Speaker Box - Fiberglass or wood

fischb22 · 10-19-2008, 07:37 PM

I've recently gotten two PA Fubar-12s(2k watts) and i am trying to decide on a speaker box design and enclosure.

I'm not sure if i should use wood and carpet it, or go the fiberglass route.

I'm also not sure if i am going to use a ported box or not(not quite sure how to do that)

i'm kinda fishing for comments/suggestions/personal experences

Woofnstuff · 10-19-2008, 10:18 PM

the fabrication thread my be a better place for this.

you could make it out of MDF or Plywood, then glass the joins.
that way you get the density of the wood and the strength.

unless you want to put it in a weird shaped space, then glass might be better

also look thru the FAQ's
and have a look at www.12volt.com

but this page more so
http://www.the12volt.com/caraudio/boxcalcs.asp

SuperJ · 10-20-2008, 05:47 AM

It depends on what you want to do with your box and where you want to put it. Fiberglass is a lot more work and will ultimately be much more expensive. Read the FAQ's and decide what you're hoping to accomplish first.

thekl0wn · 10-20-2008, 09:17 AM

The decision between ported/sealed depends on what you want out of the subs... And judging by the brand, I'm guessing you're going for purely loud, which means you're going to get the most by porting, in most cases.

Now, I've never used these subs, so I don't know anything about them... Whether they thrive in big/small/ported/sealed enclosures. THAT is what you need to look into first... Whether they're going to require a big or small box, and whether that box needs to be ported or sealed. Also, what kind of space are you looking at for this install? What kind of vehicle is it going in? What's you fab experience with wood and/or f/g? What tools do you have to use?

(edit: Noticed you have an OBS Tahoe in your sig... Plenty of room for whatever you decide.)

fischb22 · 10-21-2008, 12:26 PM

here is some more info on the speakers that i dug up

Code:

Sealed box: 1.2 cu. Ft.
Ported box: 2 cu. Ft.
Port Size (Dia x L): 4" x 8.75"
Number of ports: 1

now that is PER speaker right? so two speakers i double the measurements? or when i build the box, do i basically have 2 separate enclosures(like a wall between the speakers?)

Woofnstuff · 10-21-2008, 05:59 PM

if you are running them in mono one enclosure should work fine, because they are both doing the same thing.. dont run subs in stereo, they dont work as well..
just remember to brace the box in the middle a bit of 2"x2" wood works well, or if you are putting a wall in the middle and splitting them up thats fine.

you could test it.. build the box as one open box, but keep it so you can still put the top off, and test it with a partition in the middle and one without.

ideally you want the box perfectly sealed but for testing the theory screwed together well will work.

fischb22 · 10-21-2008, 09:11 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by Woofnstuff

if you are running them in mono one enclosure should work fine, because they are both doing the same thing.. dont run subs in stereo, they dont work as well..
just remember to brace the box in the middle a bit of 2"x2" wood works well, or if you are putting a wall in the middle and splitting them up thats fine.

you could test it.. build the box as one open box, but keep it so you can still put the top off, and test it with a partition in the middle and one without.

ideally you want the box perfectly sealed but for testing the theory screwed together well will work.

i think i am going to go with a wall in the middle, and yes, i will be running in mono.

i was thinking of making a 'slot' in the middle for my amp to get mounted anyway.(behind peice of 1/2" acrylic glass)

on the ports, the 4x8.75" does it really need to be 8.75" long? or can i angle them?

and i assume that it is okay to use a piece of PVC for this?(schedule 40 for example?)

SuperJ · 10-21-2008, 10:42 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by fischb22

on the ports, the 4x8.75" does it really need to be 8.75" long? or can i angle them?

and i assume that it is okay to use a piece of PVC for this?(schedule 40 for example?)

You can angle them but make sure to account for the angle in your measurements. You can use PVC but you will want to flare the ends to prevent chuffing. It's easier to buy a kit from someone like precision port with the flares built in than it is to make your own. Hit google, it will be your best resource for box building.

fischb22 · 10-22-2008, 01:10 AM

okay, thanks, i was thinking about actually checking on ebay for pre-made ports

SuperJ · 10-22-2008, 11:25 AM

http://www.parts-express.com/ has a fairly large selection of ports.

fischb22 · 10-22-2008, 12:43 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by SuperJ

http://www.parts-express.com/ has a fairly large selection of ports.

Thanks - Ordered!

how big of a factor is placement? should they be on the same face as the speaker? back of the box? sides? out the top(bad idea? small toys could fall in?)

thekl0wn · 10-22-2008, 02:01 PM

The question was never answered about what you're looking to get out of your substage... What kind of music do you listen to and all of that information determines a LOT in the box design. Ordering a port isn't necessarily necessary... You could use a slot port. Heck, you can't even look at your port size until you have dimensions on your box, and know what frequency you're going to tune it to. Port-fire and driver-fire directions are also determined a lot by the desired result.

There is a TON of math that goes into building an enclosure correctly, whether it be for SPL, SQ, or even when it's purely a budget-build...

fischb22 · 10-22-2008, 04:08 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by thekl0wn

The question was never answered about what you're looking to get out of your substage... What kind of music do you listen to and all of that information determines a LOT in the box design. Ordering a port isn't necessarily necessary... You could use a slot port. Heck, you can't even look at your port size until you have dimensions on your box, and know what frequency you're going to tune it to. Port-fire and driver-fire directions are also determined a lot by the desired result.

There is a TON of math that goes into building an enclosure correctly, whether it be for SPL, SQ, or even when it's purely a budget-build...

Code:

# Sealed box: 1.2 cu. Ft.
# Ported box: 2 cu. Ft.
# Port Size (Dia x L): 4" x 8.75"
# Number of ports: 1

i was going to go by the manufacture suggestion for that speaker.

as far as type of music, i listen to it all(rock, metal, rap, country, jazz, classical,etc)

i'm going to use a 'missile'/NOS style switch on the remote line going to the amp, (also so i can kill it when in a neighbor hood after night fall)

thekl0wn · 10-22-2008, 05:15 PM

I can assure you that by the specs given there, you are going to produce nothing more than a fart-box. That setup is tuned at 40hz... Way too high, even for a bass-head...

In all honesty, for your wide variety of musical tastes, a sealed enclosure may be your best bet. It will blend with your mids/highs better and sound better than an ill-designed box. Also, keeping the subs separated versus a common chamber can be argued either way, though I tend to lean on common chamber. (and common slot port in a vented application.)

Which, if you go sealed and don't have to worry with the ports, that makes going f/g for some of the enclosure MUCH easier!

Woofnstuff · 10-22-2008, 05:35 PM

in theory sealed will give you a tighter harder bass and a ported will give you a more extended base...

you can start with it sealed then if its not what you liked put the ports in

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