Fitted trunk sub [Archive]

Stretch

11-24-2008, 08:46 PM

Hey guys,
My school term is over in 1-2 weeks, and I had wanted to develop a fitted sub woofer enclosure that will fit into the indent on the right side of the trunk. I own a sedan, so it would be modeled after sedan trunk and a hatch variant could be made if the vehicle was provided for measuring/template making. My background is: on my 8th vehicle, have done body work/fiberglass work in past, I am working on a gauge cluster for my 87 supra. I'm a Humber student in the Industrial Design program, so I am creative and good at models :).

I was going to make this for myself, possibly getting it vacuum molded for ease as fiberglass in my apt here in Toronto would be a bit much. I come from Ottawa where it was easier to do given my situation at the time. I wantd to know if anyone else would be interested, and if so how much such a product could expect to sell for? IE. how much would you guys pay for a product.

The plan, as it sits would be this:
- some sort of durable plastic vacuum-molded to fit the indent so as to not occupy space in the trunk, similar to the unit found on the driver side of my dad's new cobalt LT
- hopefully fit 1 10 inch sub, maybe 12, but I think 10 would be it although I have not measured yet
- should it be ported? If so, then a port :)
- ready to wire in, you would have to run the sub wire to the trunk, but the port would be on the unit
- depending on space, a small amp maybe, but again this depends on space

I'm not a vendor, so I hope this doesn't get shut down, nor do i have a price, so it is not a for sale ad. I want t know if you guys would be interested in this product to start, and we will go from there :gone!

I am excited for this idea,
eric

Dave_The_BMXER

11-24-2008, 11:42 PM

This has been done actually.

http://www.mazda3forums.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=124236.0;attach=33 863;image

http://www.mazda3forums.com/index.php?topic=124236.0

I'm more partial to a spare tire install myself...

Stretch

11-25-2008, 08:28 AM

Heh, I was waiting for that reply. An idea this col couldn't have just been thogh of my me :chuckle. Your pic doesn't work, I wish I could see it. I might still try this for myself anyway, it was getting me excited for a project. Thanks for the heads up about there being something out there already! No sedan one yet though, hmm... ;)
eric

Dave_The_BMXER

11-25-2008, 10:32 AM

Ah tricky bastards.

http://www.havokproductions.ca/3/jacksub.jpg

There ya go.

Also an option

http://mobile.jlaudio.com/products_stealthbox_detail.php?fit_id=1604

Stretch

12-16-2008, 04:16 PM

Here's some progress pics. I fitted it today. It fits well and with the hard cover put back on you cannot see anything! Complete stealth!

BTW it goes where the car jack is on the sedan; left side of trunk behind the flimsy carpet thing. I might make a mesh sort of grill in the access hole insert so you can see the sub, but the plan for now is to just keep it stealth and make it work.

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y291/BIGG_EASY/Mazda%203%20Sub%20Enclosure/Sub2.jpg
Front with rough outline of opening and possible sub placement

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y291/BIGG_EASY/Mazda%203%20Sub%20Enclosure/Sub1.jpg
Back showing hole for jack rest. No modification necessary to car to fit.

This is just my dumy, it will be the form to take the mold from, this isn't the actual enclosure heh as foam wouldn't hold much!
eric

Stretch

12-16-2008, 04:18 PM

Hmm, the pics are in the wrong order for my descriptions! I can't edit either, must be somethign about post count, which is a bit rediculous. Anyway, pics are reversed so don't get confused.
eric

Dave_The_BMXER

12-16-2008, 06:02 PM

I did get confused.

Are you not going to be able to see the sub at all? unlike what I posted above?

Stretch

12-16-2008, 06:39 PM

Correct. I had planned to have it poking out, but it would be more work than to actually keep it hidden. You would lose zero space and it would be even better protected, however it might be less cool because it will be invisible :chuckle. I should have taken pics when I fitted it but I was in the middle of it and the camera was 6 flights back up in the building.:bang Next time, when it's either ready for molding, or just after being molded.

Dave, do you know any very small subs? If it is small enough I can recess it into the back of the enclosure maybe, making it all in one piece. I think that would be cool, however the sub would have to be pretty small.
eric

Stretch

12-16-2008, 06:42 PM

Edit, I meant to say amps very small amps. God, can a mod please give me edit status? This is rediculous as i make mistakes like a blind driver hahaa.
eric

mdass52

12-16-2008, 07:27 PM

Moses

12-16-2008, 11:32 PM

Stretch

12-17-2008, 06:20 AM

take a look at the arc audio mini amps. They have a mono, 2 channel and 4 channel. I built a custom enclosure for a sub over the fall as well. However mine is on the other side of the trunk. Let me know how u're turns out

Whoa, I just looked at their mini amps and they are mini! Thank you sir for that excellent direction on some good mini amps! I might just be able to fit it on the side of the box and have the whole thing as one unit behind the trunk carpet! You see, I don't want to have a big amp in view or screwed down to the car I would rather it all be one removable unit :). The smallest mini is just a big bigger than the bottom half of a six in sub! I love it!
eric

Dave_The_BMXER

12-17-2008, 08:35 AM

Wow those amps are super small. The smallest I had seen previous was alpines PDX line.

