Several small subs or one big sub? Let's compare! Car Audio.

[@annihilationindustries1990]

hell yess rear mounting . But u can use the Jasper Jig to cut perfect circle holes

[@caraudiolab]

I want one of those jigs, those are nice. I have looked at building a couple as well.

[@RandyRossundercaste]

Wow thanks for the response that's awesome! Ill for sure keep that in mind when choosing which brand to go with. Running a Rockford 1500 amp in a Prius and space is tight lol. Will probably use dsp eq to make up for the 30hz range if its a problem. If I can get close to the same volume with 1 15" ported vs 3 10s sealed ill be happy....if not ill have to sacrifice the trunk and go ported lol. Honestly want to build both options to test sq vs spl and make a video about it.

[@caraudiolab]

A video on it would be awesome! If you do that, be sure to send me a link. Also, I just uploaded a video that gives you a formula that you can use to compare one sub to another, even different brands and series! I hope that will help you when you decide what to get. The 15" ported will probably be louder around tuning than the three 10's sealed. However. the 10's would probably take only half of the space.

[@Randy_G]

I have (3) E10v4 and was hitting 147db, but now have (2) U15v1 and hitting 150.5db (with more power) but was really close to being the same when both were at the same power.

[@caraudiolab]

I have to say, those E series subs are seriously underrated. They are fantastic subs! It is surprising when 3 tens can keep up with two 15's. Perhaps some of it is box or orientation? Either way, car audio throw curve balls, you never know what to expect sometimes! I talk about my experience a lot and theoretically, but I still get surprised often!

[@Pittsburgh-412]

If you look at dc audio there subs require a much smaller box than any other sub. The dc audio level 6 15s only need 3.25cf of airspace. That is way smaller than most 15s. I have 2 level 6 15s in my scion tc and they slam hard. Just giving you options

[@caraudiolab]

@@Pittsburgh-412 Thanks! I have heard that DC audio makes subs that can fit in small spaces. They are very close to the Sundown U series. The U series 15" fits in a similar airspace. I know they are quality stuff, I just haven't had the pleasure of getting many DC Audio demos and footage. If you run DC, let me know! I would love to get your feedback and any pictures/videos to throw up a video on my channel about them!

[@Pittsburgh-412]

Dc audio subs require a much smaller box than most. Check those out. They are excellent quality 👌

[@michaelogg1254]

You sound exactly like the sundown unofficial guy lol

[@caraudiolab]

Thanks!!!....I think. :)

[@johnnycorn7225]

Do a couple videos on third order enclosures where you fire a sealed box onto a surface and into a volume of air. Very underappreciated design

[@caraudiolab]

I am familiar with t-line 3rd orders. I actually run a port wars box 3rd order. From your description, it sounds like you are combining a loading wall with a sealed box? Not sure I have heard them called 3rd orders before, but those used to be popular back in the day. I saw one a few months back that had sealed subs fire at each in a clamshell style and then into the truck, it was stupid loud! I was very impressed. I may have to make some test boxes and make a video out of it, thanks!

[@johnnycorn7225]

@@caraudiolab yes, exactly! Done right, it sounds so oOoOO good love that setup! Was meaning firing into a secondary volume of air still in the enclosure with an opening ( mouth) that's directed to the listening area. It's like it takes the quality and impact of sealed and then amplifies and throws it, it's better than ported to me. I have always built them trial and error until I got them to peak. Wanting to do another one with these three 12in stereo integrity sqls, they really excel in sealed. Some of us know the difference and can't take a sloppy sound!!!

[@caraudiolab]

@@johnnycorn7225 What subs, how big is your box and what amp? I wish I could get a demo! :)

[@caraudiolab]

I have seen those setups before, never had the pleasure of hearing one in person, but you have my curiosity now! It seems like it would amplify a range of frequencies and potentially narrow the bandwidth some?

