# JL Audio HD900/5 Review



## 6262ms3 (Feb 27, 2008)

I'll keep this one short. It's fed from an Alpine CDA9835, driving H-Audio Ebony mids and Polk Audio SR ring radiator tweets active, with an SI BM12mkIII at 2 ohms on the sub channel.

Well, it's TINY, has plenty of power for what I'm running and is very kind to my electrical system. I won't get into the class A/B vs D argument, maybe while sitting parked you'd notice a difference but while driving I doubt it. No noise or frequency response issues that I can tell (common complaints of other full range class d amps on this forum). It doesn't get nearly as hot as my 300/4 used to (bridged into a focal kp set) and I swear it's more dynamic than that amp. I love that I have all the power I need without having to fill my hatch with amps, plus with only 4 gauge wire I have no dimming whatsoever. On the negative side it has a relatively basic x-over so you can't run active from the amp itself. I don't need to so I don't care. It's expensive, but since I get to have my cake and eat it too it's worth it.


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## caver50 (Sep 2, 2007)

I have the 600/4... Not one complaint. I like it for the same reasons you do.


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## ItalynStylion (May 3, 2008)

I have the 900/5 as well and I like it for the same reasons and hate the crossovers for the same reasons lol

They would be fine if you were running some passive sets and doing basic stuff but other than that they wont do jack.

Funny thing about the amp though is that you have a LOW and a HIGH input sensitivity setting. Manual states LOW is for 2mV-2V and the HIGH setting is for 8mV-8V. (I think those are the ranges). So naturally, having headunit with 5V I thought to use the HIGH setting. Well that's 100% wrong as a JL tech told me. The HIGH setting is only meant for speaker level inputs even though the amp has no way to accept them in regular fashion. He said you'd need to solder RCA tips onto speaker wires. Who the hell does that? 

Anyways, the HIGH setting is totally unusable with a line level input so don't try.


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## thormxkid (Mar 30, 2009)

actully did that the other day on a 2010 camaro...they wanted to keep the factory deck


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## JayinMI (Oct 18, 2008)

Quite a few amp manufacturers do that. You can just tap RCA ends on and plug into the amp. JL even makes a small pigtail w/ RCA ends just for this purpose. Saves having to use a LOC and the freq response losses you get with that.

The slash amps could be used the same way. Recent Kicker amps too.

I've never had any problems with doing them that way....tho most people *do* use an aftermarket radio, so it doesn't happen very often.

Jay


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## JayinMI (Oct 18, 2008)

Oh, and so far, very happy with my 900/5.

Jay


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## ItalynStylion (May 3, 2008)

I'm not doubting the usefulness of having it as an option; but it's extremely misleading. 

Because it's meant as a speaker level setting the gains are totally different. If you send a line level signal through there the front channels will make a ton of power, rear channels almost nothing, and the sub channel will be 100% lifeless. I thought there was something wrong with the amp. Once I switched the setting and readjusted the gains I was in business.


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## JayinMI (Oct 18, 2008)

OK, I gotcha. I thought you were not understanding why they would make that a feature, not that it doesn't work very well in your application. Or that the markings ARE misleading.

Jay


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## jonnyanalog (Nov 14, 2007)

I think mine is having noise issues. I have yet to track down the problem as I'm kinda burned out on my whole install. It seems that when I have 2 or 3 sets of RCAs plugged in I get a really audible noise issue in the midbass drivers only. I tried hooking up my PPI arts and have no such issues. I need to figure this problem out as it is driving me nuts.


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## DS-21 (Apr 16, 2005)

ItalynStylion said:


> I have the 900/5 as well and I like it for the same reasons and hate the crossovers for the same reasons lol


Agreed. The one downside from upgrading from Slash to HD is that the Slash crossovers had that 10x switch that made them useful in basically any system. The HD crossovers are much less useful. But then again, the HD's are also tiny. 



ItalynStylion said:


> wrong as a JL tech told me. The HIGH setting is only meant for speaker level inputs even though the amp has no way to accept them in regular fashion. He said you'd need to solder RCA tips onto speaker wires. Who the hell does that?


That's a normal thing. One can also buy "shotgun" wires terminated with RCA ends at mass-market stores very cheaply, and simply cut off one of the ends.


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## fish (Jun 30, 2007)

I took out my PDX4.150 & put in one of my 600/4's for midbass & fullranges. My fullrange speakers do sound cleaner at higher volumes over the PDX.

Has anyone stacked their HD's? I don't know, seems like there'd be alot of heat build up if you stacked like 3 of them.


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## ItalynStylion (May 3, 2008)

Jorge has three stacked sideways inside the center console of his Mazda.


