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12" pioneer, what box/amp?

smurfxlt

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hi, i just got a 12 inch pioneer sub for 30 bucks from my friend. it says 800 max, 150 nom or something like that. i want to build a box in woodshop and i was wondering what kind i should make. ported? what dimensions? all information would be appreciated. and also what type of amp should i get? i have stock speakers right now but eventually i want to get all aftermarket ones, so keep that in mind. thanks
 



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oh yea and id like to keep this as cheap as possible because im broke as hell
 






first of all you need to get wired correctly, and if you try that yourself it has a small chance of working. speakers in an ex sound perfectly fine with an after market deck reciever, so buy that before any new door speakers. since you only have one sub, look for a mono channel amplifier, preferably kenwood. Buy everything online, its way cheaper. next go to home depot or ace hardware and buy an 8x8 peice of 1/2 or 3/4 inch particle board (i dont know what is offered at you school) and i understand the mathmatics in making sub boxes are very technical, just make one with quality depth and it should be fine. weather strip and seal the **** out of it with wood glue or sealing foam. I made my box in my garage with a table saw and a jigsaw and my subs sound amazing
 






Can't design a proper enclosure without knowing the T/S parameters.

But you could throw together a "universal" (really there isn't a universal enclosure) that should work well with most 12's.

with that power I'd go for around 2.5 cu ft tuned to 40hz.
 






i do have an aftermarket headunit, i forgot to mention that. its a jensan and its a few years old.

Can't design a proper enclosure without knowing the T/S parameters.

But you could throw together a "universal" (really there isn't a universal enclosure) that should work well with most 12's.

with that power I'd go for around 2.5 cu ft tuned to 40hz.
idk what that means...
 






Tell us the exact model and we'll figure it out, and explain so you can do it next time.
 






next go to home depot or ace hardware and buy an 8x8 peice of 1/2 or 3/4 inch particle board (i dont know what is offered at you school) and i understand the mathmatics in making sub boxes are very technical, just make one with quality depth and it should be fine. weather strip and seal the **** out of it with wood glue or sealing foam.

DON'T listen to this^. First off I have never seen a 8' x 8' piece of wood? (mis type, maybe) You should use 3/4" MDF. NEVER use particle board or OSB. Yes you need to seal the box, but caulk is what most use not weather striping or foam.
 






Im glad i found your post and i can help you out a bit. Ive got the same sub its pioneer like you said 150 nom 800 max watts the rms is 325 watts. that can help you get a good amp or you can go with the one i have its a rockford fosgate 360a2 runs really well for the pioneer. as for the box i dont have exact specks for the box also i have found that the pioneers subs sound better closed up in the box not ported
 






DON'T listen to this^. First off I have never seen a 8' x 8' piece of wood? (mis type, maybe) You should use 3/4" MDF. NEVER use particle board or OSB. Yes you need to seal the box, but caulk is what most use not weather striping or foam.

^^ exactly what I did..
then why do my subs knock the wind out of me?
 






Go to this site is gives you step by step intructions
and when it comes to sub wireing to the deck. all wires will be easy to track down. only wires coming from back of deck to amp are, remote (little blue one on deck) and the two rc cables the plug in the red and white terminals in the back of your deck. then from there i recomend 12 gauge wire as power from your battery positive to amp power. And i ran 12 gauge negative under the carpet screwed into the body were i scrapped off the paint for best ground. I got two 12 inch kicker pro comp and 1000watt kicker amp that will open my back window it hits so hard

how to build you box
http://www.termpro.com/articles/buildbox.html
 






^^ exactly what I did..
then why do my subs knock the wind out of me?

Taken from the Termpro web site (thank you slyfoxexplore)

Material Selection
Fiberboard is the best material to use for the walls of your enclosure, since its high density minimizes panel vibrations and results in a more efficient enclosure. Don't confuse fiberboard with particle board. Although particle board is similar in appearance to fiberboard, its tensile properties make it unfit for the car environment: Extreme temperature variations and humidity can cause particle board to chip, split, or warp.

Plywood is a viable option if fiberboard is not readily available. (Fiberboard is not always available in lumber yards.) Plywood is not as dense as fiberboard, but it has the distinct advantage of weighing only half as much. If you choose a laminated wood, make sure it's free of defects; imperfections in lamination can cause your enclosure to buzz or rattle. As for thickness, 5/8-inch will suffice for enclosures with internal volumes of 2 cubic feet or less; for larger boxes, use 3/4-inch material.

To join the pieces of your enclosure together, your best bet is to use screws. Nails work, of course, but they can loosen over time – especially if you're building a removable enclosure that will be subject to some abuse. Other materials you'll need include carpenter's glue, silicone sealant, spray adhesive, and various finishing materials (discussed below
 












Pioneer recommends 1.5 cubes sealed, or a 1.65 cubes with a 3"x9" round port. That will tune it to roughly 32hz, which should work real nicely. I would use the ported suggestion. That would be outer dimensions of 16.5"x16.5" (LxW) with a depth of 14.25" (using 3/4" MDF wood). A piece of 3" (internal) PC pipe 9" long installed on the same facet as the driver will get your tuning, though I would suggest spending a little for an Aeroport. They look good, and actually work well.