[@johnnycorn7225]

@@caraudiolab yes , exactly, the best you can do in a car environment is a quarter wave where you calculate the distance from the subs to the listening position, and tune accordingly, for example a 30hz bass wave is about 38 ft long so a quarter of that is 9.5( typical distance from subs to driver's seat in a car) and a few more feetin a SUV , (lower tune capability) It basically acts as a megaphone for your sealed setup, it heavily reinforced all the frequencies, and sometimes needs a little DSP to mellow out the top end while really helping out the lows. Any good sealed oriented subwoofer will work (ebp

[@fonzdreamsbig]

So i had 2 u10s in my last c5 corvette in a custom ported box... but i sold that car and kept the subs. Im thinking of going one u10 in my next corvette. Im just not sure if the U10 would sound good in a sealed enclosure. Im tryint to use less space for the next build

[@caraudiolab]

The U 10 is great in a sealed box. You will definitely notice less output overall moving from two ported to one sealed.

[@fonzdreamsbig]

@@caraudiolab good to know! Thank you for sharing that. Since they only require .5 cubes I was thinking I MIGHT be able to fit both subs in the space I have if I invert them. I'm okay with less output on this build. As long as I have more usable space. We'll see. I just wanted to make sure these would be good in a sealed enclosure. I've only ever done ported builds.

[@caraudiolab]

@@fonzdreamsbig If you do build a 1 cubic foot enclosure with both inverted, try it out. Then, try only running one in the same 1 cubic foot enclosure but not inverted. The sub takes about a quarter cube of space in the box, so it would end up at .75 cubic feet and the sound would change just a little bit. See which one you like better!

[@fonzdreamsbig]

@caraudiolab good idea! My only issue is the space. I'm using the rear center cubby trunk space in the back of a c5 corvette. The prefab that was in shows .93 cubic feet and the motors are so massive they don't really fit the angle of cubby area. I'll mess with it and figure something out. I just love the look of these motors. I feel like they should be shown off given the opportunity. I appreciate the feedback!

[@outlawGFXaus]

what about motor force of 5x 10s vs the one 18?

[@caraudiolab]

I have found if you are already working with subs with great motor force, it doesn't make as much of a difference as you expect. The cone area of the 5 ten's is almost equal to two 18's and so the 5-10's is way louder (assuming same series subs) than one 18. If you were comparing three 10's vs. one 18, that is a much harder choice.

[@MotoAtheist]

Motor force issues are long gone! This type of thing is held over from days past when companies were using the same motors for all their subs which made the larger subs under perform. That is no longer the case and the larger subs have plenty of power handling and motor these days. Smaller subs will never out perform larger subs all else being equal. It all comes down to the vehicle and what can fit and works best in it. It's a vehicle issue, not as sub issue.

[@johnnycorn7225]

Hey is that you undead chronic

[@caraudiolab]

Nope, not undead chronic. Just some unknown basshead who has tried to figure it all out but still has a long way to go!

[@johnnycorn7225]

@@caraudiolab me too and having so much fun dig the channel, awesome job

[@LeonD519]

Cone area isn’t always king. Just saying

[@caraudiolab]

For beginners, this is the simplistic rule! However, I totally agree!

[@MotoAtheist]

Taken out of context, no it isn't. Put in context, yes it is. All else being equal, if you want to get louder you need more cone area. Most people have a maximum power level they want to deal with in their vehicle. Many stock vehicles tend to max out around 1,500 watts if they want to play it safe and have no issues and not change their alternator, etc. Throw 4 door speakers in at 125w each and whatever subs they have space for at 1,000 watts. The more cone area they can get the louder they will be. However, at a certain point the difference becomes irrelevant for regular music. But 2x18 will out perform 2x15 that will out perform 2x12 that will outperform 2x10, etc. Totally depends on budget of course. To try and justify using lots of 8" subs vs larger options is just silly and pointless for regular music and I don't know why anyone would try and concern themselves with SPL farts with a daily driver setup like this. This is why cone area is king. With endless budget and endless power there are many ways to build up a system, but the majority of people out there don't have endless budgets to do whatever they want.

[@LeonD519]

@@MotoAtheist ok. Believe that. I work in the industry and seen single subs kill multiple subs. Agree to disagree that’s all.

[@MotoAtheist]

Sure, you can always have a higher powered single sub beat out multiple lower powered subs, your point? Put 3,000 watts on a 15" it will likely beat a couple of 12's on a 1,000 watts total. Again, your point? Power being the same, proper box for each setup, cone area wins. And nobody gives a S about comparing a proper setup vs somebodies improper setup either.

[@LeonD519]

@@MotoAtheist My point was made with your reply, cone area isn’t always king. You just admitted it. All you’re saying is what about this and what about that. I said it isn’t always king. To many what ifs