Need big help with sub integration into factory stereo

[JasonK94Z 10+ year member]

*Everything is fixed up now. Called AudioControl. Inquired about the LC2i LOC with their Accubase deal. Went ahead and ordered one after they suggested that would fix me up. Also tapped into my front speakers for the signal instead of the rears. Then made a call to Powerbass about my box. Awesome customer service over there. The guy simulated my box and my sub using my net volume. Told me to take the polyfill out of it.

Hooked everything up today. WOW! The bass is huge now. Huge bass with the satellite radio and mp3's!! Thanks everyone who replied with advice and things to look for. It got my wheels turning in my head and made me get off my butt and start trying to fix this thing. Nothing worse than spending money, thinking your doing things right, and in the end it ends up *******. Maybe it was hooking it up to the front channels that fixed it, maybe it was using the AudioControl LC2i. Either way, its fixed, and the adjustments on that LOC do work!

2011 Dodge Ram 1500 Quad Cab

Factory Head Unit

Dash - Kicker tweeters

Front Door - Kicker 6x9 midbass

Rear Door - Kicker 6x9 2 way

The Kicker speakers were installed in the truck as part of a Mopar/Kicker upgrade accessory.

I built a fiberglass sub box to go under the right rear seat. It is about .65 cu ft and sealed. It houses a Powerbass L-104D 10" DVC sub. I have it wired up as 2 ohms. The sub is hooked up to a Alpine MRX-M50 amp which should provide up to 500 watts rms. I also hooked up a Alpine gain control knob mounted on the dash. The amp can use line level inputs and has auto on sensing, so I tapped into the rear speakers for that. Added polyfill to the box to help with volume (supposedly).

The problems:

First - the disappointment in sound of the sub. I listen to music such as Stone Temple Pilots. The sub doesnt hit all that hard with the kickdrum. The sub gets real "buzzy" sounding. I have the low pass on the amp set to 80 Hz, still gets "buzzy" sounding. Even lowered it to 60 Hz.

Put in something like Black Eyed Peas, and the boom boom hits hard, but thats my wifes music, not mine.

I have played and played with the setting on the factory head unit and at the amp, and nothing seems to make the sub sound right.

I swapped the subs speaker wires around at the box and this seemed to help a little, but not very much. Why does it sound better 180 degrees out of phase? The excursion went from hige to much smaller with it this way.

Second - When I shut the head unit off I get a horrible low frequency tone that is very loud and non stop. WTF? It eventually stops doing that after about 30 seconds.

Also, I attempted to adjust the gain with a multimeter and a 50 Hz tone. Should have around 31.6 volts AC at the sun outputs, could only get around 16 volts ac with the gain maxed! Not right I believe.

I am at a loss at this point. I have been working my arse off all day to install all of this, and the results are crap. Honestly, the stereo sounds better without the sub at this point. I dont know what to do, and feel like I have wasted a lot of time building the box, and spending the money for the amp, wiring kit, sub, etc.

I want to blame the head unit, the line level inputs, the box too. Maybe a ported premade box from fox acoustics would have been better that a sealed for rock music? I'm an amature at this system stuff, so what do I know.

Please help me!

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[mclerico83 5,000+ posts]

only way to find out it either build a new box or get a better sub, not a big fan of powerbass subs. when you push on the sub does it come up fast or slow

 

[mclerico83 5,000+ posts]

Amazon.com: SD-2 10D4 - Sundown Audio 10" Dual 4-Ohm Subwoofer: Car Electronics

sub like this would be my choice

 

[JasonK94Z 10+ year member]

only way to find out it either build a new box or get a better sub, not a big fan of powerbass subs. when you push on the sub does it come up fast or slow

What little I can push down on it, it comes right back up when I let go of it.

 

[blazeplacid 10+ year member]

do you have any other type of speaker laying around?

A 6.5" or any type of speaker that can somewhat handle low notes?

Hook that up to your amp and try it

does the amp have a phase switch?

It cleared up an issue my friend had. He had no idea that switch could help.

where is your ground?

 

[JasonK94Z 10+ year member]

No phase switch. I flipped the speaker wires around and that helped a little.

The ground from the amp is attached to the floorboard. I drilled a hole, sanded the paint away, and bolted it down.

 

[JasonK94Z 10+ year member]

Anyone else? Anything to try before buying a new sub and a new premade box?

I'm thinking the subs box may be too small. The word I was looking for when I said "sounds buzzy" is that it resonates at a higher frequency.

Also, I'm thinking I might buy a PAC module that will give me rca outs from the back of my factory head unit. Get rid of that line level chit.

 

[IonRL205 10+ year member]

Sounds like you have a ground problem

 

[JasonK94Z 10+ year member]

Sounds like you have a ground problem

What else to do then? I ran the ground to the floorboard. Drilled a hole, ground all the paint off, bolted the ground wire down. Other Ram owners have done this with no problems.

 

[IonRL205 10+ year member]

What else to do then? I ran the ground to the floorboard. Drilled a hole, ground all the paint off, bolted the ground wire down. Other Ram owners have done this with no problems.

I had this same problem, system didn't seem like it was putting out the sound it was supposed to, and I wasn't putting out the right volts either. Turns out a friend who had helped me didn't tighten the ground down.

What LOC are you using as well?

 

[JasonK94Z 10+ year member]

I had this same problem, system didn't seem like it was putting out the sound it was supposed to, and I wasn't putting out the right volts either. Turns out a friend who had helped me didn't tighten the ground down.
What LOC are you using as well?

No LOC. The Alpine amp takes line level inputs or rca's.

 

[quackhead 10+ year member]

Anyone else? Anything to try before buying a new sub and a new premade box?
I'm thinking the subs box may be too small. The word I was looking for when I said "sounds buzzy" is that it resonates at a higher frequency.

Also, I'm thinking I might buy a PAC module that will give me rca outs from the back of my factory head unit. Get rid of that line level chit.

sounds like you have amp power issues power or ground, or signal even.. if you can't even get the output it is supposed to produce, and with the noise issues you stated. The box should have a f3 @ mid 40's It is not going to be a low end monster at high volume. Like you said, it played well in on upper bass notes, bit sounds like it is falling off too fast on the lower notes. I would fix the electrical/or signal issues and maybe try some EQ before blaming the sub. I have had good success with them in boxes over 1 cube and even better ported. Narrow it down to the sub/box 100% and then do what you must...might try about @ 3/4 pound of poly fill stuffing to help with resonances and output.

 

[IonRL205 10+ year member]

sounds like you have amp power issues power or ground, or signal even.. if you can't even get the output it is supposed to produce, and with the noise issues you stated. The box should have a f3 @ mid 40's It is not going to be a low end monster at high volume. Like you said, it played well in on upper bass notes, bit sounds like it is falling off too fast on the lower notes. I would fix the electrical/or signal issues and maybe try some EQ before blaming the sub. I have had good success with them in boxes over 1 cube and even better ported. Narrow it down to the sub/box 100% and then do what you must...might try about 3/4 pound of poly fill stuffing to help with resonances and output.

you've got it the other way around, it plays the bassy notes fine, just not his high kick drums for his rock music.

 

[quackhead 10+ year member]

hmm...my bad, I was thinking maybe the lows were missing and the higher freq. buzzing is coming from the line level inputs.

 

[JasonK94Z 10+ year member]

The deep boom boom from Black Eyed Peas and such is there. The higher frequency stuff sounds like resonance (buzzy).

Got half a mind to just run it to a stereo shop and let them deal with it, or pull all this chit out and sell it LOL