My '91 Toyota MR2 12inch Sub Box Design --EXPERT OPINIONS PLEASE--

[hmong337 10+ year member]

I want to build two of these enclosures. One behind each seat.

Top depth: 3"

Bottom depth: 14"

Width: 18"

Height: 26"

Using 3/4 MDF, it should give me a volume of around 2 cubes. I want to tune it for 32hz. I listen to hip-hop/rap and I want this box to pound those low deep bass lines. I'm looking for around 700-800rms. That should be sufficient in my 2-seater cabin (I think).

I will be running these if I go ahead with this project.

PIONEER TS-W1207D4 (TSW1207D4)

12" DUAL 4-Ohm PREMIER Series 1200W SUBWOOFER

HOWEVER, a car club buddy of mine (also has an MR2) said that our cabin is too small for 12" subs to sound good... Even if it's in a proper box! He also mentioned something about our car's "transfer function" and not having enough cabin volume, or length, to utilize the 12" subs wavelength?

Is this true?

EDIT:

for those of you that wanted to see pics of my car. i don't have a very good camera...

Click to read more...

 

[MTXman 10+ year member]

Not at all. Don't listen to the guy, he's an idiot.

Often times, smaller cabins get louder than larger ones in fact. Resonant frequency can have an effect on a driver's performance in a certain vehicle, but size is not a constant in any such factor.

With 2 cubes tuned that low, you'll have a ton of bass for that little cabin and the size of the car won't effect the driver's sq "performance" noticeably if at all.

 

[hmong337 10+ year member]

Not at all. Don't listen to the guy, he's an idiot.

Often times, smaller cabins get louder than larger ones in fact. Resonant frequency can have an effect on a driver's performance in a certain vehicle, but size is not a constant in any such factor.

With 2 cubes tuned that low, you'll have a ton of bass for that little cabin and the size of the car won't effect the driver's sq "performance" noticeably if at all.

thank you for the prompt reply.

in your opinion, do you think this setup will sound good? anything you want to suggest to make it a little better? i mean, it's by far no means a stereo blasting car. i just love my bass and music loud.

 

[Railrocker 10+ year member]

Is that rear engine like the old fiero (sp?) ?

 

[93EXT 10+ year member]

Front trunk //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

Bro, did you ever hear my car? That thing pounded and it had 10's. I know plenty about MR2's as you know and more about audio.

One thing you are forgetting here is to factor in the cars transfer function. There is not enough volume in that car NOR length for that matter to maximize the wavelengh you'll get from a 12". Not only that, but I assure you with even a 10" it makes for a very unpleasant ride. Ever been on a plane with some jackass behind you pounding his knee in the back of your seat? You are taking a lot of THEORY of 12's and applying it to a practical world that I assure you will end in dissapointment.

And I'll tell you this. You cut that bloddy car and I'll kill you myself!

Mike

Just read that on the other site and laughed.

 

[hmong337 10+ year member]

Is that rear engine like the old fiero (sp?) ?

Yes

 

[morgans432 10+ year member]

love these cars and they are getting harder and harder to find. Turbo one?

 

[Railrocker 10+ year member]

Why not use the front cargo?

 

[hmong337 10+ year member]

Front trunk //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

I really don't want to go with a "frunk" setup... I like my spare tire for "just in case shit happens" situations //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif plus, i think they're kind of tacky...

 

[Railrocker 10+ year member]

Ok, just an option.

I would run sealed and use AS MUCH room as you can possibly muster, Fiberglass the rear of the enclosure to get as much internal space as possible and use an MDF baffle for the front.

 

[hmong337 10+ year member]

love these cars and they are getting harder and harder to find. Turbo one?

no, no turbo for this one. although i had a turbo mr2 before. let me tell you, those turbo mr2's are maintenance hungry money pits! never again...

 

[tez4life Premium Member]

I dont have anything to add to the subject, but......

I just wanted to tell the original poster thats a very, very clean MR2, I am quite jealous.//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

 

[poundindak69]

Front trunk //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif




Just read that on the other site and laughed.

i got a real laugh out of that, i wonder what he would of said to me about putting a 15 in a single cab truck.LOL

 

[PowerNaudio 10+ year member]

you're lucky you have so much room for a sub in your mr2, i have a fiero, in which i installed a center console subwoofer, in a .7cuft enclosure, and it pounded. so you having just as small of a cabin in your mr2 but a bigger area for a subwoofer enclosure, i know that car has to get balls out loud with two 12" subs, even if you go with just one, it will be loud. it may not be spl competition loud. but you'll see that every one that seats in there to get a listen to it, is going to love it. good luck with your project. post some pics of the install if you do get it going.

 

[DarkFox 10+ year member]

your top post is kinda misleading as you said 2.2 cubes. I think that is a total number you were shooting for but the way its written looks like per enclosure. Either that or I am too tired to help... lol. Anyway.

I used this calculator

http://www.the12volt.com/caraudio/boxcalcs.asp#wed2

and plugged your numbers into box "Volume Calculator - Wedge Enclosures 2" as it sounds like thats closest to your dimensions you gave and got 1.6^3ft. Knock out woofer displacement and any decent sized port, and your looking at close to 1cube ported box. VERY small for any 12. For better sound quality I would really consider going in the largest sealed you can get per side. When you get small ported box's, you loose alot of the benefit you would usually gain from going larger ported, which is the higher gain @ lower freq.

This is hard to explain if you haven't seen what these number look like on a graph.

1. Go download win isd.

http://www.linearteam.dk/

2. Take a generic woofer as close to what you want to get, (or look up the specs and program them yourself

3. Just play with the enclosure size and tunning and you will be able to SEE what I am talking about, even with a low tunning, in a small ported box, you usually don't see a gain at the lower bass frequency's (at least not more then a sealed.)

-Program a box with a tunning freq of say 30Hz. Make it 1 cubic foot and look at what freq on the graph it cross's the -3db mark. Now change nothing exept volume, say to 3 cubic feet, observe the -3db again, this difference is what I am talking about. Also, you can then make a new project, without closing your old one, see what the plot for the woofer looks like in a sealed box. Look at what the 1.6 sealed looks like next to a 1cube ported.

Before anyone rags on that. YES, WinIsd does not give in car numbers, but NO the numbers are not useless. They are how THE BOX will affect a properly programed in driver. what alot of people forget when they badmouth winIsd graphs:

IF THE ENCLOSURE IS WRONG TO BEGIN WITH, THE TYPE OF CAR BECOMES SUPERFLUOUS INFORMATION.