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Old 05-04-2009, 04:11 PM   #1
DamienR8
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Default My Review - Boss Audio BASS600 8-Inch Low Profile Amplified Subwoofer

Hey all, I hope my review below helps those that are looking for an under-the-seat subwoofer solution.
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Boss Audio BASS600 8-Inch Low Profile Amplified Subwoofer

Introduction
During the 3 month search for a low profile sub for my Saab(aru) 9-2X Aero, i came across 3 units; the Kenwood KSC-SW-1, the Blaupunkt THb 200A and Boss Audio BASS600. These units are designed to fill in the 'lows' for your current, subwoofer-less systems and not much more. I stumbled upon the last unit from Boss on an amazon.com search and I am glad I did because it eclipses the other two in terms of price and performance.

For the purpose of determining how the Boss stacks up against it's brand name counterparts, lets start with the specs for each of the units:

Boss Audio BASS600 8-Inch (Per Amazon)
Maximum power: 600 watts
RMS power: 400W
THD: Less than 0.4%
Signal-to-noise ratio: Greater than 90dB
Frequency response: 20Hz - 150 Hz
Input sensitivity (high level): 0.5V
Input sensitivity (low level): 110mV
Low pass filter: 50Hz - 150 Hz
Subsonic filter: 20Hz - 50 Hz
Bass boost: 0 to +12dBboss
Fuse rating: 15A
Woofer diameter: 8 inches
Dimensions: 9.8 x 2.8 x 13.7 inches
Weight: 9.5 pounds

Kenwood KSC-SW-1 (Per Crutchfield)
powered, enclosed subwoofer with 6-1/2" driver and 6-1/2" passive radiator
built-in amplifier: 38 watts RMS power (150 watts maximum)
frequency response: 35-150 Hz
wired remote for control over:
volume level control
variable low-pass crossover (50-120 Hz)
selectable phase control (0°, 180°)
power/ground wiring harness with 10A in-line fuse
preamp (RCA) and speaker-level inputs
dimensions: 15-3/4"W x 3-11/16"H x 9-1/16"D

Blaupunkt THb 200A
compact powered subwoofer
8" woofer with polypropylene cone
70 watts RMS amplifier (peak power: 140 watts)
variable low-pass filter (40-120 Hz)
phase switch control (0-180°)
frequency response: 30-120 Hz
preamp- and speaker-level inputs
9.8' power cable included
dimensions: 14"W x 3-3/8"H x 8-15/16"D

Details:
The Boss Audio BASS600 is an 8-inch slim profile amplified subwoofer that sits in a low profile enclosure. Compared to the Blaupunkt and Kenwood units, the Boss is the only one that sits below 3 inches in height. Not only does this helps the woofer 'breathe' a little bit better, it allows for a very easy mount underneath the passenger or driver front seats.

Packaging:
The Boss unit came undamaged in a well packaged box with all the necessary mounting brackets and accessories. While the other two units come with a power cable, the boss did not (which was not an issue because i had previously purchased a BOSS wiring kit for a very reasonable price of $10 on Amazon.com). The unit was brand new, with no marks or scratches and the build quality is flawless.

Installation:

Installation and integration with my new Pioneer AVH-P4100dvd unit (review will come shortly), was cut and dry . I used the 'ac' grommet located under the passenger glove box as my ticket from the interior to the engine bay. I ran the the power cable from the sub, through the center console stack, out the grommet and finally to the battery. I then ran the remote (amplifier power-on) and audio cables from the headunit, under the cupholders and then down to the subwoofer. The cables are only visible if you look down the left side of the passenger seat with a flashlight. Finally i ran the cable for Boss gain control remote from the subwoofer, through the cupholder and up behind the ashtray. I removed the ash tray insert and fastened the remote unit to the top inside of the tray using 3m double sided tape. Not only is this a fantastic 'stealth' mounting position for the gain contol remote , it hides the blinding blue led away from view.

Setup & Testing:
While the pioneer AVH-P4100dvd unit has a wealth of settings for commanding a powered subwoofer, I took about 30 minutes to configure the settings on the subwoofer itself, before finalizing those on the headunit. The bass boost was set in the middle as the highest setting didn't vary much and the lowest setting was very flat. The subwoofer gain control remote (that i mounted in the ashtray), was used to fine tune the gain levels of the sub (which provided for even more detailed adjustments compared to the subwoofer settings on the pioneer unit). Before finalizing my settings on the sub, I played through a couple of tracks from Sigur Ros, NIN, Mogwai, Interpol and the Chemical Brothers to get and idea of how the subwoofer complements my Inifinity 6.5 inch fronts (which emits very little bass to begin with). Finally, after modifying the crossover settings and customizing the equalizer on the headunit, i was ready to go...

