Suneet

Hey guys,

Well I decided to finally try my hand at fiberglass, and started to build my first fiber glass enclosure, with tons of help from one of my buddies. He also supplied all the fiberglass materials so I didn't even have to go out and buy a whole bunch of stuff. Now that I've built part of the box, I need help selecting the perfect sub for it. I know there have been a ton of sub selection threads lately-- but this is different. I need to find the sub that will work the best for my special requirements.

Let me start off with a picture of my current setup, so you understand where I'm coming from, and what I'm trying to achieve. As you can see I like to keep my trunk clean. Right now I'm using a Elemental Designs SQ10 in a really cheap sub box. The box is small, and it is easily removable so that when I need to (and I often need to), I can use my full trunk. The sub is powered by an Alpine MRP 350, and my front CDT components are powered by the older and better Alpine MRV-T707. I love my components, and for being the first system I've put together, I'm happy with it. But I already know where its lacking.



It's nothing too fancy looking, but I think it sounds good

So ONE of the problems with my setup is that cheap sub box. It's not the right size for the sub, and the sub isn't even properly sealed in the box. So I had this idea: why not build a fiberglass box that will fit inside my spare wheel well, WITH the wheel? And it worked... here are the pics:

Picture of the spare wheel with the fiberglass enclosure inside of it with the plastic space holder thingy inside of that:












So you can see it fits perfectly inside the wheel. I went ahead and bought another trunk mat, and started building a false floor (it won't elevate, just replace the exisiting board-mat piece). With the extra trunk mat, I'll be able to cut a hole in the middle without feeling guilty and be able to see the sub. Depending on which sub I select, I may be able to install it flush/recessed and put a grill ontop of it.

So now I need to figure out which sub makes the most sense to use. I like my SQ 10", but I want to find something that will handle a little more power and hit a little harder.

I filled the enclosure up with water and measured it to be about 18.9 liters or .667 cu feet. Give or take 500mL. The box will also accomodate a maximum mounting depth of about 6".

I've already taken a look at a few subs that meet the enclosure volume and mounting depth limitations of my enclosure.. but there are more aspects of subwoofer selection that I'm not knowledgable about, and I was hoping people here could fill me in

Here's the line up:

Elemental Designs SQ10
250-350 W RMS
Needs only .3cuFt, .5 is ideal


JL Audio TW5 Thinline 12" (coming soon)
300W Rms
.63 cu Ft (almost perfect size for my enclosure)

They also have a 13" version that requires .75 cu ft.. I'm a little short of that.

Pioneer Premier TS-SW1241D 12"
350W Rms
.5 ~ 1.0 cuFt reccomended



So those are the three main candidates. I've included links so you can check out the details specs on them, and I'm continuing to search for more subs that will fit the bill.

Suneet

Oh I forgot to add...

I was thinking about using two more SQ 10's, and building fiber glass boxes for them that would fit on either side of the trunk to take up minimal space. That way I could fit 3 10"s in my trunk and still have 75% of it

But ofcourse it would be better if I could be satisfied with one sub.

MJHSC400

That's beautiful work-- but I'd brace it a little more--

For volume -- you could elevate a ring above the trunk floor and gain a bit more volume-- Plus it would look very cool-- say, 6~8" above the floor-- And aim it back a little bit-- That would be very close to 1ft^3 -- and you could acousta stuff it a bit to get the extra volume--

I would then say you could go with a TC7, or a DB500 12 (the equivalent of a tc7 but with a steel basket) -- It would bang and take up very little space--

A mesh grille with a white L (for lexus) would be a super sweet finishing touch--

Either of those subs would rock too-- the DB500 is CHEAP too! $110 ---

Of course ED builds some nice subs too--

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

a 10" DB500 would be perfect. requires .6 ft^3 sealed and max mounting depth of 6.5in.
http://www.tcsounds.com/db500.htm
and itl take 400w RMS

10" TC1000 is also a viable option (.75in. less mounting depth and .4ft^3 sealed enclosure) BUT its 60% more and i dont really think its worht the extra $$ over the DB500 at that point (also 400watt rms)
http://www.tcsounds.com/tc1000.htm

AM1

iTrader: (6)

i wonder if the fiberglass enclosure would rattle being inside the spare tire.

