JL Audio announced new pricing on many subwoofers and enclosed subwoofer models effective August 1.
In addition, the company announced it will discontinue approximately 70 Stealthboxes and a handful of other subwoofer enclosures.
Retail pricing increased by $50 on many subwoofers and by $100 to $200 on some enclosures. The price hikes of about 10 to 20 percent for the most part, followed earlier increases in recent years.
In examples of pricing, a MicroSub+ enclosure (loaded with one 10TW1-0.25 subwoofer and built-in amplifier), model ACP110LG-TW1, will increase in retail selling price from $679 to $799.
The Stealthbox SB-D-5GRAMCCF/12TW3 for the RAM 1500 will increase from $1,799 to $1,999.
Prices were also lowered on a half dozen items. For example, the CP210-W0v3 loaded BassWedge dropped from $399 to $299 and the 12W0v3-4 12-inch subwoofer went from $159 to $149.
Many of the discontinued Stealthbox models date back to the 2000s or mid 2010s although the range extends from about 1993 to 2023.
I am a JL Audio Dealer and will continue with the brand… We like to sell @ retail (MSRP) but industry limits independent specialists with industry wide MAP. pricing. MAP. was designated decades ago to control advertised prices. At this juncture, the advertising industrial complex is DEAD. We, in our own markets, must deal with marketing the products we sell. One way or another, that presents costs. Independent retailers need to afford to stay in business, let alone make a profit to provide a life for “the team”. There are several high-quality brands out there, and once the independent recognizes that THEY are the brand, and live up to their professionalism, they can sell any brand at any price, ranging from MAP. to M.S.R.P.
A message to Garmin, and all suppliers: You ship, and we sell your “stuff”. Have your “stuff” in stock at when I need it, and do in quantities that will service your ENTIRE dealer base. Waiting on backorders is more annoying than price increases and forces the dealer’s hand to consider other brands
I’ll never buy JL’s overpriced gear again. Yeah, it was great 35 years ago, but times, and tech, has changed.
Jl audio did a price increase just a few years ago and nothing has changed on the product. And now another price increase again. But lets face it, and image dynamics idmax is far better than a w7 in both spl and sound quality, and a much lower price. Jl audio is just a name, a high priced named, but brands like akg, bose, mcintosh are the brands that end up in cars from the factory, not jl. And jl’s attempt to play in the home audio market isnt very well either seeing as many companys offer much better products and lower cost points than jl. Lets face it, jl is a name, but not much of a name, because they arent even that good.
Full of shit w7s get pounded for 15 to 30 yrs no problem and the bass is amazing. Own a pair?
It’s axiomatic that “Value drives retail sales.” You can choose to ignore that reality, but as with ‘gravity,’ do so ‘at your own peril.’ This series of quadruple, double-digit price hikes, over past 3 years, have nothing to do with “inflation.” The facts are that the actual cost-structure of materials and parts from PRC since 2021, has not increased significantly. So there should be very little mystery about this — we now all know the ‘why’ — only the ‘who’ has changed.
I was entertaining the thought of buying a pair of 12W7-3s and putting them on a Sundown Audio SALT-2 amplifier. That is, if the W7s ever went in the same direction as the W3v3s and W6v3s and got a nitrile butyl rubber surround in lieu of that terrible polyester foam surround. Sure, Dynamic Motor Analysis and several other patented technologies, BUT 20+ year old technology and a cheap polyester foam surround that is not commensurate with the now $1,400.00+ price tag. In fact, the only thing that has changed in their W7 series in the past two decades is the price. By pricing more and more consumers out, in the end, the prohibitively high cost of their equipment will only do more harm than good for their business. Stereo Integrity and Adire Audio are becoming more promising as alternative options for sound quality with JL Audio’s ever-increasing prices. Don’t get me wrong, their equipment is stellar but it’s overpriced.
Even the subwoofer grilles. I think one of them was at like $60 a $20 increase. For a grille!
CT sounds quarter of the price sounds just as good bye bye jl audio and my and my sundown salt amp sounds better than anything they got with my z6 Boston acoustics old school in a Boss 302 JL audio is now officially a 🤣 joke with their prices and lack of quality.
Totally understand price increases….however, they NEVER CAME BACK DOWN from the original pricing increase during the pandemic/shortage! Nothing I saw came “back down” at all. They are the only brand I have that has not come back down in pricing since. Everybody else has come back down to what it was in 2019 or close to that. What’s the best term here?…Point of diminishing return? Too much corporate structure? Pricing people out? And I sell JL! It’s difficult to watch…and becoming difficult to sell
I’ve looked at it carefully and it’s obvious that building in the USA is very costly. JL AUDIO likes to build “cool stuff” in a way that nobody else builds products (for example CNC machining W7 baskets)
Building in the USA and selling at prices as if they were being built overseas is bad for company health and isn’t sustainable so some things and maybe even methods will probably have to change. I for one would like to see the brand stay around for a long time and given the rising costs of everything I’m ok with some short term pain and long term gain.
Resolves the race to zero problem…or resets it.
We all know first-hand the supply chain got interrupted. Parts shortages like crazy. Price increases happened, and then have remained sticky through today.
And then there’s JL, capitalizing on that brand equity.
When I browsed the price list I struggled to find many selling price increases less than 20%, with a few over 30%, and even a couple at $40%. I understand increases, but this seems excessive, even in Biden’s world. Fortunately it looks to only effect subs, loaded enclosures, etc.
One of many price increases.. More to follow, inflation is real look at food costs. Looks like raises are in order all the way around