DIY Subwoofer Rattle Fix

[Diversion]

First thing i noticed were the tiny magnets on the speakers. If you're spending "Touring" money, you should at least get decent speakers (and memory seats but that's another thread!)

Thank's for the mini write up

I find the speakers and bass output to be clean and plentiful.. I don't really go past volume 20 before it's too loud. To be fair, the speakers are probably the best i've had in any of my Hondas stock.. My 2011 CRZ EX had a factory sub and it sounded pretty good too. Granted, i'm sure the Acura ILX ELS system sounds better overall.

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[mycivicisalemon]

So I got my touring back in December and needless to say I've seen some small fixes (whether it was local dealership/shops) to the annoying rattle from the subwoofer (Standard on all Touring Models). SO I've been debating for awhile on whether to take her in or just DIY. Called a few dealerships and they told me there was no "real" fix but they could take a look and see what they could do. Not wanting to really spend an arm and a leg (I usually do my own work on my cars to begin with) I decided to just mock up a DIY to fix it.

Heard a lot about reputable uses of Dynamat's, so I decided to purchase a sheet specifically this one:

Dynamat 10425 18" x 32" x 0.067" Thick Self-Adhesive Sound Deadener with Xtreme Wedge Pack

http://www.amazon.com/Dynamat-10425...&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00

So took about 2 days to come in (Amazon Prime offers free 2 day shipping) and decided to go at it. About 30-40 US Dollars​

Tools needed:
1. Box Cutter
2. Small Roller (You can pick up from Home Depot)
3. Sharpie (Trace the speaker/bolts)
4. Rubber Mallet (Just to really seal everything)

Took about an hour of work just trying to figure out where exactly the rattle was coming from (I surrounded the subwoofer, The trunk light area, and the space between the trunk light (you'll see it where the trunk light cord follows through, its hollow in between 2 sheets of metal).

It came out great! Almost little, to no rattle at all. I took a short clip just to show the sound result. (This was with the Subwoofer all the way, and the volume at 30, and my phone at full (Bluetooth connected). I surrounded the speaker because thats where the rattle was coming from aside from behind the trunk light (where a lot of people have been reporting to hear rattling as well).

Clips:
​

Just wondering? Did Honda pay you for time and materials? Why did you take matters into your own hands? Was Honda not capable of figuring it out themselves? Just curious. Thanks.

 

[hondo]

Just wondering? Did Honda pay you for time and materials? Why did you take matters into your own hands? Was Honda not capable of figuring it out themselves? Just curious. Thanks.

I can't speak for the OP, but I'll explain why I did it. I took it to the dealer and they did kinda fix it, but the foam they used was cheap and either fell out or deteriorated. Sure I could go back every 6 months, but the time it took me to fix it was less than one visit to the dealer. The materials are also cost me about half an hour of what I feel me time is worth. I also added dynamat just because I like the idea of the metal back there being dampened. I can hear the difference, but I wouldn't want to spend time convincing them that they should do it. Should they fix an obvious flaw like rattling? Sure. Should put in the labor and materials to meet the expectations of audio enthusiasts? Not really. They sell cars, not stereos.

On another note, I like to research and tinker. I like figuring out how I can either optimize or tweak to get the most out of something. The essentials and stuff I would be afraid to mess with Honda got right. The other stuff works well enough, but leaves me just enough room to fiddle. This is just me though, I can understand wanting everything to work perfectly on a brand new car.

 

[Slickone]

A few things...
There are many other brands of sound deadeners now that are cheaper than Dynamat, for the exact same material.
It's heavy, so if you add a lot, remember you're adding a lot of weight to the car (obviously).
It can trap water and cause rust, so be careful where you put it.
http://www.7thgenhonda.com/forum/showthread.php?t=19101

Hopefully Honda will come up with a better solution than they have so far.

 

[Menissalt]

I did this a while ago, except I used the bulk pack and did my whole trunk/deck in prep for a bigger sub.

 

[TChewy]

I find the speakers and bass output to be clean and plentiful.. I don't really go past volume 20 before it's too loud. To be fair, the speakers are probably the best i've had in any of my Hondas stock.. My 2011 CRZ EX had a factory sub and it sounded pretty good too. Granted, i'm sure the Acura ILX ELS system sounds better overall.

