Hey all,
Hoping to build and install something similar to this next weekend;
(http://www.autoacoustics.com/sbox/sbn-mr2ro-2.jpg)
(http://www.autoacoustics.com/sbox/sbo-mr2ro-2.jpg)
Images are from a site that build these custom units @ about £200 for each side, without any sub s:o :o s:o
Anyways, ordered some of the bits i need already for the construction of the boxes;
3 metres of acoustic carpet - ordered
Polyester wadding (Duracon) - ordered
Speaker box terminals - ordered
So now I'm at the important bit, I'm conscious that I need to get subs that are suitable for small volumed enclosures. I've been having a google n have no real idea what i'm looking at re: cu:ft and Vas.
My questions are;
Does any one know what to look for when looking at subs to make sure its suitable for small enclosures?
Is it really worth worrying about? Not looking for audio winning quality etc, just crisp clear bass, yes Nelix, to impress the girls. s;) ;) s;)
Cheers in advance guys.
Jim
Ahhh also, are power caps worth messing about with?
I've got just the one sub driver in my 2 Jim, its a JL Audio 200mm driver in an enclosure like the ones shown and provides as much bass as you could need without painkillers! s;) ;) s;)
I intend taking mine out soon and going for an underdash sub instead. Got a JL Audio 165mm for that.
I have seen some sites that calculate volume for given drivers and provision , or not, for passive ports, but can't find them at the moment.
Get in contact with Stargazer, he made a custom sub. It was for sale in the classifieds.
Yeah, its my mr2 now. Want pictures, or dimensions?
Heya Tom - a pic and the name of the subwoofer would be sweet if poss pls mate.
Theres a million and one different subs/amps on th enet - other than 10" i have no other idea what im after.
Nige/Tom - your boxes ported or not ?
No, mine's not ported Jim. Does the job though.
I've got the 6 inch JL sub under my dash and it's fantastic!!! Been out in it all day with the roof down and the bass is still good even at motorway speeds!!!
a ported box requires a bigger encloser also the jbl gto series are good for money
But where are you going to put all your make up Jim?!?! s:lol: :lol: s:lol: s:lol: :lol: s:lol: s:lol: :lol: s:lol:
In the frunk!!!!!! s:bounce: :bounce: s:bounce:
I've got a 8" sub in my enclosure. The original speaker given to me by stargazer blew up about two weeks ago, I've got a 'Fury' 250w off eBay at the moment, put its pretty bad, I'm currently on the look out for a 8" JL Audio one.
In relation to the original one blowing - does this mean the box needs to be ported? Thanks
PS I'll try and get you a picture tonight
Quote from: "tomcoolj"I've got a 8" sub in my enclosure. The original speaker given to me by stargazer blew up about two weeks ago, I've got a 'Fury' 250w off eBay at the moment, put its pretty bad, I'm currently on the look out for a 8" JL Audio one.
In relation to the original one blowing - does this mean the box needs to be ported? Thanks
PS I'll try and get you a picture tonight
ported requires less volume of air within the enclosure. if you go ported the box will need to be bigger. if the sub went it could be down to age / power put into the sub ie to much / box to small in the first place. problem with the 2 is that there isnt much space so the box is normally on the small side. my 12" which does just fit has a box that takes up most of the rear bins just to get the volume. for the 8" you dont need as much volume as a 12" has a larger displacement.
when you do get your new sub read the specifications of it and it will tell you the requirements for volume of air within the enclosure.
richard
All bits n bobs for the build recieved now, just got to go grab some MDF on saturday n get to it.
Side note query; can i run the Focal crossovers i have on a small 250w 2ch amp? Where to they wire in, direct the speaker wires from the crossover to the amp itself like normal????
Decided to build the boxes and let an audio shop near me worry about the type of sub/amp to get once built! s:P :P s:P
Question, why 2 sub boxes? Bass is omnidirectional, so I don't see why you'd want to lose all the bin space.
I see no reason why the crossovers shouldn't be wired to the amp in the normal way. Instructions for the speakers themselves should give you a bit of direction Jim.
+1
2 subs no better than 1
To be honest, 2 subs purely as i think it'd look better as opposed to sounding better.
As per bin space, never use the space as it is so wont really miss it as such. 2 boxes means if need be i "can" remove one.