Also, if you'd like to get a box built for you, there are a few guys here, or I can suggest some internet guys who do it for very reasonable prices, and they do great work.
 






i think im going to go with a sealed box. and im going to do it myself with plywood to save money, right now the most important thing is saving money because i need to fix my truck with the little money i do have. what dimensions should i use for a sealed box?
 






first of all you need to get wired correctly, and if you try that yourself it has a small chance of working. speakers in an ex sound perfectly fine with an after market deck reciever, so buy that before any new door speakers. since you only have one sub, look for a mono channel amplifier, preferably kenwood. Buy everything online, its way cheaper. next go to home depot or ace hardware and buy an 8x8 peice of 1/2 or 3/4 inch particle board (i dont know what is offered at you school) and i understand the mathmatics in making sub boxes are very technical, just make one with quality depth and it should be fine. weather strip and seal the **** out of it with wood glue or sealing foam. I made my box in my garage with a table saw and a jigsaw and my subs sound amazing

Worse piece of enclosure advice I have EVER heard.

TO EVERYONE ON THIS FORUM,

Please disregard everything that is posted by this person...he/she has ABSOLUTELY NO knowledge of enclosures.

O.P.

Please do NOT use Pioneers "recommended" ported enclosures...they sound like complete ass. Port noise FTW.

Pioneer simply says 3" diameter port x 9" long. On paper to the uninformed this looks good. But in reality it is no enough port area for a 12" driver. If Pioneer DID recommend the correct amount of port area (atleast 4" round port per 12" driver) the length would have to be about 17.25" long to have the same 32Hz tuning. To the majority of the consumers it is much easier to fit a 3" dia. x 9" long port than a 4" round by 17.25" long port.

If you are going to go with plywood that is a bad choice. UNLESS it is high grade plywood...baltic birch or oak. Either way the only plywood that is good for building subwoofer enclosures costs more than MDF.

Regular plywood (4-5 layers) is weak, has voids, resonant, will fall apart.
 






okay first of all, aznboi I am sticking to concepts, and the kid we are giving advice to has very limited funding, therefore in this case, what I suggested, and did cost roughly 15 dollars and took no more than 2 hours. it wasnt the asian way to go, but it was efficient for my time and money..
 






ok so ive decided to make it out of mdf, now i just need the dimensions. i listen to rap/hip hop.
 






Worse piece of enclosure advice I have EVER heard.

TO EVERYONE ON THIS FORUM,

Please disregard everything that is posted by this person...he/she has ABSOLUTELY NO knowledge of enclosures.

O.P.

Please do NOT use Pioneers "recommended" ported enclosures...they sound like complete ass. Port noise FTW.

Pioneer simply says 3" diameter port x 9" long. On paper to the uninformed this looks good. But in reality it is no enough port area for a 12" driver. If Pioneer DID recommend the correct amount of port area (atleast 4" round port per 12" driver) the length would have to be about 17.25" long to have the same 32Hz tuning. To the majority of the consumers it is much easier to fit a 3" dia. x 9" long port than a 4" round by 17.25" long port.

If you are going to go with plywood that is a bad choice. UNLESS it is high grade plywood...baltic birch or oak. Either way the only plywood that is good for building subwoofer enclosures costs more than MDF.

Regular plywood (4-5 layers) is weak, has voids, resonant, will fall apart.

At the recommended power level for that driver (150 watts), a 3" aeroport would be plenty. You been hanging around CA too much :p: Though, my suggestion of having someone either here, or one of the internet shops build the enclosure with a slot port would be the way to go.
 






CA?? Me I have never been a member...It gets tiring correcting people who like to give advice about subjects they have no knowledge of.

IMO 3" aero is still not enough. In a bass reflex enclosure the port is a resonating air mass. At and right around the tuning frequency of the enclosure the driver is at minimum excursion and the port is at maximum velocity. Meaning at and around tuning frequency the port emits the majority of the sound and the driver does not account for much.

More port area means more port gain along with reducing the chances of port noise. It'll sound better IMO.
 



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azn is talking like this kids got some serious **** hes builiding a box for, 150 WATTS! CHEAP! those 2 things right there are the biggest factors, if he can only get plywood, thats his deal, but hes getting MDF, no need to flame saying people dont know **** about car audio, id listen to any instruction booklet that came with my subs before you, not saying you dk anything, you obv. do, but use it for the good, as in NOT talking **** to people who dont do it your way.

as for smurf; i would just go buy a regular ported box, your gonna want ported if you listen to rap, sealed is better for rock/country etc. I have a 900w pioneer 12 in my room for my home theater system, just went to a car audio shop and got a basic box for a 12, its thick, ported, and pretty big, all for 40$
 






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