Why do people put their subs in the trunk? (1 Viewer)

[Rob*S]

well most of us car buffs like to use it for fun. Having it rattle your entire car and stuff to some of us can be fun. That and going and winning trophes and such is as well. Although I do agree I think its stupid to put it in your trunk without some kinda of dynamatt / raammatt upgrade to stop the rattle, but most of the time theres no other place to put the subs or they just rely on the SPL to reach them no matter where they are put in the car. hehe but if you have a hatchback this isnt a problem . Im more of a SQ person tho so you might hear the bass but it wont be so hard that it hurts u to listen to it.
RoB~

 

[Chas_T]

To answer your question, where else would they put it??

Does this really need to be answered?

 

[Michael Lomker]

The guys with the boom cars are running 4 12" subs or perhaps a couple 15"ers with 1000+ watts of power. In my opinion there really isn't any point in that.

On the other hand, I have yet to listen to a stock car stereo that I'd consider "high fidelity." I spent about $1200 on my current system. It includes one 12" sub in a sealed box.

 

[Ken Garrison]

On the highway, I may turn my music up pretty loud, but when I drive through town, I'll turn my music down. I'm the kind of person who wants to keep the music private. Especially when I listen to Buck Owens and a lot of the other old music I like.

 

[Jeff Kohn]

I'm the kind of person who wants to keep the music private. Especially when I listen to Buck Owens and a lot of the other old music I like.

Thanks for sparing us!
I guess I can't talk, my music tastes are pretty far outside the mainstream as well, mostly various genres of metal and also classical music.

 

[Matt_Briol]

Most car sub installations around here consist of a ignorant (about audio) teenager throwing a cheapo sub into the trunk of a car. Im sure if you installed it correctly and used a good sub it would sound great.

 

[Sebastian]

It is funny to hear some of you guys complain about cars with lots of "annoying boom boom bass" especially when there is another link where everyone is bragging about how loud their HT is and think that their neighbors suck when they complain about your home theater systems being to loud. Ahh poetic justice at it's best.
This only applies to any hyprocrites who complain about car audio systems but brag about how many complaints they get about there HT.

 

[Reginald Trent]

Ken, have you ever been in a car with a Premium audio system professionally installed? I would guess not, because if you had you would probably not be asking some of the questions you're posing.
Bottom line...Car audio like HT varies with the taste and budget of the owner. Some are absolutely wonderful, while others are terrible. Most are probably somewhere in the middle.
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Ken, I'm not sure how much you know about car audio but I'll ask you this. Would you put a cabinet with two 15" speakers in your backseat, therefore, effectively eliminating your backseat? Thus turning your four door into a two-seater? Doing so would immediately make your car a easy target for thieves.
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quote:
I guess the real question is why on earth anybody would want two 15" speakers in a car audio system. Seems a bit excessive IMHO; I don't even have any 15" drivers in my home theater.
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You may not know this but some cars are running 18" subs.
Moreover, why do people buy SVS subs and everything else in between?
Because each person has their own idea about what sounds good to them. It's as simple as that.

 

[Matt_Briol]

It is funny to hear some of you guys complain about cars with lots of "annoying boom boom bass" especially when there is another link where everyone is bragging about how loud their HT is and think that their neighbors suck when they complain about your home theater systems being to loud. Ahh poetic justice at it's best.

Im not complaining about the bass itself. Im complaining about its low quality and the sound of the truck rattling like crazy. If my neighbors played loud music I would'nt complain at all.