Curiosity now, why do people have 2 sub setups in their cars if it doesn't sound any better? Is there a reason other than cosmetics? s:oops: :oops: s:oops:
What about one in the middle with either speakers or space either side!? Gives you bass and space without looking lobsided!?
Looks far better with 2 subs in there IMO. Will also help the weight distribution s:lol: :lol: s:lol:
One other thing to consider Jim is weight. Sub boxes can be heavy. Be sure you want all the extra kit slowing you down before you add it all. Be like adding another person in the car!
Ok, taking all advice/opinions/feedback on board and decided to opt for just the 1 sub woofer/enclosure. Thank you guys for the ideas and information s:) :) s:)
Will now be making one for the middle area, so the sub is positioned between seats, in a small enclosure. With 2, reduced sized, rear bins available. Considered placing 6 x 9's either side of the sub but will possibly kill and cheapen the finish, IMHO.
Not sure on dimensions/subs etc yet still so very much a work in progress still. However, will still knock something up this weekend and see how it looks. The proof, as they say, is in the pudding.
Watch this space...
Remember to measure the space in there with the roof down!!!!
Quote from: "JiMR2"Ahhh also, are power caps worth messing about with?
Iv wondered about this too in the past as i have two subs, aftermarket front speakers and alot of added lights for effect on the car
Quote from: "deadmau5"Get in contact with Stargazer, he made a custom sub. It was for sale in the classifieds.
I'm here s:D :D s:D One sub is enough for an MR2 unless you want heavy bass with the roof down. For the size enclosure your building a recon a 10" is pushing it. My box was using an 8" and I just made the volume needed for the sub.
Quote from: "tomcoolj"I've got a 8" sub in my enclosure. The original speaker given to me by stargazer blew up about two weeks ago, I've got a 'Fury' 250w off eBay at the moment, put its pretty bad, I'm currently on the look out for a 8" JL Audio one.
In relation to the original one blowing - does this mean the box needs to be ported? Thanks
PS I'll try and get you a picture tonight
You got the cheapy sub off me right? not the JBL one? I'd be impressed if you blew up a JBL lol
Oh porting the box makes it easier to blow up the sub. Sealed boxes stop the sub moving so easily and produce tighter/cleaner bass.
Quote from: "JiMR2"All bits n bobs for the build recieved now, just got to go grab some MDF on saturday n get to it.
Side note query; can i run the Focal crossovers i have on a small 250w 2ch amp? Where to they wire in, direct the speaker wires from the crossover to the amp itself like normal????
Decided to build the boxes and let an audio shop near me worry about the type of sub/amp to get once built! s:P :P s:P
You can run the focals off a 2ch amp but I'd suggest you use a 4ch amp and use the same amp to drive the sub as well. That way you can set the crossover on the amp to separate out the Sub freqs vs what the focals get. Don't bother trying to send bass to focal's in the doors, it just won't work well in an MR2. What I found is the focals vs the crappy tin can MR2 doors and sound deadening sounded really aweful, until I sound deadened the doors. Once the door was sealed with flashing tape the focals sounded much more natural and it really helped cut out the ear splitting treble those aluminium tweeters can kick out.
Oh you really should build your box to suit your sub. Subs of the same size can have different volume requirments. A local shop will prob not check and your sub may not sound too hot if the enclosure is not matched to it.
Don't let this put you off, anything is better than the stock audio, you can't make it worse :-) :-) :-)
Trying to find a suitable sized sub has been whats caused the probs to be honest. All this cubic ft and VAS rubbish I'm trying to work out is driving me insane, numbers numbers numbers! I'm not Rainman, how can any one work this stuff out ?!
Was hoping to work backwards, build the box and work out its volume, aiming for roughly 0.8 - 0.9 cu/ft. The box subs as pictured achieve 0.79 cu/ft. but trying to find a nice sub that achieves the cu/ft and isnt too deep (mounting depth) is a bugger. Unless you go for the shallow mount pioneers - which can rock out in something silly like 0.35 cu/ft.
But then you loose some of the oomph....
So time for another adaption to this "project"/path to insanity or what ever you want to call it; it seems the general consensus is that 8" subs are more popular.
I shall now be mocking up both a single 8" setup and a twin 8" setup tomorrow... if it keeps reducing this was ill be back to where i am currently with an active sub s:P :P s:P
s:flame: :flame: s:flame:
my sub is a shallow depth sub and twin coil worth the money if you ask me. check out the gto series.
