I'm attempting to do the impossible and fit a 12" Massive Audio Hippo XL 122r 3000watt rms subwoofer (8" mounting depth) into my ram regular cab pick up. I've had two 12" audio pipe 900watt subs in it (one behind each seat) but this time I want to make sure I put the massive audio in a ported enclosure that is at the least minimum cubic feet (1.7 to 2.8 cf) that the manufacturer recommends. Obviously I'll need to construct a custom box. How important is it to stick to the size and how big of difference would I experience between a minimum (1.7)and recommended (2.8) cubic foot box. If I ended up with a 1.5 cf box, would that be the end of the world?
So far I have purchased the subwoofer, a Highfonics Brutus BRX 3016.1D 3000watt rms amp, a Stinger SPP 1700amp battery, the wire is already 0 gauge from the main battery to my current amp as well as the groundwire. I also have a big 3 kit to upgrade the rest of my wires under the hood,8 gauage speaker wire and plenty of nvx sound deadener. The truck has a stock 600watt alpine system that is sufficient for my current set up but will probably need to be upgraded once I step the bass up by 2100watts.
How does everything sound so far? Anything I'm missing? Any thoughts on the box enclosure? Should I put it behind the passenger seat or in the middle behind the center console with the speaker facing up. Should I go with 3/4 inch MDF or will I need thicker for that many watts.
I've been causualy messing with car audio for almost 20 years and other than basic installs, I'm pretty amature at it still so bare with me. I'll attach a photo of the current set up so you can see the amount of room I have to work with. The boxes are 11 inches deep at the bottom, 7 inches at top, 16 inches tall by 15 inches wide (roughly 1.25cf).
