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Sub Placement Help?

ShadowSwept

ShadowSwept

New member
I recently picked up two 8" Sundown Audio subs. I don't have an amp yet but was looking for suggestions.
I'm using the factory head unit and will get a line converter. All my speakers are Sony Xplod (I've heard the complaints, but they were pretty much free and sound fine to me). I listen to classic rock most of the time but like to blast some metal, techno, and industrial pretty regularly.

What I need help with is placement of the subs. I want good bass quality but I also want full use of my trunk, including the rear seat pass through. I had ideas for small, angled boxes in the gaps by the taillights, or similar sized boxes on either side of the pass through. I also considered a single-sub setup in the spare tire well. The problem is I'm thinking the boxes I had in mind might be too small.

I'm new to car audio myself, but I have some guys that can professionally build custom boxes for whatever I want, I'm just looking for some opinions on what would be best for me and for our cars. Also, any suggestions on amps and/or tweeters are welcome.

Thanks!
 


I've heard about cutting the 6 1/2'' out of the rear deck making the holes bigger and stuffing 8'' subs there, i wouldn't mind doing that myself but i'd be customizing my front doors to accept 6 1/2'' speakers
 
I've heard of that too, but I've already got the rear speakers installed. Maybe the center? Has anyone here done this?

I'll probably keep them in the trunk, just want to know which direction to point them for the best sound quality (towards cab, towards rear, or up), and smallest box I can get away with without loosing quality.
 
The size of the box depends on what the subs spec sheet are asking for. You can get away with a smaller than spec box if you stuff the enclosure with polyfill. But you can only reduce the enclosure size by, maybe, 10% for it to be effective. As for which direction to fire them....fire them which ever direction you want. Low frequencies are omni-directional. Just figure out the size of the box the subs require, then figure out where in the trunk you want them so that you have the room you're looking for, and put them there.
 
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Alright, the boxes will be the right size. You say the bass is omni-directional, but most guides recommend firing towards the rear of the car. With near-taillight setup I had in mind they would be firing towards the cab, but at intersecting angles. I'm thinking against this idea.
The spare-well setup was by preferred, but it would be firing directly at the trunk lid, and rattling trunks is one reason it's took me this long to even consider buying subs.
So now I'm leaning towards putting separate boxes on either side of the pass through hatch. Now I know you said they were omnidirectional, but I think for my uses at least there's things to consider. If I fire them towards the seats, this keeps the subs safe and my trunk useable without worry of something sliding around and puncturing a cone, but it goes against what I've read for every setup other than a truck, and if I'm not mistaken the subs need a certain amount of space in front of the cone as well, which this wouldn't give.
If I fire them upwards, I'm thinking I could get a louder, clearer sound because of the open space next to the 6x9's, and keep the subs protected from trunk junk as well. But will firing upwards here still rattle the trunk, even though it's mostly under the rear glass? Do I want the subs firing into the cab, or is it better for them to be firing away? Also, if I get a rear STB, how is it going to interfere with the subs sitting directly beneath it?

If all else fails I can just go with by the book rear-facing boxes, but I'm kind of trying to avoid that- mostly so I can throw $h!t in my trunk and not worry about it, but also because I like to be a little creative- but not fcuk something up in the process; hence asking you guys for suggestions :p


EDIT: Damn, I type too much!
 
Any sundown subs are going to like ported enclosures over sealed enclosures. And ported are always bigger. Box design is 80% how they are going to sound, what subs exactly are they?

Sent from my LS670 using Tapatalk 2
 


I would also look into a 4th order bandpass design if you are worried about anything hitting them in the trunk as the subs are fully enclosed in the box its self. And 4th orders are a very clean good musical Box if designed to be that way. Mix of sealed and ported :-)

Sent from my LS670 using Tapatalk 2
 
snail shell box ported with port facing the center fold down section of the back seat! Or since them are 8s be a man and throw out all the garbage on the rear deck and put them where the 6x9s were thats always been something ive wanted do do also.
 
You're concerns are understandable. But "most guides" recommend that you fire towards the trunk so that you don't notice that you're distorting your subs. If your enclosure is quality and your amp is tuned correctly, it won't matter which way they fire. I've fired my subs in every direction there is and haven't noticed any difference.
 
bandpass.gif


This is what a 4th order will look like. Shouldnt be able to see the Driver
 


Note if you put them in the rear deck you would have to build a box around the sub otherwise it would be a IF, not sure that the E8 is good for that.
what i would do if i was you is get 2 boxes built same specs and all and make them fit on eather side of the pass through. Box of choice would be a Flat response 20hz tuning. Also tbh i would have got the SA8v2 but then again i like bass alot more than you do
 
That's probably what I'll do. As far as the SA8v2; a friend of mine bought these new to put in his Mustang, realized they wouldn't fit in the door, then sold them to me for $40 bucks. So I won't complain.
 
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