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Look at my new Sub/Box Setup!

S

Savior

CEG'er
Joined
Dec 6, 2002
Messages
306
Location
Honolulu, Hawaii
I don't even have it yet, actually. I am selling my old subs (two 2003-model 12" Kicker Comps in a plexiglass-front bandpass box) on the wonder that is craigslist.com. The box is gargantuan and leaves no trunk space.

I have ordered a new sub and box, a single 12" bandpass box. This provides two advantages: One, it will allow waaaay more trunk space. Two, this new box has a bent plexiglass front that, as can be seen in the pic below, extands onto the top of the box and allows a clear view of the subwoofer and any lighting effects I put in the box:

Single12inchBandPassBox.jpg


I got the box for about $73. It measures: 14-3/4h x 17-3/4w x 14d


Next up is the sub. Chosen for beauty, power, and good reviews, I went for the Kenwood KFC-W3011 12" subwoofer. 400watts rated power, 1,200watts peak. The two Kicker Comps only handled 350-400watts apiece, so this sub handle a good bit more than both of them together. plus it is beautiful, and will look great under the blue glow of the LED and neon lighting kit I have purchased for it...

KENWOODKFC-W3011-2xView.jpg


KENWOODKFC-W3011.jpg


KENWOODKFC-W3011_REARsmall.jpg


I got this sub for $67, free shipping. I hope it lives up to its good reviews.

Covering the sub will be a chrome grille I found on eBay. It is motorized so that it slowly rotates, and has a built-in LED light to illuminate the sub's reflective woofer cone... It might look too gimicky and cheap though. If it does, I will promptly hock it in favor of more subtle lighting effects.

Grill.jpg





Powering this setup will be my trusty 1,500watt SPL Phanton DK2-1500 two-channel amp...

SPL-Phantom-Amp.jpg


I've had great results with this amp so far with two different sub/box setups, I hope it does me justice in this endeavor as well.

I have also obtained some little mountable 12v LED spot-lights to spiff up the box, as well as 5 feet of blue neon light-wire, so if the grill looks too ghetto-fab I can whip up something creative with these...

LightWire.jpg


Having four Infinity Kappa 5x7's in my doors, the final major stereo mod I do will have to be upgrading my rickety old-school head unit. It's aftermarket and looks pretty, but it skips, only play old-style CDs, has troube with CD-Rs, and is generally going senile.

Whaddya think? Look like a good setup?

I will update this post in a week or so when I get it all here and installed, and maybe post a YouTube vid of my rotating grill.
 
So from what I gather from all this, your going for looks over sound?? Since when did "audio" become all about appearance and not about sound quality?
 
Why would you need a grill to protect the front of the speaker, when the speaker itself is enclosed inside the BP box? :nonono:

Also, did you verify the t/s specs of that sub to see how it will perform in that particular enclosure? If not, you run the risk of having it sound like ass.

Remember that audio systems should be about, well, audio. How it looks is secondary unless you never actually plan to turn it on.
 
SoundQ SVT said:
Also, did you verify the t/s specs of that sub to see how it will perform in that particular enclosure? If not, you run the risk of having it sound like ass.
Click to expand...
Kenwoods are not recommended for bandpass, IIRC they havent made a bandpass spec sub since the old red pearl-mica cone subs.
 
pre98zetec said:
Anything you put in that box is going to sound like ass.
Click to expand...

I wouldn't say "anything" you put in that box... but there are more speakers that would sound bad than would sound good in it.

I was trying to be a little constructive and point in the direction of "why" it will sound that way instead of making a statement that comes off as opinion rather than a fact supported by physics.

I am sure that someone on here has a box building program that could approximate the response of this speaker in this enclosure based on the t/s specs of the driver and the physical measurements of the enclosure and its ports.

I have an ancient "Blaubox" program from Blaupunkt (if I can find it... it is written in DOS... lol) that may work if all the specs are given to me. I've had it since 1994 or so.
 
sound q is right about the box. that wont sound good simply because that box and sub combo is not meant to be. IMO the sub will look good enough on its own that you dont need some ricer spinner grill and leds all over it. but thats all your choice
 
SoundQ SVT said:
I wouldn't say "anything" you put in that box... but there are more speakers that would sound bad than would sound good in it.

I was trying to be a little constructive and point in the direction of "why" it will sound that way instead of making a statement that comes off as opinion rather than a fact supported by physics.

I am sure that someone on here has a box building program that could approximate the response of this speaker in this enclosure based on the t/s specs of the driver and the physical measurements of the enclosure and its ports.

