[hell_prescribed]

I'm putting a subwoofer in my 2004 Rav4 and I'm not sure what size to go. Tweeter guy told me a single 12'' JL Audio W3, Best Buy told me a 10'' or 2 10''s. I'm not looking to go nuts with my sub, I listen to mostly rock and metal. Just wondering what your opinions were on the size I should get. Keep in mind, I don't have a big budget.

 

[Jeff]

Go for the 12" sub and a decent enclosure, which is what I have. Also, go with advice from the people at Tweeter because they tend to know more about car audio than Best Buy.

When it comes to subs, bigger means more bass but the bass is more boomy and not as tight. However, I have found that a 12" sub works fine for just about all types of music.

 

[hell_prescribed]

When it comes to subs, bigger means more bass but the bass is more boomy and not as tight. However, I have found that a 12" sub works fine for just about all types of music.

Yeah, I know the bigger subs are boomier, and for my metal/rock tastes, I'm afraid it'll all get washed out. Its hard to tell if someone is just trying to push a product or actually give me the advice I need. Also he said since its all open, no hatchback, that the windows will reverberate most of the bass as it is. I just hate to go overboard.

 

[BryanNH]

AS for the sub you should get, remember that each brand of sub sounds different, and that its also affected by the box's size and whether its ported or not!! I'd highly suggest going to your local car audio shop & testing out one of their systems that closely match what you are looking for to see how it sounds.

I think that you're right about a 12" drowning out alot of the sound from rock/metal music. I have a Rockford-Fosgate DVC sub w/ a 600w Amp, and yeah, its boomie as hell, it sounds great with techno/rap/hip hop ... and it sounds good with rock, but I think a pair of 10's, maybe even 8's would sound better. 8's would bring together the sound in the car ... 10's would give you a bit of the boom, be MUCH more responsive overall than 12's, you wouldn't be able to hear them outside of the car much because they are 10's, unles you bought high-end ones. I have seen some sweet 10's in my day, they are out there, but the best thing to do is to test some subs with the type of music you like ... and TEST the subs, give 'em a run for their money at the store! I think that the only thing you'll lose out on with 10's instead of 12's is a bit of the boomy-ness ... 10's would be better & much more responsive in my opinion.

Good luck, peace out!

 

[em]

I listen to all kind of music, I have to 10" with 800 watts. When Im listening hip hop is all good with the bass. But with the rock I have to turn down the sub volume in the preamp. My advice go with only one 10" but with at least 500 watts and buy a preamp so you can equalize the sound the way you like it.

By the way if anyone is interested in a bodykit or twin headlights go to the marketplace.

 

[hell_prescribed]

The problem with the audio stores I've been to is they just don't have the sets ups. Listening to a sub coming out of the wall or on the floor barely recreates what it would sound like in a small rav4. Tweeter that I went to, didn't even have all their subs hooked up, Best Buy didn't have any.

 

[Jeff]

Whatever you do, get a sealed box, because it provides tighter bass. A bandpass box provides really booming bass at a narrower range of frequencies (good for rap or techno). A ported box is somewhat in the middle, meaning that it will provide booming bass at a wider range of frequencies, however port size and length needs to be tuned accurately for it to sound good. A sealed box provides tigher bass (good for rock) because the pressure in the box helps the sub return to center more quickly.

Bandpass and ported boxes provide more bass but require less powerful subs. Sealed boxes require subs with more power from the amp to provide the same amount of bass, since they are less efficient.

There really is no magic combination. It depends on individual subs, boxes, and the car that they are going into. I chose a 12" in a sealed box, because I can drive it with a good amount of power (1200W peak) but still get decent bass without it being too boomy.

 

[Traded My MR2]

I'm putting a subwoofer in my 2004 RAV4 and I'm not sure what size to go. Tweeter guy told me a single 12'' JL Audio W3, Best Buy told me a 10'' or 2 10''s. I'm not looking to go nuts with my sub, I listen to mostly rock and metal. Just wondering what your opinions were on the size I should get. Keep in mind, I don't have a big budget.

First, you can make a 15" sub sound "tight" if the enclosure is built right. You can also make an 8" sound boomy, if the enclosure is built right. The biggest differences in sub size is the frequency extension is greater as sub size increases. A sealed enclosure will PROBABLY work best for you. If you are looking for sound quality, I would look into Boston Acoustic G5 series. If I were you I would probably buy one 12" sub. Build the box right, and it will sound exactly like you want it to. There is more to sound than just buying a sub and throwing it into a box. There is actually a certain amount of physics involved. If you are looking to play your music loud, you might want to look for a sub that handles more power going into it. IF you are not going to be blasting all the time, then you can get by with a smaller amount of power. The more power a sub can safely handle, the more clean it will sound at higher volumes. But, you must feed it the power it needs to achieve this. I've owned all the big name subs including Diamond Audio, JL audio (w3, w6, and w7), kicker, phoenix gold, alpine, and a few others. It really depends on what you want, but I really do think you be more than happy with Boston Acoustic G5...12", IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR SOUND QUALITY. You will also need to upgrade your components. I would HIGHLY suggest a set of CDT components. Don't be like everyone else and buy JL Audio. They are NICE products...but probably not what you are looking for sound-wise. I'm not knocking them, I actually use a JL 300/4 for my components and a JL 500/1 on my sub. I'm just saying, research your products before you buy. And don't just buy what everyone tells you to. You need to know WHY you are buying a certain speaker. Trust me, they all sound different.

 

[machman]

I'm going with a single Infinity Kappa Perfect 12.1 12" sub in a sealed box in my install. I listen to alot of different types of music and the 12" is known to do alot of things well.

Check out my cardomain page to see what it'll look like http://www.cardomain.com/ride/779649