ben_james's Full Review: Infinity Kappa Perfect12.1 Car Subwoofer
*note,This sub has recently been superseded by the VQ series*
Now... I wasn't going to write a review on this sub, seeing as so many people have commented on it already, BUT... I just have to tell every body who is looking at comparing this sub what a bargain this baby really is!!!
Well, I've had this sub for 3 yrs now, and I've been very happy with its sound quality, and its versatility over the time I've had it...
For the past 3 yrs I've fed this sub with its recommended 350 WRMS and it's sat back and yawned at me, and I've always felt since I've bought it that it has needed nearly twice as much power for it to truly enable it to be used to its full potential.
I was very happy when I first bought it, and treated it with little respect by pounding it out to full tilt right from the beginning, ignoring the recommended wear in time people usually give to new subs in order to help the suspension stay linear while it bedded in. Pffft! this sub sits back and giggles with an amp thats rated at its nominal RMS rating. I think that Infinity probably should have stated on the outside of the box that the 350 WRMS rating was its recommended wattage for 4th order (bandpass) box setups. The recommended wattage for "sealed" is a higher 500 WRMS for a 1.0cuft enclosure, and it can handle 650 WRMS in a "vented" 2.0cuft(ported at 26hz) box.
I've had it in a recommended ported box configuration, and found it was pretty loud!!! Louder than I've heard from anyone elses setups, with 350 watts on tap... But I did notice that the sound quality suffered a little in order to chase the higher SPL limits it was capable of.
I put it into a 1.2cuft sealed enclosure and was VERY impressed by the 12.1's absolute accuracy, linear response and overall sexiness it gave to each and every track I played through it, and it pumped out beautiful bass without even a hint of distortion or boominess commonly associated with subs around this price range and power. This setup enabled the 12.1 to go as low as I've heard a sub ever get, but I did miss that chest pumping feeling I got with the vented (ported) setup I previously had.
A couple of weeks ago I bought a set of Boston Acoustics Z6's ($1000 pair of splits) and felt that the infinity 12.1 just wasn't keeping up with them. So I was brave, and decided to up the dosage of power to the sub to 650 WRMS from a Precision Power A1000/2 amplifier. Let me tell you now, I have fallen in love with this sub all over again!!!
If you want to see and hear the Kappa Perfect 12.1 sub in all its glory, you are gonna have to pump it at twice the nominal wattage when in a sealed or vented box. It just comes ALIVE!!!
I kept it in the sealed box (for sound quality purposes) and zapped it with the full 650 WRMS for over an hour playing some of the most destructive "Missy Elliot" bass songs I could muster, and it pumped out every hit with smooth, accurate and EAR SPLITTING volume. I ordered another 12.1 (to have 2 12.1s in a sealed box) before I had a chance to listen to the current setup.... I think I'm going to have to look at chassis reinforcement before I put the other one in...
All up, I reckon if you want solid, accurate bass then this is the sub for you. Just run it in a sealed enclosure. Want louder? Pump in 500-650 WRMS and you will get your teeth chattering, your heart pulpitating, and your eyes jiggling around in your head!!! Be assured that you will start breaking out in a sweat before it does.
Want to get crazy? Put this in a ported box and pump out bass that will wake the dead, and quake the road as you drive over it!!! I'm not gonna bother putting this sub into a ported enclosure to see how much louder it will get, as I'm already finding that the trim panels in the car are getting enough vibration problems as it is.
MY GRIPES WITH THIS SUB:
I've noticed that no one tends to say much bad comments about products on this site, and this makes it hard to discern whether or not to trust opinions that seem biased, so here it goes...
It will suck your amps power dry!!! The 96dB per 1 watt input written in the spec sheet is a load of rubbish. Because its an "in car" efficiency rating, it can't be used as a reliable figure to be used as an efficiency comparison to other subs. Its true efficiency is most probably closer to 90dB.
The exposed magnets at the back look a little big ugly when comparing to other sub baskets, and the magnets can easily be chipped if your not careful when installing.
The technological advances that this sub first provided are becoming common place with most brands now days, which would justify its lower retail price in the last couple of years.
Its been superseded...
The cone gets dirty easily, and shows grime marks a lot more than what other subs tend to show.
Other than that, its a steal at its current price, and I whole heartedly recommend it to anyone that is looking for a versatile sub that can be used both in a SPL or sound quality type setup.... Just don't expect both at the same time unless you are willing to cough up more dough on a bigger amp...
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