custom stealthbox... part deux! (looking for input for possible mass production)

[paultvx]

He's basially saying he made it into a push/pull setup with the two subs. This configuration is in use in some highend home theater subs.

I personally would rather have a single 12" enclosure as Randy proposed for two reasons.

One, I already have a 12" sub I can use.

Two, I don't believe in sacrificing any of the vehicle's functionality in order to have a little sound. Most of our VX here are daily workhorses, not show only trailer queens.

[AlaskaVX]

That must not have came out right. The thing is, it sounds muddy right now but if I were to split the boxes and run them in phase it would sound better. If I run them in phase now with my enclosed box then they pretty much cancel each other out (since they both can't go up at the same time due to the air space) and hardly any base comes out, they are both fighting for the same air.

does that make more sense

[sagwagon]

Randy; I'd be interested in jumping on this bandwagon. I thought the stock stereo would be worse than it is but a nice amp and sub at a minimum to modest cost is realistic for me. I'd also be interested in a MO meet for VX'ers in and around the Missouri area. Could be a day meet or weekend w/activities, maybe taking in a Cardinal game or something else. By the way, where does the "Coach" come from? (I'm a X-country coach.) And where are you at in developing this project? Steve

[coachreed]

Originally posted by sagwagon
Randy; I'd be interested in jumping on this bandwagon. I thought the stock stereo would be worse than it is but a nice amp and sub at a minimum to modest cost is realistic for me. I'd also be interested in a MO meet for VX'ers in and around the Missouri area. Could be a day meet or weekend w/activities, maybe taking in a Cardinal game or something else. By the way, where does the "Coach" come from? (I'm a X-country coach.) And where are you at in developing this project? Steve

I agree that the stock system isn't that bad... but it defintely lacks low end punch... I however can't leave anything alone, so its gonna end up extreme when its done. But anyway, I hope to get my butt in gear this weekend... so maybe you will see some progress next week. I am in the Kansas City, MO area... Lee's Summit to be exact. As for the "Coach"... its an old nickname from High School... seems I had a bad habit of bossing the freshman around during wrestling practive so my best friend started calling me Coach... just stuck from there. Anyway, I am up for a meet sometime... we should chat about that... I'll get with you later on, aight? See ya!

Coach... aka Randy!

[WormGod]

12" all the way. Especially with a good Dynamatting, why not go 12"? I run a 250 mono watt 12" JLAudio sub now but it's hardly stealthy.



All it would take is a bratty arse neighborhood kid to peek in my window and see that he would like it in his Neon, and the next thing you know, I have a broken window and wires hanging free. I would kill for a custom stealth box.

As for vehicle response with 2 12".... it isnt so good. I already attempted 2 subs and the VX simply is NOT the vehicle for 2. The bass response is good in the VX but the thump and vibration drove me insane. Even with Dynamat, it was like sitting in a cheap hotel vibrating bed. Not to include the near total lack of space. With 2 subs, there went my entire rear storage.

I used to be in the business of building custom enclosures, and trust me, fiberglass and plastic is a no no. They resonate bass so horribly that it sounds like pots and pans. Believe it or not, the only good material for a box, other than wood, is concrete. You would not believe how many folks we had actually done custom work with that had us create concrete or gunite enclosures. They were incredible though.

[coachreed]

Originally posted by WormGod
I used to be in the business of building custom enclosures, and trust me, fiberglass and plastic is a no no. They resonate bass so horribly that it sounds like pots and pans. Believe it or not, the only good material for a box, other than wood, is concrete. You would not believe how many folks we had actually done custom work with that had us create concrete or gunite enclosures. They were incredible though.

I personally don't agree with you on the idea of fiberglass being a no no... it all depends on the thickness... yeah, MDF is nice and dense and makes for a good enclosure, but when you compare it to a properly built FG enclosure, its not really the same. If you are running a single 12" in FG, the enclosure needs to be around 1/2" thick... most people lay-up enough to make it rigid, but not really so dense. Thickness for Thickness, a FG enclosure made of 3/4 oz matte and polyester lay-up resin is every bit as dense as a MDF box... now, as for concrete or gunite... thats gotta be a little overkill for most jobs... actually, I can't think of a reason to ever go to that extent... could be wrong, but I haven't seen the need for it... crazy idea though.

Anyway...

Coach!

[SPAZZ]

I agree, might as well put a big bright sticker on the window saying "Alpine" or "Kenwood", etc....
Back in my high school days kids used to put those big bright stickers on or just build a box like the picture above. Next thing you know, they would be crying "Someone broke my windows out & stole my system". I believe the stealth box is an awesome idea and investment to protect what shouldn't be seen by all.
Oh, van eyes allows you to see out really well, but allows people to see what you have in that rear cargo area too....just something to think about too.

