How well does the sound of the sub get to your ears? Quality?
Do you hear a lot of banging from the trunk? Does it override the music?

I've held back on getting subs for my S because of the worry that it will sound shitty and won't be worth the time or space (was thinkin of 2 8" in the sides). But I really miss not having a bottom end for my music in my car.

What are your opinions and what have your experiences been like?

I'm running an old set of mb quarts(qm 218.03) in the front w/ an Alpine HU without the xover(i know, I know...it sounds bad. I have an old amp (Phoenix Gold zx450) that's been sitting in my basement for years. I rarely listen to music in my car or when I do it's at low levels at least because the sound is so painfully bad.

I'm a home audio audiophile and I know I can't get the sound quality that I'd like in this car, but I would like an improvement from what I have now.

I know installing the amp and xovers is a given for the front stage (getting a new amp and front speakers is also a thought), but my concerns right now are about the subs in the trunk.

 

I'm very happy with the results of my sub. I'm currently running an Alphasonik PSW810 sub in a tool well box that I built myself. I recently changed sub amp to a Zapco 1100.1 and it has made a ton of difference in the sound quality of the sub and the ability to hear and feel the sub with the top down. I've done some tuning, but still have some tweaks to make. I will tell you I'm about sound quality. I like clear clean sound.

 

The sub, if tuned right, should NEVER override the music. That is the beauty of subs and amps. They can be tuned and the volume levels bumped up and down, depending on your taste.

I have mine setup so when I do listen to bass-driven music (Bob Marley, etc.) the bass is the most prevalent thing. It can also be turned down for more mellow music (Dave Matthews).

You can always make the sub sound however you want via tuning. Just keep in mind that you can always turn it down, but not necessarily up (wattage limitation).

A pair of 8's is not a bad place to start. I would like a little more bottom end, though. You can get a 10" sub in a side enclosure, it just has to be a low-volume sub. I think Audiobahn makes one and so does Elemental Designs (just to name a few). The larger the sub, the better the bottom end.

You will be surprised with the sound quality you can achieve in the car, given the proper stuff. With decent speakers hooked to a decent amp in the cabin, then a sub pushing ~400wrms, I think you will be more than happy (given that you dont like bass-heavy music). The 400wrms will give you the necessary volume for most musical applications, and will allow you to turn it down if its too much.

Just my opinion

John

 

400wrms is a lot for not liking bass heavy music. I have a JL 500/5 pushing a JL 10w3 @ 250wrms in a custom box from Pas2knut and I enjoy bass heavy music and it works excellent. Going from nothing to 400wrms would do the trick it just might be more than you need. Just my 2 cents.

 

pas2knut, I've read some good things about the Zapko 1100.1, it has a lot of power, but haven't heard it myself. It's been a while since I've been into car audio so I'm way behind in what's out there now. Last I recall it was very hard (impossible)to make up for the limitations of the cars environment in terms of true hi fidelity, but I have been impressed by a few car audio systems.

jwa, I wasn't talking about the sub overriding the music (unless done so on purpose), I was talking about the sounds and vibrations(sound/rattling) the trunk would be making because of the sub. Like if you stand outside a car that has a few 12"s in the trunk all you hear is the muffled bass and banging/rattling of the trunk.

shuney, no such thing as too much bass! Well there iz overkill, but not if I'm listening to rap of metal. Plus I can always turn it down to mix better w/ the music when I want.


I was thinking of either 2 8" subs in the sides or 1 10' sub in the well or now that you mentioned it even 2 10" subs in the sides if they'd fit (I didn't think they would).

The best thing about the 8's are how tight they are, but they of course lack range because of their size. My old setup about 10 or so years ago had 2 JL audio w68"'s in an rx-7. I hand built the boxes and they produced some pretty good bass for the power they were receiving, and the rx-7 had a much better environment for subs IMO compared to the S.

I want to be able to hear the sub(s) and I also want to be able to FEEL the sub(s). I'm gonna have to do some demoing, but for now I'm thinking of sticking with JL audio w6's...I've heard really good and bad things about the w7's. I never heard them myself, but not sure how a speaker can be loved by some and hated by others. I know everyone has their own taste in music and the sound reproduction (timbre, presence etc...) of that music, but how can one speaker be at the extreme of both ends? Guess I'll have to listen and hear for myself.

Anyways, anymore advise is welcomed!!!

 

I don't even have that much power. I have a 8" sub, but its mainly for low end fill and some feel more than hearing, and I thik its perfect. The stock set up just hurts my ears, and I wanted good clean sounds I could crank up if needed, and I did this with a good combination of quality components, HU, wiring and a 4x40rms amp.

 

ditto sounds fine, so long as you dont wanna impress the 17 yr olds in the highschool parking lot.

 

Hmm, i think my opinion varies a bit w/ the consensus here. I'm no audiophile but i have gone through three different sub/amp combinations before i've found what i consider to be a good setup.

First let me preface this w/ the style of music i'm listening to. Mainly rock/alternative. Bass heavy music like rap may change things a bit. I don't like my base boomy but like it to feel like there's a small child kicking the back of my seat.

In our car, bass that sounds adequate at a standstill is easily drowned out by road noise w/ the top down at highway speeds.

My experience is that an approximately 2:1 ratio of sub wattage to cabin wattage is just about right. I'm running ~600 watts to my subs and i can still feel the bass well at high speed. When i was running lower wattage to them, i just couldn't feel them past about 50 w/ the top down.

Others may disagree but that's my experience for what it's worth.

 

I have the same sub Jim has. Actually, the s2000 sounds better sub wise than MANY other cars Ive installed systems in. No rattles, just pure clean bass. Also, I only send about 300 or so wrms to my sub, and people swear its pushing over 1000.

 

Hey-

My sub does not rattle the trunk at all. I think it really matters what frequency you have it crossed over at. Anything over 100HTZ and it does rattle. I have mine set at 80HTZ and not a problem, even with the heaviest of bass.

I just recommended 400 because I have heard that in our cars, the jump from 250-350 is not drastic and not that noticeable. I am running 283WRMS, and it sometimes leaves me wanting more (especially when volume is cranked up). i was told that 350WRMS would be almost no difference, and that the next noticeable difference would be around 400.

I also would not want him to drop a few $100 on something that he might find to be not enough for his tastes. Then have to drop another few $100 on something that he likes. I would rather drop an extra $75 or so to get a higher wattage rating and not need it, than to need it and not have it.

Also, when you are running a sealed box (which I am, because it is pretty much all that will fit) and you light TIGHT bass instead of loose-sounding low end, it takes more power to get volume out of that.

This is my reasoning. I will be upgrading to a better sub and a bigger amp in the spring (gotta love student loans ). I am probably going to make a custom box that will attach to the underside of the rear deck tray (reinforcement needed......of course....) but that should definitely solve the trunk space issue as well as the volume issue. Just waiting on a supplies list from Darkknight1999....

John