Subwoofer orientation for best SQL behind Tahoe third row

[abladeafficionado]

Sealed will have a betete tone and offer a better alignment overall. Ported boxes will be louder, and more prone to being 'peaky'.
Nobody 'really' wants SQ, as its boring anyway.

IASCA champions say otherwise...

Ported are more prone to being peaky, when they're ported too high. Any prefab will sound like crap, they port them so high that they sound extremely peaky. You can't judge a new BMW based on an early 80s 5 series, just the same as you can't judge a ported box based on experiences with a Best Buy prefab.

A proper ported box, can sound just as good, and be louder. What's doesn't want that? As long as you have the mid bass to support a low tuned ported box, there's nothing better IMO.

I've attached a link below with some info. When there's no definitive answer form the experts, you can assume that either can sound fantastic when done properly. The biggest thing most people notice, is ported is louder, and gets louder at low notes when tuned low. So if you listen to a lot of rap with low bass, not radio rap, which peaks at around 40Hz, but some of the stuff that peaks below 30Hz like Gucci Mane for example, ported will make you a lot happier.

http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum...nced/11192-sealed-vs-ported-sq-myth-fact.html

 

[UBILLN]

IASCA champions say otherwise...

Ported are more prone to being peaky, when they're ported too high. Any prefab will sound like crap, they port them so high that they sound extremely peaky. You can't judge a new BMW based on an early 80s 5 series, just the same as you can't judge a ported box based on experiences with a Best Buy prefab.

A proper ported box, can sound just as good, and be louder. What's doesn't want that? As long as you have the mid bass to support a low tuned ported box, there's nothing better IMO.

I've attached a link below with some info. When there's no definitive answer form the experts, you can assume that either can sound fantastic when done properly. The biggest thing most people notice, is ported is louder, and gets louder at low notes when tuned low. So if you listen to a lot of rap with low bass, not radio rap, which peaks at around 40Hz, but some of the stuff that peaks below 30Hz like Gucci Mane for example, ported will make you a lot happier.

http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum...nced/11192-sealed-vs-ported-sq-myth-fact.html

Wow so after reading into that thread a bit I can tell you that you arent going to get anywhere with it as a base for an arguement either way on this issue.

any fluid dynamics engineers in here, you would have the advantage to understanding this all if you are one for air moves like water... most people dont get it. A speaker is nothing more than a piston that moves back and forth resulting in the creating of waves which vary in frequency. How well you allow the speaker to "breath" or flow the air obviously changes the strength and frequency of the waves.

A sealed box will act like a shock absorber would, with smoother changes in direction allowing better control and response of the speaker, of course this also helps to control really low frequencies better too since it can absorb a bit more power and distortion because of the sealed nature of the enclosure.

A ported box is more like a controlled free-air system allowing the speaker to breath air in and out of the enclosure giving the cone the ability to have greater excursion in turn giving a more powerful low frequency wave. But this comes at a bit of a disadvantage because it now can reach the excursion limits more easily, causing more distortion, leading to speaker failure sooner even when using the same power used as a sealed enclosure.

Plus to add more confusion to the matter is what your driving, a big ass ESV like I last had will have a tendancy to play everything lower to begin with due to the interior volume and distance the "waves" are allowed to propagate within the interior cabin. This matters in both a sealed and ported perspective since both are moving air. If you have a tiny car like the CRX mentioned then you have less interior volume to work with. This means a completely different resonant frequency vs. the ESV requiring different sub placement and using different enclosure design even if the sub remains the same.

This is what it all boils down too, what works in one vehicle can be bad in another. Literally. Also SPL and SQ are at each end of the spectrum so to speak, and trying to say that you want one while wanting the other is ridiculous at best without compromise of both to some or great extent.

 

[blueflamed03]

IASCA champions say otherwise...

Ported are more prone to being peaky, when they're ported too high. Any prefab will sound like crap, they port them so high that they sound extremely peaky. You can't judge a new BMW based on an early 80s 5 series, just the same as you can't judge a ported box based on experiences with a Best Buy prefab.

I used to travel with some of the World best SQ IASCA, USACi guys there ever were. (1990-2000)For a true SQ car, bass wasnt even used other than SPL as part of the actualy scoring. Most of the time the subs were never even used. Overall, want SQ, get sealed. if you want it louder, and lower, then you dont want true SQ, you want ported. Build for what you want. but say what you want.
Just to name a few of my teammates, Gary Biggs and Mark Eldridge, and they used sealed on soem cars, ported on others...because most fo the time they only used the subs for the SPL portion to get a higher score.

 

[pjtoy2]

What I want is a system that sounds good at loud volumes! Best way to put it is that I want a system that I can use daily with good sound quality and still be able to turn up my subs every once in a while when I'm listening to certain music.

I know SQ and SPL are complete opposite but I still believe an SQ system needs subwoofers because otherwise many frequencys would be left out.

I appreciate everybody's advice and I went with the 2 12" SA12s in a rear facing box thats ported to specs according to Sundown's website. I am also going with an 8" sealed SA8 to cover midbass and my 4 pairs of components to cover my highs. Powering everything will be my Fosgate T2001BD, and a Memphis Big Belle 5-channel and an mb quart 4-channel all powered by dual ** alternators and 3 Kinetic HC2400s