Subwoofer Basics.

[KezR33]

Okay, I love bass. I never truly realized how much I did love it till I bought my Alpine Type R 12" sub. What I enjoy most is more the physical sensation of a powerful bass pushing my innards around, more than high dB or neighborhood waking "doof doof", but I suppose they all go hand in hand.

So I sold my last car, sound system and all, and I'm looking at making a really nice set up in my next car, but I don't really understand all the technical jargon.

I'm trying to find what I was looking at earlier, and can't find it anywhere now. Subwoofer's come with their own SLP(?), SLQ(?) ratings, something like that, and I have no idea what each means.

Anyway, if I come across them I'll post them here again.

In short though, for the best physical sensation from a sub I'm guessing you want a larger surface area more than anything? Like, two 15" subs will out perform a single 12" even if the 12" has a slightly higher RMS value than the two bigger combined?

Thanks guys.

[Jack88]

Normally subs will not come with a rating for what there better for however they are generally supplied with T/S paramaters (Theile / Small). From these specs you can normally work out what the sub is better suited too.

In the big scheme of things the RMS value of any speaker means very little and it is not something to use to compare different models with, the RMS value is just a thermal rating meaning sure the voice coil may be able to handle that amount of power but you would have far surpased the mechanical limits of the spider and surround before you get anywhere near that value.

The larger the surface area of the woofer(s) that you are using the better. Obveiously the bigger the moving surface / mass the louder and deeper it can play with less stress placed upon it.

There are alot of other factors to consider when looking at subs such as the Xmax, Fs, values.

Remember tho a sub is nothing without its enclosure,even a single 12" in a properly designed enclosure is enough to give your internals a good beating.

What subs are you currently looking at?

Jack

Edited February 18, 2009 by Jack88

[KezR33]

Normally subs will not come with a rating for what there better for however they are generally supplied with T/S paramaters (Theile / Small). From these specs you can normally work out what the sub is better suited too.

In the big scheme of things the RMS value of any speaker means very little and it is not something to use to compare different models with, the RMS value is just a thermal rating meaning sure the voice coil may be able to handle that amount of power but you would have far surpased the mechanical limits of the spider and surround before you get anywhere near that value.

The larger the surface area of the woofer(s) that you are using the better. Obveiously the bigger the moving surface / mass the louder and deeper it can play with less stress placed upon it.

There are alot of other factors to consider when looking at subs such as the Xmax, Fs, values.

Remember tho a sub is nothing without its enclosure,even a single 12" in a properly designed enclosure is enough to give your internals a good beating.

What subs are you currently looking at?

Jack

Well, besides a bit of online research I only know what was around 8 months ago. Like I said I had a 12" Alpine type R (in an Alpine ported box designed for it), I loved it, but next time I want more.

I know nothing about 15" or 18", but I was considering a pair of 12's. From memory Fosgate, Kicker and Alpine Type X are the next level up. Like I said though, volume isn't such a big deal. Ideally I want very high quality sound, and a nice strong physical punch that you can really feel. I'm guessing that means a pair of quality 12's or a nice 15"? Both in sealed enclosures?

Saw this today;

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/soundstream-xxx-15-...%3A1|240%3A1318

Overkill? I know nothing about the brand, but it seems pretty cheap, so long as you can afford the amp and batteries to support it.

Thanks for the response.

Edit: Quick question; what size sub(s) can you fit in an R34 boot?

Edited February 18, 2009 by KezR33

[-FIGJAM-]

soundstream 12s are apparently enough to make a R33 rattle, so i would say, yes that would be over kill for what you are looking for.

Kicker make some decent subs, i would probably look more towards the Alpine though. two 12s would be more then enough bass, if you power them correctly, OHM, WRMS, etc etc

Best bet, go to a audio specialist, listen and chat to them about it. They will help you out a fair bit.

Cheers,

[Carbon 34]

FYI, two 12" will fit hidden behind the panels in a R34 GTT. in fiberglass boxes. I have 1 there now but room on both sides

two 15" will fit if you dont want a boot anymore same for 18, plus the car will self destruct from vibrations,, along with the all the birds in the trees and kids on bikes .lol

a well designed system is better then just generic parts tossed in and hope it sounds good. a single 10 can rip your head off if done right? ???

Im not a huge fan of 12's but for some reason oz had that as a standard rather then 10 or 15 ? along with the dreaded 6x9's.

yes I know jack88 my car has a 12 but only because its a left over from my old car....so dont start..lol

in the next incarnation its going to be a 10 or 2 digital design 8 inchers in a single reflex carbon fiber box. ported thru the rear deck

the higher the sensitivity in DB to start with the less power it will take to get loud, every 3 db is around 2 to 3 times the power level to increase the sound output

so a 89db woofer will need more power then a 91db woofer to reach 120db. but there is a lot of other things to consider. the box design, a sealed box isnt as the best but will control a woofer up to its tuned freq before distoration. and sounds smoother most of the time. at a lower cost to construct then a bandpass box.

so many varables to deal with for a pro system

rather then writing all this out for you, have a read here?

http://www.the12volt.com/caraudio/boxes.asp

if you need help just pm me. figure out your budget and if your a brand loyalist we can go from there ?

cheers

Troy