odj

I'm considering building a subwoofer enclosure in the side of my trunk ('93 90S) for a single JL 12w6. Since I really don't have any previous experience molding enclosures and have found the information hard to come by (using the usual channels), i figured i'd ask a few questions of you all:

1. Which material is better to use for molding an enclosure, carbon fiber or fiberglass, and does this change in different applications (ie speaker location, size of enclosure, more complex enclosure shape, etc).

2. Will an enclosure molded to the outside of the car end up having a large amount of internal wave cancellation? Beyond that, could I go a small amount smaller than the reccomended sealed enclosure size, and use Acusta-stuff or similar material?

3. Would it be best to use MDF or comparible material for the front of the enclosure?

4. How many layers/what thickness of materials would I have to have to ensure a rigid enclosure?

Alright, these are all the questions that come to mind right now, so if anyone could answer these, give me some tips, or point me to a good resource, I'd be forever grateful!

TIA

jackson

audis4me

<<<1. Which material is better to use for molding an enclosure, carbon fiber or fiberglass, and does this change in different applications (ie speaker location, size of enclosure, more complex enclosure shape, etc).
>>>
For square(non curvy enclosures)- I would recommend using MDF board. But if you have lots of curves, use MDF when possible and just use fiberglass when needed. I would not suggest carbonfiber, 1. because its expensive, 2. because I have read that CF doesn;t match well with car audio systems. Sorry I cant remember the technical reason why. Make sure when building the sub, you have the manufacture specs on how much airspace it has on it. Yes you can make it a tad smaller and use polyfill.

<<<<2. Will an enclosure molded to the outside of the car end up having a large amount of internal wave cancellation? Beyond that, could I go a small amount smaller than the reccomended sealed enclosure size, and use Acusta-stuff or similar material?
>>>>>>
I don't understand completely the 1st part, but you can go a little smaller on the box and use the Acusta-stuff.

<<<<
3. Would it be best to use MDF or comparible material for the front of the enclosure?
>>>
Yes it would be, I would highly recommend MDF though.

<<<<
4. How many layers/what thickness of materials would I have to have to ensure a rigid enclosure?
>>>>
Sorry I have never done a fiberglass enclosure.


I hope I have helped, and I Know other people will help you out.

odj

Re: Helps a bit, but any leads still greatly appreciated!

avantster

http://www.fibreglast.com/Default.htm

and

http://www.tapplastics.com/

For a few of your other questions:

Yes, it's best to use MDF for the front speaker mounting area. Make sure you have some reinforcement in the area where the speaker mounts as well.

I'm not sure why carbon fiber would be bad except for the $, it's used in many woofer cones since it's light and very, very stiff (something like 6 times stiffer than glass). Make sure you line the inside of you box with dynamat or something similar as well to damp resonance as well.<ul><li><a href="http://www.fibreglast.com/Default.htm">http://www.fibreglast.com/Default.htm</a</li></ul>

pooley

I've built a few fiberglass boxes and used glass to seal all my boxes, so this is my experience. Unfortunately I've never used carbor fiber before. First off everyone will recommend MDF becuase thats what everyone is told to use. The problem is that its really heavy and when factoring in a box molded out of fiberglass attached to an MDF face its starts getting really heavy, especially with a 12w6 strapped to it. I always suggest/use a 3/4" tru-pan or medite. Its basically the same thing as MDF but not as heavy. The only differences are that its much lighter and its lighter in color. Its also a little cheaper. Most lumber yards or plywood places should carry it.

When building the box use as much wood as possible. If you can, try to build the box to the subs specs. W6's are very versitle so they aren't to picky on exact box specs. It'll be hard to figure out the exact box volume with a box thats molded to your car.

On thickness I'd go around 3/8" for thickness with the glass and be sure to glass the enitre inside of the box once assembled. It'll seal up everything. You can also use internal braces if theres large flat areas of glass. As for dynamat on the inside of the enclosure that I've never heard of being done. Maybe it might work, but if anything I'd dynamat the outside of the box.

Other tips? Buy good gloves. Go to boater's world or a boat supply store to buy the brushes, resin and glassmat. Its usually a lot cheaper than home depot. Also use the thicker weave glassmat when building it up the thickness.

feel free to email me with any other questions,
pooley

:PROJECT::dumpTT:

if you wana try an buy a how-to video, or want some good products, check out

http://www.selectproducts.com/