My underdash is twin coil 6 inch. The bass is fantastic for its size and perfect for the car I'd say!!
Update time;
After getting called in to work on Saturday, Project Ice Ice Baby is off to a slow start.
Have decided that a 10" is too ambitious for the size enclosure im after. IF i were confident enough i would definately have a crack at this with fibreglass as the end result would be much better, alas, i'm sticking with wood as its a tad more comfortable/easier for me FG would just allow a better shaped box to sit in the rear bins. So am going with 2 x 8" subs with a centre compartment between the seats.
Spent today measuring, re-measuring, measuring some more, getting it all wrong, measuring again... and again... and another 3 times. And finally think i've got there, dimension wise.
So now I have my template. I have way to much of everything, carpet, wadding and MDF. Why i ever thought that i'd need 3 metres of carpet and wadding i dont know.
Have cut and put together 1 of the boxes. To confuse every thing, angles introduced themselves on several of the cuts which made the day even more entertaining. So i now i have all the bits and bobs to glue one box together the next one will be a breeze to knock up.
Must admit at several points today I thought i had bitten off more than i could chew so to speak.
The car looks like some one has chucked a bucket of saw dust over it at the minute. Not sure how it managed to get every where it has, hey ho. Will try and get the other bits cut up of an evening this week and glue together by Friday. Will pop pics up when i get a chance to take some!
Quote from: "rbuckingham"my sub is a shallow depth sub and twin coil worth the money if you ask me. check out the gto series.
Thanks for the advice re: sub Rb! Will make sure i get one with twin coil - you happy with a shallow depth, no loss of quality etc??? Still punch like a good un?
Cheers
well mines a 12 so still lacks a punch so much im building it a new stronger box for it to shake apart lol. however ive have used the gto series for years none ever went bang and the base has always been good and loud if you turn it up
Update;
So been "beavering" away, a picture speaks a thousand words as they say;
(http://i1037.photobucket.com/albums/a456/ganglyjim/271110432.jpg)
(http://i1037.photobucket.com/albums/a456/ganglyjim/271110434.jpg)
Boxes fit like a glove, took the car for a spin, no rattles etc so seems like its in nice n tight. Roof goes up/down. Aye bit more weight in the car but i never thrash about in it anyways really, enjoy posing too much im afraid to say.
Once the subs are here i can carpet, install wadding, fit the subs, wire to the amp.
Got some magical finishing touches planned for the centre console.
Cheers
Looking good mate some good supervision skills there s;) ;) s;)
Mate my supervision skills are on fire recently s;) ;) s;) My fairy soft hands limit me doing too much s:P :P s:P
had to crack the whip a few times today as well as it goes, its not on!
Just can't get the staff hey s:) :) s:) bet your becoming an expert stone kicker haha
you line the stones up n ill kick em s;) ;) s;)
Can't even line ya own stones up hehe
s:scared: :scared: s:scared: and get my hands dirty?!
would it be possible to get the template of you and measurements on the boxes
I have made a note of the dimensions of the boxes. The fronts are just a basic cut out of the front doors... although ive put a "secret/hidden" compartment into mine on cupboard hinges s;) ;) s;) Will show a select few my James Bond box @ Ding Day... and pop up a pic when i have taken one...
So anyways, after a lot of messing around;
(http://i1037.photobucket.com/albums/a456/ganglyjim/boom.jpg)
There they are in and secure. Almost drilled through the metal behind the passenger seat but found an old post of Aaron's saying that the fuel tank/line was behind it... so stopped immediately... got some uber strong dual lock velcro on the way so will use that! Thanks Aaron!
I've ended up removing the inner bin plastics which has highlighted how much road noise they keep OUT. As a result ill be buying some really thick insulation meant for lofts (looks like a big block of sponge cake) and will cut to the size of the area beneath the boxes, channeling out for the eletronicy stuff down there. This will improve road noise when the subs aren't thumping.
I'm very happy with the look of the unit, and due to not having hooked up the amp yet, cant comment on the sound.
As happy as i am with the look, and i dare say the sound... i cant help but think that its taken something away from the Roadster... don't get me wrong, it looks awesome and will sound great im sure... just at the moment it feels like ive added something that shouldn't be added and takes something away from the "spirit" of the car, rather than adds... not sure if that makes sense or if im just being a hippy... just feel like the vibes been tampered with...