 

[DavidAM]

As far as a trunk rattling goes, just cause you hear that outside of the car doesn't mean you hear it inside of the car.....its like going into the room next to your HT and hearing things rattle in there, but you don't hear them when you're on your sofa.
And I can't believe some of you guys think a car sub cannot play down to 20hz. A sub is a sub and when tuned properly, it can play the full range of bass just as accurate as any home sub. There are tons of 12" car subs out today that can play down to 20hz in a 1 cube box and hit upwards of 140db+ in a car. Try to experience that with one 12" sub in your HT system. You're questioning where do people put these big boxes because you don't know what's available. A 5cf box isn't necessary in a car system. Those of us that are into car systems as much as home systems know what's out there and know how easy it is to get great sound with a minimal investment and space requirement (relative to home audio). Us car guys just experience things that you cannot do in a HT...not without thousands of dollars in equipment. Just because you are hearing tons of bass coming out of a car does not not mean it isn't accurate. I can stick a bass cd in your home cd player and I promise your home sub with be booming just like the cars you are hearing....its all what is being played. Also remember that bass travels much farther than treble does, so just cause that's what you hear outside of the car, that's not necessarily what the guy in the car is hearing.
Also, to say home subs are built better and are stronger than car subs is ridiculous. Car subs are made to withstand the extremes of 120 degree heat and moisture that you don't get in your home, so if anything, a car sub is stronger and can stand more abuse than a HT sub.
And to the original question as to why put all this equipment in your car.....really, why not?!?!?! If you're an audiophile, everytime you listen to music you want it to sound as good as possible whether in your car or your home. If anything, home systems are full of non truths and beliefs that people into car audio know simply are not true. The only reason they sell $100 per foot wire in HT is cause companies know people believe they make a difference whereas people with knowledge in car audio just have to laugh at things like that. You guys can believe whatever you want and believe that all car subs sound like crap and can't do this and that, but when it comes down to it, I'm enjoying my home and car audio hobby and have a smile on my face when I crank my car system. It makes my daily ride that much more enjoyable. And if anything, when I get a new cd, what I want to do is run to my car, go ride around and crank it up cause being in a car is a very small space and its easier to surround yourself with loud, clear highs and tons of thunderous bass that wants to rip your insides out. You think your HT sub is loud till you've felt a 140db punching you in your back. That is why I have a sub in my car anyway

 

[RobertW]

but the problem with those boom cars is that invariably the sub is crossed over at way too high a frequency and its level is boosted to such extreme that the bass is all out of proportion to the rest of the musical spectrum. that's how you get that big boom or thump.

a car sub whose level and crossover frequency are set properly shouldn't boom like that, but rather, reproduce the low end accurately. it may be loud, just like a home theater setup is, but it isn't emphasizing the bottom end over the rest of the frequency spectrum.

my car sub, due to space limitations, may not reach down quite to 20 hertz, but it does provide that bottom end kick that the satellites can't reproduce. without being boomy or dominating the rest of the music.

 

[Reginald Trent]

Quote:
but the problem with those boom cars is that invariably the sub is crossed over at way too high a frequency and its level is boosted to such extreme that the bass is all out of proportion to the rest of the musical spectrum. that's how you get that big boom or thump.
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Heaven knows there aren't any Home Theater systems that sound like that.

 

[DavidAM]

Quote:
Heaven knows there aren't any Home Theater systems that sound like that.
God forbid they get off of their high horse and admit that

 

[Chu Gai]

I have tried to resist, but my fingers are typing of their own accord.
I put it in the trunk because that's where i keep my annoying sister-in-law.

 

[Shawn Solar]

My car sub is crossed over at 80hz. and my inside speakers 80hz and 250hz for the little guys. all taken care of with an active crossover. Full tilt you can not hear a single ounce of distortion. With the sub crossed over that low it takes care of a lot internal vibrations and while it can play 120db fullrange in the car it will not sound even close to that loud outside. It is in a 1.25cuft sealed box.
The reason why I have the bass turned up a little higher than the mains is when you drive at higher spead The bass seems to disappear. It almost gets drowned out. Same with mids or voices, so, I boost it a bit. I think I have a 2db boost at 80hz and a 3db boost at 45hz. voices get boosted at 500hz and cut at 2000hz. You have to set the stereo up for its environment.
I can aggree that among most teenagers its not not about SQ but how loud they can get it. The problem there is they lack knowledge about sound. When I was 16 so did I. I thought 400watts would have to sound better than 200watts. And thats the belief of most undereducated teens AND adults. I can't say its there fault, They just follow what the manufactureres push on them. There is a lot of spam to sort through in the audio realm and unless you do a lot of reasearch it is almost impossible to tell whats what. I am 21yrs old now and can tell you I've come along way. I may have spent 2,000 grand on my car system but I have 10,000 grand invested in my HT. And I did not get it right the first time. But enough of my ranting

