General Subwoofer Enclosure Question

BOOGIE MAN

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I came across two old "new in box" subs that I purchased for the cobra and never got around to installing and I'm planning on throwing them in the FST on top of the stock st3 system. (I know there are wiring issues for the 2014 fst st3 Sony sound system but I think I have that sorted out via focusst.org)

I'm having the age old debate of ported vs sealed. I don't specifically listen to one genre of music; certain styles require that crisp clean hit and others I want that deep, low frequency, ground pounding bass. Then I wondered why not just make one sub ported and the other sealed? Best of both worlds right?

Has anyone on here done this?

Is it worth considering or should I just pick one or the other and deal with pros/cons?

Secondary question, these subs are old. Kicker item number 06s10L74 so I'm assuming they're 2006 models. If these subs have never been taken out of the box, would they still be good to go? Are there things I should check/replace?


*edit*
Further research shows that these subs have different max wattage depending on sealed vs ported (600w rms vs 450w rms respectively). This leads me to believe that I'd have to run two different amps if I wanted max wattage on each sub (assuming I wanted to stick with mono amp), right?

Now I remember why I never got around to installing these in the first place, too many decisions to make.

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_Snake_

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Hook up the subs and see how you like them. Base your next steps and any changes on that.
 

xblitzkriegx

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The sub will be ok in either a sealed or ported box. Kicker doesn't give ebkighninfo for me to make a good recommendation on size since their t/s parameters are incomplete.

Based on the little info I cound in their manual, 1cf internal sealed would be the ideal size for a sealed box and I'll have to get back to you on a ported box. Chances are the recommendations in their manual are for a fairly high tuning frequency which will make for a boomy box instead of a nice smooth powerful sound.

The lower power limitation for ported has to do with unloading the driver below tuning frequency. Either way, 500w rms would be fine for either application.

Hopefully someone else answers before I can get around to more research. Work calls
 

08mojo

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Another vote for sealed. Don't worry about the wattage rating--that's just so they can deny your warranty if you have an issue with melting voice coils.

A sealed box will reach deep, and two 10's in a Focus will get the job done. Do your research on the box and take the time to build it correctly. Build the box to the largest volume specified--that will help with the low end. Make sure each sub is in its own sealed (an airtight box is important for a sealed setup) compartment that meets the volume specs.

The subs should be fine, even with their age. Kicker uses a rubber surround vs foam, so it should hold up over time. The foam surrounds tend to deteriorate.

I've had a lot of good luck with this amp:
Alpine MRV-M500 Mono V-Power Digital Amplifier

I'm running a 10W7 with this amp and it gets the job done with no issues.
 

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I’ve had good luck with sealed boxes. I just put a dual 12 box in my truck, as mentioned make sure they are separated or sealed from each other. My box has a divider wall in the middle, I also went over each seem with liquid nail.
 

BOOGIE MAN

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Thank you all for your replies, much appreciated

Hook up the subs and see how you like them. Base your next steps and any changes on that.

Maybe I'm not understanding, but how would me listening to the subs not in a box(?) help me decide which box to put them in?

I would port both of them. Just giving you my two cents from what I have experienced in the past.

Can you elaborate please?



Attached are the box/power suggestions from the 06s10L74 manual. I was going to go max box size (giggity) regardless of sealed v port

I'm leaning sealed simply because the amps that kicker make don't come in denominations that work for max power in ported box across two subs. This is amp I would get for a sealed enclosure.
Kicker CX1200.1 1200W Mono D Audio Amplifier
I've considered a dual band pass box to cover both sealed and ported, but it's my understanding that there's a significant delay in sound. Also there is more "tuning" required with these boxes and I'm looking for more plug n play. Anyone have experience with the band pass enclosures?
Screenshot_20190919-100421_Acrobat%20for%20Samsung.jpeg
Screenshot_20190919-100444_Acrobat%20for%20Samsung.jpeg
Screenshot_20190919-100458_Acrobat%20for%20Samsung.jpeg


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08mojo

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Thank you all for your replies, much appreciated



Maybe I'm not understanding, but how would me listening to the subs not in a box(?) help me decide which box to put them in?



Can you elaborate please?



Attached are the box/power suggestions from the 06s10L74 manual. I was going to go max box size (giggity) regardless of sealed v port

I'm leaning sealed simply because the amps that kicker make don't come in denominations that work for max power in ported box across two subs. This is amp I would get for a sealed enclosure.
Kicker CX1200.1 1200W Mono D Audio Amplifier
I've considered a dual band pass box to cover both sealed and ported, but it's my understanding that there's a significant delay in sound. Also there is more "tuning" required with these boxes and I'm looking for more plug n play. Anyone have experience with the band pass enclosures?
View attachment 1599881View attachment 1599882View attachment 1599883

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A bandpass box will need to be a custom calculated and custom built enclosure to sound right.

