JBL subwoofer was much stronger yesterday

Hi guys,

this is my first post. I have a 2017 Tacoma Limited with the JBL audio. My subwoofer was always super loud until yesterday. Now it seemed it has 25% the level it did before. I checked my phone settings and that wasn’t the problem. I also tried to check some fuses and didn’t see an issue. Is there an amp for the sub woofer that’s hidden somewhere and has fuses? My sub still works but at a fraction of the level it was working at before. I’ve looked through so many threads and haven’t seen the same issue I’m having.

 

I can’t speak for your truck specifically but in some stereos the gain settings can be set differently based on the input- radio, CD, ect... I do notice drastic changes in sub output from song to song and also listening to radio vs BT audio.
These trucks do have an amp for the sun though. I can’t remember if mine had a fuse specifically for the amp though. Just double check you gain settings on the head unit based on the input you were last listening to. Good luck and happy new year.

 

This is total speculation, but I feel it’s likely that either one of your subwoofer voice coils has failed, or is not receiving power from the amplifier.

 

Yeah if the other speakers are playing, a fuse isn’t the issue. The same amp powers everything.

to do some actual troubleshooting, you’ll need to take the plastic panel off the front of it. Then like Dolby said, see if the sub is even working.
I’m not sure I’ve EVER heard someone describe the JBL sub as “super loud” so that might tell me that the bass settings were up quite high and a voice coil might be fried or the woofer might be seized up.

 

yeah it wasn’t super loud compared to aftermarket subwoofers. But it did pack a good punch. And it was almost turned up to the Max it was 2 notches down. The sub still works since I can put my hand infront of it while playing music and still feel a thump. But it’s not even half of what it was before. So if it is a voice coil that would just mean I need to replace the sub woofer?

 

Basically, yes. You’ll need a multi-meter to verify everything.

 

You can't just replace the subwoofer unless you go with a factory replacement unit.

 

honestly I was satisfied with the bass before all of this so I don’t mind the jbl subwoofer except the fact that it just stopped working correctly. Could I just replace it with the same exact model? And have no issues assuming the subwoofer just failed

 

You can certainly replace the subwoofer. Any cheap 8” DVC sub on Amazon works fine. I don’t remember if it’s dual 2ohm or dual 4ohm, but a quick google search or test with the meter will tell us that.

 

Ahh shoot, you're right. @tjfesto he is right.

I keep forgetting that the newer gen JBL stuff is no longer 8 ohm like the 2nd gens were. I believe that amp (again, could be wrong) has a nominal rating of 100 watts at most for the sub. Just make sure you keep it DVC and the sub fits within the dimensions of the box.

 

I can tell you for a fact that the subwoofer in my 2017 Limited was much louder than in my 2020 Pro. Absolutely no comparison!