Need Constructive criticism of these custom subwoofer boxes for sedans.

[EtRtcarguy]

Hi all, so i recently build these custom boxes for the 10th gen sedan only. Been looking at others that have been made to compare on what size woofer they were able to put and but also the overall look of the box when placed in the trunk. Im open to hear suggestions on what they would have done better keeping in mind that this will still be make out of wood 3/4 thick, box needs to only be deep enough to lift floor mat...box is being made specifically to retain spare tire.

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[silverblip]

 

[EtRtcarguy]

Hi all, so i recently build these custom boxes for the 10th gen sedan only. Been looking at others that have been made to compare on what size woofer they were able to put and but also the overall look of the box when placed in the trunk. Im open to hear suggestions on what they would have done better keeping in mind that this will still be make out of wood 3/4 thick, box needs to only be deep enough to lift floor mat...box is being made specifically to retain spare tire.

For example..here i can say that maybe the right top corner of the box or the pointy part that sticks towards the trunk entre may look a little weird. Possible solutions..put a small radius corner there that may only change the air volume to a minimum or do a drastic curve following the slant curve of the trunk a really robbing internal air volume of box that can affect performance of the bass. What about top portion of box? R u guys ok with it considering that it went as high as the trunk lid arm allowed me to or add on top of the box an extension piece bypassing the trunk arm and build higher adding more air volume? Hmm may look weird.

 

[EtRtcarguy]

Here are pics of smaller box made for center exhaust with spare tire. So same thing on this. What would u change on the looks. Square face ok or round corners.
So the issue i noticed on this one was that the bass sounded a little less compared to the bigger box..obviously for being smaller on internal air volume. But i changed my bass setting from #1 to #3 and was able to get an almost identical hard hitting bass like the bigger box with the same volume setting. I would like to add or increase the size of the box by building up higher past the trunk lid arms. Only thing with that is that it will look kinda odd, add more material and complex labor cost to figure out but the upside would be that it would possibly sound better.

 

[EtRtcarguy]

So talking about sound specifically on this smaller box..my wife and i just came from a car meet at balboa ave and met a few sdxgenz peeps and were very nice people. I wasnt able to have one put in their car to have them test for sound. I just need to get these tested on sedans to peeps can tell me if it not good or good enough or needs improvement. Specs on this subs: both 300 rms and using bridged 2 channel amp 150 rms. Ill be going to the next sdxgenz meet next week and hopefully i can have these tested on cars and get feed back. Anyways..would like to hear your thoughts on the visuals before i decide on the final look and build of the subwoofer boxes.

 

[shoegazer]

IMHO...

My first general observation is that I'd put a grille over that speaker to protect it.

I'm sure you already know that there's a real science to building speaker enclosures. I've seen many, many folks reverse engineer an expensive name brand box and try to clone it. And I've seen many of those projects sitting by the curb a few weeks later.

If you're concerned with how it looks; I believe that's gonna' limit the ability to run efficiently and vice-versa.

My experience is that a large, dense surface area that physically couples to the speaker itself is key. Tuning and porting, in my experience, can be difficult and usually concentrates on a specific frequency and the related harmonic frequencies. You can also try filling the box with insulation or packing peanuts and see if it helps or hurts the sound.

Maybe try the box without the covering too before you go nuts. You may get more of a resonance from the non-dampened wood.

And, generally, more (amplifier) power produces more sound. Don't get too obsessed with the 'magic' of the physics/air volume/etc.

Good luck.

 

[EtRtcarguy]

IMHO...

My first general observation is that I'd put a grille over that speaker to protect it.

I'm sure you already know that there's a real science to building speaker enclosures. I've seen many, many folks reverse engineer an expensive name brand box and try to clone it. And I've seen many of those projects sitting by the curb a few weeks later.

If you're concerned with how it looks; I believe that's gonna' limit the ability to run efficiently and vice-versa.

My experience is that a large, dense surface area that physically couples to the speaker itself is key. Tuning and porting, in my experience, can be difficult and usually concentrates on a specific frequency and the related harmonic frequencies. You can also try filling the box with insulation or packing peanuts and see if it helps or hurts the sound.

Maybe try the box without the covering too before you go nuts. You may get more of a resonance from the non-dampened wood.

And, generally, more (amplifier) power produces more sound. Don't get too obsessed with the 'magic' of the physics/air volume/etc.

Good luck.

Shoegazer, thx so much for ur thoughts. Yep, ill be working on putting a grill for protection. To be honest, i really didnt really want to change the appearance of the box because i know it would take away from it the size and mainly because well, it goes in a trunk. Figured that its just another storage box (trunk) and looks would be the last thing others would think of as long as trunk space was was not eaten up by a huge sub box in the middle.
Yes definately a science to it but the good thing its a sealed box. My approach to this was that i would never know the outcome if i didnt follow through all the way. But your right..all it took was a little more power on the smaller box and it hits pretty good. I just didnt want to be closed minded and not hear others thoughts on the build if it were in their car.
On the other hand, ill definately be adding some curves on the hatchback version so it flows with the liner. Just something about a square box looking odd in a hatch...like i can kinda get away with it in a sedan but not much on a hatch. Ill be trying out the popcorn or foam idea to see if anything changes. Thanks and still open to others input, ideas, changes.
Keep them coming.

 

[EtRtcarguy]

Any other thoughts?

 

[Robowarrior834]

Hi,

I installed the kicker hideaway powered sub in my 2018 ex-t. I installed it under the passenger seat, I can post pictures later when I get home.

Edit: well i misinterpreted your questions. so this does not apply.

 

[EtRtcarguy]

Hi,

I installed the kicker hideaway powered sub in my 2018 ex-t. I installed it under the passenger seat, I can post pictures later when I get home.

Edit: well i misinterpreted your questions. so this does not apply.

No worries..thats an 8 inch right? Does it hit pretty good and whats the rms on that?

 

[Robowarrior834]

Its 150 watts rms. For what I listen to its great, mostly siriusxm channel 51 bpm.
https://www.kicker.com/hideaway

 

[EtRtcarguy]

Its 150 watts rms. For what I listen to its great, mostly siriusxm channel 51 bpm.
https://www.kicker.com/hideaway

Thats nice. If it sounds good enough then thats great. I would consider that the ultimate stealth subwoofer box and for that price, thats awsome.

 

[EtRtcarguy]

...hmm kinda wounder if i can make one as well but obviousely without amp...yea.. I wont be able to beat that price. Thx 4 sharing that Robo.

 

[EtRtcarguy]

Im going to build another a lil different just to see how it sounds. Thx all.

 

[long_meats]

Im going to build another a lil different just to see how it sounds. Thx all.

Any plans on making one for the coupe? I have a 15" sub that takes up half the trunk due to the square shaped enclosure and would love to replace the enclosure with something more space-efficient, but only if I can still keep the 15" woofer (which probably isn't the most common size in addition to the coupes not being the most common Civic either) so I definitely don't expect enough of a demand in the market for this to happen sadly, haha.

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