Results:
The Boss was head and shoulders above the Kenwood KSC-SW-1unit, that I previously tested with the Pioneer AVH-P4000dvd in a Subaru Impreza. The bass was tight, pronounced and showed more variance in low end tones compared to the Blaupunkt (in a non subaru with a Pioneer Avic-F700bt). I was surprised with the tonal range; there was alot of 'melody' in the low end that certainly wasn't there in the Blaupunkt and Kenwood. Please note that the RMS numbers listed in the technical specs (for the Boss unit) are certainly exaggerated; there is no way that this unit pushes over 400RMS or even 200 RMS for that matter. What is impressive, is that it certainly sounds much bigger than it really is. I can easily imagine people staring into my trunk, with a bewildered look on their faces. In my opinion, the Kenwood unit lacks the power to produce 'full' low tones without being overly distorted at higher levels. This is mainly due to the size of the woofer (6 1/2) and the amplifier circuitry. The Blaupunkt on the other hand does a fantastic job in reproducing the low end notes and producing a 'tighter' sound (slightly tighter than even the Boss in some music) out-of-the-box. The boss unit is certainly the best of the group and when tuned properly, sounds absolutely fantastic.

Conclusion
While the Boss Audio BASS600 may not carry the brand name of it's challengers, it certainly does deliver on all other fronts. Those WRX'ers and Saabaru's looking for a shallow, versatile and cost-effective ($127.99 on Amazon.com) subwoofer solution, look no further than the Boss Audio BASS600. Thumbs way up for this amazing 'little' unit.
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Last edited by DamienR8; 05-05-2009 at 01:06 PM.
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Old 05-04-2009, 05:57 PM   #2
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Nice review. I could probably sell the OEM sub and buy this and still come out ahead!

Do you find yourself using the gain control even though your HU has sub specific pre-amp outputs?
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Old 05-04-2009, 06:06 PM   #3
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Stupid DP
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Old 05-04-2009, 06:41 PM   #4
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Hey DamienR8, excellent write up on the Boss!

When you were researching, did you look at the BOSS1200? Somewhere on here and on the Baja Forum, I detailed my selection of it over the ones you listed, plus the OEM sub. The 1200 has practically the same footprint, but uses a 10" sub. And like you said, the sound is greatly improved.

But even with it's small size, the 1200 did not fit properly. The seat goes back about 3/4 of the way and then part of the seat frame contacts the top of the enclosure.
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Old 05-04-2009, 08:52 PM   #5
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great review, just what i was looking for! i didn't want anything that was going to rattle my windows (had 2 12's in a previous car) but i wanted something more than speakers can push. I think i'll pick one of these up!
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Old 05-04-2009, 11:43 PM   #6
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Great review man, missing one thing though... PICS.... come now... you know what I want to say.. lol..
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Old 05-05-2009, 03:58 AM   #7
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a friend just installed the kenwood. I was left unimpressed. The bass sounded phony, and couldn't handle much volume at all.

I wish I saw this review a month ago. The review was very professional.
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Old 05-05-2009, 08:26 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Baja BooBoo View Post
Hey DamienR8, excellent write up on the Boss!

When you were researching, did you look at the BOSS1200? Somewhere on here and on the Baja Forum, I detailed my selection of it over the ones you listed, plus the OEM sub. The 1200 has practically the same footprint, but uses a 10" sub. And like you said, the sound is greatly improved.

But even with it's small size, the 1200 did not fit properly. The seat goes back about 3/4 of the way and then part of the seat frame contacts the top of the enclosure.
Thanks and I did look at the 1200. I think you might have some clearance issues with the larger unit depending on how you mount it. I mounted the sub with it's longest side horizontally (see crappy attached drawing).

[img=http://img151.imageshack.us/img151/8370/subajy.jpg]


This mounting position allows the cables to point toward the Armrest/cupholder area and the sub controls towards the passenger door. It also give rear seat passengers optimal footroom. If you mount the BASS1200 unit the same way i did, It will not fit due to it's size. My mounting position allows for about 2 inches on either side, good enough so that the audio cables do not rub against the elevated area of the carpet that attaches to the seat frame. Honestly PDUB, I think that if you listen to the BASS600, you might not even bother about the 1200...

Alternatively, you can mount the longest side vertically, but you will have to sacrifice rear legroom.
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Old 05-05-2009, 08:29 AM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NutBucket View Post
Nice review. I could probably sell the OEM sub and buy this and still come out ahead!

