I have two 12 inch type rs with an eclipse za1200 amp running 1200 watts at 2 ohms. Ive done the big three upgrade with 0 gauge, stock alt., and an everstart battery with 970 cranking amps. Since i did the big three my voltage doesnt drop as much but the cones on the subs feel warm everytime i play them. I have the gain on the amp all the way up, no bass boost, and the bass level on 3 out of seven on the head unit. The reason i have the gain all the way up is because its not loud enough for me if it is not, when i have the gain at like half way theres not a lot of bass at all.The subs are in a audio enhancers ported box tuned to 40 hz, which kind of sucks because it doesnt pick up a lot of notes, a lot of the songs i listen to sound like they are either above of below the boxes tuning frequency. If i built a box to the exact specs that alpine recommends do you think that i wouldnt have to keep the gain all the way up in order for it to sound good?

They should feel warm cranking 1200watts. Sub sonic sound really only plays well to a few genres of music period. I run a small square Kicker just to put a little edge on the bass of my hard rock. If you did the big three and are seeing less voltage drop, cool. But I think you are expecting audible deep bass tones that aren't in the realm of Sub bass woofers? Also is the amp underpowering the two subs? That will create heat/bad sound as well.

I mean theres songs that it just wont pick up, for example BASSTRONICS bass i love you doesnt sound good at all the box has a cut off frequency of 34 hz. The amp should be running them at RMS, type rs are 500 RMS and 1500 peak. Dont get me wrong they sound great i just wish they sounded the same but with less heat build up, plus i cant listen to all the music i want to because that box just doesnt pick it up. It wont even pick up any rock music at all, no matter how i adjust the crossover it just wont pick up certain notes.

What head unit are you using and what is the output voltage on the RCA'*?

Also, what are your crossovers set at on the amp?

you are clipping the crap out of them mang. im sure they are a bit louder that way but its sending a dirty signal to your subs which will heat them up and cause damage. id set the gains with a DMM and if its not loud enough for ya then time to upgrade or try firing the subs/box in dif ways to change the sound. but turn that amps gains down asap before them subs fry up on ya. im sure if ya wanted to try another box design it might make a change for the better but wont really know unless its tried.

I might just take it to a shop or something, so far ive done all of this on my own and had to learn along the way. I need someone who knows what there doing have a look at it, but i will turn the gain down.

this chart should help ya set the gains with a DMM and for test tones go to realmofexcursion.com for that. then ya wont need to worry about the subs gettin messed up.

U need to turn down ur gain on ur amp and turn up your sub out on ur deck. Ur gonna burn out ur amp, and ur sound quality will improve

whats a dmm

digital multi meter, sorry im a dork to assume everybody uses tools on a daily cuz i was a auto tech for a while lol