I'm new to this forum and the search feature git hung up on my query.

I want to put a subwoofer in my '93 that doesn't take up very much trunk space. I don't want to build a box so I was wondering if there is a small type subwoofer that can be placed in either the rear deck lid where the existing speakers are or some other stealthy place? I don't need HUGE BOOMING bass, just enough to fill up what the little speakers lack.

What have you guys done with this car? Maybe there is another place to put a subwoofer......any ideas?

 

Check out Crutchfield. They might have a custom enclosure for your car. Also, take a look at Infinity's Basslink sub, its a subwoofer/amplifier in one, and its pretty small. You could tuck it in a corner of the trunk and be set.

 

A lot of subs can be used in free air. For this you can mount them in your back deck firing up thru the speaker grills and they wouldnt need a box.

I suggest running down to your local shop, NOT a Circuit City or Best Buy, but a real car audio shop and talking to them.

The key things with IB subs is that (A) you should get at least a 12" to reproduce the lower notes better because IB subs cant take the power that subs in an enclosure can handle. (B) you have to make sure theyre installed properly, especially around the baffle where the subs mount. This has to be air tight to work properly.

 

Ok I have a few questions. First what is "IB"? Bear with me because I have been using my stock stereo until last month. I just got a new Alpine deck and am not farmiliar with all the new terminology.

Second question. If I get a sub and mount it in the trunk, (I know this is a dumb question) but I can't just mount it in the trunk without a hole in the back deck right? There has to be a hole with a speaker grille going into the cabin for me to hear it right? I ask this because I see pictures of people with several large subwoofer speakers sitting in the trunk and I wondered if the sound went through a grille or just pushed its way through the back seat.

I am still looking for a small sub. Macleod, with your suggestion would I be losing one of my rear speakers to mount the sub you are talking about??

 

You could always look into a bass tube. Basically its just a tube w/ a 6 or 8 inch sub in there and they are pretty small and dont need to much power. And no, you dont need a hole to hear the bass.

I would get the audio from eBay, just make sure you dont get complete junk. Cheap is fine, unless its the no-name stuff thats going to cash out in a month. You cant really not recommend Best Buy or Circuit City. It just depends on what the knowledge is of the person you talk to. I would be fine trusting them, they install the stuff everyday. All you are going to need is a wiring kit (make sure it has an inline fuse before it goes through your firewall), amp, and your sub w/ a box unless it already comes in one. How much are you looking to spend?
And actually, you can install it yourself, the harderst part would be hooking it up to your radio. Are you familiar with soldering?

 

I agree with poser_pilot6...look at crutchfield.. they have Q logic boxes made to take up less space... If your looking for a good sub i would reccomend a JL one of the most musical subs out there. They can reproduce just about anything you throw at them..If u just want bump and no quality then id go memphis or kicker. Good luck with that let us know what u end up with !!

 

Bass frequencies take several feet to form. A typical 100 Hz wave takes about 5 feet to form so you cant block it off with anything short of lead.

Ever notice how if you go to a club and you go to the bathroom, you cant hear the high frequencies of the music but you can still hear the bass? Same priciniple.

So you can stick a sub in your trunk without cutting a hole anywhere and still hear it fine. Although, it generally will require a little more power than if you had the sub in the cabin with you.

IB, stands for infinte baffle or free air. That just means youre not using an enclosure.

The reason I dont recommend BB or CC is that, generally, the salesmen dont have a clue about the products they sell and couldnt tell you which ones would work in IB applications. A dedicated car audio shop will have guys that have been in the business for several years and receive factory training on their equipment. They would be in a much better position to design a system for your applictaion and budget requirements.

If you mounted the sub in the 6x9 spots of the back deck then yes, you would lose those speakers. However, rear speakers are detrimental to good sound quality. When you have different speakers playing the same frequencies but are at different distances, youll have the same waves reaching your ears at different times. Not only does this smear the detail and pull the soundstage to the rear, but it can also cause cancellation of the lower frequencies and decrease your bass response.

The thing I dont like about bass tubes is that 6.5" speakers arent really good at reproducing subbass. 8" subs are the minimum IMO. 12's are the best.

 

I didn't think this would work but I have two old truck speakers that each have two 8" woofers in each box and a small tweeter on top. I disconnected my rear speakers which are 6 1/2" rounds and extended the wires into the back seat. After hooking these two speakers up with no additional amp, I am stunned at how well it sounds. The only thing is obviously these two speakers take up space on the floor and have a little visual attraction for thieves.

These speakers for now do/sound great for me. I would like to get the floor space back and from what I have found from you guys is that means a sub in the trunk and about $200 or so. So far the wife thinks old free speakers are a better choice.

I also tried putting these two speakers in the trunk to see if they could act as a pseudo sub. They claim they can handle 150 watts but they overall sounded very muffled in the back. I guess that would be why I would need some 200 watts of amplifier power to make anything in the trunk work.

 

Yeah, unfortunately you have to spend some money and give up some space to get the best sound.

Im fighting with that now in my 07. The box for my sub is going to be pretty big (8D x 13.5H x 22W) and Ill have to build an amp board for my 2 amps and processor. I want my sub firing thru the back seat so I figure I can mount my amps right behind the sub box. This will eat up space from the back seats to approximately 9" back but I still should have a lot of room in there.

 

Yeah, I guess if I went the true sub route, 200 watts in the trunk will make up for the muffled sound that just being in the trunk would cause. That would be a whole lot more power than what is going through those two truck speakers right now. At this moment keeping them on the floor does the job. Just hope the theives don't like them more than I do.