MJHSC400

not if it's carpeted-- I still like the 12" driver idea with a ring that sits the sub a few inches above the floor-- This also protects the sub a bit --- vs. flush mounting it--

Suneet

I like the idea of using a ring to bring the sub up, but if the sub sits a few inches above the floor, I can't put anything over that space. I need a flat trunk so I can fit boxes and suitcases and stuff like that in there.

The fiberglass enclosure is extremely strong: I can stand on it no problem. It also fits VERY snugle inside the wheel -- it takes two hands to pry it out.

I'm planning on covering it with foam also so it sits even more snugly in that wheel, and then it shouldn't vibrate.

MJHSC400

Sand it first-- then foam it--

Also-- you don't want to sit anything on top of your sub--

I understand you want trunk space though--

I didn't buy my SC for function though-- But it functions panties off real nice-

Suneet

MJH, the enclosure is already pretty well sanded (used a power-sander), and I'm thinkign about using Bondo ontop of it to give it a real smooth finish.

I know its not ideal to have things on top of your sub -- I don't plan on it. But there will be times (like when I travel) and have to take suitcases to the airport.. I will have to have things over the sub.

MJHSC400

Use the backseat and the trunk-- OR -- you could make the sub totally removable and make a panel with foam pieces under it to fit the cutout perfectly and look stock-- Just put a banana plug jack on the enclosure--

For the few times you'll have to cover it up or remove it, you'll be glad you didn't sacrifice nearly double the cone area going from a 12 to a 10--

I'd just do that so it will be easily removable-- and you don't want to leave your sub in your car while it sits at the airport for a week anyhow--

A 12 will get much louder with the same power vs. a 10 -- AND you can still get away with stuffing the heck out of the box and just raising the 12 above the floor only a few inches-- Just aim it toward the back a little-- so it's elevated 1" toward the back, and 4" toward the front-- That would truly look cool--

I may do this type of enclosure BUT minus the actual tire-- so it will be much easier to get it to 1ft^3 -- I'll bet there's 1.8 tho if you wanted to run two 10's or a single ported 12--

Just for reference a ported 12 does NOT mean it will lack sq-- lots of people say that and it's incorrect-- The response is just imbalanced when left UNTUNED -- great for spl, but will also handle MUCH more power around the tuning freq. and be tighter in that area than a sealed will-- The cone travel is greatly reduced which will reduce the amt. of time it takes the cone to reach the top and bottom of the wave accurately in perfect timing-- All it takes to flatten out the response is a little eq'ing-- Sorry so off topic--

Suneet

I definitely like your idea of raising the sub, but for the way I use the car, its just not practical. I often have a full trunk and 5 people in the car .

This is the enclosure and setup I have to work with, so I need to pick the best sub to go with it.

I definitely agree with you about the 12" in cone area. So maybe I should wait for that JL thin sub to come out. Also, how much volume do you think I can "gain" by stuffing it with polyfill? Perhaps then I can even get the JL 13" thinline sub that they plan on releasing.

How exactly do you tune a ported enclosure? How would I convert the enclosure I have into a ported one? I think I'm going to stick with sealed since it's the easiest with the fiberglass setup I've built.

Robert_J

Both the TC7 and db500 require a large box for optimum performance. Both of these in a small box would have a hump in the frequency response and a fast roll-off. That is typical of a high qtc alignment.

They may never be in stock again. They were basically made from left-over parts when TC Sounds supplied the driver for the SVS PB-10 ISD. Now that SVS has taken their driver design in-house (along with a former driver engineer from TC Sounds), TC had a lot of parts to get rid of. The same is true with the db500 12". It is the old driver from PB 12 Plus.

-Robert

MJHSC400

Maybe I was thinking of the TC 1000 -- sorry--

The DB500 12 needs 1.4 ft^3 -- my mistake there too-- I just assumed it would work in 1ft --

TC-1000 --

10" works in .4 ft ^ 3

12" works in 1.1 ft ^ 3

TC-9

12" works in .8 ft^3

Robert_J

Don't forget Soundsplinter either since they are built by TC Sounds. The RL-i series is based on the TC2+ motor just like the TC-1K and db500. The RL-p series is based on the TC9 motor. I installed a 12" RL-p in a friend's Dodge Magnum last year and with only 500w, it got LOUD while still sounding great.

-Robert

MJHSC400

I really can't even imagine how loud a 28mm xmax can be-- it's double what a kappa perfect 12.1 does @ 14mm -- This sub is so loud with 500w there is no way I would want it any louder-- People say, "**** man that's f'in loud dude" --

With the windows down and the roof open it's unreal--