Shop said that doing this would sound like Crap and rattle my car? Your thoughts?

[Chromatic]

Hey guys.. I had my sub setup nailed down for my 2008 350Z,.. (This car is the base model, that does NOT have the bose system, does not have the factory sub, and no navigation).

I was going to purchase THIS custom box that fits in the factory sub compartment (that's empty) behind my driver seat:

Nissan 350z Vehicle Specific Sub Enclosure 1-10"

It fires downward.

I can put an 8" or 10" in it.. I was thinking of just going 8" cause I don't need much bass to be honest. So I was going to put this sub in it:

8W1v2-4 - Car Audio - Subwoofer Drivers - W1v2 - JL Audio

Then put the 150watts RMS on it.

Went to an audio shop locally today,.. and the guy said no way.. that will sound like crap,.. and it will rattle my car like crazy.

He didn't look at the box.. has no idea what the space looks like.. just heard sub in factory slot behind seat.. and said no way.

This is the slot behind the driver seat (This has the bracket/metal to mount the factory sub.. mine is just a square hole..)

Here's someone who's put a similar box into that location (gives you an idea of how big it is):

It fires downward,.. the guy who has the fabrication shop says he tried every angle and that was the best sound.

Now,.. the other option I have is to make it "non stealth" and slap a box in the hatch/trunk area.. taking up space,.. blocking rear vision/view.. and just really doing something I didn't want to do -- something like this:

I have NO doubt this would sound much better for obvious reasons,.. but If I can throw an 8 or 10" in that factory slot as above.. and get some reasonable bass without rattling the car -- That's what I want to do. I understand I'll be probably sacrificing half of the sub's potential in that slot, that is ok with me.

What are your thoughts?

If it will give me some bass, and not rattle -- I want to go with that behind driver seat location.

If there's just no way that's gonna work.. then I will have to go with that strut tower box.

Lastly,.. regardless of which way you recommend -- Would you go 8" sub.. or 10" sub, and why?

I listen to Rock/Alternative. Zero country, Zero Rap if that helps.

Headunit installed is Pioneer AVH-P4100DVD if that is relevant.

Mucho Gracious,

Click to read more...

 

[Jmez36hz]

I would always go the bigger cone space. Although with limited space box volume does play a part. A 10 and 8 put in the same space the 8 will probably be tuned lower. If you have proper air space for the 10 go that route, If not then an 8 with proper box volume will sound better than a 10 in too small of a box. As far as rattling the car goes, depending on the interior of the vehicle almost any sub will give you a little rattle, If there are rattles you can use sound deadening material and or foam and such to try and resolve that. Really too, small rattles often go unnoticed.... the more power the bigger the rattles. In all honesty if it was my car I would **** it up and give up the trunk space for the sub. Generally you want your sub as far from the listening area as possible. Having a sub in the trunk uses the trunk as a bass chamber and actually increases the output a bit. Using the cavity behind your seat will have less output than putting a box in the trunk. Although rock is mostly kick bass and punchy bass will sound fine on an 8 or 10 in a sealed box. I think it will sound decent behind the seat in the little cubbie, but would sound better in trunk. If you are willing to sacrifice some output for trunk space go with the behind the seat trick.

 

[ilikeradios 10+ year member]

I had a JL audio slealth box with 2 JL Audio 10w3's in it ran from a JL 500/1

It sounded really really good and took up very little room in the car.

 

[Chromatic]

Here's the deal with the Custom Box that the guy is making for me -- The JL 10" sub recommends .65 cubic ft of space. The JL 8"w3 (what I would get in the 8" size) recommends .30 cubic feet.

The box ,believe it or not,.. is .66 cubic feet. That space is A LOT bigger than it looks and I think people realize. The box is not a square generic box.. it's custom made from MDF to the exact specifications of that slot behind the seat,.. it feels the slot 100% and will only fit in that slot for obvious reasons.

I'm trying to minimize rattles and crazy bass -- To put it into perspective: I currently have two 6.5" 10watt factory speakers right now. I just want to upgrade that.

I don't want big booming bass.. I know that's sort of an odd thing to hear -- but I just want about the equivalent to some factory 8" sub. A bit of punch down low.. but nothing that you can even notice outside the car much beyond 10feet ..

