More bang for your buck! S12L7, a square deal

Author's Rating:

Pros: Loud, Sound quality, durable

Cons: These are great subs. You won't be let down!

The Bottom Line: 
These are great subs. You won't be let down!

Author's Review
When I first experienced subwoofers, I fell in love with them. I immediately began shopping around for my first set. At the time I was very uneducated about audio equipment and thought that just any pair would suffice. I quickly, but not quickly enough, realized that I could not cut corners on price or quality if I wanted a solid-hitting system. I bounced around from one mediocre set to the next until I made up my mind to invest the money it would take to satisfy my hunger for bass. In my search, I had the pleasure to hear and feel a set of Kicker S12L7’s. I made up my mind right away that those would be part of my future audio setup.

Sound

In the perfect setting, these S12L7’s can deliver show-quality sound. You will not be let down by the level of hard-hitting bass they are able to kick out. If you want to turn heads or simply love the feeling of powerful bass, these subs are for you. I listened to a range of music and these subs can do it all. They will provide you with smooth and strong bass-tones no matter what your listen preferences are. These subs can handle power upwards of 1500watts but you really only need about half of that (or less). I used an MTX 1500-watt amp and they sounded great.


Enclosures

I made the mistake of starting with separate, sealed, 1ft^3 boxes. The subs sounded satisfactory. Later, I did some research and found out that subs like these are meant for large, open enclosures. They need a ton of air. Solobarics are targeted to hit those super-low base tones. However, they can do so only when tuned correctly and in the right box. Again, after a long series of trial and error, I ended up with my subs each resting in their own ported 3ft^3 box. The difference was incredible. In the sealed enclosure, the notes were tighter, but lacked the explosion they can have when you can unleash by adding some room and a port.

Another huge advantage is that square shape. Adding the extra area around the corners of the subs gives you the equivalent surface area of a 15” sub.

Durability

In my escapades, I moved, mounted and remounted these subs several times. I can tell you that they are durable. I noticed the difference right when I picked them up. They are heavy! They are constructed extremely well and can take a beating. They have thick rubber seals and big magnets. Long playtime is not a problem for them. They will not get overheated. Kicker has always been known for its durability and these subs are no exception.


These subs are beasts, but you have to treat them right to get the most out of them. If you are a beginner and just starting to do your own audio, then I suggest you get some technical help. Most sets are dual voice coil and you will need to be able to follow a wiring diagram (this gives you a lot of flexibility…something you don’t get with other subs). The square shape will catch looks and the sound will get you plenty of attention. For some of the purest bass tones you can get in a car, I highly recommend the S12l7’s.