Tuesday, October 12, 2021

Massive Audio Bas6 6.5 Inch Powered Car Subwoofer Review

Most of us like to take our tunes with us on the go. In our vehicle on the go is one of the best places to enjoy our music. Although while most stock car stereos have come a long way, there is still room for improvement. One way is to add a subwoofer. Up for review today is the Massive Audio Sub6. It is a powered 6.5 inch long throw subwoofer for $315.

 

Features and specs:

Size:       6.5"

Watts RMS:        250w

Peak Power:       500w

Cone:    Kevlar Fiber Enhanced Non-Pressed Paper Cone

Voice Coil:           1.5"

Surround:            EROM Foam

Magnet:               Double Stacked 55oz

Terminals:           Quick Disconnect

Basket:                Heavy Gauge Cast Aluminum

Tinsel Leads:      Heavy Duty Triple

X-Max:  10mm (1-way)

SPL:        85 dB @2.83V/1m

FS:          63.5Hz

Crossover Control:          Variable 50Hz ~ 200Hz / 12dB Octave Butterworth

Bass Boost:         0 ~ -12dB @45Hz

Frequency Response:     25Hz ~ 200Hz

Input Sensitivity :             200mV ~ 10V

Fuse Rating:       20A x 2

Dimensions:        14" x 9" x 10.6"

Bass Remote:     Included

 

The Massive Audio Sub6 came double boxed. It shipped well protected. Opening the box revealed a well-made product. The enclosure was well made with great looking black carpet with red stitching for the Massive Audio logo. Giving the enclosure a knock supported my findings. Quality of materials used was very good, as was the fit and finish. The Massive Audio Sub6 is a well-made subwoofer.  Also included was the bass remote, cable for the remote, and owners manual.

 

I enjoyed the design of the Massive Audio Sub6. It’s small at only 6.5 inches for the driver. And at only 6.5 inches, it also doesn’t require a large enclosure. Yet it still employs a ported design to get the most output from this small single driver design. The tall foam surround for large excursion and 250-watt RMS power handling plays into maximizing the most performance out of its small size.

 

The great design doesn’t end with the small driver. The overall design of the sub is efficient and clean looking. The built-in amp is found on the same side as the port. The front holds the driver and a grill to protect it. The slot design for the port goes across the entire length of the back, for a length of twelve inches. This I’m sure gives all the depth that the driver can muster. The back panel is a half inch. While I can’t tell if half inch MDF was used for the entire enclosure, it would be sufficient if it was.

 

All in all, I really like the overall design of the Massive Audio Sub6. For a ported enclosure, it’s really small and doesn’t take up much space. Yet at 250 watts RMS, and a tall foam surround, it gets a lot of excursion. And the long port maximizes every ounce of depth out of it all. For a factory sound system, this subwoofer will significantly improve the bass.

 

Installation was fairly simple. The built-in amp is auto-sensing, and accepts a high-level input. This makes it easy to tap into the existing stock wiring. It just takes power, ground and input. I’m excited to see how it performs.  Now that it’s installed, let’s see how it sounds.

 

New Order- Blue Monday: bass beats in the beginning were on time, quick and clean. They also had very good dynamics, depth and authority. The bass beats further in the track had even more depth. They played with similar dynamics and authority.

Katy Perry- Dark Horse: Bass beats played clean with very good output and authority.  And then the long sustained bass kicked in, and was so massive it shook the whole car! It had a little challenge playing the deepest beats in the track, but still played much better than I expected for only a 6.5-inch driver!

Imagine Dragons- Thunder: bass beats at the beginning were nice and tight and very dynamic. Then came the prolonged beats that just rumbled and shook the whole car. Yet it did so cleanly and with very good authority, making my rearview mirror dance. And again, it was only on the deepest beats that was a bit too deep for the Massive Audio Bas6.


Not everyone is a bass head like me. I’ve gone as big as 15’s for subwoofers in the past. If you like a lot of bass, this may come up short. But if you like more than the factory stereo, this could be for you. I have my reference system in my truck. But for the family vehicle driven mostly by my wife, and occasionally by me, it’s perfect.

 

The Massive Audio Bas6 provides deeper low end, as well as much more output than the factory system of our Toyota Corolla. And when I drive it, there’s the bass remote that I can use to crank it up. It’s a well-made subwoofer that provides very good depth and output for its size. Based on its design, features, quality and performance the Massive Audio Bas6 has earned our Highly Recommended Award. For more info and complete specs, check out their website at www.massiveaudio.com.  Reference gear: Kenwood DNX997XR, AudioControl DM-810, AudioControl In-Dash Epicenter, JL Audio XD600/6 Class D amp, Vibe Audio LiteBox Stereo4 Class GH amp, German Maestro M-Line 3-way components, Alpine Type-X 2-way components. 


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