's instead of military tapping into the speakers rear wires or using a Line out Converter to give it a better sound. You can run the power wire to the battery if you'd like to or if you want to you can also run it to the accessory wire of the Radio or another accessory wire in the vehicle. I ran mine to the accessory wire to the radio which pulls more than enough current for this subwoofer after testing it with a Digital Multi-Meter. The ground wire is slightly shorter so please find a VERY good place to ground it on the chasis (I ran mine under the carpet stripping the paint and tapping in with a self tapping screw & Star washer sealing the bottom with Silicone as to prevent any water leaks). The sound pressure level in the cab is amazing. It's not too loud and believe me you're not going to win any sound competitions with this subwoofer however for as small as it is, fit firmly and neatly underneath of the drivers seat. I used some 3M Velco Strips to ensure that it didn't slide around underneath in case I hit a bump or went up on an incline. Impressive Yes. Easy to Install Yes. Great Sound Yes. Competition NO. But those who get in your vehicle will know that you have a subwoofer. The controller is wired and will need to be mounted somewhere (I ran mine to the 3rd Seat and left it there in case I have to turn the sub off when I go through these Ordinance enforced communities nearby) and my only complaint IS the remote. It takes about a half second to react, but that's not a big minus to me for me to mark it down any. Now with all speakers, your initial sound on installation isn't going to be the best. The speakers have to flex for a while in order for them to mature but after 2 weeks the sound was just amazing. Parked and watching movies on break makes me feel like I'm in a theater setting. Listening to Rock, Metal, Rap, Hip Hop and other various genre's will need some tweaking within your head unit but the subwoofer itself is very reactive and doesn't phase out the other high end woofers I added to the doors. In fact it enhances the over all performance (The Rockford Fosgate 5 1/4's have bass blockers built in so there's no bass overpowering coming in from the back other THAN the subwoofer) Overall a great performing subwoofer, with easy installation and for the price WAY worth the recommendation. I still give it 5 stars because of the fact even though I'm not very pleased with the remote control it's NOT the selling point for me on an inexpensive self contained AMP/Sub. Great Job Kenwood!