That may all change once its all working as opposed to a pretty paper weight. On the topic of weight, the car feels no different in speed or handling, the wood didnt weigh too much, will weigh it when i take it out next, but the subs weigh a fair ammount, more than i thought they would.
Will get some better pics and update when the insulation is in and the amps hooked up...
Looks like you have done a great job to me!! Really well finished off! Will have a nosey at Ding Day if my clearance is high enough!? s:lol: :lol: s:lol:
Handy with a bit of wood arent we Jim.
Looks neat mate. Shame you havent got them hooked up yet. If you fancy bringing a big big bit of cable you can always hook it up to my 1000w amp in situ to give them a test....
Cheers guys s:) :) s:)
I was waiting on getting some velcro stuff through, arrived today, so i could fit the amp.
How is yours fitted Nath, just velcroed on? My ledge bit isnt flush all the way down, kinda bulges out half way down so worried the amp wont sit very flush and wont stick too well...? s:shock: :shock: s:shock: dont want it flying off half way down the road. Was tempted to fit it now but wanted one of you guys to check my ground @ Ding day as im not 100% that on the ball with electrics. I have it bolted to a point of the chassis atm but its NOT an existing earth point just a hole with a bolt through it in the chassis... is this a problem...?
IF i have room in the car ill bring the amp with me... all the cables are run, just need to confirm the grounding point ive used is cool and then stick the amp in...
Originally was going to stick a small piece of acrylic in the middle with the screaming chicken thing in stainless steel on it but like the look of it just carpet. Will save the sheet of acrylic for my next project s;) ;) s;)
My amp is in the passenger side bin. Screwed down and straped in using the bin straps.
Ive grounded off seat belt retainer bolt before which looked a good point. Should be nice and solid.
Be a shame not to hear them mate
So...
following their pilot test @ Ding Day courtesy of Nathan's amp, they sounded AWFUL!
Tore them back out yesterday and looked at trying to get just 1 of them sounding good. After 3 hours of trying to work out why NOTHING was coming out of the subs... i reconnected the earth cable ( s:oops: :oops: s:oops: I have man flu currently and wasn't thinking straight)...
Whilst searching for the fault (earth cable not connected) it became apparent that the speaker screw terminals had crushed the wires to smitherines! No wonder they sounded cr@p, barely any connection, ie, 2 threads of copper connecting as opposed to 24 - 30ish... how can i prevent this happening again in the future???? Other than avoiding titan like screwing of the terminals...
Anyways, they sound pretty good, NOT as loud and as BOOOOOOOM BOOOOOOOOOOM BOOOOOOOOOM as i was expecting but then i dont drive a Vauxhall Nova any more, I'm not 17, I have 8"s opposed to 15"s s:lol: :lol: s:lol: and my life doesn't revolve around dodgy car parks and burnouts. s:crazyeyes: :crazyeyes: s:crazyeyes: Mores the pity, i have grown up.
The subs give a nice crisp bass and add to the focal comp speakers i've got. Get a nice thwack in the back now whlst driving. Have currently got the bass set real low via the amp controls and the HU. Will let it all settle in and then take it back out and sound deaden all of the back and under the rear plastics and play around with it then. Is it worth sound deadening the outside of the box???
Have housed the amp beneath the box in the plastics and latched it in. Will be amping the Focal door speakers as well in the near future and sound deadening a ton more of the car.
I think the box is very much a work in progress and i will be taking out again to improve. If any one wants the general shape, namely the side dimensions as this is the only restriction, i can draw up a template.
Only had a quick drive last night as Man Flu was setting in BIG time and i needed to go get in bed to be looked after.
IF i survive my man flu i will try and do a video of it working half decently later on.
Ah, glad you sorted it, good work. All the best with the man flu. Hopefully you'll pull through!
Hey Jim, looking good :-) :-) :-) Did you sound deaden your doors, those focals will suffer till you do. PS I'm doing Stargazer's Stealth Install version 2 on my new MR2, will have to put some pics up once I'm done. The challenge is to get a sub and amp for the fronts in one bin only!
