New Subs? New Box? Help.

[GaresTaylan 10+ year member]

Just looking for some feedback. I'll admit, since I left retail a couple years ago I havent followed car audio as much as I used to... so Im not sure what companies have rebounded, stayed the same, and sunk in terms of quality products.

Current setup is in sig. I have been fairly happy with the overall quality, but the subs have begun to bother me the more I listen to them. Obviously every song isnt the same, but when I had these in my Mustang I just feel like they provided more enjoyment.

Some songs slam, sound great... other songs that used to in the mustang.. now only sound decent... some sound horrible. I constantly find myself adjusting the sub control and frequency depending on each artist I want to listen to it seems. In my old car, I would do this once in a blue moon and was content.

Only differences:

-Old box was sealed, subs didnt have enough air space. New box is ported, plenty of air space.

-Switched from Eclipse CD7100 to Kenwood DNX8120.

-2004 Ford Mustang to 2007 Dodge Charger.

Should I switch to a sealed box? Do I need to look at different subs? I may get slammed for this, but I always enjoyed the L7's back in the day. Are these still decent? I honestly feel like a single pre-loaded L7 from Kicker would sound better than the two CVX's I have in the custom box. Any feedback is appreciated.

Click to read more...

 

[GaresTaylan 10+ year member]

Bump please.

 

[csu87 10+ year member]

sealed usually gives you better sq, so if thats what you are after then go sealed. also, different cars sound different

 

[okiedokie 10+ year member]

old kicker was good

newer kickers ****, yes they ****

for the money you find better sounding subs, like RE Audio, FI Audio, AudioQue, do a little searching.

so why did you switch eclipse out for a kenwood??

just because your box is ported now doesnt mean it will sound better.

I like ported & sealed boxes.

it just depends on how well it's made, the wood you use like 3/4 mdf, adding a layer of fiberglass resin to it, the right size box for you sub.

porting a box is a good way to go as well, but make sure it tuned right for the sub that your'e going to be useing.

 

[ngsm13 5,000+ posts]

My box probably sucks //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif...

Maybe try a pair of 12's sealed, off the same amp you have...

nG

 

[GaresTaylan 10+ year member]

so why did you switch eclipse out for a kenwood??

Wanted an in dash GPS. Hated the Eclipse NAVs and the Kenwood was all I could really find with high volt pre-outs, an interface I could tolerate, nice controls and decent NAV (Garmin).

My box probably sucks //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif...
Maybe try a pair of 12's sealed, off the same amp you have...

nG

Everything you make sucks. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/biggrin.gif.d71a5d36fcbab170f2364c9f2e3946cb.gif//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

 

[thegreatestpenn 5,000+ posts]

maybe try a different kinda box, those cvx's should get loud

 

[GaresTaylan 10+ year member]

Think I figured out my issue... def looks like its box related. Here are the specs from Kicker's site...

Min Rec Sealed Box Volume (CU. FT., Liters) .8,

Max Rec Sealed Box Volume (CU. FT., Liters) 3.0

Min Rec Vented Box Volume (CU. Ft., Liters)** 1.25

Max Rec Vented Box Volume (CU. Ft., Liters)** 1.75

It looks like the sub was built to around max specs for a sealed enclosure but was made ported.

I stopped at a buddy's house over the weekend... he has a Magnum with 2x12" CVXs... has them in a dual sealed box.. about 1cu ft per sub... and it POUNDS. He running everything off a low end sony headunit as well.

So I will try switching the box out here and see how it goes. Thanks for the feedback.

 

[mazdakid 5,000+ posts]

So what size is the ported box you have now? A ported box should be bigger, so having them ported in the max sealed specs isnt really a bad thing. You might not be happy going from ported to sealed if you want them to POUND.