UnMasked Station 5: CompRT Thin Subs and Enclosures for 2021 

What amp did you pair with it?

Is it better than the kicker tube?

It certainly has more cone area, but not quite an apples to apples comparison. The tube is smaller than most enclosures, but is basically weatherproof and can be mounted horizontally or vertically. The 10" tube takes 100 watts less than the 12" TRTP.

Shallow subs don’t compare to full size subs, that is a mistake I will never do again.

@@ULSB1969could you expound?

Old concept. New design.

They didn't say it was new technology or that they invented it, just that they've been implementing it in their products for a while.

We recommend the amp deliver power within 20% of RMS. That enclosure has a 175 watt rating. so if you amp delivers between 140 and 210 watts at 2 ohms, you're in the recommended range.

We can do one better for you: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-qswiC0SyTko.html

Yes it is made to face downwards, so you get bass and can still stack thing on top of it (including Ken, apparently 😜).

Tried it, didn't like it. It was much better sounding with just the passive. I had hella punchy midbass but, no low end extension. That box just doesn't have enough airspace for 2 active subs. If you still want to try, just know that you have to cut some of the bracing out on the passive radiator side to get the magnet to fit in.

It's close, but the highest RMS thin sub enclosure we make is the L7T: www.kicker.com/l7t-loaded-enclosures.

Depends on how much room you have available. Very often the L7T or CompRT loaded enclosures are the best option. Grab a tape measure and write down how much you have to work with, then check out the measurements of our enclosures on the website.

Yes, the CompRT 8" enclosure is tuned to 49Hz. To clarify, that specific radiator and enclosure size together are the factors that result in the tuning frequency. Radiators can be customized by our engineers (weight, surround type, surround stiffness and additional spider) to change that frequency to their specs.

The KEY 500 delivers the most power at 1 ohm, so if your sub is a 12 with dual 2 ohm coils and a 500 watt RMS you would be in great shape.

Generally we prefer to see a 1:1 ration of power going to the mids/highs vs the subs. Example: 50 watts per door = 200 watts for a standard sedan. That means we are looking for @200 wats going to the sub. Can you do more? Of course. Much more, but as you raise the bass, the door speakers have to work harder to keep up. That's the tradeoff.

Yes, as long as the subwoofer has about 2" of clearance. Ensure the sub is not striking any other material as it moves.

Not quite. To get 2 ohms, you can wire a dual 4 ohm down to 2 or a dual 1 ohm sub up tp 2.

Yes it'll hit. Everyone's definition of "hit" is different, to be fair.

If that thief hears you bumpin down the block - can't argue that one!

Good question. A radiator will help. Will be identical to a ported enclosure in frequency response? It would depend in the enclosure. We made a short video to explain: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-4d8SoqkW_rQ.html

The pre-loaded enclosures are 2 ohm only. If you are talking about raw subs, we have them in dual 2 ohm (which can be wired to 4 ohms) and in dual 4 ohms: www.kicker.com/2021-comprt-subwoofers

Possible but not advisable. The difference in frequency responses between the downfiring subs and the "normal" sub will probably cause some issues and a drop in performance.

It would, yes. As long as the contours of the back wall don't come close to the cone. We don't want the sub hitting anything as it moves. One note: you may lose some sound quality if the back panels aren't right up against the metal (they shouldn't move when you put pressure on them - vertical panels aren't as flush to the back wall as carpet is to the floor ).

This is exactly why we built CompRT, CompVT and L7T sub lines, to give you options when space is at a premium.

It depends on where you want to put the sub. You can easily compare the measurements you take to the specs on our page. www.kicker.com/loaded-subwoofer-enclosures

Deep bass is a function of the sub, but also of how you tune the enclosure and set up your EQ/Crossover. While we don't make vehicle-specific enclosures, most of our dealers do. Here is a link for those dealers: www.kicker.com/dealer-locator. If you want to make your own enclosure, our Tech Support group can help with the specs. You can reach them at 405-624-8510. They are open weekdays from 8-5 cst.

Nothing wrong with Audison, but there may be a significant difference in price. Listen to both, head to head if you can and decide from there. You may be surprised at how much bang for the buck we deliver.

CWRT enclosure. Same as shown at 2:19, just larger driver size.

Its possible, but it will drastically change the tuning frequency.

Yes you can. We have seen that done without any technical issues at all, provided they are installed safely.

@@KICKER-AUDIO oh thank u. was a bit worried about the durability of each one being affected. I went on crutchfield website and realised that I cannot wire three 2 ohm svc subs to a two ohm nor one ohm stable. So I'll settle for two of the the 12 inch down firing ones. I have another question though, the box is wired as svc but I noticed the comprt 12 speakers themsleves are dual voice coil which would allow for wiring three of them to a 1 ohm stable amp, cxa 1800.1 specifically. Will the enclosure allow for dvc wiring as is or do I have to have direct access to the dvc terminals on the subwoofers inside?

Its a dvc that we pre-wired to a single terminal. As a general rule we recommend being within 20% of RMS of the subs.

@@KICKER-AUDIO I see, what would have to be done to wire three enclosures to a 1 ohm stable sub? Would more terminals equal to the amount on each sub need to be added to the enclosure itself?

Likely, but you'd need to take measurements to be sure.

Trust me i have seen your under seat speakers... but they have amps built in... i am not gonna need the amp... i already have it... gonna use cxa360.4 for the 2 comps... and 4 tweeters... front and rear doors... all kicker products..

Its possible, but there is no way to know for sure until you compare the dimensions of the enclosure to the available space you have under the seat. That is by far the best way to know.

