New build for a buddy

[chevyman12 0]

Hello everyone. I am trying to help a buddy put some thump in the trunk of his car. I have a little experience with subs and wiring, but I have never heard a system in a trunk. He is wanting to drop about $800 into this, including the wiring,sub(s), and amp. At first thought I figured a 15" bl and a sundown 1500d would do the trick, but he has no experience with porting or box building. If he went sealed I thought an Fi Q would sound very clean, but I'm not sure if that is what people look for with a trunk install if they want to hear it good in the cab.

Would it be worth it taking the easy way out and going sealed, or should he look for a decent box builder?

Also, with that budget should a separate battery be something to look into?

I know he is going to have to put some sound deadening in there so I could also use some tips on how much to use.

Just let me know if you guys have any ideas or helpful info. I am open to any other brands. Like I said I have never installed in a trunk before so I have no idea if sealing up a sub would be a waste of money, and whether it would be worth it to drop some money on a nice ported sub box. I know the box can really make a difference. Thank you

Edited February 22, 2012 by chevyman12

[no_username 2]

Spl or sq?

What about 2 12s?

[CHRIS 323 12]

my little bro was in a small budget build for his 2 door camry he ended up getting three 15 kicker cvr with a sealed box and a yellow top battery and hifonics 1700 brz and 0 gauge wire everything else stock his trunk looks like it wants to break open it hits hard but i think a 4th over or bypass box would of been better since the arm rest thing folds down and theres a gap to the trunk maybe 5" by 10" gap but he needs dynamat pretty much thats it i hope this helps

[CHRIS 323 12]

my little bro was in a small budget build for his 2 door camry he ended up getting three 15 kicker cvr with a sealed box and a yellow top battery and hifonics 1700 brz and 0 gauge wire everything else stock his trunk looks like it wants to break open it hits hard but i think a 4th over or bypass box would of been better since the arm rest thing folds down and theres a gap to the trunk maybe 5" by 10" gap but he needs dynamat pretty much thats it i hope this helps

[CHRIS 323 12]

my little bro was in a small budget build for his 2 door camry he ended up getting three 15 kicker cvr with a sealed box and a yellow top battery and hifonics 1700 brz and 0 gauge wire everything else stock his trunk looks like it wants to break open it hits hard but i think a 4th over or bypass box would of been better since the arm rest thing folds down and theres a gap to the trunk maybe 5" by 10" gap but he needs dynamat pretty much thats it i hope this helps

[Jason Witt 65]

What kind of music does he listen to, what does he drive? There are many variables that need to be looked at, especially on a $800 budget. Sound deadening, an enclosure, wiring, amp, subs will run more than $800. IMO your buddy should save up to buy the gear to do it right, on that kind of budget he couldn't afford all of the gear you mentioned above. A Sundown 1500d is $525 new alone. That is 3/4 of the budget right there. Save up to get what he wants, and the essentials to do the job correctly.

[Jason Witt 65]

What kind of music does he listen to, what does he drive? There are many variables that need to be looked at, especially on a $800 budget. Sound deadening, an enclosure, wiring, amp, subs will run more than $800. IMO your buddy should save up to buy the gear to do it right, on that kind of budget he couldn't afford all of the gear you mentioned above. A Sundown 1500d is $525 new alone. That is 3/4 of the budget right there. Save up to get what he wants, and the essentials to do the job correctly.

Double post.. OOPS!

Edited February 22, 2012 by BrutalBasser

[S.DeYoung 967]

my little bro was in a small budget build for his 2 door camry he ended up getting three 15 kicker cvr with a sealed box and a yellow top battery and hifonics 1700 brz and 0 gauge wire everything else stock his trunk looks like it wants to break open it hits hard but i think a 4th over or bypass box would of been better since the arm rest thing folds down and theres a gap to the trunk maybe 5" by 10" gap but he needs dynamat pretty much thats it i hope this helps

You know what helps? Actually typing in sentences!

What the hell is a bypass box? Did you mean bandpass?