I did sound deaden the doors BUT i'm not convinced i did enough of the door skin after seeing Russ deadening a door @ Ding Day so will spend a day deadening the crap out of the car.
Quote from: "stargazer30"The challenge is to get a sub and amp for the fronts in one bin only!
I think this will be possible... Will it need to be behind the bin door or replacing it? So 1 sub and 2 amps... got my mind racing now... 1 in the plastic recess and 1 attached to the side of the box...
What i had considering was making a false footwell cover and hiding the amp in the footwell as a 2ch speaker amp can be very small dependant on power required.
Quote from: "JiMR2"I did sound deaden the doors BUT i'm not convinced i did enough of the door skin after seeing Russ deadening a door @ Ding Day so will spend a day deadening the crap out of the car.
Quote from: "stargazer30"The challenge is to get a sub and amp for the fronts in one bin only!
I think this will be possible... Will it need to be behind the bin door or replacing it? So 1 sub and 2 amps... got my mind racing now... 1 in the plastic recess and 1 attached to the side of the box...
What i had considering was making a false footwell cover and hiding the amp in the footwell as a 2ch speaker amp can be very small dependant on power required.
Well I found the secret to making the speakers sound good wasn't using enough deadening to sink the titanic, it not even about rattles, its about creating an enclosure. So basically cover all the holes on the outer door metal so the speaker is sealed in as much as possible. This vastly improves the bass response and sound quality.
My new build is the definitive ice baby build. I'm using a active flat sub which looks like it was designed to fit an MR2 sitting on the top of a two tear MDF rack, then a very small amp on the lower part to amp up the fronts. That way I'm only using the passenger bin. Its still work in progress and it may end in disaster or sound pap so I'm not gonna post it until I know it works.
LOVE this topic/progress thread!
But how do you cover them when say i dunno ?? You go out and have no choice but to park in an area that your unknown too?
As this is what is putting me off making my own, all that hard work to then have them Knicked....I think the work *F**Ked off comes to mind if it ever happen'd, so do you have a fake door ? or something to cover them?
just curious if you have a solution to what is stopping me go ahead and making my own???
Two main things which stop me from doing something like this - the bins are the only real storage, and mine were full of water yesterday s:lol: :lol: s:lol:
Quote from: "JoniiBoii"LOVE this topic/progress thread!
But how do you cover them when say i dunno ?? You go out and have no choice but to park in an area that your unknown too?
As this is what is putting me off making my own, all that hard work to then have them Knicked....I think the work *F**Ked off comes to mind if it ever happen'd, so do you have a fake door ? or something to cover them?
just curious if you have a solution to what is stopping me go ahead and making my own???
The seats are likely to cover your subs so you are unlikely to see them anyway. Failing that you can always buy some black material speaker mesh and cover the front. I used this to cover my parcel shelf speakers on my old car and this worked a treat.
any pics bud?
I havent mate.
To be honest the rear shelf just looked like a rear shelf. The original was dark grey but i covered the whole thing (the side you can see) in speaker cloth and glued it down. It looked like it should have been there.
Search for speaker cloth on google. 100's of places sell it. It allows the sound to come through clearly, will stop dust getting to your
speaker(s) and will hide the speakers nicely.
If i was to do this i might be tempted to cut a raised 1 or 2 cm thick outer template from plywood the same thickness as the speaker sticks out and glue this to the front of the door. Id then wrap my speaker cloth around this. It will then look a flat surface. Not essential but would stop any uneven surface.
As Nath says once the seats are back its a real struggle to see the subs. especially with the roof up. I'm fairly tall and have the seats all the way back on the runners and the seat angle right back as well which makes seeing the subs even more difficult.
Can get the audio carpet stealth material off Ebay, very thin acoustic style carpet to cover them over and keep em stealthy.
But personally I dont see the need for it, It'd be a real nightmare for any one trying to pinch them any ways - the 2 metal brackets secure the boxes in and they're bolted in good and proper. Takes me around 30mins to take them out with lots of swearing and smashed knuckles but they're safe and sound in there so...
(http://i1037.photobucket.com/albums/a456/ganglyjim/boom.jpg)
As per water coming in, annual drain cleaning and a butchers every now and then means its hopefully not gona be an issue.