@@KICKER-AUDIO so a box can be possible? If it is built within the specs of the components?.. a custom box... does it have to be wood? With your cotton ball lining.. or can that include sound deadener? Or can ABS be used so its thinner and lighter.. still using cotton ball.. or sound deadener... full enclosure.. with some sort of port?

@@KICKER-AUDIO how would the port look? Rectangle? Or two smaller radiators facing to the rear of the seats..?

That makes sense. Any ported enclosure needs space to allow air in and out. The sub has to work harder to move, so the resistance rises. As that resistance goes up, the amp has to work harder to create the music. Working harder means more heat. Possibly a lot more, depending on the volume and music. Eventually, the sub and/or amp may fail as a result.

You'd have to measure the space to know. Its very likely.

Unfortunately there really is no single reference to draw upon, so the best thing to do is to measure how much room you have. Calculate height, width and depth. The big question is height. Our thin L7T 10" subs for example need 3.75", but you need to account for the thickness of the wood below and a minimum of 1" of height above it, to allow for the sub to move properly. So, you really should look for about 6" of minimum height where the sub should end up being placed. Other areas of the box can be thinner, but at least one part of your box has to have those dimensions to fit the sub and let it move, so you get the best sound.

We have tons of motorcycle options: www.kicker.com/motorcycle-audio

Comparing the JL CS113TG-TW5V2 vs our 12" TRTP: JL price is $879.99, ours is $319.95. RMS is 600 on the JL and 500 on ours. Sensitivity is 86 on the JL and 98 on ours. Theirs is a wedge, ours is down-firing. FYI, got the sensitivity specs from Crutchfield. Got the pricing from the JL site.

Here you go! ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-gdPRjmx_rO4.html

Where do you intend on putting the enclosure? The CompR sub enclosure was meant for power handling and volume at a reasonable price. The TRTP is a thin enclosure meant to sound good under some truck seats or in the back an SUV.

@@KICKER-AUDIO I appreciate your reply. This is going to be installed in the trunk of BMW 530xi 2006. I can put there any of them, just wanted a better quality bass. I have found VCWR has lower DB, is it a big deal? Thank you in advance!!!

@@KICKER-AUDIO I guess then 48VCWR122 is my choice?

If space is not an issuer then yes, that is a logical choice between the two. One other question: what is the rest of your system? Adding bass is a big step (and an awesome one). What we want to know next is how to balance the mids and highs with the bass, so you don't get drowned out with lows even when you turn the volume up. Try to keep the ratio of bass power to mids/high as close to 1:1 as possible.

@@KICKER-AUDIO I haven’t decided yet about the mids/high. Actually this is going to be my Christmas gift for the nephew, I want to start with sub/amp and he will keep building it up, but he doesn’t know about it now. For the rest of the sound I’d like to add some component to front and coaxiald for the rear, pretty much a standard built. If you have some suggestions I would be more than happy. I really appreciate your help. Have a Merry Christmas

What plastic things are you referring to, exactly?

@@KICKER-AUDIO The ring where the screws go.

@@HardCold-Alquan the smooth plastic inserts are removable.

@@KICKER-AUDIO Thanks. Does the height go down significantly? The only manufacturer to show their subs without any plastic ring is Pioneer. That's important for people with cars that take through many steps just to reach the sub.

@@HardCold-Alquan Considering the surround height, no it doesn't really change. Plus you still need an inch or so above the sub to allow it to move properly during operation.

While I wouldn't advise trying to make the 6.75" CompRT woofer play full mid-range music, they can absolutely be installed in a door and play hella midbass and some midrange.

www.kicker.com/kbrw-passive-reflex-radiators

@@KICKER-AUDIO I have been there. There is only 8", 10" and 12".

Please email us at social@kicker.com. We have something to discuss.

@@KICKER-AUDIO I have to say that you guys go above and beyond on customer service. I couldn't find a 6.75" radiator on their website and so I was given an email to contact them. Well I can stop looking because when I got home today there was a box on my door step with a 6.75" radiator inside! And this is one of the reasons why I run Kicker! Their customer service is just like their products, Awesome!!

Oh no! While defects happen, they are very rare. If you still are having issues, we want to go over your system settings to make sure its not a problem with setup (otherwise it may happen again with another sub). You can email us at support@kicker.com or call us at 405-624-8510. We are open weekdays from 8-5 CST. We want to help if you'll let us.

With the right amp, it should.

It looks like it has a black eye

So whats the best kicker amp to run the 12"s?

Are you talking about a servo system?

@KICKER servo system? Like an offset driven piston driver or an out of phase transducer perhaps.

If you are just looking for better than factory, than these will be alright.

Resistance (also known as "air spring") dictates tuning frequency. This can be achieved with box volume, port volume, or with a passive radiator. The radiator creates resistance without needing a big port and/or a large box.

@@KICKER-AUDIO but still, those small boxes with slim subs can only produce so much deep bass. I have tried those subs, with tinny boxes and they cannot compare to full size subs with adequate size boxes. I have never had port noise with any of my box builds, don’t know why that is alway thrown around. Furthermore, why are you manufacturing L7’s that require enormous boxes for? Shouldn’t these shallow subs with radiators replace the L7’s?

@@KICKER-AUDIO tuning frequency is mainly box volume. The port or radiator will not compensate for deep bass on a small box with very low volume. The cabin is your main component. I tried these shallow subs, they don’t do the work a full size sub can. The best sub that can produce SQ with deep bass and have a relative, not small, but smaller box are JL Audio W7 subs.

If you could take some measurements for the space you wanted to mount it in, that would help us point you in the right direction.