Speaker build/selection question.

[TBlazer06]

Hi all!

I recently picked up a 2006 Trailblazer with the Non-Bose head unit/4-speaker (6.5's in each of the four doors) system. I want to maintain my factory HU(for now) to maintain On-Star and Door Chime functionality. I just don't have the budget right now to afford a new HU along with the required On-Star/Chime maintainer module.

To start my build, I bought a Clarion XC-1410 amp a few days ago. For now, I will use this amp to drive all 4 speakers using the speaker level outputs from my factory HU. I was able to demo this amp at a local shop yesterday, and I must say it sounded pretty darn good when connected to some JBL 6.5 4-ohm Coaxials on one of those wall displays. I have not yet installed it in the Trailblazer.

My questions:

1. As much as can be done with 6.5's, I would like to maximize bass response when selecting the speakers I will use in the doors. In that regard, would I be best served by installing 6.5 woofers in the rear doors, and coaxials or components in the front for clarity/headroom?

2. I've read the stickies here about crossovers, along with posts about the 2-ohm versus 4-ohm debate. The XC-1410 is rated at 50W RMSX4 @ 4-ohms and 75W RMSX4 @ 2-ohms. I want to spend no more than around $400 for 4 speakers. What would you guys recommend?

Many thanks in advance!

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[TBlazer06]

Wanted to update this thread instead of starting a new one:

Since I posted I did some more searching and read a few hundred reviews on different component sets, HU's and coaxials. The amount of information out there is daunting to say the least, but I bit the bullet and made some purchases for my Trailblazer. This is what I have bought and installed so far:

Head Unit: Sony CDX-GS500R

Rear Speakers: Infinity 6032cf's

Front Speakers: JBL P660C's

Amp: Clarion XC-1410

I placed the tweeters in the upper portion of the "A" pillars. The Infinity's and JBL's were a direct bolt in with no modification required. I decided against keeping the On-Star and the chime functionality, so the HU was a straight-forward install. The Clarion Amp fit nicely inside the dash located next to the HU.

The "A" pillar placement of the tweets brought my soundstage to just above dash level, and I have the tweets pivoted to be on axis, aimed at the opposing seating position. I'm very pleased with the sound quality, as everything is crystal clear with no distortion even at the highest volume levels. I'm using the Rear Bass Enhance(RBE) feature(for now) of the Sony HU, and I must say that the Infinity's do an awesome job with the bass in this configuration.

I haven't messed with car audio in many years, as the last Amp I bought and installed was an ADS Powerplate 80(1985'ish), and I must say that what they have done with class "D" technology is amazing! This little Clarion Amp has way better sound quality than I remember the ADS having, but I suppose that speaker tech has come a long way also. I'm definitely catching the audio bug again, and a Sub of some sort will be forthcoming - if I can find something that's no too obtrusive.

One question: Back when I was messing with car audio in the 80's, ported bandpass boxes were all the rage. I remember how good the ported enclosures sounded back then, so I plan on adding one to my Trailblazer in the coming weeks. I remember that there was a cubic foot displacement ratio(of the sub enclosure) based on the diameter of the Sub being used, versus the cubic feet of space inside the vehicle. Should I worry about this to any degree? Or are there premade, ported enclosures that would do the trick?

 

[Jeffdachef 5,000+ posts]

do not go with pre-made ported they are all junk. Measure out the space you want to give up in height x width x depth and report back.

Let us know your budget as well.

 

[TBlazer06]

I have space in the cargo area on the passenger side that I can live without. The basic dimensions are 30" long, by 14" deep, by 14" high(about 3.4 cubic feet). There would need to be some custom shaping done as the wheel-well would intrude into the 14" depth along the last 12" or so of the 30" length.

Between a monoblock amp, Sub, wiring and MDF board/materials, I would like to stay under $500. I have the tools and skills to build a box of my own, but I do not have an in-depth knowledge where the internal construction of a ported, bandpass box is concerned. I don't even know if the above dimensions would lend themselves to a suitable enclosure, but those are the maximums in terms of space. I don't need a competition box. SQ is the main concern here.

Many thanks for the reply!

