What would it cost to have someone build a custom enclosure for a JL 10w0 that would sit in the stock sub location? I started out with an JL IB4 free air in the location, which didn't work for me. I switched that out to try the 10w0 with the enclosure padded by a few layers of expandable foam. That doesn't sound much better. I would really love to keep the sub in the stock location. I realize this is not an optimum spot for it, but I am willing to sacrifice a little sound quality for keeping it in there. I just can't take the excessive rattle it is producing now. Do you think I could get a custom fit enclosure made of MDF board for around 300 hundred? Any other suggestions are welcome as well. thanks.

 

Do to the size of it, I'd highly recommend doing a fiberglass enclosure there but you could do an MDF enclosure. It shouldn't take more then $50 in material to do the box so I can't imagine someone charging more then $250 to do the box. I'd do it for you for free (labor) if you were in my area. I'd recommend just doing it yourself and if you want to learn how to do fiberglass let me know, it's really pretty easy .

 

My guys 'dynamatted' it and I was shocked at how good it sounded. I didn't want anything in my hatch either and it sounds very good for the alternative i listen too...however when i go to rap i don't quite have the bite im used too but to keep the car clean looking its not bad at all...

you might look into that!

 

Shagpa,

I am actually pretty happy with the sound if I am listening to rock. It's when you put something with a little boom in it, that it rattles to the point of sounding terrible. They used one layer of dynamat followed by the expandable foam.

Thanks for the offer LS. I am going to ask around about different enclosures and see what people offer. If it is outrageous, I may give it a shot myself

 

I have a custom-built MDF box in my stock location, but not without some minor design issues. I am resolving those issues right now, and placing the design and plans on AutoCAD for distribution.

Give me another week or so, and I hope to have the design resolved, and drawings completed for distribution. Then, you can build your own box, and spend less money in the long run than having a shop build one for you.

I was quoted over $1200 for a custom fiberglass enclosure in the stock location, including credits for using my car as the guinea pig. I decided to design my own, and what I'll present shortly is my resolution for this issue.

 

that would be awesome Seattle. Keep me updated.

 

$1200 for a fiberglass enclosure???? WTF??? I'll make one out of carbon fiber or carbon kevlar for that price and coat that **** with Gold. It's unbelievable to think what people charge for stuff like this and it's really pretty damn easy to do yourself.

 

I agree. That's why I've spent countless hours getting an MDF-based design finalized and released to everyone.

 

SeattleInfo,

I did a search and couldn't find the post with your enclosure design. I would be very interested in it. Thanks for putting in the time and effort to help the Z family.

 

I'm getting the design finalized and released.

To let everyone know where I'm at:

My wonderful lady blessed me with a new Rockford Fosgate amp, 10" Punch Z Series Sub, and wiring kit for Christmas.

I started working on a design immediately. What I found through measurement is that for a squared, trapezoidal shaped box to fit, the dimensions are very constrained. So, I measured and measured, and finally settled on a box design. Matched it up to the acoustic design I did specific to my subwoofer, and it worked perfectly. Here's where the problems began.

Got the car torn apart, and started building the box. Somewhere, I made a mistake in measuring the clearance required for my subwoofer in the box, and found that the box wasn't tall enough to clear the sub frame and still match the factory angle for the bracketry. I don't want to go into details, but I burned over 6 hours adapting the box I had built to make it work, and keep it able to fit into the space and sealed. My problem is, it's not a very clean installation, and I don't want to publish it if it won't end up looking perfect. It's installed, braced into the front mounting bracket, and sounds great, but I don't think it's classy enough to give its design out to the public. It's more of a pride thing than anything. Also, I used a Blose factory cover to finish the space off (sanding down the Blose logo, of course).

Needless to say, I want to stress something. Subwoofers MUST be checked dimensionally to ensure they would fit into the type of box that would work in the factory space. This will limit many of the subs that will work. My design will be based on the Rockford Fosgate Punch RFZ3410 subwoofer, and will use the dimensions of this woofer. It definitely "rounds out" the sound of the factory system, and is perfect if that's what you're looking for. If you want competition-level SPL or extreme thump, you'll have to spend $$$ for a fiberglass enclosure that allows for more volume (cu. ft.).

Keep in mind, another challenge of this location is that you have a seat belt tensioner, as well as the fuel tank sending unit access located within this space. Because of this, I think the box must be removable.

My design will fit the Fosgate 10. As an alternate design, I'll try to create one using a JL Audio 8" (model TBD), because it will (1) fit within the stock speaker bracket opening better than the Fosgate 10 (which didn't), and (2) you should be able to work within the space constraints better with the 8, and most likely get a sub with a bigger magnet.

So, please be patient. I'm trying to work out a design that anyone with access to tools and time can do for a clean, good-looking install in the factory space. Feel free to ask any questions. I'm trying to fit this into my life around my 12-hour a day work days, so please bear with me.

 

Thanks so much for the time and effort Seattle... I look forward to seeing pix and final blueprints