I'm in the same boat as you, actually identical. I haven't taken the volume past 20, usually run at 15, because it's prety loud. I also had a 2011 CR-Z EX and thought that stock sub was good too. I really liked the enclosure in the CR-Z and how it was built-in to the back.

 

[cjar17]

Just wondering? Did Honda pay you for time and materials? Why did you take matters into your own hands? Was Honda not capable of figuring it out themselves? Just curious. Thanks.

My case was a little different, when I first purchased the car, I was working 7 days (50-55 hour work weeks) so I had no time to bring in my car even for the audio update recall(which I just got done this week). So when I did call they wanted to inspect the car and asked me to leave it over night. I just didnt want to stress about having to get a loaner car, etc. Time was just not in my side. I also dynamat'd my first car (Lexus IS300) and it was a really easy fix with great results. I'm a hands on type of guy, and hate getting charged labor fees, so anything I can do that will save me the trouble and some cash, I'm usually in.

A lot of other members on the other forums were informing me that (through their experience at the dealerships or shops) it was just simple fixes that I saw as easy DIY's (foam inserts, dynamat, etc). In the end the work only took an hour which I thought was more than reasonable and cost effective.

 

[domm92]

Does anyone know the brand of stereo in the touring? Like els or Bose or infinite? I remember seeing it posted somewhere but can find it.

 

[axios77]

Only have 250 miles and heard the dreaded sub woofer rattle on my way to work this morning. Guess I will be be fixing this myself too since I hate taking my car to the dealer.

 

[superfry]

So I got my touring back in December and needless to say I've seen some small fixes (whether it was local dealership/shops) to the annoying rattle from the subwoofer (Standard on all Touring Models). SO I've been debating for awhile on whether to take her in or just DIY. Called a few dealerships and they told me there was no "real" fix but they could take a look and see what they could do. Not wanting to really spend an arm and a leg (I usually do my own work on my cars to begin with) I decided to just mock up a DIY to fix it.

Heard a lot about reputable uses of Dynamat's, so I decided to purchase a sheet specifically this one:

Dynamat 10425 18" x 32" x 0.067" Thick Self-Adhesive Sound Deadener with Xtreme Wedge Pack

http://www.amazon.com/Dynamat-10425...&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00

So took about 2 days to come in (Amazon Prime offers free 2 day shipping) and decided to go at it. About 30-40 US Dollars​

Tools needed:
1. Box Cutter
2. Small Roller (You can pick up from Home Depot)
3. Sharpie (Trace the speaker/bolts)
4. Rubber Mallet (Just to really seal everything)

Took about an hour of work just trying to figure out where exactly the rattle was coming from (I surrounded the subwoofer, The trunk light area, and the space between the trunk light (you'll see it where the trunk light cord follows through, its hollow in between 2 sheets of metal).

It came out great! Almost little, to no rattle at all. I took a short clip just to show the sound result. (This was with the Subwoofer all the way, and the volume at 30, and my phone at full (Bluetooth connected). I surrounded the speaker because thats where the rattle was coming from aside from behind the trunk light (where a lot of people have been reporting to hear rattling as well).

Clips:
​

Thanks for posting. Sounds great.

My question is ... what actually was making the rattle noise? How did applying Dynamat fix that?

Thanks!

 

[j_illang]

Hi does this dampen the "kick" of your woofer? I feel like after I brought my touring to Honda, they really sponged the ish out of it, and now the bass is less than before.

 

[domm92]

Not 1 week after they put the foam in the third break light housing it's rattling just as bad. Really didn't want to have to do a diy

 

[staged84]

highly recommend doing dynamat. just did mine at a walmart parking lot lol, It really did made the difference.

 

[madroxinide]

highly recommend doing dynamat. just did mine at a walmart parking lot lol, It really did made the difference.

What exactly did you dynamat and how much did you use? Did you take the rear deck out and dynamat underneat or did you just dynamat from inside the trunk?

Thanks.

 

[staged84]

What exactly did you dynamat and how much did you use? Did you take the rear deck out and dynamat underneat or did you just dynamat from inside the trunk?

Thanks.

I used what the op suggested. And only applied inside the trunk. I used about half the dynamic. It took about 20 min? Or less.

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