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## fish (Jun 30, 2007)

ItalynStylion said:


> Jorge has three stacked sideways inside the center console of his Mazda.


Oh yeah, forgot about that one.:blush: Good, I was a little concerned about stacking them.


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## ItalynStylion (May 3, 2008)

fish said:


> Oh yeah, forgot about that one.:blush: Good, I was a little concerned about stacking them.


Soldier on my friend. Please share pics of the fruits of your labor after your done!


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## Mless5 (Aug 21, 2006)

jonnyanalog said:


> I think mine is having noise issues. I have yet to track down the problem as I'm kinda burned out on my whole install. It seems that when I have 2 or 3 sets of RCAs plugged in I get a really audible noise issue in the midbass drivers only. I tried hooking up my PPI arts and have no such issues. I need to figure this problem out as it is driving me nuts.


How would you compare its sound to Arts?


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## jonnyanalog (Nov 14, 2007)

Well the noise is in my RCAs. I will need to reroute them. 


@Mless5 I think they are fairly equal but I have untrained ears. The Space1s powered by the A100.2 seemed to be slightly brighter. No real difference whenI had the A200.2 on the mids. 
Where the HD has the advantage is size and it aesthetically fits better with my car.


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## Frank20 (Jun 11, 2010)

i have heard nothing about great things about jl's HD amps. Would it be worth getting rid of my 500/1 slash v1 amp for one of them?


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## fish (Jun 30, 2007)

Frank20 said:


> i have heard nothing about great things about jl's HD amps. Would it be worth getting rid of my 500/1 slash v1 amp for one of them?


Maybe if you need to get some available space back. Depends on what you're trying to do.


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## amit_mus (Aug 27, 2010)

hd900/5

used to power 2 jl c5 components 6.5 
2 coax (rear) 6.5
1 10w6 seal
clean sweep

installed in a mazda 3 2008

what you all think of this system using the hd amp


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## kvndoom (Nov 13, 2009)

amit_mus said:


> hd900/5
> 
> used to power 2 jl c5 components 6.5
> 2 coax (rear) 6.5
> ...


I think you'll love how it sounds. I'd even suggest bridging the 4-channel section to get 150x2 to the front speakers, and comparing that to 100x4. You may like one setup more than the other. Some people swear by rear fill, some swear against it.


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## illmicill (Oct 12, 2010)

i recently installed hd900/5 with c2 comp/coax and w6 with ported box and i am VERY happy with it. as mentioned, there is no dimming even when i pound it and i am not running a cap.


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## rscecil007 (Apr 30, 2009)

I love my 900/5 for many of the usual reasons. Small footprint, less drag on the electrical system, SQ is outstanding (IMO), and it's dead quiet.

A whole lotta punch in that little package (crossover limitations not withstanding.)


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## waldojeffershead (Jun 6, 2010)

The sub gain switch broke on my 900/5, it took me forever to figure it out.

I would hit a bump and go into DC bleed through territory on my sealed, 2ohm, JL 12w6v2. I fooled around with it for a while with a voltmeter hooked up and eventually got it to stick where I needed it.

The amp seems to have a high build quality, but I bought mine from sonicelectronix and have had nothing but bad luck with it. I even managed to hopelessly loose one of those little silver rings from the speaker plug.

The output is pretty dynamic, though lacking the richness of the classic 500/1 on the sub channel. the 100x4 output is pretty clean, but i've yet to figure out where the crackle in my old chicago house music is coming from.

insult to injury, put a couple scratches on the side op the amp trying to pull those plugs out with a screwdriver.

Feeding the amp with an Alpine cda-9887, imprint tuned. 6.5" JL C5 components up front, and alpine type s comps in the rear.


I'm going to install a ppi a404 & a soundstream reference 1.500


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## NineInchNail (Nov 22, 2011)

Rather dead thread but amp is still relatively new. 
I've got a question. Would you consider selling RF T600-4 (front) and JL Slash 500/1v2 to buy JL HD 900/5 ? I know it's a good move considering front but I'm not sure about the sub.


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## Cosmic Locomotion (Aug 7, 2012)

I was going to use the 900.5 w/ C5-650's in the front and C2-690's in the rear, with a 12w6. I went to a local shop and was inquiring about pricing and getting the work done and the owner of the place told me not to buy it. He told me that they all burn out and that if I bought one, he would be certain for it to go. He mentioned that he doesn't even sell them anymore because he doesn't believe in it.

Has anyone had any issues with their 900.5 or heard of this before? I have done a mild amount of research and haven't heard ANYONE say that theirs has burned out or that they even know someone who's amp burned out, so I find this hard to believe...