A ported box will give you more SPL (volume), but you do sacrifice some sound quality.

A sealed box will trade off some SPL, but will be better for music.


What type of music will you listen to? If it is electronic, rap, aka music created by a computer...you should go ported. If it's rock, country aka music created by real instruments...you should go sealed.

Edit, forgot to mention: don't get caught up on matching the wattage of the amp to the speaker rating. It really is not a concern.
 

Deceptive

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I have had ported, sealed, and band pass boxes.

I have had Infinity Kappa, MA Audio, American Bass, Kicker, and Diamond Audio subs.

Sealed has always sounded the best. A good sub will give you that booming bass and tight bass in a sealed box.


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BOOGIE MAN

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Thanks again for insight peoples

What type of music will you listen to? If it is electronic, rap, aka music created by a computer...you should go ported. If it's rock, country aka music created by real instruments...you should go sealed.

Edit, forgot to mention: don't get caught up on matching the wattage of the amp to the speaker rating. It really is not a concern.

This was part of the issue; I listen to such a wide range of music, that's why I was asking about best of both. I can go from classical to ska to prog rock to classic rock to rap to reggae to jazz, etc...

Can you elaborate on not worrying about matching amp/sub power? You're saying it's mostly a CYA for manufacturers, just let them eat?

I think I've settled on a dual sealed box per most of the recommendations/info in this thread.

What about sub direction ie facing trunk, facing roof, facing back of back seat? I've seen all three set ups just in focuses but didn't hear reasons why they choose that particular set up. I imagine sub direction would just determine which body panel shakes the most, yeah?



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BOOGIE MAN

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7998

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Go sealed. I have a 12" JL W7 in a sealed box powered by a JL HD750 and it hits all over. My son has 12"Alumapro in a ported box with a JBL 1000x1. I will say I'm impressed with the JBL for the money.
 

CV355

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Both. He's retired air force, I'm a 2nd year grad student. There's another meteo on here that works for NWS, can't remember his name off the top of my head

*edit* member chagan02 is also a meteo

That's actually pretty cool! For some strange reason I thought you were both the same person, then saw the different threads and had a mindasplode moment...

giphy.gif
 

_Snake_

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Thank you all for your replies, much appreciated



Maybe I'm not understanding, but how would me listening to the subs not in a box(?) help me decide which box to put them in?

Sorry, I’m the one misunderstanding. I saw subs “new in box” and my mind made a leap it shouldn’t have. Lol
 

xblitzkriegx

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Thanks again for insight peoples



This was part of the issue; I listen to such a wide range of music, that's why I was asking about best of both. I can go from classical to ska to prog rock to classic rock to rap to reggae to jazz, etc...

Can you elaborate on not worrying about matching amp/sub power? You're saying it's mostly a CYA for manufacturers, just let them eat?

I think I've settled on a dual sealed box per most of the recommendations/info in this thread.

What about sub direction ie facing trunk, facing roof, facing back of back seat? I've seen all three set ups just in focuses but didn't hear reasons why they choose that particular set up. I imagine sub direction would just determine which body panel shakes the most, yeah?



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sub power handling is really two different factors. for deep bass, its more about excursion, ie mechanical limits. for bass above 50hz or so, thermal limits come in to play. as long as you dont go wildly over the recommended rating, youre almost always going to run in to mechanical limitations before thermal. what this means for the avg person is that you need to stick to around the rated power. if it says 450w for ported. you can still go 500-600w on an amp and itll be fine. nothing is going to fry.

a properly sized and tuned ported box will sound just as good as a sealed box, especially if its being crammed in a trunk or behind a seat. the group delay and other things people bring up for ported boxes really doesnt matter once you stuff it in a trunk and throw power at it. youre not going to hear most of the issues anyways, you wont even hear the distortion most times until its waaay over 50% due to how our ears work plus the interior getting in the way.

two L10s sealed will sound just fine. theyll give up a tiny bit on the lower end but honestly, the transfer function on the vehicle will make up for it. honestly, itll sound fine.

find an enclosure thats 1cf for each sub and throw half a pound of polyfill in it, make sure its 3/4" thick and make sure theres a good seal at the sub and call it a day.

wire the subs down to a 2ohm load and then run them together for a final 1ohm load. find a reputable 1000wrms amp and have fun.
 

Deceptive

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With that recommendation above, make certain the amp is 1 ohm mono stable. A good monoblock amp should be.

I’m running older Diamond Audio subs and amps in my car and they are insane. I have D1000.1s for each car. I am running a pair of dual 4 ohm voice coil subs on each for a 1ohm load and they just don’t miss a beat.


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