 

[bhom920]

I'm thinking of purchasing the JBL P660C's and i was wondering why you didn't go for a full set of them all around? or go with the P662 coaxials for the rear? How are you liking them? I'll be using a similar class D amp made by alpine (KTP-445U). A little less power on the 2ohm side, but i think they should perform similar. Thanks

 

[TBlazer06]

I'm thinking of purchasing the JBL P660C's and i was wondering why you didn't go for a full set of them all around?

The Infinity's presented themselves to me a few days before I made the decision to get the JBL"s for the front, and at a price I couldn't pass up.

How are you liking them?

Love the JBL's. At the price point that they are offered at, I think you'll be hard pressed to find something that performs as well, let alone better. The trick with components is mounting position. Can't say how many hours I sat in the front of my Trailblazer moving the tweets around to find the best soundstage. The "A" pillars were the best compromise I could find. As the JBL's break-in, I'm finding that the sound is evening out and the crossover boundary's are(seemingly) slowly disappearing and my soundstage is getting even more clear.

 

[Jeffdachef 5,000+ posts]

I have space in the cargo area on the passenger side that I can live without. The basic dimensions are 30" long, by 14" deep, by 14" high(about 3.4 cubic feet). There would need to be some custom shaping done as the wheel-well would intrude into the 14" depth along the last 12" or so of the 30" length.
Between a monoblock amp, Sub, wiring and MDF board/materials, I would like to stay under $500. I have the tools and skills to build a box of my own, but I do not have an in-depth knowledge where the internal construction of a ported, bandpass box is concerned. I don't even know if the above dimensions would lend themselves to a suitable enclosure, but those are the maximums in terms of space. I don't need a competition box. SQ is the main concern here.

Many thanks for the reply!

what do you consider as sound quality? low rumbling bass or punchy upper bass? or a little bit of both? Need to know whats your budget as well

 

[bhom920]

The Infinity's presented themselves to me a few days before I made the decision to get the JBL"s for the front, and at a price I couldn't pass up.


Love the JBL's. At the price point that they are offered at, I think you'll be hard pressed to find something that performs as well, let alone better. The trick with components is mounting position. Can't say how many hours I sat in the front of my Trailblazer moving the tweets around to find the best soundstage. The "A" pillars were the best compromise I could find. As the JBL's break-in, I'm finding that the sound is evening out and the crossover boundary's are(seemingly) slowly disappearing and my soundstage is getting even more clear.

thanks. I was set on the polk MM6501s, then i came across alot of people recommending the P660C. I had them in my cart on soniceletronix and this morning they now saw discontinued!

 

[Jeffdachef 5,000+ posts]

thanks. I was set on the polk MM6501s, then i came across alot of people recommending the P660C. I had them in my cart on soniceletronix and this morning they now saw discontinued!

Cant go wrong with either choice. I'd say the polk mm6501s are overall better though.

 

[bhom920]

Cant go wrong with either choice. I'd say the polk mm6501s are overall better though.

Thanks. I only have 45watts rms at 2ohms with my alpine powerpack, do you think im still better off with the MM6501s? I feel like i'd be underpowering them and not get their full potential.

 

[Jeffdachef 5,000+ posts]

Thanks. I only have 45watts rms at 2ohms with my alpine powerpack, do you think im still better off with the MM6501s? I feel like i'd be underpowering them and not get their full potential.

slightly underpowering but should still work nonethless.

 

[TBlazer06]

what do you consider as sound quality? low rumbling bass or punchy upper bass? or a little bit of both? Need to know whats your budget as well

My apologies for being so sparse with the details. Basically, I want to be able to turn off the Rear Bass Enhancer(RBE) on the head unit and get decent bass from 120hz and down. The JBL's and Infinity's do a good job with the mid-bass, so I'm basically looking to add a decent sounding low end that isn't too punchy or box'y sounding. I've found that ported, bandpass boxes tend to move a lot of air and have respectable frequency response, so that's the direction I was looking to go with this.

