Free Air?

[helotaxi 5,000+ posts]

Just to clarify
Free-air isnt' something you want. A free air setup would have no baffle between the front and rear waves. It's essentially setting the speaker down without any sort of enclosure and powering it up, meaning you'd get little to no output.

Infinite baffle is just about the same thing, except that you isolate the front and rear waves. This is an actual enclosure type. Free-air isn't.

All that "free air" means is that there is no enclosure effect on the speaker. It doesn't mean that there is no baffle neccessarily. In car audio, the two have been used interchangably pretty much forever. Kicker even had a series of sub called "Free air." Infinite baffle is simply a free air install where the front a rear waves are fully seperated by definition.

 

[beckSHO 10+ year member]

Well, after spending some time in my trunk (something every man must go through) I have made a couple conclusions....

1) An 8" sub won't work. The opening isn't big enough, and because of the design it wouldn't be able to sit properly if I cut it out.

2) Seems to me that, the 6x9 sub, or the ED mini-sub would be my best bet.

Now, I have a few questions...

1) If I decided to go with that ED mini-sub, how much bass response should I plan on? I'd most likely go with one of them to start with. If I desire more, I'll get some after I get the money.

2) What kind of power should I be giving those ED's with an infinite baffle setup?

3) How bad of an idea is this? Buy a set of 6x9 components, mount the "woofers" in the back, and use the tweets in the stock location up front. Would this give me good bass response? I know that it will be TONS clearer.

4) Would just a normal set of 6x9's with an amp give me good enough sound and bass response?

Again, I DO NOT WANT A SUBWOOFER BOX. I am looking to save as much space as possible. But I still want a little bit more than what my stock system has to offer. So, please, I'm looking for some advice here. Thanks.

 

[cleanblaze01 10+ year member]

here are the three way 6x9's i was talking about..

http://www.cadencestore.com/ProductCart/pc/caraudio_detail.asp?idcategory=80&idproduct=220

they come with a crossover and everything...i heard them today in a monte carlo and they sound clear as hell...not to mention with awesome bass response!!! and they guy was only giving them 80 watts..

 

[linvillegorge 10+ year member]

$449??!! for some gimmicky 3 ways?! OMFG!!!

 

[SidneyCarton]

$449??!! for some gimmicky 3 ways?! OMFG!!!

bear in mind MSRP is probably not even close to what you'll pay on the street for them. Dealers usually sell well below MSRP. As far as "gimmicky" I dunno, they're very solid and sell very well.

 

[phyphoestilic 5,000+ posts]

Why dont u just get one of the smaller sus and put it onto the rear dash, than build a smaller enclosure under it.

 

[audioholic 5,000+ posts]

All that "free air" means is that there is no enclosure effect on the speaker. It doesn't mean that there is no baffle neccessarily. In car audio, the two have been used interchangably pretty much forever. Kicker even had a series of sub called "Free air." Infinite baffle is simply a free air install where the front a rear waves are fully seperated by definition.

*claps*

I get so tired of people arguing the wording when someone asks about a 'free air' setup. Back in the old days when I first go into car audio, IB setups were much more common, and practically everyone called them 'free air'. Like you said, Kicker even had a model that name. But today its not politically correct to use the term, it seems.