Image Dynamincs ID10 Ultra Low Frequency Car Subwoofer Review

When it comes to trucks, crew cabs and extended/king cabs are getting really popular. The days of single cabs are not gone, but they are few and far between. If you want extra bass, you’re limited by the space you have under the rear seat. While many will give you enough space where a true shallow mount won’t be required, you also won’t be able to get a high power sub with a huge magnet under the back seat. For those of you in this boat, you want a fairly shallow mounting sub that can still handle a decent amount of power and play sufficiently loud and deep. This desire is also had by many non-truck owners, as compact vehicles also do not have much trunk space. Up for review is the Image Dynamics ID10.

Features and specs:

Imp 2/8 ohms:                         Nominal Resistance

Re  1.8/7.2 ohms                     DC Resistance

Fs  23.2Hz                               Resonant frequency

Qes  .387                                 Electrical "Q"

Qms  3.714                              Mechanical "Q"

Qts  .35                                   Total "Q"

Vas  2.43 cuft (69 liters)         Equivalent volume

Xmax  17.0mm                       One way linear

Sd  350 cm2                            Cone area

Spl  86.5db                              Sensitivity

Pwr  250rms/450max              Power Handling

I love the design of the Image Dynamics ID10. At only 5.12” mounting depth, it is shallow enough to work in most applications. As a 10 inch driver you can get away with using it in a smaller enclosure with as little as 0.40 cubic airspace! Rated at only 250 watts RMS, it also doesn’t take a lot off power to push them. So a small sub amp that can be mounted under the front seat would work. Also, the sub channel on all 5 channel amps will be able to push it as well.

The best part I think is its frequency response. Image Dynamics actually calls it an Ultra Low Frequency Transducer. I was actually shocked by it’s specs! Most 10’s in a ported enclosure can be tuned to the low 30’s in a fairly large enclosure, or in the 40’s in a sealed enclosure. But in a 1.14 cu ft ported enclosure it will go down to 32hz, or 23hz at -3 db in car! And a 0.40 cu ft sealed will get down to 21hz in Car!! That is seriously low. While most bass is in the 50hz range, what this means that you won’t miss any of your music, no matter what style of music you listen to.

The Image Dynamics ID10 came in a nice looking color printed box, with images and specs of the subwoofer. And given it’s specs, it is definitely a subwoofer! I really liked the power range chart on the box. While it’s rated to 250 watts RMS, it looks like if you keep it under 400 watts of clean power you’ll be ok, according to the chart.

Opening the box revealed a well protected subwoofer held in custom cut out cardboard. While this is Image Dynamics entry level subwoofer, it is still Image Dynamics. This is not a entry level driver. The basket is stamped steal, but it does have some great features, like the push style terminals, sewn-in tinsel leads, poly/mica cone and santoprene surrounds. Aside from not having a cast basket, the rest of it does not look entry level. And at it’s power rating, the stamped basket works just fine.

This Image Dynamics ID10 has me very excited. As a musician, I listen to all music types, including classical. So low bass output is important to me. I like to get as close to 20 hz output as possible. That is extremely difficult, especially for a 10 inch driver. I haven’t found any other 10 inch driver with as shallow of a mounting as the ID10, that will play that deep. So we are really excited to review the Image dynamics ID10. For you truck owners, the back seat is a perfect place for a pair of ID’s. So we are reviewing a pair of ID10’s.

When it comes to performance, ported will play louder than sealed. It also tends to play deeper. But ported doesn’t have that dynamic tight impact that you get with sealed. So the Image Dynamics ID10 in a sealed enclosure will give you the dynamic tight bass, and also give you the ultra deep base. And reviewing two subs, should give the output of a single ported subwoofer. So let’s now see how they perform.

I started things out on our test bench with some sine waves.  We used a sealed enclosure with .82cu ft per sub.  Even without any cabin gain, we had some great output, especially at its recommended 250-350 watts RMS.  We pushed things just a tad and fed 400 watts RMS to each sub.  And on the bench we measured frequency response down to 20hz at -3db, with output up to 108db measured at about 1 meter.  For a 10 inch driver in a sealed enclosure....very impressive!  Now it's time for the music.

I turned things real deep right out of the gate with Also Sprach Zarathustra.  This is the popular track from 2001 A Space Odyssey.  The low rumble at the beginning of the  track was really clean, well sustained, and the cone was well controlled by the motor.  And it played not only really really deep, but also played with very good authority.

Next up was New Order: Blue Monday.  As expected from a sealed enclosure, the quick beats at the very beginning was very quick, clean without skipping a beat, or having a hint of muddiness.  They also were nice and tight with very good impact.  Next the beats got some added depth, and the ID10's continued to impress with the low end extending.  The bass was still nice and clean, and played loud with good authority.

Now it was time for another great bass track, Katy Perry: Dark Horse.  Here the bass was even deeper.  Yet the ID10's played really clean, with very deep extension, and smooth bass.  And they hit really hard. 

Last but not least was one of my all-time old school favorites, Techmaster PB: Activate, and Time To Jam. These tracks can cause fits due to the deep base and high output.  As we expected, the Image Dynamic ID10's continued to impress.  Beats were quick, clean, and not a hint of muddiness.  The beats not only were really deep, but they hit hard and played with very good authority. It's just the kind of quality bass that I love to hear.

I had to keep reminding myself that I was only pushing 400 watts to each subwoofer.  Of course it did not have the kind of bone rattling output that a massive power handling sub, like the 1000 watt RMS IDMAX10.  But they still played better than expected for the power they were given.  Output however is only part of the equation.  Sound quality is also important, and Image Dynamics has you covered here as well.  Not only did they play loud for the power given, they were also very musical as well!  And that's probably the best compliment you can give a sub.  Based on their design, features, quality, and performance, the Image Dynamics ID10 has earned our Highly Recommended Award.  For more info and complete specs, check out their website at www.imagedynamics.net.