Questions about upgrading setup…?

[spokey9 5,000+ posts]

This is what gets me, half the internet claims sealed play lower, and half say ported play lower. Lows are important to me, and so is quality, yet majority of people who do prioritize those still pick ported over sealed. Only people who listen to classical or country, appear to be picking sealed.

I listen to a lot of eletronic and rap and ran sealed in my saturn. Running sealed really depends on the subs being used. Not all subs do well sealed imo. I didn't have space in that car to run ported with my subs so that was my main deciding factor.

If you have a ported box say tuned to 30hz (a good tuning for listening to music) then you'd set your high pass filter (or subsonic filter) to about 25hz. That means anything under 25hz will start rolling off. With ported the lower the tuning the bigger port area you need.

A sealed box doesn't really need a high pass as the box will naturally start rolling off lower frequencies depending on box size and subs.

In my saturn I had 2 15" stereo integrity sql subs sealed with 2 cuft of airspace each with a smart 3 powering them. They could do 18hz with enough force to wobble my door cards.

My subs would have been a lot louder ported at any given frequency down to tuning frequency over being in a sealed box. Honestly I had more than enough out put sealed so that didn't matter to me. That's really where the whole personal preference thing comes in.

Country music (rock too) sounding better is more a function on how impactful your midbass is is (roughly 80hz to 300hz). And truthfully most people unhappy with their stereo and wanting more bass are lacking in the midbass department.

 

[nauc 10+ year member]

This is what gets me, half the internet claims sealed play lower, and half say ported play lower. Lows are important to me, and so is quality, yet majority of people who do prioritize those still pick ported over sealed. Only people who listen to classical or country, appear to be picking sealed.

then buy subs that do well sealed and ported. build 2 boxes. see for yourself

 

[s.abushaikha]

then buy subs that do well sealed and ported. build 2 boxes. see for yourself

I thought about it...

 

[s.abushaikha]

I listen to a lot of eletronic and rap and ran sealed in my saturn. Running sealed really depends on the subs being used. Not all subs do well sealed imo. I didn't have space in that car to run ported with my subs so that was my main deciding factor.

If you have a ported box say tuned to 30hz (a good tuning for listening to music) then you'd set your high pass filter (or subsonic filter) to about 25hz. That means anything under 25hz will start rolling off. With ported the lower the tuning the bigger port area you need.

A sealed box doesn't really need a high pass as the box will naturally start rolling off lower frequencies depending on box size and subs.

In my saturn I had 2 15" stereo integrity sql subs sealed with 2 cuft of airspace each with a smart 3 powering them. They could do 18hz with enough force to wobble my door cards.

My subs would have been a lot louder ported at any given frequency down to tuning frequency over being in a sealed box. Honestly I had more than enough out put sealed so that didn't matter to me. That's really where the whole personal preference thing comes in.

Country music (rock too) sounding better is more a function on how impactful your midbass is is (roughly 80hz to 300hz). And truthfully most people unhappy with their stereo and wanting more bass are lacking in the midbass department.

I believe you, I hear a lot of good things about sealed

 

[spokey9 5,000+ posts]

I believe you, I hear a lot of good things about sealed

You really need a sub that does well sealed...I'm not sure skar has any tbh.

Dayton subs from parts express do really good sealed. The sql subs from stereo integrity are beasts sealed if you put the power to them

 

[Doxquzme Premium Member]

If you run a sealed box, turn the HP (subsonic) filter all the way down or off. That filter is meant to assist in the prevention of over excursion and overworking of the driver in a ported box and has little to no impact in a sealed box. I prefer to stuff my sealed boxes as it sounds better. Not everything you hear is measurable.

My cabin peaks at around 35 hz and using the dual Focal 33v2's in a stuffed and sealed 3.74 cu ft box seems to compliment that very well. Below 30, the drop off becomes rather steep like 6 to 8db. People compliment me all the time on how low it plays and the speed of the attack. I run them at 4 ohms to off an EVOPS 2400.1 which is more than enough.

Secondly, upgrading from dual 10's to dual 12's will give you more of the same using the same brand ann model and the same or more or less of something else, going to the RF box.

Additionally, going to higher wattage subs usually means a decrease in efficiency relative to the gains in cone area so it may be negated by that.,

The RF box you referenced is overpriced and poorly made of 5/8ths MDF. You'll never find anyone of merit using 5/8ths anything for any box.

There are many here that have explained what needs to be done for a substantial increase in both output and quality in an upgraded sub.

.75" MDF (min) or 13 ply birch with preferably a double or triple baffle is the place to start. Proper bracing is a must. Woofers and vents should fire from the same baffle either up or to the rear unless that cannot be done.

Good quality, high efficiency (relatively speaker-ing) in a well built enclosure will provide the best results if using a modestly powered amp, like yours, (1200 watts).

You are probably not going to get that in a prefab setup like the ones mentioned but if you must, take a look at the CT SOunds loaded boxes, for the money, I'd take them over the Skar or the RF products in that $350 to $400 price range.

If you are not willing to cut but can glue and screw, a pair of these will set you back about $420.00

VCW122 Version 3 (VCW122v3) 2400W Peak (1200W RMS) 12" VC-Series v3 Dual 2-Ohm Subwoofer

General Features: 12" Dual 2-ohm VC-Series v3 Car Subwoofer Power Handling: Peak Power Range: 2400 watts RMS Power Range: 1200 watts Impedance: Dual 2 ohm Xmax: 23mm (One-way) Carbon Fiber Enhanced Non-Pressed Paper Cone Custom High Roll foam surround with black nylon stitching Die Cast aluminum...

nvx.com

You could order the GP audio 4 cu ft net box tuned to 29 or 31 hz for about $300 and using the 1200 watt amp you have, should be substantially better sounding and probably a few db louder than the current box.

12" Dual High Output Glue it & Screw It Sub Enclosure

GP Car Audio is a manufacturer of many USA Made ðºð¸ car audio products. We are also a distributor for several top Audio brands including Sundown Audio, XS Power, and Deaf Bonce.

gpcaraudio.com

If you want to upgrade what you have to something that sound like a $1000 or $1500 sub that someone else builds (prefab & loaded), doing it yourself you still have to spend $750 to $1000 bucks, pretty much.