sub and audio decisions

[dusterbd13]

this is on my 70 duster project.

it had (until last week) a 1000 watt amp (i think phoenix gold?) and 10 inch Sony explode sub in the trunk. this has never hit well, or been very audible over the 3 inch exhaust or slick shifted 4 speed.

the rest of the system consists of:
6X9 3 way Sony explode rear deck speakers
6.5 blaupunkt components in the front kicks
no-name 4 inch dual cone (2 of em!) in the center of the dash)
Kenwood EZ500 deck
rampage 200 watt amp driving the components.

i know some of this audio equipment is crap. I'm OK with it being crap. it sounds pretty good, though. the rampage amp is on its last legs (keeps cutting out. going into thermal overload, though is cool to the touch).

i have a 12 inch JL sub from the Early 90's in a wal-mart box powered by a Sony explode 800 watt amp in my truck that hits more than hard enough for what i listen to. (mostly metal, country, contemporary christian, and bluegrass. little rap when I'm feeling it.)

i would like to get the same kind of hit in my duster, without it costing an arm and a leg, or encroaching too much on my trunk space.

on the shelf, i have an 800 watt "blue wave" 2 channel amp. works. well, the last time i had it hooked to anything was 2002, but it shouldn't have gone bad sitting there. I'm thinking of using this to power my components, as i almost guarantee that its not pushing 400 watts a channel RMS. my guess is closer to 100 RMS, which shouldn't overpower my blaus, right?

in the trunk, I'm kicking around ideas. remember, this is just supposed to be audible at highway speeds with the windows down, and the tranny whining.

first idea:
use the 2 10 inch pioneer subs that i bought new from best buy in the early 2000's. mount them inverted in sealed boxes, and put them to the 1000 watt amp. put the enclosures behind plexi and back light it to make it look cool.

second idea:
pair of wal-mart 12's, done the same way

third idea:
single 12, hidden in the trunk, powered by the 1000 watt.

I'm pretty much guessing in the dark here, and trying to figure out what i want and how to get there. so suggestions are needed. again, not going for max sound quality, or max volume, just something that sounds pretty good and is pretty loud.


and here's what I'm working with. more can be found in t
he projects section.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2010/09/Picture2331-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2010/09/Picture213-1.jpg
michael

[mc84_zz4]

Wow, sounds like you have several options, but without knowing the ratings of any of that gear, I'm not how it will sound.
The Sony explod gear we have bought was cheap, looked good, and sounded good when new, but went downhill real quick.

What I would do is get a new sub, and match it well to the amp, the other amps will probably do well with your speakers.
If your amps have frequency cutoffs, adjust to restrict the frequency somewhere around 100-150 hz from going to the speakers, let the subwoofer hit those notes.
If your amps dont have high pass filters, install some bass blockers on the speakers. http://www.crutchfield.com/shopsearch/bass_blockers.html
Take extra time in some research on the Sub, here is the biggest factor in sound quality: Sensitivity

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A sensitivity rating tells you how effectively a speaker converts power (watts) into volume (decibels). The higher the rating, the louder your speakers will play with a given amount of amplifier power. Sensitivity is often measured by driving a speaker with one watt and measuring the loudness in decibels at one meter.

The chart below illustrates that a few dB in sensitivity can make a big difference:

Speaker Sensitivity rating Power needed to produce a given volume
Speaker A 85 dB 100 watts
Speaker B 88 dB 50 watts
Speaker C 91 dB 25 watts

(courtesy of Crutchfield: http://www.crutchfield.com/S-UbQYhPHQ0KL/learn/learningcenter/car/speakers_glossary.html )
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I bought an Infinity Sub (Perfect 12.1) have it in a single 12" cheap box, lined with Dynamat Xtreme and poly filled, and it sounds better than others costing 4x the amount of money. The sub I have are rated at 96db of sensitivity, which is outrageous, comparing to others.
Mine only needs 300 w RMS to roar, it would take 1200 RMS on another sub rated at 90db to produce the same amount of sound. (most subs, including JL are in the 87 and 89 db sensitivity, not knocking them, but it will take a lot more $ in bigger amp). Use the RMS rating when matching up speakers to amps, the maximum watt rating is not much use. Aim for close to 90% of RMS rating between the amp & sub.

Now; loud does not mean good either, so spend some $$ on quality speakers. There are many newer speakers the are 2 ohm rated, which will almost double your Amp output, therefore helping also the amount of sound generated.
This will give you the 'dynamic headroom', where the speakers produce clean, full sound, making it seem effortless.

I highly recommend the Infinity Kappa series, they are almost all 2 ohm rated, and highly sensitive.
Boston, Alpine, Polk are also on my list, some of them are also 2 ohm rated, there are several other higher-end brands, the only limit is budget.
Give Crutchfield a look over, their advisors will help you match components to gear and they are quite pleasant to deal with.

My setup consisted of a 6 ch Infininty amp, four 3-way Infinity Kappa speakers (95 db) ea at 80w RMS, a single 12" sub at 280 w RMS (96db sensitivity), and it rocked better than a friends high-end setup that has much more power and better components than mine.
My install was completely stealth, except for what you could see in the trunk. It was not a flashy install by far, but it sounded fantastic.
HTH

[makoshark]

In order to obtain a system that, "Sounds good and is pretty loud," then you have to build a sound quality system. All the cookie cutter stuff you find in your local retail stores will not give you a system that is clear and loud, sound quality system. In order to obtain such a system, your going to have to spend more money than from the prices of the products your seeing locally.

I had an 01 WS6 Trans Am that I put a "System" into. I wanted to be able to clearly hear it and feel it with the t-tops removed. I used Rockford Fosgate amps, Memphis Mclass components and subwoofer. It sounded terrible. I then decided to focus on sound quality. I upgraded all the wiring, bought a Memphis Mclass 1300 MemphisBelle 5 channel amp, CDT 6.5 components for the front and CDT upstage tweeter system for front as well. I also bought some amazing little 6.5 subs made by CDT for the rear that are called M6+. I used one 12" FI Car Audio sound quality sub. This sub is so clear, tight and amazing sounding. My system had a lot of bass, but it was not one of those boom boom type systems. I was clear as a bell and too loud for your ears. Everything was stealthly contained within the car. It was an amazing system. I sold the car shortly thereafter but kept the system. It will be installed into my 67 Camaro soon with a few addons/different configuration. I didn`t spend a great deal of money for it, but it is definitely a competition level system. Oh yeah, I also used a Pioneer P980BT headunit. I only had it all installed in the car for about 6 months and I hardly ever drove it. I am going to be selling some of this system soon to upgrade to some different type components that will be going in my Camaro.

Just remember, you`ll never be happy with all the crap bought from your local electronics stores. Visit your local stereo specialty shops or look through online. Just make sure you let everyone you speak with know your looking for sound quality. Also, also go overboard with your amp. Buy an amp that produces more power than you want/need. That way you can turn the amp`s power down and keep it out of it`s distortion range, but still provide your speakers with plenty of clean/clear power.

[astross89]

Dont know your budget but I know theres better stuff out there then kicker. But for the small space and using a sealed box i would go with them. most important thing is to build the box made for the sub.

http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-S12L7-KICKER-L7-Sub-Solo-baric-SUBWOOFER-08S12L7-/140452043734?pt=Car_Subwoofers_Enclosures&hash=item20b3981bd6

http://cgi.ebay.com/Kicker-ZX750-750w-Mono-Amplifier-ZX750-1-/250574547636?pt=Car_Speakers&hash=item3a57682ab4