From ported to sealed

[Notorious97200 339]

Hello,

I want to tell you my feeling after changing my sub enclosure. Some people are afraid of going sealed with the Xcons, and want advices.

I had a 3.5 ft3 sub box, tuned to 32 Hz. Design was made by Fisher Customs (need the new ones JBL Camry, please).

My car is a hatchback car, and I had the sub and port facing up.

I loved it, but I could not put a bottle of water (or whatever) in the trunk, and the amps were not breathing right : no room at all.

I made a friend (he has an Xcon 15" too) build a sealed box for me : dim are (70 x 40 x 40 cm), so 27.6" x 15.7" x 15.7 ". I think they fit in the ones provided by ssa.

I have a lot more room in the trunk and I like that ! I can put some groceries in it, or some tools I had under the seats !!! I have the sub facing the rear of the car , because i put back the hatch cover.

Honestly, I was afraid of loosing output, as I'm still a basshead ! I can't say I lost something. The bass still hits so hard .

I did not have time to make serious listening sessions, but so far so good.

I'm sure it goes lower now, I can feel it easily.

I set the ssf to the low, but I think I will try to run it a little higher, like around 20 Hz. What do you think about it ?

I will give you more info later, as I get used to it.

I will post some pics of the box and the trunk later. Not too much sun today !

[Aaron Clinton 2,372]

2.9 cubes it looks like. Glad you are liking it sealed and got cargo space back. But be careful on the ssf, 20hz is probably too low. Just test it and see how the woofer reacts, and adjust from there. Very little music is reaching down to 20hz as it is, so going lower then 25hz is probably not worth it.

[Notorious97200 339]

Thanks for the info on the ssf. It's not easy to adjust with precision, but I'll try to have it around 25 HZ.

[Sir-Lancelot 216]

Looks like 2.9 or 2.7 after sub displacement. Should be good, that about what my 15's were sealed in .

yeah bump the SSF up a little bit. I had mine where Aaron suggested around 25.

They are maybe not as loud, but they still get very loud.

I will say I felt more bass sealed in my set up. Very tight and hard punch to them.

Keep us updated as you have time to play around with them.

[hardballer7 0]

2.9 cubes it looks like. Glad you are liking it sealed and got cargo space back. But be careful on the ssf, 20hz is probably too low. Just test it and see how the woofer reacts, and adjust from there. Very little music is reaching down to 20hz as it is, so going lower then 25hz is probably not worth it.

This may be a dumb question, but isn't the SSF only an issue with a vented box?

[eggyhustles 33]

Hmm...makes me wanna seal mine up now to save some space.

Edited May 27, 2010 by eggyhustles

[Notorious97200 339]

Hmm...makes me wanna seal mine up now to save some space.

Don't be afraid to do it ! It's cheap, and easy to do a sealed box, but make it big enough !

I'm so happy with the new box. It seems like the bass is hitting harder, with more punch. Maybe my ported box had a leak somewhere, or were tired !!!

I need to buy some carpet today, then I will take some pics !

[Aaron Clinton 2,372]

2.9 cubes it looks like. Glad you are liking it sealed and got cargo space back. But be careful on the ssf, 20hz is probably too low. Just test it and see how the woofer reacts, and adjust from there. Very little music is reaching down to 20hz as it is, so going lower then 25hz is probably not worth it.

This may be a dumb question, but isn't the SSF only an issue with a vented box?

For the most part yes, but should not be forgotten in larger sealed boxes either.

[Dan208 23]

then I will take some pics

^^This, or it didn't happen. Looking forward to them.

[Shane Abarca 0]

2.9 cubes it looks like. Glad you are liking it sealed and got cargo space back. But be careful on the ssf, 20hz is probably too low. Just test it and see how the woofer reacts, and adjust from there. Very little music is reaching down to 20hz as it is, so going lower then 25hz is probably not worth it.

This may be a dumb question, but isn't the SSF only an issue with a vented box?

For the most part yes, but should not be forgotten in larger sealed boxes either.

is a bigger sealed box (within the specs) more efficient than a smaller one?

[Aaron Clinton 2,372]

2.9 cubes it looks like. Glad you are liking it sealed and got cargo space back. But be careful on the ssf, 20hz is probably too low. Just test it and see how the woofer reacts, and adjust from there. Very little music is reaching down to 20hz as it is, so going lower then 25hz is probably not worth it.

This may be a dumb question, but isn't the SSF only an issue with a vented box?

For the most part yes, but should not be forgotten in larger sealed boxes either.

is a bigger sealed box (within the specs) more efficient than a smaller one?

Yes.

[Notorious97200 339]

[Notorious97200 339]

I used this system to power my sub : it comes from pro audio speakers. Easy to unhook the speakers : it's kind of plug & play, and it only needs a little hole in the box to fit tight.

But my main concern is about the wire size : we used electrical cable, but it's small when I look at what people use.

So far, I have no problem with it.

[Notorious97200 339]

[Notorious97200 339]

It's a total mess ! As you can see, I have wire of all colors : it's ugly but it works so well !!!

I really need to do something to clean up my install. But wire is so expensive here. For example : o ga wire is sold at about 17€/m : $20 for 3 feet.

What can I do ? I don't want to add a sheet of mdf (too heavy !). I will try something with carpet, maybe !

[sefugi 166]

Hey now you got room for 2 bags of groceries and 3 bottles of water, Your set!! Glad this worked out for you, I've seen a lot of great sounding systems with sealed boxes that get very LOUD!

[Notorious97200 339]

There is a little less room with the ported box !

I think I loose output with the sub firing up.

I have even more output with the sealed box and the sub firing back. I love it.

I will find time to buy some black carpet for the box. I don't want people to see the box when I take the hatch cover off. 10 % black titanium tint is not enough with our powerful Caribbean sun !!!

[Notorious97200 339]

Hey now you got room for 2 bags of groceries and 3 bottles of water, Your set!! Glad this worked out for you, I've seen a lot of great sounding systems with sealed boxes that get very LOUD!

Just 2 little bags of groceries !!!

I'm happy now, I know my amps are not getting too hot too fast.

What do you think about the way I'm firing the sub ? I feel it gives me more output like that.

What can I do to stop the rattles I get now from the trunk lid ? I already put some Damplifier on, but it is not enough.

I will ask secondskin(they answer really fast), and maybe sds (never tried before).

[Notorious97200 339]

[Aaron Clinton 2,372]

[Notorious97200 339]

What do you think about the way my box is connected to the wire coming from the amp ?

I don't know how to name that, but it comes from pro audio systems, with smaller wire than usual in car audio. I don' think I'm loosing too much by using small wires; there is also more surface for contact between the wires and the "connection".

[Aaron Clinton 2,372]

I have never used it, so I cannot speak from experience.

[glasjaw 1]

Resistance dropped almost .3ohm when i switched from 12g to 8g from the amp to the sub.

[Notorious97200 339]

Must not be a bad thing !

It's so easy now to unhook the sub box. I can do it with my eyes closed ! Just plug and play !

[emh9009 199]

Must not be a bad thing !

It's so easy now to unhook the sub box. I can do it with my eyes closed ! Just plug and play !

If it's working, and is handy i say keep it! box looks good