Rockford Fosgate P300-8P Punch 8" 300 Watt Powered Ported Subwoofer System

The Rockford Punch P300 8P, ported enclosure is being reviewed. br>br>This is a fantastic little sub for its size; it's not a Focal 13" or a JL 15" with a 1000W amp and a massive box that will massage your back and deliver pristine ultra low bass. At 500 watts in 1, it isn't a tight, massively punchy Soundstream 8. " a 5-cubic-foot box that will punch you in the chest with mid-range punches bass. It's a well-thought-out balancing act. Deep bass, slight punch, moderate to high power for an 8", not ultra clean but not sloppy, all in a small package that will upgrade most stock systems very nicely on a budget and without taking up much space or time to install. It easily outperforms any stock 8" sub and produces a surprising amount of low bass for its size; it's definitely worth the money; it's no slouch for what it is, and I've owned a lot nicer subs to compare it to. To get 1. You'll pay five times as much for three times the performance and quality. To install all of that, you'd have to pay ten times the price and take up a lot of car space and your time. This is ideal for a basic upgrade where cost and space are important considerations, and it's one of the best I've found in years of installing various systems in my vehicles, ranging from near-competition level systems to simple stock sub upgrades. br>br>In my vehicle, I had the Rockford 12" non-ported sub in the same series, and while it gets a little lower and cleaner, it isn't quite as good all-around and can be boomy. It also took up a lot of room, so I went with the 8". I like the sound, and I like the space savings even more. When both are played at a reasonable volume and gain, I was also surprised at how close this comes to the deep bass of the 12" box from the same series. Because of the amp, box volume, and port, this small 8" can produce some impressive low bass and volume. It appears that I will barely notice the 12"'s slightly lower and cleaner extension, that I will gain a lot of cargo space, and that the 8" is actually a bit better of a general performer, where the 12 was great for low bass but boomy for higher bass like rock music. This 8" can be boomy, but by keeping the gain and remote low, it's easier to tune it not to be. br>br>If I were looking for a small powered sub upgrade for my car, I wouldn't waste time swapping out the factory sub because the amp and box were designed for it. I wouldn't go any smaller for powered boxes than this, because even the tiniest underseat powered boxes will struggle to play deep and stay cool due to physics. Small enclosures with no ports can't play loudly, and they're more likely to overheat the built-in amp. This ported enclosure is the perfect size, and you can expect it to play at a lower volume and stay cooler than smaller enclosures. As previously stated, it gets quite deep for an 8", but it also has some of the tight bass that an 8" should have. The port tuning makes the box play lower bass than a larger sealed box, but it's not as clean. The port also reduces the speaker's ability to produce really tight, crisp bass, but that's a common trade-off when trying to get lower, louder bass from a small speaker. In this case, the trade-off is worth it to get good, but not great, bass quality and volume from a small box. br>br>The box itself has excellent ergonomics and installation options. It's rectangular, with no slanted edges, which can be inconvenient and waste more space than they're worth unless custom built for your vehicle. It's about the same size as two standard sheets of paper when laid side by side, and it's only about 6 inches thick. (11. 4" x 17. 6" x 5. 6")- Consider a large briefcase or a small carry-on bag as an example. The speaker driver is nicely centered on one large side, while the port, amplifier, and all controls are neatly tucked away on one of the small sides. br>br>With any amp installation kit, installation is simple. For those who aren't familiar with speaker installations or tuning, here are some suggestions:

- Invest in quality cable. This aluminum-clad copper nonsense, as well as cheap Boss and other kits with phony thin wire that isn't true to gauge.
- Install a fuse that is the correct size, not one that is much larger than the amp's fuses.
- Scrape down to bare metal and use a good washer and screw or bolt on the terminal to make a good ground connection.
- All wires should be grommeted, and cables should be protected with looming where necessary. Don't squander your time!
- As a strain relief, group all of the cables near the speaker with good electric tape every few inches for a foot or two, and then bind the power and ground together for several inches right at the disconnect. This allows all connections to move in the same direction, making them easier to manage and maintaining a neat appearance. Protect the wires, make it look clean, keep them together, and help hide the wires by wrapping the entire bundle in black looming for a couple of feats by the speaker.
- Route power and keep it separate from the RCA or speaker level once you're a few feet away from the speaker to avoid noise coupling on long runs. br>- You DO NOT need an LOC if you have a proper speaker tap. Because most stock head units, if they have RCA at all, have low voltage, a speaker tap or a pre-amp might be preferable. amp. Changing the LOC from speaker to RCA low level is a waste of time, effort, and mess. Make certain you do not make the same error. For high-level input, these all-in-one devices benefit from a good speaker tap. If you have a dedicated RCA output from a good head unit or pre-amp, you can use low level input. amp capable of generating a usable voltage
- Neither the bass boost nor the gain, nor the remote, should be turned up all the way. Set the crossover frequency to half or lower, or even 50Hz. Unless your car has no bass from the door speakers, you want low bass fill, and the higher you set that frequency, the more frequencies the amp has to play, as well as more resonances in the box and port, which may or may not be desirable.
- Except for minor adjustments on the remote, be subtle with all knobs or keep them to a minimum. All of the people whining about port noise or poor sound quality are the typical jerks who haven't bothered to learn about electronics or sound. They've pushed the spear past its optimal operating point and into a boomy state. If you push a ported enclosure too hard, it can become uncontrollable and sloppy; I tested this with higher settings and found that if the signal to it is strong, it will sound bad and the port will be noisy. br>br>By unplugging three connectors, the box can be quickly removed. You won't need to, though, because it's so small. It won't fit under many of the newer seats, such as the ultra compact subs, but it will fit almost anywhere else. It only takes a few seconds to remove it or push it aside. br>br>About the only drawback I've discovered is the port's cheap assembly, which consists of cheap wood and plastic that isn't perfectly smooth or has rounded/sanded edges. There are seams, etc. , which is why the port makes that flapping noise when the speaker is driven hard, but most people who drive it that hard are already setting the speaker up to sound bad. Unless you're cranking this speaker too loudly, the port noise isn't audible. This thing has an excellent balance, possibly the best in the Rockford powered sub line, and it's tiny. br>br>Enough said. For most automobiles, it is sufficiently loud and low. 8" subs aren't for people who need a lot of bass, but this little monster will surprise you without breaking the bank or filling up your trunk. It is highly recommended.

