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Reply With Quotewhen using mdf remember face mask!!!!!!!!!! very important.
Subwoofer Sealed Enclosure Install Guide
I decided to log my installation as it is my first install and theres a lot of people on the forum who ask for pics and steps for installs so here goes.
Started with purchase of 2 Clarion PA10-S 10" Subs. Spec sheet came with optimum sealed enclosure size which was 32liters.
~Tip~ Always buy your subs before trying to design an enclosure.
Got to work designing a basic trapezoidal prism enclosure, found this site along the way that makes the calculations easy http://www.bcae1.com/spboxnew2.htm. You'll have to just do some imperial to metric conversions yourself. A quick drawing in Visio will help me out later with the cutting.
Made a prototype out of cardbord in a couple of minutes. Allowed me to see how it looks in my boot and if the shapes OK. It allowed me to go back to the designs and maximise the height of the box, therefore saving boot space.
Source some 18mm MDF for the construction, you can get this stuff free if you ask your local Mitre 10 for some old MDF packing sheets. Its usually scratched or has chipped edges, but you can cut these out and remember your going to carpet it. Cut the panels on the drop saw and glue and screw it all up. An industrial construction adhesive was used here, dont use white craftwood glue, thats stuffs for preschool kids mothers day cards. I used 97 screws in total over the 2 boxes. I also went over the edges inside and out with bathroom tile sealing silicon to make sure no air was going to escape.
I picked up some sound dampening acrylic from spotlight for $6 and I had some left over after lining the inside of the 2 enclosures. ~Tip~ Plaining the inside top and bottom of the front panel of the enclosure will allow a nice flush finish
I picked up 3m of Speakerbox felt from Clark Rubber @ $10p/m. It was the exact colour to match the boot carpet in my VT and pretty durable aswell. The width of the carpet was not big enough to be able to wrap the box in one piece, so I made the cuts meet on the sides of the box, and once in the shadows of the boot, they are not noticeable at all. A layer of Sellys Gel Grip gets the carpet stuck like a ford in a mechanics workshop.
~Tip~ Try to get wide carpet so there are no joins needed and dont apply the adhesive to thick so as it soaks through the carpet.
When I mounted the terminal on the back, I ran a bead of silicon around the edge of the terminal to get a good contact. When mounting the sub I just cut the carpet about 1cm in from the edge of the wood and allowed the speaker to push in around it and screw it down tight. The completed boxes come up pretty good.
I chose the Clarion APA2160 as my Amplifier. Cheap enough for my first car audio system but powerful enought to get the 2 subbies pumping. I mounted it under the parcel shelf as suggested by many people on this forum. Pre-drilled some pilot holes into the metal and whacked 4 screws with washers in there and its sitting pretty.
The completed boxes sit in the boot with minus 3mm clearance, thats right, negative clearence. This means theres no need for straps or anchoring because it jams up under a ridge thats in the VT boot and its sides are up against where the struts attatch to the body, so theres no movement at all.
All my cable running was done professionally by an onsite installer while I was at work. I bought the RCA and power leads + fuse at Jarcar. Thus no details on the wire running. Feel free to ask any questions, all the info I needed to tackle this project was found in this forum, so thanks to everyone that posts here.
when using mdf remember face mask!!!!!!!!!! very important.
Not a valid input....
bah!!!!!!!!!! I've been doing this for seven years and never wore a mask *cough cough*
You put you left foot in, your put your right foot in , you take your left foot out and you slide it all about!
RIP 12voltking!Originally Posted by 12Voltking
Not a valid input....
tell me about it dude.....*cough*...I seem to be doing a lot of that lately eh?
You put you left foot in, your put your right foot in , you take your left foot out and you slide it all about!
After spending much of my high school years in the shop room working on various projects I have developed an allergic reaction to the fine dust that comes from MDF. My arms get heaps itchy if the dust settles on them for to long.
I’ve also got a little bit of industrial deafness.
3Y3 K4N 5P33K 1337.
you know you love it.
nice guide thoughhow's the kick with two 10's?
attn Über geeks, i play Second life. Patrio Graysmark.
you know you love it.
nice guide though
Yeah, real tight, custom made boxes are the go all the way. My boss has 2 12" in his boot with "off the shelf" generic enclosures, and his bass is real untidy.
I never sanded the MDF so there wasnt alot of particles, but u gotta remember its just compressed sawdust with glue, nasty stuff.
LPG Installer :p
My sub box is built, I just need to carpet it. Here's the specs:
1x 380 by 340
1x 540 by 340
1x 540 by 340
1x 380 by 340
1x 540 by 380
1x 540 by 380
The front of the box is moved in 20mm to allow for the sub to be flush with the rest of the box. How much carpet do I need and could I please have the dimensions so I can but the carpet?
Cheers,
Matty
How much do you need? Enough to cover the box + 10% for good measure.
How good is fibre glass to make sub boxes outa?
Thats what i would like to do...
usually its more used for perminent installs. mdf is heaps easier to work with if you just want a box.
nah man i dont like generic lol, i love custom everything.
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