So,.. the 10" sub seems to fit the enclosure almost to a perfect fit cubic space wise. While the 8" sub would need the enclosure filled (or I'd be running it in a box twice as big as is needed). The 10 would need 250 watts (or that's what I will run on it).. and the 8" (if I went with just the older model 8w1) would only run 150 watts on it.

The 10" makes more sense for the enclosure -- So I guess that's where I'll go.

This is why I'm having issues deciding between the 8 and 10.. The 8 would be drastically less power.. at 150watts vs 250watts on the 10.. BUT, I hear the 10" will play more range of music (even in the rock genre),.. and then there is the whole cubic ft. space that matches the 10 so well.

I love my music,.. but just want a clean sound played at normal volume levels. Nice tight punch from the sub that isn't rattling my hatch and tag.. blending with the mids and tweeters .. nothing overpowering the other. Something that can handle a double bass pedal in a Chevelle song with ease.. play something like Dave Mathews Band "Satellite" crisp, clean, and pure.. and handle the muddled noise of more alternative rock.

This thing will only get turned up beyond normal volume when I install it for a minute just to hear it,.. and to show friends for a minute, then it's back to normal levels. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

I'm going to install this without putting dynomat (or other deadener) throughout the car (I may.. get just a little sound deadener material and put in the door panels around the mids just to help the sound quality, not so much for rattles.) -- And the custom enclosure literally fills that slot 100%, so I couldn't put deadener in it if I wanted to,..now if the hatch rattles, I will end up getting deadener and taking the back end all apart and stuffing it. I don't want to have to need that to be honest, so we shall see what happens. This is a performance sports car as well,.. adding weight is a sin //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

But, I doubt a bit of deadener adds 100 lbs to the car or anything.

-- But again, the idea here is to upgrade my two 6.5" 10watt factory speakers -- so I'm going from two 10 watt factory components to, 2 Image Dynamics 100watt Components, and either an 8" or 10" JL sub. Which should be absolutely WAY more than I am after in sound quality and definitely in "volume".

Thanks for the advice thus far.. and any more opinions are welcome.

 

[Chromatic]

I had a JL audio slealth box with 2 JL Audio 10w3's in it ran from a JL 500/1
It sounded really really good and took up very little room in the car.

Cool. Those stealth boxes are so pricey. I hope this custom box delivers. Though honestly for the bit of bass I want.. I think I could put some knock off sub with 40 watts on it and it be enough. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

The w3's are really well built subs compared to the W0/W1 lines.. Which makes a substantial difference in sound quality, but also longevity of the subs.

 

[DARKHART 10+ year member]

We've installed a pair of those boxes in a convertible Z and we used a pair of the Focal KX27 11 inchers. We had to mod it just a little but they sounded great in those boxes. If fact we ended up getting the boxes back because he wrecked the car and they are in the stock room ready to be sold to someone.....

SRQ Customs is Ryan's shop and he's one of the best custom fab guys in the business......

 

[T3mpest 10+ year member]

Sounds like OP has a decent plan. What amp are you planning on using? Did u want to amp your nee front speakers too.. if so since your not looking for much power from the sub a 4 channel amp would do perfect, bridge the rears channels to power your sub.. also what are yoi paying for the w1. There may be better subs that fit your budget that will go better with those speaker.

Edit: I checked your link. for 160 dollars for the love of god PLEASE get a Dayton Ho10 from parts express. It's cheaper and a much nicer sub.. to put it into perspective Id take the HO over a w6, although that would be close. W7 would be louder, but wouldnt be as punchy either which is why I compared it to a w6.

 

[Chromatic]

We've installed a pair of those boxes in a convertible Z and we used a pair of the Focal KX27 11 inchers. We had to mod it just a little but they sounded great in those boxes. If fact we ended up getting the boxes back because he wrecked the car and they are in the stock room ready to be sold to someone.....SRQ Customs is Ryan's shop and he's one of the best custom fab guys in the business......

Awesome. Someone who's put one (or two in your case) of these custom boxes in a Z (even if it is a convertible and mine is coupe),.. and knows what it sounds like.