Nick


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## 6262ms3 (Feb 27, 2008)

Cosmic Locomotion said:


> I was going to use the 900.5 w/ C5-650's in the front and C2-690's in the rear, with a 12w6. I went to a local shop and was inquiring about pricing and getting the work done and the owner of the place told me not to buy it. He told me that they all burn out and that if I bought one, he would be certain for it to go. He mentioned that he doesn't even sell them anymore because he doesn't believe in it.
> 
> Has anyone had any issues with their 900.5 or heard of this before? I have done a mild amount of research and haven't heard ANYONE say that theirs has burned out or that they even know someone who's amp burned out, so I find this hard to believe...
> 
> Nick


Hm, weird. Mine's still going strong after two years, it plays nearly every day and has been on a number of 6-10 hour long road trips. I love this amp. Do you live somewhere really hot?


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## Cosmic Locomotion (Aug 7, 2012)

Miami Florida, so yes. But I am going to be treated my car for eat. 

Nick


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## waldojeffershead (Jun 6, 2010)

My sub gain adjustment switch was bad on my 900/5 and would adjust itself when I wouls hit bumps, but JL fixed it. 

After that I tried to tune the system in, but could never get the rear gain set low enough, as I was always too bright on the pair of alpine type-s 6.5" comps I have for rear fill.

The subs channel was a little too weak for my sealed 12w6, and sounded a little muddy to me. It eventually got really muddy, using no more than 1/4 gain and under 80hz lpf. There is no adjustable subsonic, so I was afraid to go ported.

The highs were nice and clear through my jl c5-650, not warm like my PPI a300 art series, but clear and detailed. I eventually tried external processing which didn't make much of a difference to make the issues previously mentioned any more tollerable.

The 900/5 held its value and was easily sold to fund the purchase of a zuki eleets & Zed Kronos. My sister runs a 3 channel JL xd amp with a [email protected] sun channel on a 10w3v2 which is much more pleasurable to listen to than my 900/5 setup, I was disappointed.

It could have been the 8 foot speaker wire I ran from under my passenger seat to the sub in the trunk, which I doubt was the cause, but the 900/5 amp ran really warm. I changed its ground a couple times and upped my battery's ground wire without any improvement.


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## BuickGN (May 29, 2009)

waldojeffershead said:


> My sub gain adjustment switch was bad on my 900/5 and would adjust itself when I wouls hit bumps, but JL fixed it.
> 
> After that I tried to tune the system in, but could never get the rear gain set low enough, as I was always too bright on the pair of alpine type-s 6.5" comps I have for rear fill.
> 
> ...


If the sub sounded muddy it was probably in too small of an enclosure. The fact that you say the 500w sub section was not enough for a 12W6 backs up this idea. A 12W6 on 500w in the proper enclosure is more than enough. 

The subsonic isn't adjustable but the fixed 30hz filter is a pretty good universal setting unless you wanted a high tuned ported one note wonder. 

You say the sub was muddy using 1/4 gain and you could not get the rears low enough. Sounds like you were using the "low" input when you should have had the switch in the "high" position. 

The HD is a better amp in every way than the XDs so the fact that you liked it better in your sister's car than the HD shows there was a separate problem with your setup.

This is another case of one or several install errors being blamed on the amp. I have speakers that are very revealing and the 900/5 powers my tweeters and a pair of 15s while the 600/4 powers the mids and midbass. There's no hint of harshness or muddiness. None.


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## BuickGN (May 29, 2009)

Cosmic Locomotion said:


> I was going to use the 900.5 w/ C5-650's in the front and C2-690's in the rear, with a 12w6. I went to a local shop and was inquiring about pricing and getting the work done and the owner of the place told me not to buy it. He told me that they all burn out and that if I bought one, he would be certain for it to go. He mentioned that he doesn't even sell them anymore because he doesn't believe in it.
> 
> Has anyone had any issues with their 900.5 or heard of this before? I have done a mild amount of research and haven't heard ANYONE say that theirs has burned out or that they even know someone who's amp burned out, so I find this hard to believe...
> 
> Nick


Never heard of such a thing. I bought mine used, I think it's one of the early ones. No troubles whatsoever. Both of mine are under the seats so they probably have an easier life than most but I haven't heard of any "burning" out or reliability problems at all. Some people say they run hot. It seems like there's no in between, some like me say they run barely warm to the touch, some say they're too hot to touch. Maybe it's the impedance of the speakers or amp location combined with ambient temps, who knows.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Based on the research i have done i would be HIGHLY suspect of that shop owners motivations. Maybe he didnt pay his bill, maybe the markup isnt as high as other brands he carries, maybe his installers are lying to him to cover up install issues. When an amp has such an amazing reputation on all the forums i read, i would be suspicious of someone saying a JL product universally burns out. 

