any market for a subwoofer enclosure?

[GeoGeek]

I've been kicking around the idea of doing a fiberglass enclosure on the passenger side cubby of my '06 Prius for a while now. I've got a 12" in a 1.2 ft³ enclosure that sits on the rear deck, just under the tonneau cover. It takes up room, but we've gotten used to working around it. I've procrastinated so long now that I'm in the market for a 2010 and probably won't do it for the '06.
I would be interested in one of the enclosures for a 2010....either side really will work. Several have made these enclosures for the Gen II Prii and posted pictures here on PC.....they've done both driver and passenger side cubby enclosures. There's about 0.66 ft³ available on the passenger side and more like 1+ ft³ available air space with the drivers side enclosure. A 10" is the biggest I've heard of anybody using in these enclosures. There's plenty of 10" subs out there that will work fine in 0.66 ft³.
I was considering a JL Audio 10W3v2.
Like I said, I'd be interested in one for a 2010 if the price is right.

[hyo silver]

Originally Posted by GeoGeek

...I'd be interested in one for a 2010 if the price is right.

That's a whole 'nuther hole, so it means a different set of plugs and moulds, and a much smaller market. Maybe if I ever get a 2010...

[nspeer]

Originally Posted by Prius 06

Same here!

Has anyone tried the JL Audio CP108LG-W3v3 "Flatwedge" Subwoofer?

[F8L]

Originally Posted by nspeer

Has anyone tried the JL Audio CP108LG-W3v3 "Flatwedge" Subwoofer?

Spamming every thread with the same question is not appreciated....

[hyo silver]

I've done some more research, and consulted with a boat-building friend. Looking at the right-side cubby and the relatively flat surfaces, he thought a reasonable form could be made of cardboard, and that plaster of paris would be fine for the plug to make the mould from. The left-side cubby looked somewhat more complex, but worth it to get a 10" sub instead of an 8".

How closely does the volume of the enclosure have to be matched to the speaker? Is it best to have the inside surface smooth and shiny? Would a particular interior shape, say a parabola, be better than the existing shape of the cubby?

[nspeer]

Originally Posted by F8L

Spamming every thread with the same question is not appreciated....

sorry about that. I tried to post a photo of the JL but, being a newbie, the forum said I needed at least 5 posts in order to post a photo. So, I posted 5 times. Did not mean to spam.

[F8L]

Originally Posted by hyo silver

I've done some more research, and consulted with a boat-building friend. Looking at the right-side cubby and the relatively flat surfaces, he thought a reasonable form could be made of cardboard, and that plaster of paris would be fine for the plug to make the mould from. The left-side cubby looked somewhat more complex, but worth it to get a 10" sub instead of an 8".

How closely does the volume of the enclosure have to be matched to the speaker? Is it best to have the inside surface smooth and shiny? Would a particular interior shape, say a parabola, be better than the existing shape of the cubby?

We generally use fiberglass fabric instead of the messy mesh-looking stuff.

The speaker has a range of volume it can work in. You will be concentrating on the "sealed" requirements. There is usually a manufactures "recommended" enclosure size and then there is a minimum size. The closer you get to the minimum size the louder the sub will play at a narrow frequency range but you sacrifice smoothness and low bass extension (won't play as loud at low frequencies). If you go above the "recommended" size you simply lose some output and run the risk of losing control of the subwoofer because there is not enough suspension due to too much air. In the latter case just think of how bad a speaker plays when sitting on the floor with no enclosure at all. It just flaps around and you get no bass.

As for shape, as long as you avoid creating 2 parallel flat surfaces then you will be fine. I.E. since the front of the box where the sub mounts will be relatively flat, try to make the back of the box, opposite the sub, not so flat. This will help avoid standing waves or sound waves reflecting off of the back wall and bouncing back through the cone of the sub and either causing cancelation or distortion.

[hyo silver]

Originally Posted by F8L

...As for shape, as long as you avoid creating 2 parallel flat surfaces then you will be fine. I.E. since the front of the box where the sub mounts will be relatively flat, try to make the back of the box, opposite the sub, not so flat. This will help avoid standing waves or sound waves reflecting off of the back wall and bouncing back through the cone of the sub and either causing cancelation or distortion.

This tells me there has to be some internal structure, not just an airtight 'lining' inside the available space. If a minimum of reflection is best, maybe some eggcrate foam material would work.

[F8L]

Originally Posted by hyo silver

This tells me there has to be some internal structure, not just an airtight 'lining' inside the available space. If a minimum of reflection is best, maybe some eggcrate foam material would work.

For sure. You will need a very thick layer of fiberglass to keep the box from flexing, breaking, or resonating. I'm thinking at least 1/4" - 1/2" of glassing. With our heavy duty subs we require 1" MDF for box construction. The thing needs to sound "dead". Like the different between knocking on sheet of tin or a sheet of 2" steel.

[hyo silver]

Have you any idea how much effort goes into making fibreglass parts light? OK, so I won't be using any vacuum-bagging and excess resin extraction techniques.

MDF for the front face, at least, seems standard practice, though it sounds like I should incorporate more of it on the other surfaces, within the layers of glass. And maybe a short section of large diameter PVC pipe...