Design questions for 12" Kicker L5 in ported box @ 33 Hz

[shaunone]

Hey guys, I was hoping to get some box dimensions for this set-up:

Vehicle : 1997 Toyota 4runner

Location in the vehicle: Back

Space available (Length x Width x Height): Lots

Subwoofer make and model: Kicker L5

Subwoofer Size: 12

Number of Subwoofers: 1

Type of Port (Kerfed, Slot, Aero, etc.): Slot

What type of music do you like?: alternative/electronic

Is your goal SPL or Everyday Music?: Everyday, but I like it loud

Tuning Freq (Hz): 33 (this is a number I've picked from doing a little research, please feel free to offer better suggestions)

Volume : ???

Questions: I am running an alpine MRX-55 to this sub alone, and it should be good for around 500 watts @ 2 ohms. I have the space to build almost any size box, so I am looking for suggestions. What size do you recommend for this sub? Thanks in advance,

Shaun

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[bbeljefe]

That sub won't do well tuned that low. It's an SPL oriented sub that wants a lot of air space to do loud at ~40Hz and it isn't much use for anything below that.

If you already have it, I'd just build a box according to Kicker's recommended specs or just pick up a prefabbed ported box. Those are normally tuned high anyway so it would save you some time and effort.

 

[shaunone]

Thanks for getting back to me so quickly. I am still somewhat unsure of what overall size I should go with. Kicker suggests a 3.25 cu ft box for an SPL set-up tuned to 41 hz, but I'm reluctant to go full SPL. I still want to be able to enjoy music on a daily basis, but I also want to be able to hit pretty deep. I got the sub for super cheap so I just want to make the best of it, if you know what I mean.

 

[n8skow 10+ year member]

Gonna agree, 33hz is is too low for tuning - I'd aim more for 36-38hz for electronic/dubstep, or 40-42hz for rock/country.

 

[shaunone]

You guys are totally right, the more research I do, the more it looks like 37 is where I want to be. That being said, I still have two questions:

How much volume do you recommend?

Is port volume included when calculating total volume? (i.e., most people recommend a 3 cu ft box, so would my actual box be more like 3.5ish, depending on port size?)

 

[n8skow 10+ year member]

What year L5?

D4 or D2?

From the L5 Manual: "For the vented enclosures the displacement of the port must be calculated and added to the internal volume of the final design".

 

[shaunone]

2008 L5

D4

Thanks for finding that quote for me, makes sense!

 

[n8skow 10+ year member]

Based on Kicker's published specs, an enclosure size of 3.25 cubes per woofer (not counting port volume) would yield a Fb of 39.9 hz.

Going larger would drop that down a tad - but you also trade off power handling.