And as far as budget is concerned, as I said above, I'd like to stay around ~$500.00

 

[Jeffdachef 5,000+ posts]

My apologies for being so sparse with the details. Basically, I want to be able to turn off the Rear Bass Enhancer(RBE) on the head unit and get decent bass from 120hz and down. The JBL's and Infinity's do a good job with the mid-bass, so I'm basically looking to add a decent sounding low end that isn't too punchy or box'y sounding. I've found that ported, bandpass boxes tend to move a lot of air and have respectable frequency response, so that's the direction I was looking to go with this.
And as far as budget is concerned, as I said above, I'd like to stay around ~$500.00

You can do a pair of 12s sealed

two JBL GT5-12 12" Single 4 ohm GT Series 1100W Car Subwoofer

or two JBL GT5-12 12" Single 4 ohm GT Series 1100W Car Subwoofer

or a pair of 10s ported, same model for the GT5 only. The Infinity 10s would like a much bigger box than what you can provide.

Either should work, the 10s ported should hit deeper notes easier/louder but might trade off some midbass and get a bit more bottom heavy. The 12s have more cone area so output across the frequency should help and sound overall more smooth and tight, might not be as loud on the low frequencies as the 10s though.

Paired with a 500-750 watt rms @2 ohm amp, any ppi, kenwood, fosgate, alpine, jbl, pioneer amp should do fine at that power level and price point. (under 150$

The rest can go to your wiring kit and box.

 

[TBlazer06]

You can do a pair of 12s sealedtwo JBL GT5-12 12" Single 4 ohm GT Series 1100W Car Subwoofer

or two JBL GT5-12 12" Single 4 ohm GT Series 1100W Car Subwoofer

Thanks for the input. Are both of those links supposed to be the same?

At any rate, I've decided against a bandpass at this time(due to difficulty) and will focus on building a ported enclosure with a round, 3 inch tuned port as my first box. Using a few online volume and tuning calculators, I've found quite a few designs that will work well with my available space measurements mentioned above - with either a -single- 10" or 12" Sub. I've yet to decide on a particular Sub/Amp, though.

I've learned how to calculate speaker displacement volume, but I'm having trouble figuring out one thing in regards to a ported enclosure: Speaker displacement volume seems to be critical when calculating the "net volume" of the enclosure, but I can't seem to find any info on how the Sub speaker is to be mounted in regards to maintaining displacement volume. All of the speaker displacement calculators that I've found use the speakers mounting depth when calculating displacement volume, yet in some designs I see where the speaker is mounted flush to the inside of the MDF, from the inside of the box. Other designs show the speaker mounted in the traditional manner from the outside. I'm thinking that the MDF thickness(3/4 in my case) would alter the speaker displacement volume depending on how it is mounted, and change the "net volume" of the box. Is there any benefit sonically from mounting the sub on the inside of the MDF versus the outside?(maintenance/replacement issues aside).

 

[Jeffdachef 5,000+ posts]

Thanks for the input. Are both of those links supposed to be the same?
At any rate, I've decided against a bandpass at this time(due to difficulty) and will focus on building a ported enclosure with a round, 3 inch tuned port as my first box. Using a few online volume and tuning calculators, I've found quite a few designs that will work well with my available space measurements mentioned above - with either a -single- 10" or 12" Sub. I've yet to decide on a particular Sub/Amp, though.

I've learned how to calculate speaker displacement volume, but I'm having trouble figuring out one thing in regards to a ported enclosure: Speaker displacement volume seems to be critical when calculating the "net volume" of the enclosure, but I can't seem to find any info on how the Sub speaker is to be mounted in regards to maintaining displacement volume. All of the speaker displacement calculators that I've found use the speakers mounting depth when calculating displacement volume, yet in some designs I see where the speaker is mounted flush to the inside of the MDF, from the inside of the box. Other designs show the speaker mounted in the traditional manner from the outside. I'm thinking that the MDF thickness(3/4 in my case) would alter the speaker displacement volume depending on how it is mounted, and change the "net volume" of the box. Is there any benefit sonically from mounting the sub on the inside of the MDF versus the outside?(maintenance/replacement issues aside).

The other sub was supposed to be infinity subwoofers.

Online calculators are wrong. They dont calculate proper displacement. The airspace your subwoofer needs is after subtracting all displacements not before. The port length also depends on the space after accounting for how much the port takes up so with online web calculators you will always be a good bit iff. Use download torres box calculator or on andriod, use explicit audio ultimate car app.