[S.DeYoung 967]

[CHRIS 323 12]

my little bro was in a small budget build for his 2 door camry he ended up getting three 15 kicker cvr with a sealed box and a yellow top battery and hifonics 1700 brz and 0 gauge wire everything else stock his trunk looks like it wants to break open it hits hard but i think a 4th over or bypass box would of been better since the arm rest thing folds down and theres a gap to the trunk maybe 5" by 10" gap but he needs dynamat pretty much thats it i hope this helps

You know what helps? Actually typing in sentences!

What the hell is a bypass box? Did you mean bandpass?

yes bandpass predicted text my bad on the bus to school

[CHRIS 323 12]

[altoncustomtech 773]

$800 should be plenty for a first time modest setup... Hell, I've done complete systems with new speakers, amps, subs, box, wiring and a little sound deadening for right around $1K for several people...

The SSA DCON's, Fi X's and IA 187's get overlooked all too often simply because they're lower powered subs. They offer great sound and very good output without breaking the bank and not just for the initial cost either but because they don't require a ton of power the amps are cheaper and there's less electrical upgrades and work that has to be done to support it too. IMHO a pair of 12's in any of the aforementioned series on an AQ750 would leave room for wire, a box, and if he's up for it upgrading the highs as well as possibly amping them too if he's smart about the products he chooses. A pair of 12" DCON's for example would only be $250, the AQ750 is $200 which barely gets over half the given budget and would be a great setup.

When it comes to trunks I prefer to seal everything into the cabin. It helps prevent trunk rattle and typically sounds better IMHO. Sealed works well for most anything although a properly built ported enclosure will outperform the sealed in almost every way. If he wants to build it himself it's not that difficult at all if he can already build a sealed enclosure. You'll just need a good design to go by and that shouldn't be too hard to attain here.

Hope that answers a few of your questions. I've always had a hard time understanding why people think they need so much power for a daily driver, especially on their first setup. The gains of going with more power versus the cost are typically not worth it unless a person is competing. Even then adding more power is the least economical way to get louder.

For what it's worth this is just my .02

[chevyman12 0]

Alton, I like the way you say the gains of more power versus the cost are typically not worth it. Where would the line need to be drawn? He drives a brand new Audi A6, and would spend up to $1k. I just know he wants it to be pretty impressive.

[djtomczak 5]

Skar VVX12s with the enclosure they build plus a Soundstream Rubicon amp plus wiring kit: should be less than 800, I don't feel like searching

[altoncustomtech 773]

Well, everyone has a different opinion on what's "pretty impressive". It's a very subjective measurement as to what constitutes the amount a person is impressed and what it is that impresses them. To give you some form of an example, my two 12" Q's on an SAZ-2000 is the loudest and best sounding sub setup I've owned yet. My sister's single 12" DCON sounds pretty much just as good and gets loud enough that if I had to trade one for the other I'm pretty sure that I wouldn't be disappointed by the difference in output 90+% of the time. That's what impresses me about the DCON's. She also gets comments from some of the people she goes to college with on how impressed they are about what it does for a single 12 without knowing anything about the enclosure or the power the sub is receiving.

Now, that being said, any one person on here is going to have a different feeling on that. So, if he wants something that's "pretty impressive" what is the baseline on his take of impressive that we're looking at?

[djtomczak 5]

390$

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Soundstream-RUB1-2500D-2500W-RMS-Class-D-Monoblock-Amp-/190588028114?pt=Car_Amplifiers&hash=item2c5fee84d2 $285

www.knukonceptz.com/productDetail.cfm?prodID=KFX-AK4-4 72+ ship

Total = 760$

[chevyman12 0]

Well, everyone has a different opinion on what's "pretty impressive". It's a very subjective measurement as to what constitutes the amount a person is impressed and what it is that impresses them. To give you some form of an example, my two 12" Q's on an SAZ-2000 is the loudest and best sounding sub setup I've owned yet. My sister's single 12" DCON sounds pretty much just as good and gets loud enough that if I had to trade one for the other I'm pretty sure that I wouldn't be disappointed by the difference in output 90+% of the time. That's what impresses me about the DCON's. She also gets comments from some of the people she goes to college with on how impressed they are about what it does for a single 12 without knowing anything about the enclosure or the power the sub is receiving.

