sktn77a

iTrader: (2)

OK, I don't even take delivery of my new 250 until this afternoon but I know I am going to need to upgrade the subwoofer (non-ML). Now don't get me wrong, I'm not some basshead looking to outboom my best buddy - in fact I rarely listen to music that loud. I just like deep, clean, bass that doesn't boom or distort. I upgraded my BMW530i from no subwoofers to two 10" dual voice coil kevlar OEM subs from the M5 audio system along with a Blaupunkt PA275 amp tapped into the main system line levels; All very stealth and sounded very good.

I'm looking to do the same with my 250. Ideally a single 8, 10 or 12 inch dual voice coil sub in the stock position (for stealth) although I'm not sure the single 8 inch will move enough air or go deep enough in free air; perhaps hanging through the rear lower metal pacel shelf an inch or two max (to retain trunk space); and, even more ideally, using the stock amp channels for the sub power. Any suggestions on such a sub?

I've searched back through 70+ pages of posts (over 2500 posts) and found no pics of the rear sub install - anybody done this or have any pics? I'm OK on taking out the rear seat and parcel shelf to get at it but I'd rather know this is doable before I pull my new baby to pieces!

Thanks

KayGee

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...highlight=4080

sktn77a

iTrader: (2)

Thanks KayGee. Yes, I saw the side trunk boxes and it's a possibility but not my first preference.

fluxx

iTrader: (1)

i actually talked to some friends who own a car audio store and they told me i was better off leaving the stock sub in place and adding an additional sub. reason is that the stock sub was designed to operate on very minimal power, thus the lack of range frequencies, so tapping into the factory amp is useless. etc etc...

i orignally wanted to switch out the stock sub and had found some potential substititues. but after cost factor and possible quaility upgrade. ill be designing a custom box at some point in the future, unless someone else can find a great setup to replace the oem sub

sktn77a

iTrader: (2)

Yes, stock speakers are frequently very high efficiency drivers to compensate for low power amps. Interestingly, though, the standard BMW 5 series amp delivers about 25 clean wpc into the 5" Nokia "subwoofer" (bandpass design). They use the same amp in the M5 for the 10" free air subs and this setup seems to work fine in the M5.

I'm not against putting a more powerful amp in to power the sub, but I would prefer to use the stock location for stealth's sake.

ufmike316

After 6 months of trying to decide if i wanted to install an aftermarket sub, i finally installed one myself last weekend. i tapped the wires at the sub and disconnected the factory sub (left it in the back deck though). the stock woofer is a DVC, so i used one voice coils wires for left, and one for right. to my surprise, i got a pretty decent output signal from the oem wires. i ran them onto an old RF BD1000 mono amp (via a Line Out Converter) and hooked it up to a JL Audio 13w6v2 in a sealed box. I removed the passthrough door behind the armrest in the back seat and have the sub firing into the cabin through the armrest hole. I have the gain turned all the way down and have good sub-bass extension and good impact. there is no rattle in the cabin at all, and if i turn the gain on the amp up, i get plenty of volume (which i dont want since the factory system has great midbass up front and dont want to overpower that). If i wanted more volume and less clarity, i could turn the box around and have it rear-firing and turn the gains up. I would recommend having it professionally installed though, as removing and re-installing the battery (to run power wire) turned out to be very hard in comparison to most cars ive installed stereos in.

Brian231

Thanks for the post, I thought about doing that line-out converion with the factory harness, I did this before with an Altima and was happy since it is just a sub for lows.

acarapella

This sounds great, however, in my case, i need the trunk space. On my 08 IS250, it looks as though there are 2 subs in the back deck (judging by the two sets of holes in the plastic part). Is there just one? and I would really appreciate some help as to installing a new either 8" sub or oversizing it to accommodate a 10" sub in the factory sport, and then adding an external amp. I was thinking of using the cell phone charger in the center council as my remote wire (works well on cars that don't have power to their cig lighter when off) and line level converters from the stock wires in the sub. It needs more bass... the JBL in my old 07 camry was way deeper. Any thoughts?

irishcharm

iTrader: (1)

well as an mecp installer.....putting a replacement subwoofer in the spot of the factory, under any circumstances, is useless. The reason being is that 99% of after market subwoofers are meant to be in an enclosure of some sort that requires (usually less than a cubic foot of air). So unless you can find what's called a free air subwoofer...putting anything in the factory hole is a waste of time and money because it will literally sound like a flopping/broken speaker due to no enclosure. Now the trunk itself would count as an enclosure but thats something over 3 or 4 cubic feet of air.

And there is only one subwoofer despite the looks.

Solutions, small sub in a box. ie. infinity basslink or the new Kicker equivalent. its compact and doesnt require a separate amp. that combined with the factory subwoofer will give you that slightly deeper sound in the bass region that your looking for.

hope this helps

APynckel

For some reason I am unable to access that link. Anyways, I am interested in adding a high quality 10" sub to my is250. Don't want a TON of bass, just nice clean crisp sound for the house / dance music that I enjoy listening to. I want a clean installation that won't take up 50% of my trunk, and I heard the 4080 boxes were well built. Their website doesn't have any information or pictures of them, however.

brociouz

iTrader: (65)

^ Long story short, the 4080 box is now branded as a "boxology" box: https://www.clublexus.com/forums/is-...x-is-back.html

acarapella

Ok so I am giving up on a factory spot replacement. How about a kicker CVR12 4 ohm sub with a kicker DX500.1 amp? I was wondering if, since the amp has a High/Low input level switch, can I simply cut an RCA cable and solder the wires within to the terminals on a factory sub? any help with this would be appreciated. I want a lot of base... I like when the bass drum sounds like I'm at the concert.

APynckel

It's BASS, not base. Base is what you tag up on in baseball.

Also, kicker sucks for quality. Bass should be crisp and clean.

Soap

Just reading this and realizing this thread is from 2008. Nice dig....

irishcharm

iTrader: (1)

False. Kicker is world known for their quality. Also before you attempt to slam a brand, make sure you explain your reasoning. Your opinion is valid but unsupported. In fact, as an mecp certified tech, who worked with the guy who co- wrote the first two chapters of the mecp national book.... he thought kicker was one of the better brands on the market, in it's price ranges. Example jl subs are overpriced when I can buy an infinity or alpine equivalent and spend a crap to less money. Furthermore, kicker is not ad well known for their bass response which is why you may think their quality is bad but it's not, it just doesn't shine in that specific category. Also, it is your opinion if what bass should be. Some people want that loud boomy bass because they like that. Some want tight bass floor rock and such. There are so many factors you just overlooked that vary tremendously for everyone.