Might I ask what size sub (and if you can remember what type/power?) -- I'm trying to gauge how much this SINGLE sub in that box firing downward is going to sound and more over IF it will rattle the car and reasonable volume levels without trying to dynamat the vehicle.

Give me any info you remember on how they sounded.. and 'rattle/noise wise' how it was?

Ryan is a smart guy. I've gone back and forth a few times with some emails of questions about the enclosure.. and he knows his stuff.. was just telling all about the efficiency rating of subs.. ie: dB per watt.. and giving me some examples in the JL Audio range of subs I'm after. I have just a few closing questions I need him to respond to then I'm ordering the box. I'd have already ordered it, but I'm letting him make the final choice on for my application and needs which JL sub to go with (8 or 10).. and of the 8 or 10, which model.. (Obviously I can't do a w6.. but if he says I really need to go w3 on the 8 for example,.. that's what I'll do.). And,.. obviously the 8 v 10 are two different cutout sizes and both require different cubic ft. of space. So he makes the boxes to order,.. so I need to get the sub nailed down to then order and have it cutout for 8 or 10, .. Going with 10 the box as it sits doesn't need modification. Going with 8" it will need to be filled, as the 8" needs 0.375cubic ft of space vs the 10" needing .65 cubic feet. (Ryan's custom Z box is .66 cubic ft.)

Thanks, Dark.

 

[Jeffdachef 5,000+ posts]

Sounds like OP has a decent plan. What amp are you planning on using? Did u want to amp your nee front speakers too.. if so since your not looking for much power from the sub a 4 channel amp would do perfect, bridge the rears channels to power your sub.. also what are yoi paying for the w1. There may be better subs that fit your budget that will go better with those speaker.
Edit: I checked your link. for 160 dollars for the love of god PLEASE get a Dayton Ho10 from parts express. It's cheaper and a much nicer sub.. to put it into perspective Id take the HO over a w6, although that would be close. W7 would be louder, but wouldnt be as punchy either which is why I compared it to a w6.

x2 on this but sounds like the OP is just completely set on getting JL audio sub. He doesn't know how times have changed and JL's just riding on their reputation from back then and plenty of subs can do JLs job but better and cheaper and have been proven over and over to be amazing and durable performers. JL isn't the only company that knows how to make a quality and durable sub for SQ and is no where near the top of the line. He's pretty open minded about everything else in the system except for the sub lol.

anyways back on topic, i think the stock factory location box would be fine, make sure you seal everything up with weatherstrip foam tape and Closed cell foam and some sound deadening. if it still rattles after the install, you can always identify where it is later and kill the rattles with more foam and deadening. Its only an 8 or 10 inch sub... your not gonna have anywhere close to the amount of output that will make your car rattle, if anything you'll be pretty underwhelmed but i'm guessing thats totally okay as long as its not rattling for you.

 

[Chromatic]

Sounds like OP has a decent plan. What amp are you planning on using? Did u want to amp your nee front speakers too.. if so since your not looking for much power from the sub a 4 channel amp would do perfect, bridge the rears channels to power your sub.. also what are yoi paying for the w1. There may be better subs that fit your budget that will go better with those speaker.

I've been asking tons of questions,.. researching, shopping.. even gone around locally (that was worse than expected).. basically really doing my homework on this before I start.

But that's exactly what I'm doing. Running 6.5" components up front at 100watts RMS,.. and the sub as mentioned here. On a 4 channel amp.. channel 3 and 4 bridged for the sub.

I even moved to a Class D amp after a ton of reading and recommendation. I will probably go with PPI,.. but here are the two amps (one of which I'll be purchasing)

Kenwood eXcelon (And the link doesn't mean it's the one I'm buying //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif )

Kenwood XR400 4 Excelon Four Channel Amp Car Amplifier Small Footprint XR4004 | eBay

or

PPI 900.4

Precision Power PPI P900.4 (p9004) 4-Channel Phantom Car Amplifier

But.. you know what -- I Just noticed there is a PPI 900.5 amp. Tempting!

