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Suggestions on a little system for my car...

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Originally posted by: glen
Originally posted by: ShockwaveI'm of the opinion you cant have too much power. .....
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Me too.
But, with limited resources and budgets, it is almost always better to increase your surface area rather than your amplifier.
If you want to go faster are you better off putting a tiny oar in the water and rowing your ass off or is it more efficient to use a larger paddle?
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HAHAHAHAHAHAH!
I dunno why but that analogy made me laugh my ass off...

Anyways! A bigger driver can get louder yes. Thats a function of cone area. As for Adires email and my previous statement, in a vacuum absolutely! Bigger = better every time.
But when we get in the car everything changes. Bigger drivers take bigger boxes. Thats my biggest problem (Alot of bigness here).
I'm a sound quality guy all the way. Thats why i use smaller drivers. Box size. TO get a good sound out of a big driver you need a much larger box then you do with a smaller driver. But! I also like ym thump in the trunk. So, in my instance, smaller driver for the SQ (Based on box size! Nothing stupid like "tightness" or anything) then alot of power to get my SPL and reach my transients in music.
And transients are another reason I like more power. i know when the music demands, my gear provides.

Its all relative. To you, 50 watts may be quite enough for your subs. i know for a fact 50 watts for me isnt enough. It just doesnt give enough oomph.

Ideally I'd recommned 2 15" subs with about 1000 watts apiece. But, this would take ALOT of space to get a good box, space most people dont have.
 
Ok, real world stuff here:
Unless you drive a hatchback, the best box is your trunk.
If your trunk volume is 10 times the VAS of you driver, you essentially have an infinate baffle configuration, which is of course the audiophile choice, and what I run. It will play the lowest, the flattest, and need the least EQ.
Now, someone is sure to jump in here and scream about how they hate "free air" install, cause the redneck install down the road told 'em so. LOL My Audio Control SA-3052 does not lie. So, anyway now that we have settled on an IB, you realize that you can bottom out your drivers with a lot less power. So, once they are bottomed out, where can you go? -- more surface area.
I have use of my entire trunk.
I run 2 12's and it only take about 50 watts of power.
now, I would love to tell you I am flat to 10hz, and I probably am.
But, the SA-3052 does nto go that LOW!
Folks claiming to "know" their car goes to such n such are full of stuff. Liek the redneck installer down the road with a high school education has modifed his SA-3052 to read lower or, even more unlikely, dropped $10,000 on an RTA that can go down that far.
 
Originally posted by: glen
Ok, real world stuff here:
Unless you drive a hatchback, the best box is your trunk.
If your trunk volume is 10 times the VAS of you driver, you essentially have an infinate baffle configuration, which is of course the audiophile choice, and what I run. It will play the lowest, the flattest, and need the least EQ.
Now, someone is sure to jump in here and scream about how they hate "free air" install, cause the redneck install down the road told 'em so. LOL My Audio Control SA-3052 does not lie. So, anyway now that we have settled on an IB, you realize that you can bottom out your drivers with a lot less power. So, once they are bottomed out, where can you go? -- more surface area.
I have use of my entire trunk.
I run 2 12's and it only take about 50 watts of power.
now, I would love to tell you I am flat to 10hz, and I probably am.
But, the SA-3052 does nto go that LOW!
Folks claiming to "know" their car goes to such n such are full of stuff. Liek the redneck installer down the road with a high school education has modifed his SA-3052 to read lower or, even more unlikely, dropped $10,000 on an RTA that can go down that far.
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I still stick by it.
12" with 500 watts in a low tuned box. Flat to 10 hertz doesnt do much good beyond being able to smile cause it can do it.
 
On the flip side, I hadnt thought of runnin IB setups. Thats a smooth idea there to get by on larger drivers (Why i never thought of this I have no idea....)

But, I guess its agreed, we'll never agree on the power issue. However, I may play around on that IB setup, I like that idea. More importantly, it gives me a justifiable reason to snag some CSX Treo's 😀
 
Originally posted by: glen
Scroll down to Mike Knapp's 4-Tempest set up:http://t-3.cc/users/audioworx/page100IB-Gallery.html That is not my house, but my sub set up is exactly the same as his.
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I've been really toyin with doin something like that. Problem is I cant do ceiling (easily) as its vaulted and anything in wall / in floor would be fairly low down and I'd hate to wake up in the morning and see Buzz Lightyear had decided to fly through my sub courtesy of my kids. 😕
So, as of now still in the "Can / Should I do this?" phase
 
anyways to get back on subject here.... I listen to a lot of rap music and a little trance,rock and alternative. What type of box should I be looking at? Ported? Sealed? Bandpass?
 
Originally posted by: JkiD2k2
anyways to get back on subject here.... I listen to a lot of rap music and a little trance,rock and alternative. What type of box should I be looking at? Ported? Sealed? Bandpass?
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If you can seal your trunk off from the interiour of the car, IB is the way to go.

 
Nah, I don't really want to do it like that. I just want one 12" bodx... But I'm not sure what kind. I was thinking ported but I really don't know. I also don't know like what the measurements on the boxes means and stuff.. Anyone care to explain?
 
Originally posted by: JkiD2k2
Nah, I don't really want to do it like that. I just want one 12" bodx... But I'm not sure what kind. I was thinking ported but I really don't know. I also don't know like what the measurements on the boxes means and stuff.. Anyone care to explain?
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Why?
You want less bass?
You want less trunk space?
You can always turn the bass down and put some concrete blocks in to take up room.

the measurements mean...shiit
In general, folks act liek they are some sort of voodoo magic, but theyaren't.

The smaller the box the more transient sounds are damped and the more low end you lose.

The larger the box the more details you get and the more low end extention you get.

Port it and at that frequency you get almost double efficieny and the electrical resistance the amp sees at that frequency is almost halved.

The only reason you have a box is to keep the back wave from cancelling the front wave.


Unless sizew is an issue, liek you have a wife or a small house or both, the larger the box the better.
Ideal would be infinate size.
In the real world 10 times VAS has identical response to infinate,( you know like on some cameras they say 20feet is infiniry for this lens.)
So, in a car with a trunk, IB (infinate baffle) is the no brainer way to go.

 
Lots of car shops tell you you have to have them build you a box.
Remember, almost none of these folks have any education or knowledge of physics.
They don't read up on loud speaker theory.
They MAKE MONEY building the box for your trunk.
 
I'd run a ported box tuned to 25-30 hertz for good sound, and around 30 - 40 hertz for much bass.
I like boxes. May be why i have 3 kids though 😉 😀
 
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