 

[Oachalon]

my home audio isnt the greatest at this moment but my car audio sounds 100 times better. Yes i have 4 12's with 1200 watts going to each of them in a cavalier. I have no rattles what so ever. Everything is perfectly clear and sounds great. I have gone to competitions and won in spl competitons. I can hit around a 167. I have also competed for sq and i have won competitions. I think you can make a car sound better than home audio. I love home audio but im in my car a lot more. Cabin gain can be a great thing. You say you're not a big fan of car audio but when u do have it hitting 140-160db and up its a big rush. While it still sounds great. Everyone has different opinions. I also have 300 watts going to each one of my vocals.

 

[Oachalon]

i also have another question why do you guys spend so much money for wire. For my room i have that 100ft for $7 speaker wire and it works awesome. I have compared it to my friends wires that he spent a lot more for and it sounds the same. I spent $30 total for the wire in my car and it sounds great. They have done tests a wire is a wire. Well thats how it is in car audio. Home audio might be different but i think you could get more interference in a car than a home.

 

[Matt_Briol]

If you're an audiophile, everytime you listen to music you want it to sound as good as possible whether in your car or your home.

I’m just saying that most people around here that have subs in their trunk have low quality subs that aren’t set up properly at all. Most of these people ARENT audiophiles. They just want to boom louder than their friends. I’m not saying that people in your area or you do this but people around here and other places I go do. I have yet to see a car sub that has a properly tuned crossover and isn’t boomy. Also I've yet to hear someone with a car sub play something other than rap. The majority of people around here with car subs think that the louder and more boomy a sub is the better it is. Therefore they crank their subs as high as they can go and the trunks of their cars rattle. Do these people sound like audiophiles trying to more accurately reproduce music?

 

[Reginald Trent]

Quote:

I’m just saying that most people around here that have subs in their trunk have low quality subs that aren’t set up properly at all. Most of these people ARENT audiophiles.
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Who are these people you are referring to?

 

[Ken Garrison]

i also have another question why do you guys spend so much money for wire. For my room i have that 100ft for $7 speaker wire and it works awesome. I have compared it to my friends wires that he spent a lot more for and it sounds the same. I spent $30 total for the wire in my car and it sounds great. They have done tests a wire is a wire. Well thats how it is in car audio. Home audio might be different but i think you could get more interference in a car than a home.

Yeah, I agree with you there. I bought lamp cord wire at the hardware store when I hooked my sub up. If it can handle 120 Volts AC, it can handle sound. So, no need to spend a lot on speaker wire. I do plan on rewiring the speakers in my van when I finally do get new speakers. I also need a new stereo. LOL

BTW, have any of you made a sub from scratch? I did on my computer in my bedroom. I'm just using simple amplified speakers. Needed more bass and didn't wanna get new speakers. Soooooo. I opened the speakers up and attached a wire to each speaker and ran them into the LINE IN on an old stereo amplifier. Then on the out put of that, I twisted the right and lefts together to make it MONO and ran it down to a coil I made by hand, then to a capacitor I scrapped from an old computer power supply. The way my desk is set up, there's empty space between the back of the desk opening and the back of the desk. So I hung a 4 inch woofer right in the opening and screwed a board in place. Also, there's a hole big enough for a bass port. Tell ya what. THIS THING ROCKS!!!! It made one HELL of a difference. I did a little fine tuning here and there. Works great. Not bad for a bunch of old shit laying all over my room, eh?