PPI 900.5

Precision Power PPI P900.5 (p9005) 5-Channel Phantom Car Amplifier

The PPI 900.5 is about the same price as the 900.4,.. and it runs 70watts x 4 RMS , and 440watts x 1 for sub. Now,.. the only reason this peaked my interest just now was because I have a great set of MBquart (mid 90's model) 6.5" co-axials that are rated for 70watts RMS.. and absolutely scream. I had them in an old system, removed them before I sold the car and have stored them since. These are the great quality MB Quarts when they were still made in Germany (before Rockford Fosgate bought them). Which would allow me to put rear speakers in the slots behind me (that I was otherwise just going to ignore).

If I went with this PPI 900.5 .. I'd be putting 70watts RMS on 80Watt JBL MS-62C components up front (10 short).. JBL MS-62C (MS62C) 6-1/2" 2-Way MS Component Car Speakers System

And matching the MBquarts watt for watt.. and having a ton of headroom for sub of course.

Plus, bonus, the PPI 900.5 comes with a bass knob, something I sort of wanted.

Think it's a better choice to go with 4 channel PPI amp, and run with more headroom on the front components and not have any rear speakers (in the 2 seater 350z) .. or go with the 5 channel PPI amp and run the fronts with 70watts (10 short of their rated 80watt rms).. and throw my MBQuarts in the rear slots behind seats?

Edit: I checked your link. for 160 dollars for the love of god PLEASE get a Dayton Ho10 from parts express. It's cheaper and a much nicer sub.. to put it into perspective Id take the HO over a w6, although that would be close. W7 would be louder, but wouldnt be as punchy either which is why I compared it to a w6.

The links I give aren't really the bottom price I"m paying for any of my stuff.. they are just links I have bookmarked to keep up with all the different options,.. when I buy I'll shop on everything a bit and save 10-20+ dollars or more on each component. The JL 10" sub is going to run be $100 ,. If I went with a w3 8" JL sub (which is still possible) it's obviously going to be more.. and I"ll pay something like $160 for the w3 quality. I have this feeling Ryan is going to tell me to run with the 10" JL sub,.. due to how it fits in the enclosure,.. so if I had to guess right now,.. I'll probably end up spending $100 on the JL 10" sub,.. the enclosure is $100 even as well.

 

[Jeffdachef 5,000+ posts]

i would not put a bass knob into the system unless you have an oscope or an DD-1 distortion detector and set your gains completely correct with the knob, headunit and amp gains all working well together to not have any distortion in the signal

 

[Chromatic]

jeffdachef: Heh,.. yeah I'm a little stubborn on the JL for sub.. yeah it's due to great experience with them, but I'll admit it's in the past. They are still cheap,.. I mean $100 for a 10" sub just doesn't sound bad to me. And I expect $100 sound to be honest. I've been locked into JL this long, might as well just stick with the plan and not muck it up with figuring out alternative brand subs to go with. I mean, JL doesn't just stink now I assume. I assume the JL will probably get a little "sloppy" on it's mechanics after a year or two.. but at the low volumes I'll be using it at.. I won't be hammering it ever. Worst case scenario,.. I've thought about it -- If the sub or sub box doesn't work out.. in the future I can do something else and resell for some recoup of money on the box and sub. The sub and box are frankly some of the cheaper elements of the build.

As for sound deadening, etc.. on the custom sub enclosure area.. there isn't any extra room to sound deaden in that location.. box fits the entire area.. you squeeze that sucker in there literally. And as you say,.. yes.. if some rattles come up, I'll go back and tackle them bit by bit.

I will most likely buy some door deadener material and put it on the doors in some manner while installing just for preventative measures.. but elsewhere I won't be putting deadener initially.

Oh, and what do you think about my PPI 900.4 vs PPI 900.5 decision now?

 

[Jmez36hz]

Really with a newer car like that, and with the amount of power you will be running I can't imagine it causing much rattle if any. Having your music turned up enough to get a rattle your rompin mids and highs will quite possible drown out any rattle there is. I think you will have yourself one musical, clean system. A 10 in a sealed box like that will be perfect to add some kick and a little bump without being unbalanced and bottom heavy in my opinion.

 

[Jeffdachef 5,000+ posts]

go with the 5 channel ppi since your not looking to upgrade anything anytime soon, plenty of power for the sub, no need to hook addition monoblocks, cleaner install.