At Crutchfield, you'll get detailed, accurate information that's hard to find elsewhere.
That's because we have our own in-house Product Research team — they open the box,
verify contents, check the owner's manual, and record dimensions, features and specs.
We stay on top of new products and technologies to help people make informed choices.
Enclosure Features
Woofer
Features
Specifications Notes
Enclosure Features
Overview: The
Kicker VS12L5 Solo-Baric subwoofer enclosure is
constructed from non-resonant 3/4" Medium Density Fiberboard (MDF) and protected
by a layer of rugged carpet.
Ported Enclosure: The enclosure
is equipped with a side-firing 5" diameter port. When mounting the
enclosure, there should be no obstructions around the vent opening. A minimum of
4" of clear space should be provided outside of the opening for proper
performance.
Spring Posts:
The spring posts will accept bare wire, banana plugs, dual banana plugs, and pin connectors.
Mounting Brackets: The VS12L5
comes with four metal mounting brackets which should be used to secure the
enclosure to the vehicle. Failure to secure the enclosure may result in serious
injury in case of an accident.
Subsonic Filter Recommended:
The use of a subsonic filter will significantly increase the power handling. A
25 Hz, 24 dB/octave subsonic filter is recommended. (See Specifications Note
below.)
Woofer Features
Solo-Baric L5 Woofer: The
VS12L5 is loaded with a 12" Solo-Baric L5 square subwoofer. The woofer
has two 4-ohm voice coils that are wired in parallel, presenting a 2-ohm mono
load to the terminals. Note: If you are planning on bridging a 2-channel
amplifier to this enclosure, please be sure the amplifier is capable of bridging
to a 2-ohm load.
Square Design: By making the
Solo-Baric square, Kicker is giving you the most possible cone area (or Sd) for
a given size baffle, 16% to 20% more area than a conventional subwoofer. More
cone area means the Solo-Baric L5 moves more air, resulting in louder, deeper
bass.
Cone Materials: The square cone
is made of SoloKön, an ultra high performance composite, which remains rigid,
minimizes cone flex and lowers harmonic distortion. SoloKön consists of a unique
one-piece, aluminum vapor-deposit material that moves as a lightweight piston,
exhibiting power and control. A rear cone brace integrates into the SoloKön with
a continuous contact perimeter weld, which offers unmatched strength and
resistance to deformation under pressure.
Surround: The tough, flexible
Santoprene rubber surround has a long-throw, positive-roll design, which
controls extreme cone excursion and is highly tear-resistant. The corners of the
surround are ribbed to ensure linear cone motion. The surround is stitched to
the reinforced cone edge, making separation between them virtually impossible,
even in the harshest conditions.
Spider: The woofer is equipped
with a wide poly-cotton spider which easily handles high cone excursions due to
its increased diameter and unique shape.
Enhanced BAM (Basket And Motor)
Assembly: The Solo-Baric L5 utilizes a high strength stamped steel basket
which features a low-profile open design and provides a solid foundation for the
precision-aligned motor assembly. Perimeter venting in the BAM relieves pressure
from under the spider, supports linear excursion, and helps dissipate heat from
the voice coil and motor structure.
Dual Voice Coil: The dual ultra
length voice coils sustain enormous cone excursion and provide flexible
impedance matching options. The high-temperature Polyimide Film Voice Coil
former improves sonic and conducive properties, and prevents thermal-electrical
meltdown. The voice coils are rated to 220° Celsius.
UniPlate Construction: The
Solo-Baric L5 features a one-piece UniPlate construction with a vented
hyper-extended pole piece and backplate. This unique design provides the
following benefits:
- Optimizes heat transfer
efficiency for cooler operation and maximum power handling ability.
- Eliminates erratic magnetic flux
from the voice coil gap.
- Releases pressure under the
suspension for uniform cone movement and responsive low bass.
- Prevents the voice coil from
bottoming out and corresponding damage.
Tinsel Lead Wires: The sleeved,
high-power tinsel lead wires eliminate broken leads and power loss, due to the
common use of "insufficient-gauge" lead wires. The lead wires are terminated
with multiple polymer-based strain-relieving mechanical fasteners.
Rubber Magnet Boot: A black rubber boot
covers the outside edge of the magnet structure to improve the cosmetics of the
woofer and protect the magnet from chipping or breaking during installation.
Break-in Period:
Due to the complex nature of Kicker Solo-Baric L5 woofers, they require a
break-in period in order to produce optimum low-bass response. The
high-performance suspension system makes the speakers very stiff
"out-of-the-box". Approximately 2 weeks of daily playing will allow the
suspension to break-in and reach its optimum equilibrium. A "broken-in"
subwoofer will exhibit stronger bass performance, smoother response, and greater
low-bass extension.
Specifications Notes
Power Handling: This subwoofer enclosure can handle up to 600 watts RMS
and 1200 watts peak. The power handling specification is calculated using a 25
Hz, 24 dB/octave subsonic filter. Without the subsonic filter, the enclosure can
handle up to 150 watts RMS.
Sensitivity: In the features and specs
section, the sensitivity is automatically rounded up to 94 dB. The enclosure
actually has a sensitivity rating of 93.7 dB.
