Subwoofer facing the inside or the boot (trunk)? ***with pics***

[EVO 10+ year member]

Soon I'll have a single 10" (25cm) Alpine Type-R (swr-1042d) sub installed to my RX7. Initially I was going to get a box made so that the subwoofer would be facing the trunk however today another audioshop I visited said they can also do a mold of the rear seat backrest/board/panel or whatever it's called (so that my original one will not be damaged) and install the sub facing the inside of the car. The guy said although it won't be day and night difference I'd get better quality bass if it was facing the inside. What do you guys think? Which one should I go for?

Here are the pics to give you an idea on what the inside of my car looks like:

Sub facing the inside:

Sub facing the trunk:

The guy at the audioshop told me something like if the sub faces the boot the bass will first be hitting away from me and then coming into the cabin whereas if the sub faces the inside of the car I'll get more clean bass etc. but i'm not sure //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/confused.gif.e820e0216602db4765798ac39d28caa9.gif

Click to read more...

 

[SSS 18734 5,000+ posts]

It's really hard to tell. I have an inkling that it would sound better facing away from you, but you never know until you try.

There's nothing stopping you from finding out. Just take that box and turn it around. Play around with a few songs and note the differences.

 

[SSS 18734 5,000+ posts]

It's really hard to tell. I have an inkling that it would sound better facing away from you, but you never know until you try.

There's nothing stopping you from finding out. Just take that box and turn it around. Play around with a few songs and note the differences.

 

[abrhino 10+ year member]

why not just face UP and make a nice amprack facing the trunk?

 

[I Like Waffle]

Face it towards the boot in the pic. That ought to throw your english ass for a loop.

 

[EVO 10+ year member]

It's really hard to tell. I have an inkling that it would sound better facing away from you, but you never know until you try.
There's nothing stopping you from finding out. Just take that box and turn it around. Play around with a few songs and note the differences.

The boot of the RX7 is shallow, something like 9.5-10" from top to bottom. We will have to make a custom box and angle the sub. I'm going to get this system made in a shop so if we wanted to test which one sounds better we'd have to use an of the shelf box, remove the tray in the boot so the box fits and then try but I don't think that'd give us an idea on which one is better because of no insulation, tray, etc...

why not just face UP and make a nice amprack facing the trunk?

Facing it up will take more room in a car that already has limited space. I know from people who have done it in the past I either have to sacrifice the whole boot or sacrifice the spare tyre which I don't want. Also I don't know if it'll rattle more if bass keeps hitting the tray in upwards position.

Face it towards the boot in the pic. That ought to throw your english ass for a loop.

Fyi my ass is Turkish/Australian mate //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/biggrin.gif.d71a5d36fcbab170f2364c9f2e3946cb.gif



So what do you think guys? If I'm not mistaken quality factory systems in most luxury and exotic cars like Lexus, Porsche etc. have the sub inside the cabin and/or facing inside the cabin. Although they may be using sissy subs I'm not sure.

 

[cx-7heaven 10+ year member]

Generally, not always, but more often than not, the sub facing to the rear of the car does sound lower, and better. I think it's from reinforcement, and reflections. Matter of fact, I cant remember when it didnt sound better doing it that way. If there are space issues, you can get some of that effect with a reflection board mounted in front of the sub about 4-6 inches away, it may be something worth playing with, as it doesnt take anything to cut out a board and do a temp mount to experiment. Thats an old school trick btw //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

 

[EVO 10+ year member]

Yeah, most people say when sub faces the rear of the car it sounds boomier. Also I'm concerned if I'll hear the subwoofer slap noise if I run the sub inside (facing inside).

So from what I've read so far, sub facing rear:

Pros:

- Boomier and deeper bass

- Less likely to hear distortion etc.

Cons:

- More chance of rattles (tray, number plate etc.)

- Takes more room

- Not visible (this can be a pro also)

Sub facing inside:

Pros:

- Clearer and less boomier bass

- Takes less room

- Both amps and sub can be visible

Cons:

- Bass not as deep

- May attract thiefs

- Possible woofer cone material slap noise

 

[Suicide Bobb 5,000+ posts]

Face it down towards your spare tire. The noise will diffract omnidirectional and hit 3 times as hard.

I kid, I kid.

 

[EVO 10+ year member]

Face it down towards your spare tire. The noise will diffract omnidirectional and hit 3 times as hard.
I kid, I kid.

I was actually thinking to seal it agains the rear window with a suction cap to benefit from solar energy and woofer magnet works better when heated with summer sun //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

 

[abrhino 10+ year member]

these 2 DD 2510s are insanely loud in my buddy justin's 3000GT.. S4 and M3 flushed in the floor. i have never seen it meter lower than 145.5. and clarity on the inside is amazing

 

[Suicide Bobb 5,000+ posts]

I was actually thinking to seal it agains the rear window with a suction cap to benefit from solar energy and woofer magnet works better when heated with summer sun //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

Well duh, we all know audio equipment benefits from heat.