[TEKNO]

HI all.looking at maybe getting a UNDERSEAT sub and I was wondering who has one and what it is. I recently installed 4 new speakers 4inch up front and 5inch in the rear,both pairs are 3 way and made by the UK brand FLI. Heaps of clarity now but no bass....so far I have checked out the VIBE 8 inch sub and also the KICKER 8 inch,both have remote control and are easily wired up by the hi pass going straight to my front speaker terminals to power it up,which makes it heaps easier.
But do these really give a decent increase in bass? I don't expect much from a small speaker,my friend had a CLARION under seat sub and he said his was awful,real flat sounding. What have you lot got and can recommend?
Tanku

[mnemonix]

Depending on how much you want to spend, and whether you can fabricate your own enclosure, consider the JL Audio 13tw5.
60mm deep and more than enough output to put plenty of regular sized woofers to shame.

[pete_79]

Do they make water proof ones.....????? Jimny underseat sub

I've got a simple tool kit and recovery gear under my seats, pretty much everything under there (except for the $100 compressor) can go swimming and get hosed off, no stress.

I remember a few other build threads where people have fitted these subs, this was one that came to mind.
http://www.auszookers.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=788910#p788910

[magnat]

I have a Fusion 8 inch underneath the front Seat of the XL-7.

If your after boot shaking bass... Look elsewhere.. Underseat subs cannot drop that low in the small cavity they have..

The Fusion 8 incher I have adds nice low end.. good for trance and dance... lousy for R&B as I said.. they can't go ultra low.

So depending on your music taste it will either work for you or it wont..

If you only have 4 inchers in the dash then this is going to increase your listening pleasure without a doubt.. Is it as good as a slim line sealed enclosure with a seperate amp ? no..

If Space is a premium then they are a good option.. If mine can fill the cab of an XL-7 then you should have no trouble in a smaller vehicle.

[alien]

Look at marine options, then you'll get the durability you're after:
http://www.amazon.com/Pyle-PLMRBS8-Low- ... B003P136SY

[BertZook]

I got the vive active 8 sub.. Its awesome.

mind you. I use it for what it is and suppose to, adding low end to my speakers keeping my EQ response "flat".. Im not using it for any WOOOFF WOOFF kinda thing.

mine is the active version, so got RCA outputs from the back of my stereo direct into the sub. Set the Hi pass filter for the rest of the speakers on the car and happy days. I got it prob in 25% of level on the sub and like +1 /+2 on the sub setting on my stereo, and thats more than enough

Specs wise, is one of the most powerful undersea subs by the cheap price it is.

now the downside of things:
- I got a Jimny, bought it to fit under seat.... it doesn't "fit".. kinda does, but it won't leave enough room for rear passenger to put their feet... also the gap between the seat bolts its bit too narrow, so it will fit, but it won't be "flat" on the ground if that makes sense.... I fit it on the booth... it barely fits, bit thigh the gap, but the problem is my next point...... so now is just standing up against the rear back seat
- the guy who made the design was a complete morron.... for a rectangular shape "underseat" sub... the connectors are on the sides.... on BOTH sides.... all electricity cables on one side and the RCAs on the other side....... *facepalm*

I broke one RCA as the gap was too tight and was pushing the cable up....... u will need bit more wider space than the actual size of the sub for cables



(the RCAs are on the opposite side of the power cables)

[DC3PTIKON]

Bought one of these from Jaycar 4 years ago. It has been thrashed and in 3 different cars, in my Vitara now and hasn't missed a beat, literally!!!
It can take RCA's and high level inputs. The built in amp and subwoofer (8 inch) aren't huge, but it pumps out some wicked bass in the SWB Vit and fits sweet under the passenger seat. It also comes with all the wiring and has gain and frequency adjustments, remote on etc. Strong body and speaker grill doesn't seem to mind being stepped on too, really tough chassis. Bargain for $129.

http://www.jaycar.com.au/p/CS2286

[modzook]

Soundstream make some very good units but are in the high end of price, I wouldnt put it under the seat though, iv had a lake inside the car more times than I care to think about.... u can do all sorts of good set ups even mount it on the roof with a bit of fab work, just depends on how much work u want to put in.....
dave

[magnat]

It wouldn't take much to fix one to the side of the cargo area. its just the results would be less than spectacular.

