What's a good "sweet spot" for size and number of subs in a crossover vehicle?

dennismv

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Michigan
I am considering between

  • two to four Dayton Audio UM10-22 10"
  • two Dayton Audio UM18-22 18"
most likely in a sealed box, because I want more responsive more accurate bass.  My particular crossover is Honda CR-V.  I am not too worried about space, but I probably don't want to put four of the 18" drivers in there, at least not right now, but I can put two.  As far as 10" I could probably handle up to three or up to four if I get a little crazy.

My question hence is ... considering vehicle size, and that I do want to have other things in the car sometimes, is there a good sweet spot for number of subs and size of drivers that will work?  

I realize this may be subjective, but I wanted to do a sanity check on what works well and maybe get some direction on where I need to go rather than pick something blindly.

For example, maybe two or three 12" drivers will be just fine. I'm looking for nice accurate tight bass, that can hit lower notes, maybe go to sub-20Hz and just fill my car with bass.

 
There’s a misconception that ported boxes can’t sound as responsive or accurate as sealed boxes. I think you should really consider going ported for several reasons. Adding more subs mean you’re gonna need a bigger amp to keep up. Sealed boxes are not as efficient with power as ported. Could potentially create more heat for your amp and subs. You might have to start upgrading electricals with the more juice you use too. What I think is a better idea is going with a single 18” ultimax and have a custom ported box made. It will be just as loud if not louder than 2 18” sealed especially on the lows. That way you can go with a 1000w amp instead of 2000w. It is much more efficient all around, very cost effective, practical, and honestly think it will sound better too. 

 
why is it 10's or 18's? why not 2 15 or 2 12's?  i'd do 2 12's ported tuned at 28hz if u want lows instead of sealed
cuz he was trying to cram a bunch of subs in a sealed box, which is a bad idea. He's afraid the bass may not fill the void of the crossover car. He's also trying to leave some wiggle room for other things in trunk. I feel 2 15's ported would take up too space to be practical. 2 12's is a good happy median for many people but since he has a bit more room to spare, a single 18" would be a good choice as well. He has the room for it and it'll be slightly louder. It seems his primary concern is sound quality first so there's no need to go overboard with multiple subs if he can do it with 1. He would save a bit of money by going with 1 sub instead of 2 or 4 also. 

 
cuz he was trying to cram a bunch of subs in a sealed box, which is a bad idea. He's afraid the bass may not fill the void of the crossover car. He's also trying to leave some wiggle room for other things in trunk. I feel 2 15's ported would take up too space to be practical. 2 12's is a good happy median for many people but since he has a bit more room to spare, a single 18" would be a good choice as well. He has the room for it and it'll be slightly louder. It seems his primary concern is sound quality first so there's no need to go overboard with multiple subs if he can do it with 1. He would save a bit of money by going with 1 sub instead of 2 or 4 also. 
yeah if he's wanting the most out of the smallest box and if budget is any concern 1 15 ported  maybe the happy medium and like u said can run it on a 1k amp

 
For acutally listening to music I've never understood the desire to have two giant subs or 4 12's or anything over the top like that.

A few years back I put a 15" Diamond D6 in my nephew's grand prix with a $140 1000w Audiopipe amp and a ported box I designed and built.  I could hear him a the end of his driveway over 1000' away (yes I measured it).

I have a single (~$150) 12" on 1kw in my minivan -- it is plenty (more than enough) to keep up with my components that get ~400w, and it's loud into the mid 30's.

IMO - if you can't blow the doors of a CR-V with a quality pair of 12's, you're not doing it right.

 
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Forget size and quantity of subs for a second. Measure the area you are willing to utilize for subs HxWxD  we can then calculate the volume you have available and determine whay will work in that area. 2-18's vs 3-10's is a big difference in box volume.

 
Exactly this. Determine the space available first.
Dimensions I can fit are as such:

Length:  32-40 inches.  To explain:  32 is "comfortable length", and 40" is maximum my vehicle can reasonably fit.
Width and height:  14-15"

This is for a dual sub box.  If it's a single speaker I could probably do a "cube" of slightly larger dimensions, maybe 20-21"

I understand now that my choice is closer to two 12" or single 18".  Or maybe I could do something in the middle.  I do like the idea of a double speaker, but also like the idea of a single large speaker (although I am concerned about lesser cone area).   IN other words, I am still undecided, so hopefully the dimensions above will help narrow it down!

 
15x15x32 will not fit any sub larger than a 12 as most 15's are slightly larger than 15 inches and an 18 will never fit on any side. If you run 15x15x38 you can get 3.8cu before any displacement. This could run a good ported 12 or pair of 10's. Id personally go with the 10's. You get more cone cone area more motor strength and more coil area for heat displacement. A properly designed ported box will sound amazing once you figure out what subs you want to go with. Now you need to pick a budget. You need to figure in amp and electrical to the budget. 1200-1500w max before real electrical upgrades are needed. 1000w is a safe power if you just want wiring. 

 
Get a sub with high efficiency rating (meaning it will get loud on lower power versus other brands), high SQ (non peaky), and won't destroy your trunk space. 

A pair of Audiofrog GS or GB will do the trick. Amazing SQ and high efficiency rating meaning it can do more per watt that most other brands (it may take another brand 900 watts to do what it can do at 500). This is incredibly important/overlooked aspect of car audio, especially if your keeping stock alternator since you limited on power 

 
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Total bs.  Sub efficiency ratings are only usable for sealed box applications. Ported will change it completely. Also typical high efficiency subs in a sealed box will peak a lot higher than a low efficiency sub that does better on lower frequency. If he is looking for low 20hz region, a high efficiency sub in a sealed box will not provide him with much in this area. Thats why its an overlooked spec. You need to look at all the specs and make an educated decision.

Get a sub with high efficiency rating (meaning it will get loud on lower power versus other brands), high SQ (non peaky), and won't destroy your trunk space. 

A pair of Audiofrog GS or GB will do the trick. Amazing SQ and high efficiency rating meaning it can do more per watt that most other brands (it may take another brand 900 watts to do what it can do at 500). This is incredibly important/overlooked aspect of car audio, especially if your keeping stock alternator since you limited on power 

 
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