Volume vs wattage

[nismotwin 10+ year member]

So i would like a discussion on how wattage effects sub box volume. I can't find any info on this matter. I know all sub are different but, is there a general rule of thumb? Is there a proportional volume you would want to build a box too according to the amount of wattage you would be suppling to the sub. Lets use a 12" kicker L5 as an example. A 600 watt rms sub but, if your only suppling 300 watts to it what box volume would be ideal?

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[dev199505]

From what I've read on here bigger boxes are better for lower power

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[shizzzon 10+ year member]

That's not why you build them bigger..

Building boxes solely based on power is like building an engine purely based on one size turbo.. literally.. who cares about the transmission, etc..

 

[Massive spl]

The size of the box will change the res freq... Like if you build a seal 1cube box and run a sweap and then build a 2cube box and run a sweap you will have two different peaks... The name of the game is test test test //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

 

[nismotwin 10+ year member]

Ok...so when you hear people like Steve Meade say about his new mini 12 coming out that "it will handle 1500-2000 watts depending on your box" thats more geared toward the resonance frequency your trying to achieve than the volume of the box effecting the air damping for the sub which would determine the amount of wattage you would want on that sub in that box. If that makes sense.

 

[nismotwin 10+ year member]

I'm not looking to build a box according to the amount of power i'm using but, asking how it factors into the box i'm building. I see manufacturers label boxes with a power rating. Maybe i'm thinking to hard...lol.

 

[Massive spl]

Ok...so when you hear people like Steve Meade say about his new mini 12 coming out that "it will handle 1500-2000 watts depending on your box" thats more geared toward the resonance frequency your trying to achieve than the volume of the box effecting the air damping for the sub which would determine the amount of wattage you would want on that sub in that box. If that makes sense.

Steve is a fat fvck dbag! //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/biggrin.gif.d71a5d36fcbab170f2364c9f2e3946cb.gif but most people say how much power you so you have? Oh 500watts throw is in a huge box... Well what that does it make it easier to reach full excursion... Think of it if u free air a woofer. It moves rather easy.. Now put that woofer on same power in a box, it doesn't move as much. Most people think more excursion = louder so put it in a bigger box. Not always the case.

 

[nismotwin 10+ year member]

Ok makes alot of sense. Thanks guys!!

 

[kcr357 10+ year member]

Steve is a fat fvck dbag! //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/biggrin.gif.d71a5d36fcbab170f2364c9f2e3946cb.gif but most people say how much power you so you have? Oh 500watts throw is in a huge box... Well what that does it make it easier to reach full excursion... Think of it if u free air a woofer. It moves rather easy.. Now put that woofer on same power in a box, it doesn't move as much. Most people think more excursion = louder so put it in a bigger box. Not always the case.

Right on both points.

I think of it as like pulling back a syringe. If you put your thumb over the tip of the syringe, you can't pull the plunger back very far without a lot of resistance. If you were to put the syringe into a cubic foot sealed container and pull back the plunger, no problem. There's a larger volume of air to take up the displaced air from pulling it back.

Same with a woofer, more volume=less resistance during excursion.

Steve Meade=Nerdy kid with tattoos.

 

[nismotwin 10+ year member]

Thanks again everyone....seems to be alot of meade hatin lol....i think he does some really clean installs and is pretty knowledgeable...maybe i'm not smart enough to know any better.

 

[Massive spl]

Thanks again everyone....seems to be alot of meade hatin lol....i think he does some really clean installs and is pretty knowledgeable...maybe i'm not smart enough to know any better.

Steve banned me from smd like 2 weeks ago. Some guys told Steve they were going to fvck his wife in the butt and Steve was butt hurt and started making meme of the guys and I told Steve to just drop it and stop making memes unless he was really butt hurt... So then Steve told me he was going to try n have butt s3x with my wife and I said he could try and I'll hold his belly out the way so she could see his pecker and he got really upset and banned me lmao. Ahh good times,good times

 

[nismotwin 10+ year member]

Wow...silly!!! Thanks for the insight.

 

[Buck 5,000+ posts]

It comes down to every little factor. If you have a sub that's not receiving much power, you can make the box slightly larger. Too large and there's a huge delay and it sounds too boomy or airy. Smaller boxes can be better for competitions with a limited frequency usage because you can get the imp down low so as much power as possible is being used to produce sound. Most decent woofers can be overpowered by a bit while still using the large recommended box size.