I like where you are going with this.

What sub are you going to be using again?
Will the sub firing into that carpet piece cause lots of vibration you think?

Stretch

12-17-2008, 10:50 AM

I am not sure about vibration from that piece. It locks in place and seems sturdy when I pulled on it, but the true test would be having the sub actually firing into it. that super small amp though, the one that can be used for motorcycles, will be the one i use I think if i can find a price for it and it's not some rediculous price.
eric

Stretch

12-17-2008, 10:51 AM

As for subs, I wanted to use Infinity as they are my favorite brand, but I'm open to suggestions. Clarion has those slim subs which might be better for space, but any 8 inch sub should be fairly small anyway.
eric

Dave_The_BMXER

12-17-2008, 12:20 PM

Ah you are running an 8" now?

JL has a super slim 13"

Anyway I am very interested in the proceedings. One thing this board needs more of is DIY.

Stretch

12-17-2008, 02:27 PM

A 13" would rock, but the size of the enclosure won't allow for it. The most I can run is an 8" dia sub. The box as it is now is only 4" deep, but ofcourse if the sub required 4.75" or something I could extend the top but it might push on the carpet part of the trunk, although that wouldn't matter too much. Right now it clears everything ine, so I'm going to try and find an 8 incher that is less than 4" deep.

To answer your other question; no I don't have any subs now. I had infinity kappas front/back in my 91 prelude years ago and I loved them.

I was surprised at the lack of any response to my project from this forum to be honest. On the supra related forums I'm a part of ( I am on my 3rd one now :chuckle), the members eat up everyone's dyi projects! So far this forums could care less ahahaa. I'm just glad you've hepled me this far Dave, thanks for the advice.
eric

mdass52

12-17-2008, 07:29 PM

have you been looking at jl's shallow line? or even kaption? Im running to ED SQ 10's right now off my 5 channel amp. It sounds decent, could always use more power. lol

Stretch

12-17-2008, 10:22 PM

JL slim line subs looked awesome; however, they only have a 13" sub right now, and will only have a 12" and 13" nothing smaller. I need an 8 inch so those nice JL's are out.

The Kaption slim sub is only offered in a 10", which is too big for my hidden box. I might try and find a way to fit a 10, but for my box as it is now it will only take an 8" sub.

Ebay has a bunch; some old clarion models came in 8 inch and slim! Nothing new though. Infinity has the Reference in 8" but it's over 4" deep and only 8" wide! What's the deal with that? Right now it might come down to the Clarion slims from ebay unless something else can be suggested.
eric

Stretch

12-17-2008, 10:46 PM

queens49

12-17-2008, 11:19 PM

People on the US forums have used the Kicker Comp 8" or Kicker Compvr 8" for the hatch version.

Dave_The_BMXER

12-18-2008, 10:24 AM

So you are looking for less than 4 inch mounting depth?

hmmmm. You could try asking over on canadiancaraudio.com

mdass52

12-18-2008, 12:16 PM

I have looked hard and this is about all I can find.
http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PUSA/Products/CarAudioVideo/Subwoofers/Shallow/TS-SW841D?tab=B
Anything good to say about Pioneer? The size is right...
eric

I tried it out for a week, I couldn't stand how crappy that sub was. No excursion what so ever. I deal with the guys at Sound Centre in Ajax so they let me sample it. I ended up taking it back and took a clarion 10" which i still have. Much better for the price. But now that I got my two ED SQ 10's, Im sticking with those and Im going to fabricate a new enclosure over the winter. Let us all know how you make out.

mdass52

12-18-2008, 12:18 PM

People on the US forums have used the Kicker Comp 8" or Kicker Compvr 8" for the hatch version.

+1 on the comp vr's I had two 12" comp vrs in a prior installation and they were running off a kenwood 1000 watt and boy did they pound. Box is way to big for what I have in mind now.

skunk2

12-18-2008, 01:28 PM

i think the SQ10 will fit the bill. with a mounting depth of 3 inches and airspace of about .25 cu ft, this should fit where you are planning on putting it. i experimented with this same sub to go where the jack is but i would have to cut the panel so the sub can sit flush with it or raise the baffle so there's no cutting. if you are going to put it behind the panel, clearance shouldn't be an issue. i've been back there and there's a lot of room for a slim 10 or 8 inch sub totally invisible.

but as noted earlier on this thread you would have to deal with the panel itself rattling/vibrating. I'm running 1 SQ 10 inside the spare getting 400 watts and my trunk panels vibrate a lot. my trunk isn't deadened though. what material are you planning on using for the enclosure?

Stretch

12-18-2008, 06:47 PM

For the enclosure I was hoping to vacuum mold it out of plastic as my school as a primitive vacuum mold machine. I am going to look again in the area of the trunk I want to use as I would like to try and squeeze a 10" in there, so I might have to make a new prototype but it shouldn't be too hard, I just need to get a bit more foam I think.

