Goin Big Spl

[j602]

WTF? When did this become "save you money for future life circumstances"? Blowing money on a system is no different than blowing money on axles, engine swaps, etc. Whatever floats your boat.

On the topic at hand, I think this is an utterly terrible idea. You have a 1991 Explorer. It's 14 years old, and things aren't as tight and nicely fit together as they used to. 12 subs are going to sound like you farted in a trash can full of marbles. It would be a waste of money.

 

[XLoudFN97X]

i got it! the rattling panels will actuall DOUBLE your SPL!!!

 

[TJM623]

im not some broke kid. my parents dont pay a dime on it. i have got a job just to support by habbits. it goes good because im not in the indurtry.
and where are ur parents to smack some sence into u to get a job and not be broke

I got a job...and my parent's don't pay for anything other then place for me to live n food...n I'm not broke in the way your thinking...I don't have money to spend for everything I want now...why? Because I save it all, sure I can't go put 12 12"s in the back of my X...but i'll have that money after college and when your still living with mommy and daddy i'll have my apartment

i'm outta this thread PEACE and Good Luck doing w.e it is ur trying to do

 

[Burns]

well all the imput is great but i wont be broke after college.some are for it and some are not. ive checked the prices even so i used e bay to find the subs i plan to use. it will all be ok and i wont have it done till after i lift my x about 8.5"

 

[XLoudFN97X]

ok- we'll see ya in a coupla years.

 

[BBQ_HotDogs]

LOL, it's like putting a 1,000 dollar saddle on a 50 dollar horse.... Good luck, big mistake, but good luck. It will be so heavy the rear end of the 91 Explorer will sag, bad......

 

[BeauJ]

Like others have said, do what you want. It can and has been done before though.

I was around your age when I got my '92. Paid 4 grand for it, and put almost 5 in the system. Biggest mistake ever. I agree with what BBQ said about the saddle. I regret throwing all that money in there, when I could have saved it and had a newer explorer A LOT sooner. When I was your age, all I wanted was a loud ass system to get people to look. Now 4 years later when I look back and see others doing it, I want someone to punch me in the face.

No matter how hard anyone tries to talk you out of it, you're not going to listen and you'll probably have to learn the hard way when your tranny goes out on a regular basis. I'll now step off my soap box and leave the thread.

 

[huskyfan23]

I think this is one of those "I have a dream" threads. You want to do this and that but you haven't even taken the time to design a box. And if you have a guy installing it what good is it even doing this?

 

[TTG]

I was able to get out of this need to have the loud system for only $500. So far. Deciding that I wanted the space and security of a stealth box definately saved me some money. My buddy spent $1k on his system the first time, and now he's not happy with it anymore so he's getting new subs. All my older buddies(in their 20s) said "Well, you're gonna do it no matter what, just try to get out of it cheaply, and realize that once you've had it a while it won't become a big deal to you, so itll either get boring or you'll keep dumping money in it". I still think I did it the best way I could, I got all components that are easily removed and moved into the next X and didnt spend too much. Maybe I can even use my stealth box in a 3rd gen X if I ever get around to buying one .

But yea, the nice thing about being young is you can do whatever the hell you want and(hopefully) don't have to worry about too much expenses, like car payments, mortgages, wives, and kids.

 

[XLoudFN97X]

big mistake, but good luck. It will be so heavy the rear end of the 91 Explorer will sag, bad......

It doesnt have to be a big mistake but it's things like these that make it a big mistake. You have to be aware of and willing to make all adjustments necessary, its tedious and time consuming and not many 17 year olds are up to the commitment (especially after placing horribly at their first few competitions). Question: Is this 'Dirty Dozen' idea goin' in a daily driver?

 

[Burns]

yea i run four comp 12" in it right now and i am getting a box design for the 12 12" in a few days. it sags a little with four and i guess ill have to get something to help that out to

 

[j602]

If you do the Superlift 5.5, you'll probably need AAL's and shackles in addition to the SOA just to hold up the back end.

 

[snocross1985]

I would do a double AAL with the lift to support the weight.

 

[davesexplorer]

Speaking of education....

-Not all stereo comps are based by wattage.

-Tripling ones system could lose db's or gain like 20db's you never know, and dont go by common spl theorys, rarely do they pan out in car audio.

-Porting a sub doesn't necessarily double it's output.

