Rock-a-Lex

iTrader: (4)

First off, I must say I am a newbie when it comes to electronics and/or audio. I know NOTHING about this stuff at all.

Ok. Now, I have a 2000 GS400 and about 2 years ago I had the stock 10" (?) sub taken out and a custom box (the guy said "free air"...I can see the face of the speakers) made to fit on the small back ledge area in my trunk; a local car audio shop did the install. They used two 12" Rockford Fosgate HX2's and a Kenwood KAC 929 (1000w) amp. The door speakers and deck are OEM Lexus.

This setup sounds pretty good (well, good enough for me) but was thinking of removing the sub and box enclosure to make more trunk room and lose some weight.

I need suggestions on a new 10" subwoofer of nice quality that will fit in the OEM area of the rear deck lid (through my trunk) but will be compatible with my amp. http://www.carsound.com/reviews/amps/KAC-929.html ...specs on this for your reference. I don't feel it is necessary to have a shop "install" this sub because it's not like I need a box or anything. I just want to buy the speaker, bolt it up and put the pos. and neg. wires on. lol. What do you guys suggest? I don't want my amp to be too powerful for the new speaker but I still want it to give off some nice bass (better than stock of course) so I am asking you guys for advice. Thanks again for all the advice in advance.

Rock-a-Lex

iTrader: (4)

...hmmm no one has replaced their stock subwoofer???

JonSC4

iTrader: (2)

It's hard for people to give advice because not many companies make IB subs. You'll just have to search around and find some with a dual 4 ohm voice coil and 200ish watts rms power handling.

Also, you say they are free air but that they are in a box? You can't really have both. A free air, or infinite baffle (IB) setup would be like the stock sub where it's just mounted on a surface and not enclosed in a box.

Rock-a-Lex

iTrader: (4)

...sorry guys I searched just now...too much info and I don't know what a lot of the abbreviations mean. I just though this would be a quick answer to a quick question. Sort of like in the performance section where everyone says I need the best bolt-up (no custom work) intake system for a stock second genaration GS...almost all say the SRT intake and that's the end of the thread. I guess I'll search more or I'll just drop my car at a shop and pay for it all...

Rock-a-Lex

iTrader: (4)

Thanks for the advice Jon... I will look into the suggested dual 4 ohm voice coil and 200+ watts rms for a sub. Maybe they aren't considered Free air then...

basketthis

Pioneer makes a great free air sub!!

http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PU...oofers/Shallow

So does Kicker!!

JonSC4

iTrader: (2)

Do you have a pic of your setup you can post?

Stage3

iTrader: (3)

Im about to experiment with my stock sub this weekend... I bought a 10" Kicker Free Air sub to replace my stock Pioneer unit, so I'll make sure I let you know how it goes for install purposes.

Oh, and I'm with you... doesn't seem to be a lot of info for 2GS owners if they want to replace their OEM Sub for an aftermarket 10".

djspawn00

Let me know if you're interested in custom work.. sounds like you skimped on the amp before... I also had 2 hx2's which were powered by a Rockford 1000w amp, but I have it wired to 4ohm running at 500w.

You can get a JL Audio 10IB4 which should fit right into your stock opening and is a free air sub... its pretty cheap too if you're just looking for a mild improvement over the stock sub.

Robert_J

The DIY Cable DPL-10 would be a perfect IB sub for your situation. The Qts is just a little high but shouldn't be a big deal. The Fs is great. Add in the XBL^2 low distortion technology and you get one great sub. Where else can you get a sub for $65 that was designed by Dan Wiggins? For those that don't recognize the name, he designed the Parthenon subwoofer.

-Robert

Rock-a-Lex

iTrader: (4)

...Thank you all for your help and comments. Keep 'em coming.

Basketthis - all those subs mention to be used in an enclosure. There would be no enclosure (box) with the setup that I'm looking for. It will be hanging (in the trunk) from the rear deck lid.

JonSC4 - I'll try to post some pics up...

Stage3 - Let me know how it turns out; I'd like some feedback when your done with your project. Thanks

djspawn00 - Well, judging by your SN you are heavily into audio where I am not at all. For my taste I feel like I didn't skimp on any of my setup since I got the Amp and speakers for $350 where they were used for less than 1 year. I bought this setup 7 years ago and had it installed in the GS for about 3 years now. To be honest they sound great with my Kenwood amp...no distortion and clean bass. Audio junkies say it sounds good too; but I don't need this much bass anymore and I could really lose the 120lbs. I want a setup that will still give nice bass but out of only one 10" speaker while utilizing my current amp. Obviously it will not pound as hard as two 12" subs but I still want to feel like I got something back there. I do NOT want to spend anymore than $100 on this project. I was planning on selling my HX2's in the custom box (made for the 2GS) and buy a sub for $100 or less for the factory location in the rear deck lid.

Robert J - How does this speaker stack up against the big names like Pioneer or Kicker?

Robert_J

Since I learned about Dan and his company, Adire Audio, back in the late '90's I have seldom used a "brand name" speaker other than testing. They are either crap or just a terrible value. I also like the ability to talk to the person that engineered the speaker.

I don't have any specifics on that 10" sub but here's some stress testing on their 15" and 18" drivers. Yes, there is some suspension noise but the amount of power being pushed into them would destroy any sub that you can purchase from Best Buy.
DIY Cable/Exodus Audio - Tempest X
DIY Cable/Exodus Audio - Maelstrom X.

Go to the Fi Car Audio forum at SSA and you will see the owner of the company posting. Ben, the owner of Elemental Designs, posts here under the screen name Kaosmoon. The owner of DIY Cable (the seller of that DPL sub) is a frequent poster at AVS forums. That's where he came to get ideas from his latest sub called the 'Sicko'. It's a 21" monster using a variation of the Parthenon motor.

And just so you know that I practice what I preach - my home subs use the TC 3000 from the now bankrupt TC Sounds. I have also tried my hand at building a custom sub using surplus parts from Elemental Designs, Eclipse and Robot Underground. Here's the slideshow where I documented the process - link.

-Robert

Rock-a-Lex

iTrader: (4)

Thanks Robert...damn; sounds like you really know your stuff! That looks like a nice build! I will definitely look into that DPL-10 sub.

Jeff Smith

From my experience with Free-air subs the IMAGE DYNAMICS ID series has been a great performer. Someone recommended the shallow mount pioneer woofers. I work for a the largest pioneer dealer GA. We have sold pioneer for years and only the 8" shallow version is recommended for free-air.When we tried the 10" & 12" versions they seemed to work moderately at low volume but with any demands they quickly bottom out.

Robert_J

If you have the Theile/Small parameters for any sub, it is a 5 minute task to simulate them in an IB configuration and easily determine how much power it takes to push them to their limits. With any IB install, the RMS rating on a speaker becomes useless (it's already mostly useless) because the voice coil will never reach its thermal limits. In an IB, it is all about mechanical parameters and how well the suspension is designed.

-Robert