[WormGod]

Coach, if yu are talking about custom building a fiberglass enclosure and thickening the crap out of it, sure, it will work. BUT, the way fiberglass resonates, it will have to be HELLA thick. For higher toned speakers, it might be ok, but I am more than skeptical with a sub enclosure. There are ways around that though. If your enclosure is just for looks, spraying some gunite or solid poxy-fill on the INside walls will solidify the shell. VERY expensive though.

And you arent kidding about the concrete being slightly overkill. Years ago, we had a job doing a custom enclosure for, of all cars, a Caprice wagon. The most hideous lowrider I had ever seen. The rear suspension was juiced up just to handle the weight of this enclosure. It was about 300lbs of concrete molded in a wood and fiberglass enclosure for form fit. It came out to 3 pieces and then secured in the rear of the car. 2 15" subs were mounted in them with cheesy green neon lighting and carpeted with white. It sounded freaking incredible, but wow.... the price you pay to have a grocery getter sound good.

[paultvx]

One thing leads to another. Thump=broken glass, mangled door handles, or worse... missing VX!

FG will sound just fine if done right and I think Randy (coachreed) knows what he's doing. I knew someone with a FG custom enclosure (15" JL) and it sounded great. No resonance whatsoever. If there were any, poly fill probably took care of it.

Randy, if you ever get around to doing this... I hope I'll have some money then because I'd love to get one to free up some space in the rear. Been fishing quite a bit lately and would sure like to be able to stick the rods and gear back there.

[WormGod]

Just a thought, but I noticed that with the rear view cam, my sub causes the image to vibrate a tad. I am only using a bandpass box right now. If the sub is mounted in the rear hatch, it seems this may cause even MORE vibration to the image. Anyone using both a hatch mounted sub and a rear view cam? Curious as to what the results are.

God knows that my sub even shakes the hell out of my rear view mirror, heh.

[kpaske]

I too have been thinking about building a custom sub enclosure for my rear door tire well. Since I have oversized tires on my VX now, the donut is really just taking up valuable space. With a full size spare mounted on the roof, I've got a few cubic feet of space to drive two 12" subs in the rear door.

I was considering using fiberglass, but have no experience working with it and think I could do a much better job using MDF. It wouldn't utilize the space as efficiently, but a sort of octogonal shaped box could be built fairly easily that would give me the volume I'd need. It would likely be quite heavy though, so I would have to bolt it to the two support rails that run vertically inside the door.

I haven't decided how to modify the plastic cover yet, although I was considering cutting an oval shaped hole with a carpeted panel that would stick out about half an inch or so. If I could get someone to build me a custom fiberglass panel so that I wouldn't have to cut my stock one, I'd certainly consider that option also. Any takers?

I'm a little concerned about something WormGod mentioned though:

Originally posted by WormGod
As for vehicle response with 2 12".... it isnt so good. I already attempted 2 subs and the VX simply is NOT the vehicle for 2. The bass response is good in the VX but the thump and vibration drove me insane. Even with Dynamat, it was like sitting in a cheap hotel vibrating bed.

Has anyone else had any experience, good or bad, running two subs in the VX?

[-x-]

I guess this is a fyi type thing....

...but im havin my 12"s put in the rear hatch and decided to take out the spare (i doubt ill have a spare 20 back there when i get rims).

Anyhow that metal sheet/plate it surprisingly VERY strong and stable. Each 12 has its own 1.5 or so wooden enclosure that is mounted to that metal sheet/plate and so far i can feel just about everything shake and luckily not hear it.

After work ima go by the shop and see how everything is finalizing so we'll see. ....x

[Navigator]

Show me some pics of all of those 12's fitting in the spare tire area

I have plenty of bass now, but I am open to do more if it is possible.

[-x-]

....you cant see them from the front but you can feel 'em
Everything should be finalized on tuesday so ill be sure to post the final product w/the final look of the ps2 in the dash as well...x



WOW ;Dr;



Sorry thought i knew what i was doing if anyone can and desire to post pics in tha message by all means .....x


>>> Fixed IMG tag... You have to right click on the actual picture and copy the URL to the photo. You had the URL to the web page. No biggie ...wsg

[kpaske]

X -

That's some really nice work! I'm interested in doing something very similar for a pair of Orion XTRPRO 12's. Can you give us some details? Is that fiberglass over MDF? How are they mounted to the door? How are the acoustics inside the VX with two subs?