[GraphicX]

i have an 8" fusion bass tube, fits neatly in the back taking up pretty much all the boot space of the jimny, but it does literally shake the crap out of my car & any parked near it, can't use any rear view mirrors when it's turned up lol. have to remove it when i need the boot though, but sits neatly on my frp boards.

[bally]

a big thing with subs is mounting them as rigid as possible in their box then mounting that box as rigid as possible. If the box is just sitting on the ground and not physically strapped or bolted down you are losing sound quality due to the sub not putting 100% effort/energy into moving the air and the air alone

[BertZook]

also for those whiling to fabricate their own box for the speaker.

its not as easy as you think!

it is not a game of making a square wood box in a random shape, cut a hole a presto!.... nope nope nope..... btw those holes or hole in a box is not for the sub to "breath" like some ppl think lol

everything have to do with acoustics if you want the maximun performance for your sub.

the size of the box depends on the volume of air inside of it. That level is determined by a combination of specs of the speaker it self. so no 2 different boxes would work with the same speaker. Some speakers might tell you the volume of air necessary for it, others you would have to make the calculations.

boxes with a hole. or "bass reflex": this hole, allows the box to be smaller as the hole helps to re-enforce the speaker. This hole requires a whole new set of calculations from the size of the whole and the depth of the tube that goes inside of it.

[mnemonix]

BertZook wrote:

also for those whiling to fabricate their own box for the speaker.

its not as easy as you think!

Enclosure design is a piece of piece. I did it for years as a job and have had 2 cars I've built win the top gong at Summernats soundoff, as well as multiple DB Drag and CAADB events.

Download "WinISD Pro" (it's free.). You can use it to design an ideal enclosure to suit the resonant frequency of the vehicle and the TS parameters of your driver.
It makes it essentially idiot proof for all but the most certified of idiots.

[BertZook]

exactly my point. still needs some specs with the wonders of apps doing the calculations for you. But it is not a "cut some wood / make a cube / cut a hole" job that lots of ppl think it is

and even still if you power it and plug it it will sound, the thing is that you won't be milking its full potential

[magnat]

Oh hell no.. Tuning ports and enclosures is just as much of an art as it is a science..

The tuning that goes into an SQ sub vs a SPL sub is vastly different.
BUT... Back to the subject... Underseat subs do a good job when you have a small cabin environment and need something to boost the low end of your music.
They are not designed to rattle the roof or pressurise the cabin with R&B..

The Fusion 8 inch I have is Narrow and wide.. it does fit between the seat rails and would not be too hard to mount in the back behind the rear wheel wells or up under the dash..

[hex_me]

Hey Tekno,

I just recently installed the Kicker 8" underseat sub you mentioned in my Jimny, and I gotta say it sounds pretty great and has very decent power. I wasn't expecting too much, but even when turning the bass up half way it shakes the Jimny down. Very happy with it.

I'm using it with 4 x 4" speakers (2 front / 2 back) and a Clarion VX603AU head unit and no separate amp. I was thinking of getting an amp, but decided to try first without it and so far it handles everything I've thrown at it without distortion.

Also with the way the kicker is wired in and strapped down it is pretty quick / easy to pull it out if needed. If i'm heading into deep water I may pull it out just incase, don't want to sink it.

Andrew

[TEKNO]

Awesome,thanks for that mate,I have considered the Kicker,Im also looking into the Pioneer twin 8 inch with 200watt amp built in for a similiar price as the Kicker but the pioneer is going to be a tight fit in the rear of the car.