One question about plastic trim in the trunk:
The plastic sil plate than rests on the bottom lip of the sedan trunk; how does it come off? I know there are 2 push-lock plugs one on each side, but the whole middle seems to be held on by something I cannot see. Do you have to unbolt the latch? I though maybe it was connected to the palstic, but then though it couldn't be. I need to get it off so I can completely remove the side carpet insert to access the hole better as right now I can only pull it back but not completely out of the way.
eric

skunk2

12-19-2008, 12:10 AM

just pull up on the middle piece after removing the fasteners. it's a PITA to take it off the first time.

Stretch

12-19-2008, 02:42 PM

Is it glued on or something? I would rather not break anything if there are tabs to be broken, I'm just confused how it is held so tightly.
eric

skunk2

12-20-2008, 03:28 AM

they're not glued....i think there's 2 or 3 clips.

Stretch

12-24-2008, 01:40 AM

Here's some pics of what I discovered today. I was trying to find a way to fit 10" worth of sub in there, but after careful deliberation it would be pretty impossible to fit one where I want to, without modifying anything. I found that even an 8" will be pushing it, and possibly too big, but I won't go smaller so I will try and make it work.

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y291/BIGG_EASY/Mazda%203%20Sub%20Enclosure/Baretrunk.jpg
Bare trunk wall. Lots of space right.

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y291/BIGG_EASY/Mazda%203%20Sub%20Enclosure/Fittedsubbox.jpg
Fitted enclosure. Not much space anymore! I plan to extend the enclosure down to fill in the hole under it and gain some volume, also possibly extending the top point a bit for more volume and face for the sub to play with. The jack support actually pokes right into where a sub would be so I need to move it around that which is HARD!

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y291/BIGG_EASY/Mazda%203%20Sub%20Enclosure/coverdsubbox.jpg
That's how it would look with the compartment cover off. It looks stock and completely invisible otherwise.

eric

zoom_concept

12-24-2008, 01:26 PM

You can fit an 8" without any clearence issues:

this will fit the bill:

http://www.apexjr.com/Super8.htm

Stretch

12-25-2008, 10:35 AM

Whoa! KILLER LINK! That's a great price. It doesn't say the rms or peak watts though, but I might just buy one of those babies. Does it say dimensions of the woofer? I only noticed dimensions of the boxes to use it in.
eric

Stretch

12-29-2008, 04:31 PM

*Minor update*

I just roughed up some additional panels for the enclosure. You will see the original plus the extra top and bottom pieces in the pics. If you look at the fitted pic in the above post you will see the extra space I have to make more box. I had to add extra box to the top in order to even fit a sub. The reason, marked out on the front in the shape of a black square in the corner of the original box, is the car jack stand which pokes up. It would be in the way of any sub unless I added the piece to the top of the box.

In pic 2 I have marked roughly where the sub shall sit as this is the only place it can go. The box will be roughly 0.7 to 1.0 cubic feet in volume so most 8" subs will work perfectly.
eric

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y291/BIGG_EASY/Mazda%203%20Sub%20Enclosure/Adn2.jpg

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y291/BIGG_EASY/Mazda%203%20Sub%20Enclosure/Adn11.jpg

McGuyver_3

12-29-2008, 10:17 PM

seing as how you have a mold machine why dont you try making a enclosure for the other side in the trunk? i beleive another member on the board scooped one up and if not mistaken the size is a 12". If you would like some help with the mold I would like to help you because i have ideas about how to make it, just need some help with making it.

Stretch

12-30-2008, 06:18 AM

That was my original intent. I had planned to use that large indent for a fitted bos, but I soon realised that there aren't moining points on that side for anything and I did not want to drill through the carpet liner. Maybe velcro could hold it on, but I'm not sure. With the left side I know i can use the stock jack cradle and screw point to hold the enclosure which is a lot safer. This was the only real reason for my decision, although I can't fit anything larger than 8" on the left without changing stock shape, I feel the result will be a seamless install. I might have another look at the right side now just to make sure it won't satisfy me, or maybe you can give me mounting ideas to spark my curiosity. :)
eric

Pimpin_29y

12-30-2008, 10:46 AM

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y193/AAboy/Stealth001.jpg

Stretch

12-30-2008, 10:57 AM

That looks like an incredibly solid enclosure! I bed it doesn't flex at all hah! So it fits into the indent on the right side of the trunk by the looks of it. If it's yours, then well done. I can appreciate the fiberglass/resin work as I myself have done much resin before and I don't like it to terribly much heh.
eric

Pimpin_29y

12-30-2008, 01:33 PM

skunk2

12-30-2008, 01:40 PM

there should be one mounting point on the right side.....there is a push in clip that can be replaced with a nut and bolt that can go through the enclosure. you don't have to make it as big as pimpin's box either if you are going to fit an 8 or 10 inch sub. you can make it so it only takes the corner to save trunk space and weight.

gabe - that's really a kick ass setup!

Pimpin_29y

12-30-2008, 06:38 PM