American Bass HD 12s - Ported or 4th order for daily?

[ancorp 10+ year member]

This is what I have:

Two HD12s

3kw power

Mazda 3 sedan

Max net room I can squeeze after port and driver displacement is around 6-6.3 cubes. Thats with removing plastic trim, and rear seats to slide the box in.

Do I go ported or 4th order? I want it loud and relatively flat 25-80hz or so. I love my lows.

So I could fit a 6 cube ported box at 30hz or a 2 cube sealed 4 cube ported at ??Hz 4th order.

Tips? Experiences with these woofers in 4th and ported?

I do have a 4 cube net ported box with a 6" aero at 33hz, but I'm guessing one 6" port isn't enough?

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[winkychevelle 10+ year member]

I would try the box you have first mine was great in 2cubes at 32hz but if I were to build anothe box it would be 2.5 per sub tuned to 30hz. I had mine on 2k so the 3k you have should be nice but you have room if you wanted to go with more power.

I never tried 4th order I know the xfls are great in a fourth

 

[LosIsATool 5,000+ posts]

I don't see a proper 4th fitting

 

[ancorp 10+ year member]

Right now I have one of them in 2.5 cubes at 30hz with a 4" aero and it plays great but is choking on port area. So a 5 cube at 30 hz box would indeed be great.

How big would a 4th order need to be? Has anyone here ran these in a 4th before?

 

[SounDrive Pro Seller]

2:1 ratio of the ported to sealed chamber or larger would be needed.. I know a lot of people go as far as a 4:1 ratio. They take a ton of space if done correctly.

Also I'm not sure about the HDs, but I know the XFLs are extremely stiff and don't exactly perform great in 4th orders from what I've heard. I'm not sure how the suspension on the HDs compares to them, though.

 

[Lowlacs 10+ year member]

I can only speak of the xfls, mine do well in a 2to1 4th. Im 2.2 sealed 4.6 ported with Adjustable port. 96" of port for 40hz and reducer for 78" of port at 36hz daily. At 36hz with 2k rms they shake like crazy in the low 20s and slam well into the 40s.

 

[ancorp 10+ year member]

Hmm, I might be able to squeeze in a box a bit smaller then your XFL box.

But the real question is, will it be louder then going with a 5 cube ported box?

 

[Lowlacs 10+ year member]

Considering the hd has a bigger motor I cant see them doing very well in less than 2cubes on sealed section. My advise would be to go ported, its much less complicated and u know what to expect. It took me several tries to get the 4th order right.

 

[RangerDangerV2 5,000+ posts]

Considering the hd has a bigger motor I cant see them doing very well in less than 2cubes on sealed section. My advise would be to go ported, its much less complicated and u know what to expect. It took me several tries to get the 4th order right.

that makes no sense... larger motor=works better in a smaller box. More motor force will make up for the lack of efficiency of a small enclosure.

 

[Lowlacs 10+ year member]

that makes no sense... larger motor=works better in a smaller box. More motor force will make up for the lack of efficiency of a small enclosure.

I dont mean to mislead anyone man, I just thought the 2 larger motors with more displacement may not work well in a less than 2cube sealed section of a 4th order. I dont claim to be a professional, I merely stated my results with the xfls in my current enclosure. If ever I get it wrong Im sure someone will correct, me as u did.

 

[SounDrive Pro Seller]

Also make sure to measure your trunk opening... You can't fit a larger box than your trunk opening, no matter how big your actual trunk is.

 

[gckless 5,000+ posts]

Just want to throw this out there: most people that "love lows" that think they want a flat response, don't want a flat response.

But I would go ported tuned to 32-35Hz if it was me.