I have an ancient "Blaubox" program from Blaupunkt (if I can find it... it is written in DOS... lol) that may work if all the specs are given to me. I've had it since 1994 or so.
Click to expand...
i have a similar program for windows but i also would need the specs on the box dimensions. i already have the specs on the sub tho
 
K fine, I'll ixnay on the neon stuff for the most part. I will disable the motor in the grill so it doesn't rotate (I thought that was sort of corny in the first place anyway, I just liked the flashiness of the grille itself), but I like the idea of blue LEDs on the sub. Just to be clear, I had no intention actually installing ALL of those lights in my trunk or in the box; it would look like a cosmic-ricer-gone-supernova every time I opened my trunk. I was only going to use one of the three options for accent lighting.

I want a combination of good deep sound, but visually it has to be a little flashy-looking, prefereably with brushed silver because that would look best under blue LEDs. I want people to hear my system and like it, but blowing their minds aesthetically when I open the trunk is of equal importance. Nothing fugly, like black or conservative-looking subs. I know these are most common and it's easier to find better-sounding black subs, but my whole car's theme is silver and blue. I am gradually converting all lights and trim, eventually even the overall paint-job of the car itself, towards this ideal.

So this sub won't work in this box? Damn... I read the reviews for the Pioneer sub and ultimately chose it over a silver Kicker Comp VR 12" model, but I didn't realize it might not be suited for a bandass box. It's been like five years since I've put together a sound system... What kind of sub would sound good in that box? I have no idea how to calculate such a thing. :confused:
 
it is extremely hard to say what sub would sound good in that box. your best bet would be to go with the sub that you chose and build a box to the speakers specs. itll be cheaper and then your grill will actually be practical and "cool" looking.
p.s. good choice on not going with the supernova of rice
 
THETACHIchris said:
it is extremely hard to say what sub would sound good in that box. your best bet would be to go with the sub that you chose and build a box to the speakers specs.
Click to expand...

agreed. Since Chris already has a box bulilding program with this speaker in it, I am sure he could run a couple of sample ideal boxes (sealed or ported based on your space requirements) and give you the information you need to build the box.
 
SoundQ SVT said:
agreed. Since Chris already has a box bulilding program with this speaker in it, I am sure he could run a couple of sample ideal boxes (sealed or ported based on your space requirements) and give you the information you need to build the box.
Click to expand...

i actually was planning on it. but itll have to wait til tomorrow since my home computer runs OSX:laugh: not windows:nonono:
 
well for the best bass response and overall sound quality, you would want a 15.41 cubic foot sealed enclosure, which i believe is out of the question. the next best response curve was found with a 1.75 cubic foot box. i am unsure what kind of bass you are looking for though. in the sq category those would be your best bets. but if you are looking for groundshaking "window shattering" (i used quoted because that is physically impossible) bone jaring base you will want either a bandpass or vented enclosure. let me know tho cuz i dont wanna do the work if i dont have to lol....
 
Now you're going to go and confuse the poor boy by mentioning he wants a bandpass when we just got done stating that bandpass was probably not the way to go with this speaker....

The 1.75 ft^3 box you mentioned... was it a ported or sealed design?

The 15 ft^3 box response suggests the sub could work in an infinite baffle design, where you use the trunk itself as the enclosure and simply install a baffle board between the trunk and back seat to mount the sub to. You just have to make sure the trunk is totally sealed off from the interior.
 
The only specs I could find were:
sealed box volume: 0.8 - 1.75 cu. ft.
ported box volume: 1.0 - 2.0 cu. ft

And thats off the crutchfield site, which is as accurate as a blind sniper shooter. Kenwood doesn't even give specs off their website. So I found the manual on some rinky dink site that gives you all the specs.
http://inform3.kenwoodusa.com/manuals\kfc-w3011.pdf
1.25 sealed
1.5 vented with a 3" port 7" long.
 
SoundQ SVT said:
Now you're going to go and confuse the poor boy by mentioning he wants a bandpass when we just got done stating that bandpass was probably not the way to go with this speaker....

The 1.75 ft^3 box you mentioned... was it a ported or sealed design?

The 15 ft^3 box response suggests the sub could work in an infinite baffle design, where you use the trunk itself as the enclosure and simply install a baffle board between the trunk and back seat to mount the sub to. You just have to make sure the trunk is totally sealed off from the interior.
Click to expand...

i was thinking about that today and how it might confuse him. what i meant was that he could use a bandpass box or a portted box made specifically for that speaker, not some universal prefab box. but the 1.75 cube box was sealed. the 15 cube box did suggest he could go infinite baffle.
but if he wants bass that sounds like hes trying to be heard 2 miles away these would not be the way to go.
i my program to design ported boxes is a pain in the ass tho so i need to know if he wants sq or spl.
 
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