Im still very impressed with your wood work Jim s8) 8) s8)
Working on those underdash subs has just showed how much of a PITA it can be
just thru reading the water issue that could happen ive looked for other forms i could use for bass
ive always used VIBE and enjoyed there sound so has anyone used these before ??
m http://www.vibeaudio.co.uk/car/liteair-optisound/ (http://www.vibeaudio.co.uk/car/liteair-optisound/) m
are they any good?
Does anyone have the dimensions / measurements for the boxes Jim made ? have asked him directly but have not had a reply and I have 2 subs waiting to fit s:( :( s:(
Here us my build, although u can't see it all lol.
Door speakers built up with fibreglass and painted to match car.
(http://img.tapatalk.com/5212399a-722f-5e73.jpg)
Fibreglass sound system, 2 10" subs and some 6x9's
(http://img.tapatalk.com/5212399a-7271-b4cc.jpg)
Produces some good bass s:) :) s:)
CREDIT to you! that looks really good! done yourself?
Who's mine? If u mean me then yes, although painted by a friend who has a bodyshops, I'm nowhere near skilled enough lol
They all look good ,some serious work gone into those
Has anyone put a single sub in the section where the ashtray goes, if you removed it ?
(http://i115.photobucket.com/albums/n281/blz-8027/7264916936_b5f31867bf_z.jpg)
Quote from: "JiMR2"As Nath says once the seats are back its a real struggle to see the subs. especially with the roof up. I'm fairly tall and have the seats all the way back on the runners and the seat angle right back as well which makes seeing the subs even more difficult.
Can get the audio carpet stealth material off Ebay, very thin acoustic style carpet to cover them over and keep em stealthy.
But personally I dont see the need for it, It'd be a real nightmare for any one trying to pinch them any ways - the 2 metal brackets secure the boxes in and they're bolted in good and proper. Takes me around 30mins to take them out with lots of swearing and smashed knuckles but they're safe and sound in there so...
(http://i1037.photobucket.com/albums/a456/ganglyjim/boom.jpg)
As per water coming in, annual drain cleaning and a butchers every now and then means its hopefully not going to be an issue.
I now own this enclosure and its sat in my Dining room still not installed s:cry: :cry: s:cry:
Now realised there is not a Car stereo installer anywhere for miles where i live.
Last bit of the car to get finished as well s:roll: :roll: s:roll:
Dont suppose you fancy measuring it all up, as still waiting on Jim to get me the dimensions for those sub boxes and would really like to start my build this weekend s:) :) s:)
Quote from: "Roadwarrior"Quote from: "JiMR2"As Nath says once the seats are back its a real struggle to see the subs. especially with the roof up. I'm fairly tall and have the seats all the way back on the runners and the seat angle right back as well which makes seeing the subs even more difficult.
Can get the audio carpet stealth material off Ebay, very thin acoustic style carpet to cover them over and keep em stealthy.
But personally I dont see the need for it, It'd be a real nightmare for any one trying to pinch them any ways - the 2 metal brackets secure the boxes in and they're bolted in good and proper. Takes me around 30mins to take them out with lots of swearing and smashed knuckles but they're safe and sound in there so...
(http://i1037.photobucket.com/albums/a456/ganglyjim/boom.jpg)
As per water coming in, annual drain cleaning and a butchers every now and then means its hopefully not going to be an issue.
I now own this enclosure and its sat in my Dining room still not installed s:cry: :cry: s:cry:
Now realised there is not a Car stereo installer anywhere for miles where i live.
Last bit of the car to get finished as well s:roll: :roll: s:roll:
ill buy it if not got round to it s:P :P s:P
It wasn't that difficult to build. Longest part was the measuring, cutting, testing, measuring, cutting etc.
Not that difficult at all. Just took a full day.
Give it a try, you'd be surprised at what you can accomplish! s:) :) s:)
Quote from: "Zoe"Dont suppose you fancy measuring it all up, as still waiting on Jim to get me the dimensions for those sub boxes and would really like to start my build this weekend s:) :) s:)
Any Chance on the Measurements.. Got my 10" going in shortly .. s:) :) s:)
How long did this take to install Jim as i still have it safe indoors.
Was thinking of selling it on but not sure now.
Heya mate,
Installing it takes no time;
remove bin doors
Connect to amp
Secure in using the 2 black steel brackets, bit fiddly but keeps em safe
Job done.
The amp installs fairly simple also. All achievable in a day with good weather.
Jim