Remember small business owners many times say whatever is in their best interest. I heard a home installer once say Sanyo(yes the cheap walmart brand) was better than any Samsung , LG or Pioneer tv made. 

Do your own research and ALWAYS second guess someone trying to sell you something. This forum is a great resource, and when i have put in the time to read multiple threads on a subject i have never once been steered wrong by DIY people as a whole. 

Also a good resource is Crutchfield. Think about it... they provide lifetime support for what they sell. You cant very well be successful with that model if you sell crap. During my research i called and spoke to 7 different advisors. ALL of them recommended either the JL HD900/5 or the Alpine PDX. 

Just be careful of salesman i would not want to see you throw your money away dude.


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## Peteco (Nov 22, 2013)

I just did an A/B comparison with JL 1000/1.v1 and the 1200/1 HD, running 2 Hertz HX 300, then tried 2 jl 12w6v2 and would have to say, the HD 1200/1 just does not have the Kick that i am accustomed to, Rap type of bass sounds great with this amp, but any type of solid kick drum comes off muddy! no matter how i tried i could not get that same punch/kick that the 1000/1 has and continues to have, not what i expected, i wanted to like this amp, its amazing how just changing an amp can alter the SQ so much, same settings same everything on both amps. i listen classic rock, metal type of music, if you like rap this amp is perfect!


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

Were you using them both with the filters set to pass through (as in, disengaged/not used)? Did you use an oscope/DMM to verify you had the same AC voltage out for your testing? These things are very important when A/B comparing amps. Any fluctuation in these can make a big difference in what you are hearing.


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## mmiller (Mar 7, 2008)

The HD amps are sonically better than the slash amps. I've had many, many amps over the years. I have Arc SE in my comp car right now, and some Audison amps. Next car will have the HD amps, I wish I never sold the ones I had...

Not sure where the lack of dynamics, poor SQ, Etc is coming from... I've had some of the best amps money can buy and the HDs are on par with most of them.


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

So sound wise, you feel they are on par with with the SE's/Audison's, etc?


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## xXTX_ChallengerXx (Oct 8, 2012)

I have to agree with the two previous statements. I am running a single 900/5 and plan on upgrading to a second when I get back from deployment.


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## nstaln (Feb 11, 2009)

I have run every model of the HD line at one point or another. I have never had any issues with either the sound quality or the reliability. I currently have a 600/4 but will most likely sell it soon and go back to the the 900/5.


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## Peteco (Nov 22, 2013)

Yes Sir, I did exactly that, Voltages were set to JL specs with DMM & 50,HZ CD, I tried Auto EQ & T/A on my 80PRS, same result. I'm not saying it sounds bad, Actually blends well with my mille fronts, just missing the Kick that the slash has. I then tried the hertz HDP1, The HDP doesn't have the same power @4,OHM as the HD but does however produce a solid kick.


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## liljohn30 (Jan 11, 2012)

i had the same complaints about my hd 900/5seems to not have the kick of the slash 500/1 or 250/1sub enclosure is the same and voltages are set..I tend to think the bass boost feature the slash amps had and the hd dont have is issue..I did install a 360.3 and this remedied the situation


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## luisc202 (Oct 29, 2013)

I own several JL amps in the XD and the HD line. Not one complaint yet. The HD900/5 is an Amazing amplifier in every way.


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## Peteco (Nov 22, 2013)

I have jl amps myself, I have a few slash series amps, and there awesome! That's why I purchased the HD, but they just don't have the solid kick of the slash, bass is muddy. The hertz hdp1,s I've been running for the past couple weeks remind me of the slash as far as kick and power. According to my scope and 50hz tone, they produce around [email protected] 2 ohm. I'm going to try the hdp4 for fronts this week, also there are the NVX JAD1200.1 which are total clones of the hdp1, inside and out for about $260 and run 1ohm, so I tried 1ohm with the hertz hdp1, and it ran with no issues, just warm to the touch, not hot. I wouldn't recommend running this way as it's not rated for this, it was just testing.


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## nickt (Sep 22, 2013)

If anyone thinks the the JL Hd900 sounds the same as the Audison Voce 5.1K then he/she needs to get a hearing test!


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## mmiller (Mar 7, 2008)

nickt said:


> If anyone thinks the the JL Hd900 sounds the same as the Audison Voce 5.1K then he/she needs to get a hearing test!


Why is that?


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

I'd be willing to test that theory if someone wants to lend a Voce 5.1K for the testing: http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum...-blind-tests-amplifiers-time-hear-myself.html

I will have several different people involved in the blind tests for the slew of amps being compared.


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