Massive Audio Summo 10 Inch Car Subwoofer Review

When it comes to car stereo subwoofers, loud is how most of us like it.  To play loud, the subwoofer needs to be able to handle a lot of power.  It also needs to be designed to be able to handle all of that power.  One company that makes a great subwoofer to those standards is Massive Audio.  And they build their subs after their name....massive!  And that is definitely the case with their 10 inch Massive Audio Summo subwoofer.

Features and specs:

* Die Cast Basket with Black Textured Finish

* Kevlar Fiber Enhanced Non-Pressed Paper Cone with Textured Paint Finish
* EROM Foam Surround with Red Stitching* 3.0" 4-Layer Hi-Temp Voice Coil
* Fiberglass Woven Dust Cap
* Enhanced Cooling T-yoke Design with Black Anodized Finish

* Triple Stacked 225oz High Energy Magnets

* Triple Black Poly Cotton Spiders with Mirror Image Layout
* Customized Rubber Gasket and Magnet Boot
* 10 Gauge Power Cable with Direct Lead Connection
* Dual 4 Ohm Impedance

The Massive Audio Summo came in a standard box, printed with it’s features and specs. Sitting in custom moulded Styrofoam, the Massive Audio Summo was well protected. Materials used in the construction was mostly metal, with some foam and paper. Quality of materials used was very good. The magnet was massive, and cast metal basket is extremely strong. That strength was also found in the injected pulp cone that was stitched to the beefy foam surround. Tinsel leads are sewn in as well. The Massive Audio Summo is put together like a tank. It looks to be able to easily handle the 1500 watts RMS rating. Fit and finish was very good. Also include was a sheet to help with mounting the Summo, along with a spec sheet.

The Massive Audio Summo is a beast! The magnet on the Massive Audio Summo is, well, massive!  But rated at 1500 watts RMS, I would expect it to be! That also means you need an enclosure big enough to house it. The Massive Audio with it’s large fat magnet could be a tad difficult to fit in some enclosure designs. This is especially true when you think about their power handling capabilities! And speaking of power handling, let’s see how these bad boys perform!

For the listening tests, I wanted something challenging from different genres.  And I decided to go more old school.  ZZ Top is a classic, so we used their song Gimme All Your Lovin, along with New Order Blue Monday, which is also a hard hitter.  And of course a subwoofer challenge wouldn't be complete without using a bass disk.  For that I also turned to old school Techmaster PB: Activate, and Time To Jam.  Last but not least I also wanted something for the more pure audiophiles, so that all bases are covered.  For that task we included Also Sprach Zarathustra.  It's most popular for the intro scene of 2001 A Space Oddessey.  The listening tests were done in both sealed and ported.  We went with a 1.50 cu ft sealed enclosure, and a 1.75 cu ft ported enclosure tuned to 33Hz.  

Since the listening tests were done using both sealed and ported, there were the two different tests.  And each test was done in two parts.  The first part was for output with an SPL meter, and the 2nd part was done for sound quality.  With there being a wide range of cabin gains, depending on the vehicle you have, we did the listening evaluation in our test room.  Just keep in mind with these SPL numbers, that they will be even higher in your vehicle due to the cabin gain.  Now with all that said, lets get it on!

First up is the sealed enclosure tests, which starts with the output measurements.  ZZ Top: Gimme All Your Lovin, got up to 100db.  New Order: Blue Monday hit 109db.  Techmaster PB: Activate, and Time To Jam, reached up to 118db.  And Also Sprach Zarathustra achieved 99db.

Let's now do the sound quality test with the sealed enclosure.  ZZ Top: Gimme All Your Lovin, the bass was nice and deep, with good authority.  They also had really good punch to the chest impact.  New Order: Blue Monday, the beats were really fast yet well defined and not muddy at all.  Not only were none of the beats missed, they were right on cue!  Techmaster PB: Activate, and Time To Jam, provided really clean and good low end extension.  The Summo played with excellent authority. The beats were really strong jackhammer to the chect impact!  The cone was also well controlled by the motor with very good excursion.  Also Sprach Zarathustra had nice smooth low end rumble with good output for it's depth.  The tympani had good resolution, being able to hear the impact of the mallet on the pad.

Now it's time for the ported enclosure test for the Massive Audio Summo.  First we will test the output.  ZZ Top: Gimme All Your Lovin, reached 101db.  New Order: Blue Monday, got up to 112db.  Techmaster PB: Activate, and Time To Jam, hit 120db.  And lastly Also Sprach Zarathustra achieved 101db.

Lastly it is time for the sound quality test.  ZZ Top: Gimme All Your Lovin, showed nice and punchy bass with really good depth and output.  New Order: Blue Monday, the beats were very fast, hit really hard, and was really clean doing so.  The cone was very well controlled and timing of the beats was perfect.  It wasn't muddy at all.  Techmaster PB: Activate, and Time To Jam, yielded excellent output and played really deep.  It hit really hard with tons of extremely well controlled excursion.  And with it being rated up to 1,500 watts RMS, I could tell it was ready to handle a lot more power, like an engine with a lot of torque on tap.  Also Sprach Zarathustra had sustained bass that was deep and smooth.  It also had good resolution, being able to hear the mallet on the tympani.

The Massive Audio Summo 10 inch car subwoofer was correctly named.  It is one seriously huge subwoofer!  It has one seriously massive motor to handle a ridiculous 1,500 watts RMS!  If extremely loud bass is not enough for you, and you have the extra amplifier power to push it, the Massive Audio Summo could be just what you need.  And it's cast basket has the strength to keep you pounding for years to come.  Based on it's design, features, quality, and performance, the Massive Audio Summo 10 inch subwoofer has earned our Editor's Choice Award.  For more info and complete specs, check out their website at www.massiveaudio.com. Reference gear used in the review included Kenwood DNN990HD receiver, Audiocontrol DQSX Electronic EQ and Crossover, Vibe Audio Black Death Bass 1 Class GH subwoofer amp, Install Bay 100 Amp Power supply.