Now, that being said, any one person on here is going to have a different feeling on that. So, if he wants something that's "pretty impressive" what is the baseline on his take of impressive that we're looking at?

I guess that is a very good point. I didn't even think how broad the word impressive could be when it comes to car audio. I don't think it matters if the box is sealed or ported. He will have one built either way since I am not living near him at the moment. With that said, do you have any suggestions as to what direction I should go with this. 2 12's or maybe a 15. Let me know what you think.

[altoncustomtech 773]

djtom has a fair recommendation in the Skars and SoundStream. I've not had any personal experience with the Skar subs or the amp so I can't and won't comment on them past that. I still honestly think your friend would be very happy with either DCON's or Fi X's in a proper ported enclosure. I have had experience with both of those and they're at the top of my recommendation list for many reasons the main one being that I don't think a better sub can be bought for the same money. Of course that's just my opinion, but I think anyone who's had real hands on experience with either sub would say the same. I have no doubt someone could find a better sub for the same money out there somewhere, but I am pretty sure that list would be very short. I also doubt they would be 100% American made or offer the same warranty and customer support.

Just about any reasonable suggestion from this forum would be a worthwhile investment so lets get more suggestions in here and see what you and him are comfortable with.

My suggestion is as said above, powered by something like an AQ750, would leave plenty of extra money for other upgrades or purchases as well with a $1000 budget. Picking up a 5 Channel amp like the Cadence F100-5 and a 15" DCON would leave even more room in the budget and more expandability.

[djtomczak 5]

I haven't had any experience with the skars, but I've heard there along the same line as the SA series, plus you get an enclosure for .01$. Rubicon amps are surprisingly well built for their price.

[pmureika 31]

It all depends on what he means by impressive.

[chevyman12 0]

With the amount of power we are looking at should he have to worry about doing the big three or picking up yellow top?

Also, how much power should those vvx's be able to handle? Would that amp be able to handle 1 ohm very easy if I went a different route on the subs?

I appreciate the help guys. I am just trying to get some common grounds, and then I should be able to go from there.

Edited February 23, 2012 by chevyman12

[altoncustomtech 773]

When it comes to any aftermarket amp install a good battery and the BIG 3 are a must in my eyes. They always help, and quite frankly most factory electrical systems are pretty piss poor to start with. Now, are you asking that question about the Soundstream, the AQ or the Cadence? The latter two it's not a big deal, but on the Soundstream it will definitely have to have some electrical upgrades up to and including an HO alternator if you plan on running it at 1 ohm and full tilt. The Soundstream is rated for 1 ohm so it will handle it with no problems, IF, the electrical backbone is there to support it. That's where the law of diminishing returns comes to play in my book. No more output than a person is going to gain by having that much power on the same subs it's not worth all the extra money AND work for that electrical upgrade, at least not to me.

[Frostedflakejake 148]

With his budget he is probably going to want to avoid anything more than 1500 watts for Amplifier. Otherwise he will drown money in electrical upgrades and have nothing left for the rest. The key with electrical upgrades is to keep it simple and try your system without any upgrades at first and then add them if necessary. That being said, since the big 3 cost very little, I would heavily suggest doing that no matter what.

[Frostedflakejake 148]

What I would try for:

Find a used SSA XCON 15" or and 18" if it will fit his vehicle. A few months ago when the new ZCON came out, the XCON's were for sale here like hotcakes. Usually they can be had for around $300. Then, for an amplifier, I would purchase this:

http://www.db-r.com/sell/store2/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=65_67_69_105&products_id=248

That puts him at $550 roughly. Add wiring. Does he have a head unit already?

[chevyman12 0]

Ok cool I appreciate the suggestion. How do you think that single 15" would sound compared to the 2 12"s listed earlier? And refurbished scares me a little.

I'm sure he will use the stock head unit since it is full of nav and numerous other functions. Should he need anything besides a line out converter?

Edited February 24, 2012 by chevyman12