Keaton Dickerson

| Nov 15, 2021

I'm not a big fan of subwoofers. Although I prefer naturally aspirated bass, this device has made a significant difference in my pickup truck. I have a single cab 2009 Ford F150 XL with only two speakers. I also replaced those with some Rockfords, which are capable of producing excellent bass, but the problem is that I can't get the bass just right without drowning out the tweeters because the crossover is only a coaxial single cap crossover, and the speakers are only prime speakers. So I needed some external bass to help my tweeters perform better, and this subwoofer is up to the task. My small cab was the perfect size. EDIT: br>br> I've had this subwoofer for about a year, and it finally died today. I discovered that both fuses had blown out, which does not happen for no reason, so I examined the unit and initially saw nothing, but then noticed a black mark on the cabinet. a puff of black dust, indicating that something has burned out When I disconnected the amplifier from the control board, I discovered that two resistors had melted, effectively destroying the entire unit. Although this was most likely a one-in-a-million occurrence, it was still aggravating.

Kaydence McLaughlin

| Mar 06, 2021

6/9/21 Update: On the powered unit, with the amp gain and "bass boost" knobs set to ZERO (none), and the remote gain knob set to 1/3 up front under the steering column, the sub struggles and can't handle the power load, which it clearly can't. Beyond that point, any additional gain or boost turns the bass into shit. I'm unable to pay attention. It sounds very clean and crisp at regular listening volume, just like a Rockford should, but not at loud volumes or with a lot of punch, and the gain knobs are all useless. I was very pleased with it at first because I hadn't had a woofer system since around 2007, but after two weeks, I was dissatisfied because I couldn't crank it up to super loud and get the same sound quality as at lower regular volumes. I'm left wishing for a system with at least three times the processing power. What you pay for is exactly what you get. Even by Fosgate's standards, this 8-inch powered sub is a beginner's sub. I'm looking for (2) 12s, 600RMS each, Kicker or JL, possibly even the Rockfords again. It will, however, cost me money, but I am confident that I will be satisfied. It's possible that the ported box renders this sub useless at high volumes. Even at Zero gain (as previously stated) and 1/3 remote gain knob, you can clearly hear air movement. I'm not sure if the problem is with the sub or with the box. br>___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Show me that I'm wrong. For $270, you get a box, a sub, and an amp. I was skeptical at first, but I'd heard good things about Rockford Fosgate's brand and performance in the past, so I went ahead and bought it, reasoning that if it's cheap but it's Rockford Fosgate, it HAS to be at least decent, and I didn't want to spend $1,000 on a full dual sub and amp system. You get what you pay for, but this tiny 8-inch monitor is a steal. In high school and college, I played crazy bass with 1100 watt dual 12s. After a decade of waiting, I finally got a really nice new truck and decided to add a little bass system. The Rockford unit has exceeded my expectations. It doesn't hit hard or go super loud, but it does deliver crisp, clean *Rockford Fosgate* bass at a reasonable volume. You'll fall in love with it once you've dialed in the settings to your liking. br>br>It was a breeze to install. All you need to know is the color of your car's speaker wiring. br>br>Con - if you're looking for a unique way to express yourself, this is the place to be At higher volumes/gain settings, you *can* hear the air moving through the port (or maybe that's just the sub struggling), and that's just at 30 dB. 50% of the settings on amp gain /amp bass boost knobs/remote gain knob I know that if I went to 75% on all three settings it would sound horrible and would most likely blow the speaker. But I'm not even going to that level of volume. I'm 37 years old and don't want to hear bumpin' from a mile away. This is definitely for you if you want solid sounding bass that YOU can enjoy inside YOUR vehicle without disturbing neighbors or waking up your baby. I'm thinking about getting a second one and installing a switch so that I can use either one or both subs.

Alina Walsh

| Jun 14, 2021