Do you find yourself using the gain control even though your HU has sub specific pre-amp outputs?
I do not find myself using the gain control as much. I think once I found the 'sweet spot' for the bass level after a good amount of fine tuning, there was no need to change the gain levels.

In fact i have read many reviews (see amazon.com) where users have skipped installing the remote altogether. I did just because i found such a nice, stealth, mounting solution in the ashtray area.
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Old 05-05-2009, 08:30 AM   #10
DamienR8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Aaron'z 2.5RS View Post
Great review man, missing one thing though... PICS.... come now... you know what I want to say.. lol..
These will come shortly with my Pioneer AVH-P4100dvd writeup and video review.
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Old 05-05-2009, 08:34 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by freezer16801 View Post
a friend just installed the kenwood. I was left unimpressed. The bass sounded phony, and couldn't handle much volume at all.

I wish I saw this review a month ago. The review was very professional.
The out-of-the-box sub control defaults have all knobs turned to the right. This basically resolves all gain levels to the max and all crossover frequencies all the way to 180 (useless). As stated in my review, i had to spend at least 30 minutes fine tuning the sub controls to get it to a level where I was comfortable and even more time adjusting the controls on my pioneer headunit. In the end, it was very impressed compared to the likes of the Blaupunkt and Kenwood units. Believe me when i say that the sub can handle volume... but don't expect it to replace a dual 12" trunk mounted solution.
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Old 05-05-2009, 08:36 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by oobe View Post
great review, just what i was looking for! i didn't want anything that was going to rattle my windows (had 2 12's in a previous car) but i wanted something more than speakers can push. I think i'll pick one of these up!
Thanks! I will be happy to help you with any questions you have on the installation / setup.
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Old 05-05-2009, 11:50 AM   #13
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You're a pretty good writer, Damien.

Maybe one day you can review things for a living.



sotc
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Old 05-05-2009, 02:03 PM   #14
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thanks for this review. i got tired of my trunk rattling making my music sound like crap. i didnt want to go sound deaden it so this is my new route.
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Old 05-05-2009, 03:44 PM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by saab-on-the-cobb View Post
You're a pretty good writer, Damien.

Maybe one day you can review things for a living.



sotc
Thanks SOTC
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Old 05-05-2009, 03:45 PM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by team X View Post
thanks for this review. i got tired of my trunk rattling making my music sound like crap. i didnt want to go sound deaden it so this is my new route.
Awesome. Post any questions/comments you have on the equipment or the installation in this thread. Let's make this a resource for everyone
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Old 05-07-2009, 04:26 PM   #17
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nice review.
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Old 07-11-2009, 12:26 PM   #18
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can you maybe post a pic of the settings of the knobs on your subwoofer? That way I have some sort of a bassline () to start from.
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Old 07-11-2009, 12:49 PM   #19
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I second this idea!
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Old 07-11-2009, 03:16 PM   #20
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Damien, you used a set of Coax's to hook this up? Is there any option to run regular speaker wires into the unit for using in line with a stock stereo that has a subwoofer option?

Thanks in advance

~Levi
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Old 07-11-2009, 04:00 PM   #21
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Good review...well done.

Wish you wrote this about a month ago. Hard to find anyone that has heard ALL THREE of the pre-made powered underseat subs on the market.
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Old 07-11-2009, 04:07 PM   #22
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I have this as well and recommend it. I posted about it in this thread:

http://www.iwsti.com/forums/gd-i-c-e...-pictures.html
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Old 07-11-2009, 05:07 PM   #23
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wow, 38 RMS, 70 RMS, and 400 RMS??? seriously?
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Old 07-11-2009, 06:39 PM   #24
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Quote:
Originally Posted by some dude View Post
wow, 38 RMS, 70 RMS, and 400 RMS??? seriously?
Rule of thumb I go by:

If it says 600 peak or just says 600 watts, reduce that by 2/3's and you have your RMS. So in essence, I'd guesstimate that the speaker is capable of 200 RMS if it has a rating of 600 peak. Now, the question is what the amp itself is capable of putting out. Maybe it only uses 100 RMS, or 150? Who knows.... cheaper companies inflate figures to appeal to the masses who don't research their products.

Not saying this isn't a good bang product, just saying the company needs to give us solid info

~Levi
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Old 08-03-2009, 09:37 PM   #25
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Did a search and saw this review. I installed this sub under my passenger seat this past weekend. After about an hour of dialing in the settings with the head unit and built in amp, it sounds great. I recommend this to anyone looking to fill out the sound, but not having the need for a ton of bass. It serves its purpose at a very affordable price. Don't let the Boss brand name scare ya!
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