MTX Audio T612-44 Subwoofer

From the MTX Audio Thunder 6000 series, and also available in dual two Ohm voice coil configuration, the Thunder 6000 series is called the ‘second little brother’ of the original Jackhammer subwoofer as there is also the 8000 series. To add some confusion, there is also a square 6000 series and a square 8000 series. As well as a second model, square 24 inch Jackhammer! The original 22 inch round Jackhammer (T9922-44) looked to be impractical commercially as it costs ‚¬8,000 to buy and another ‚¬5,000 to install last time I looked, but you are getting a slice of the know how and thought that went into that product when you buy this one.
The woven glassfibre cone is a simple concave dish and is stitched into the Butyl rubber surround and has a smart raised MTX Audio badge upon it. The cast chassis bears two sets of terminals made by the acquired-some-years-back StreetWires experts. StreetWires is not just a brand of Eastern power bits but the original makers of the most serious car oriented power products as well as making high end cables for home use. Having them design the terminals is a Good Thing and the dual sets of spring terminals both take a full eight gauge cable as well as bite really firmly and have a quality plated finish. The woofer has similarly squat proportions to the cone angle of Uncle Jack but is far more real-world in mounting depth than its inspiration. Rated to a large 400w RMS, it was tested carefully using a Massive Audio DB3000 monoblock amplifier. In eight Ohm hookup, I can run and play for SQ issues and then for power testing, I will hook it up to show 2 Ohms to the amp and be due some 950w RMS. I’ll have to take care as that’s over double what it says on the box..
– Frequency response: 33Hz to 200Hz
– Power Handling: 400w RMS 1,200w max
– Glass fibre cone
– Die cast Aluminium chassis
– Large Butyl rubber surround
– Dense front foam gasket fitted
– Tinsel leads woven into spider
– Dual 4 Ohm voice coils (also available in dual 2 Ohm)
– Dual sets of spring loaded ‘StreetWires’ speaker terminals
– Voice Coil Diameter: 60mm, 220 degrees hi temp type
– Mounting depth 199mm
– Triple stacked magnet
– Efficiency: 89dB 1w/1M
– Xmax 16mm
– Fms: 33.1Hz
– Qes: 0.75
– Qms: 5.1
– Qts: 0.65
– Vas: 38.6 Litres
Review by Adam Rayner
Brands need fans and the reasons for being a brand fanboy can be varied. I like some character in my speaker designers. Even some piss and vinegar in some cases. Nothing wrong in overtly angry product design. (RE Triple X anyone!) For me, MTX are one of the most deliciously bonkers speaker makers in the world. If not THE most bonkers, for like the Dog and his danglies, they say they do it because they can. And they keep on doing it. From the mad truck-woofer called the Ten Thousand, to the Jackhammers. I made Xzibit laugh when I met him in ‘Vegas as I said I wanted to lick the Jackhammer woofer. Spike had told him the day before I’d want to have sex with it! Me and X didn’t know each other from Adam but we were both polite, to our mutual credit.
Anyway, the 6000 series is the lesser bro of the 8000 series and they are both derived as sellable tech from the lunacy that was developed for Jack. A chassis made to cope with big power. A coil that’ll use nearly a half kilowatt all day and a magic cone of fibreglass. Most of the benefits of Kevlar and even Carbon fibre but none of the cost. It is a wonder cone material for its affordability with materials science excellence!
And it works pretty well here. I will be honest and admit that I reckon the SQ rating for this woofer could and almost certainly will register better once the speaker has had a chance to burn in and wobble its suspension up. In the same way as say, a sheepskin coat starts stiff and ends up softer, so does the suspension of heavy duty woofers. But we all have to learn to live with the very first few weeks’ output of our new purchase and while we can recommend mates and play them our run-in woofers, new boys and reviewers get to hear fresh and stiff ones. I gave it some proper stick with my fave Bass CD, More Bass, More Boom, More Bottom, by Power Supply.
The sub tracked the power and the notes well with a lack of simple one-noting that can happen with over-supended Chinese factory assemblage woofers. You can tell that while this is not one of MTX’s pavement breakers, it is a serious device. I got the edges of notes but when I tried the SQ disc from Focal and the track with the tight drum, I discovered the low-range shortcomings.
There is a degree of what is called overhang. This is disliked by audiophiles and loved by bassheads with low budgets as the notes don’t just stop dead in an iron fist at the end of the pulse of bass energy, like a Morel does. It carries on wobbling a bit, or at least did on the brand new one I was playing with. This can blur those edges if there;s a lot of space between bass notes in the track.
Now as I carried on spanking the subwoofer I could detect the beginnings of a softening of the suspension but the basic ‘sound’ of the woofer remained.
Powerful, aggressive and hard. I would not necessarily think it’s one of the super-low 20Hz-with-power brigade’s toys but more of the perfect sub for lovers of the hardest hardcore and dance. You can kick it’s arse with great savagery and it’ll simply woof at ya!
I love the looks by the way and reckon an over-driven windowed bandpass would be interesting as well. A worthy bro for Jack.
Sound Quality 7.0
Build Quality 9.0
Power Handling 8.0
Efficiency 8.0
Value For Money 8.0
Overall rating 8.0