4 slim 8" subs versus 1 slim 12" sub

[HoeBag 10+ year member]

i have a fairly small trunk and since i drive the car every day i prefer to keep the spare tire. given that, i purchased a helix a6 competition amplifier because of the power, sq, and small footprint. it will be mounted against the 'firewall' in the trunk and i have some space beside it for a subwoofer(s). out of haste, or lack of planning, i purchased 4 helix e200 8" slim subwoofers. each requires roughly .5cu ft in a sealed box. i have enough space to have a .75 or 1cu ft ported box on each side of the amp. so 2 8s would be on either side of the amp. OR i can save a little space and go with a 1cu ft ported box on 1 side of the amp for the 12.

here is my dilemma: should i purchase the 12 and try to sell the 8s? will the 1 12 be louder than the 4 8s? will the 12 sound better? or am i just second guessing myself and i should stick with what i have?

specs of the e200 8" sub:

impedance 2x4ohm

fs - 52.1

rms - 110w, max 165w

qts - .79

xmax - 5.5mm

md - 46.3g

sensitivity - 85db

bl - 5.7

vas - 12.9L

specs of the e300 12" sub:

impedance 2x4ohm

fs - 35hz

rms - 400w, max 600w

qts - .57

xmax - 4.75mm

md - 90.8g

sensitivity - 88db

bl - 7.88

vas - 50.2L

specs of the a6 amp:

at 2 Ohms bridged: 1 x 400/640 W channel C +D (12" dvc sub wired to 2ohm)

at 1 Ohm/13,8 V: 2 x 200/320 W channel C +D (2 8" dvc subs wired to 1ohm per channel)

it seems as though the amp is well suited for either the 4 8s or the 1 12.

any help/guidance is appreciated!

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[Jroo 10+ year member]

this depends on the subs you are looking at. I have heard a few slims and some sound good and others sounded really poorly. Some didnt have any real bottom end or lows, but there are a few out there that do pretty well. I have never heard the slims you purchased, but I think they are more than a few 12" that will do very well in a cube and blow 4 slims out. I heard a 1508 in a 1 cube that blew me away. Image Dynamics 12" in a cube have output and do sq. Are you looking for sq or output?

 

[HoeBag 10+ year member]

im going more towards sq, but some output would be nice and enjoyable. i would rather use a traditional sub, but i only have maybe 4-5" of total depth to work with unfortunately. the spare wheel takes up most of the trunk.

 

[RAM_Designs 5,000+ posts]

That xmax looks abysmal for those subs...good luck with whatever you do.

 

[Wingman0121 10+ year member]

Generally speaking two 8 inch subs have about the same cone area as a single 12 inch sub so 4 8s will be about as loud as 2 12s.

I would go with 4 8s, 8 inch subs are kind of like the neglected brother.

 

[RAM_Designs 5,000+ posts]

Actually, a single 12 will have ~20% more cone area than a pair of 8's.

Either way, looking at those specs there is no way I'd even use those 8's(insanely high fs and qts) and no way I'd put that 12 in a ported box. I think the single 12 in a sealed box is your best bet. However, it looks like those 8's will make fairly decent midbass drivers to use IB in the front doors.

 

[Wingman0121 10+ year member]

Get some better 8s if you're gonna go that route.

 

[reflecting 10+ year member]

Or you can do some 6" subs. We have done this setup in trucks a few times. Ran 4-8 6" subs firing down with 500ish rms to them all...you would be amazed at how well a small sub can do when in a properly built box and tuned correctly.

 

[Jroo 10+ year member]

Hey reflecting what 6" subs did you use? I have been looking at the Tang Band and thought 8 sealed might be nice. The only other 6" sub I have heard about was the DD ones. Hoebag, some guys like multiple small set ups like 4 8's or a couple of 10's. I have always had one big sub like a 12 or 15 and a set up midbass that play low enough to keep up. One slim that everyone says really well is the stereo integrity BM mk111. Needs like .05 cube sealed and has a debth of 3.5". I have not heard one bad review about them on any forum. Now a couple of those might be hittin on something. The 8's you have not are more like a midbass then a sub.