But you have some good points, If this is something you are really going to do, then spend plenty of time planning your setup. Take plenty of advice, and do plenty of research when it comes to enclosure design as well. You could have the best equipment in the world, took some shortcuts on installation, and still get beat by the kid who spent 500 dollars on ebay and went the best route with his installation. Also remember that amplifiers powering speakers have to get the power from somewhere! You gonna have a dual, triple or multiple alternator setup? How about batteries, a few of them at least, how bout voltage, you gonna do the usual 12 volt setup, or go up to 14v setup, or up to 16v (or dual 8v's). Lots to think about. I know just to power 5kw I invested plenty of dough into quality wiring and the biggest battery under 800ci I could fit up front.

And if you're real serious, find a shop to meter your stereo at close by, or buy a meter. If you buy a meter you could essentially run small local shows to pay off the cost of the meter. Lots to think about.

OK kid, educate yourself first on car stereo and the auto audio competition class rules before you follow your installers requests for "3x the system" you have now. He's a businessman, dude. He wants your $$. Tripling your system would only give you about 4.5dB more than you are metering now. The best quick advice I can give is to do some research on competition classes and stereo basics. All street beat competitions are classed by wattage (i.e. 0-600W, 601W-1000W, 1001W+, so on). To realistically power twelve subs for competition burps you'd need thousands of watts. The space that twelve subs would require would pretty much mean sealing the subs. Put eight (8) 12"s in a ported system tuned to your burp frequency. Porting a sub doubles it's output (that means +3dB) at its tuned frequency. Find a bad-ass amp that is underrated that can push a low ohm load (ex: an amp that is RATED at 600W @ 2ohms COULD push 1200W @ 1ohm IF it is capable of pushing a 1 ohm load- however your wattage class will still be the 0-600W class). Done right, you'd have the output of 16 sealed 12"s at your burp frequency, and would require less wattage and about the same space as twelve sealed 12"s.If you really are considering getting into the competition scene you need to not only be addicted, but you must be very educated b/c your opponents are too. GL
~stu

 

[Burns]

i have a shop that lets me use a meter about 12 min away and i go there every chance i get to go. the guy there has a good meter and ive used it quite a few times. this forum is about things like batteries and triple alternator setup. i have found several brands of 200amp alternators. this has all been in the thought process. my latest upgrade for my four 12" has been a bigger battery and getting ready to buy a wealth of 0awg wire. does anyone have a setup of more than one alternators. would like to see any info that anyone has on that.

thanks

 

[Laddy]

I think you'll regret doing it about a month or so after you do it but whatever...

 

[falls guy]

What you are doing is no more senseless than buying a second generation x, putting $2000 worth of shiny wheels on a $6000 or $7000 truck. Then lowering it with low profile tires and possibly suspension, making it look even more like an Escort wagon on steroids, then putting a hood scoop on it????? My piont is, everyone has different taste.
As for the subs wieghing the x down, it won't be as drastic as everyone is saying. If the subs weigh app. 20lbs each, which they probably do, thats only 240lbs! STFU better upgrade their math program! LOL. That's only like having one and a half people in the back. I can put 3 adults in my '91 and it hardly goes down at all. And I'm in need of new springs too. Don't worry about the deconstructive criticism, although it realy makes us newbies want to pay our $30, it'll just make you stronger, so you can try harder to achieve what YOU want.

 

[BBQ_HotDogs]

If the subs weigh app. 20lbs each, which they probably do, thats only 240lbs! STFU better upgrade their math program! LOL. That's only like having one and a half people in the back. I can put 3 adults in my '91 and it hardly goes down at all.

You forgot about the weight of the box to hold the 12 subs. That is gonna weigh close to 500lbs. Plus the weight of the amps, extra batteries, and etc. No way will it NOT sit down in the rear causing a sway. Been there done it...

 

[falls guy]

For sure it will sag a bit, but 500lbs is like 3 ave. size adults. + the batteries and amps, he'll only need to add a leaf probably.
Peace

 

[ToneDawg]

Well, all I can say is that I had 2 15's in a custom ported box and it weighed 141 pounds...and that's only 2 15's...needless to say those 15's outweighed a 12, but only by a few pounds. I know that probably doesn't mean anything to the rest of you, but that 141 pounds makes a world of difference being constant weight on your springs, even if they are upgraded. Think about it for a second...you go on a trip with an average size 180 pound male sitting in the back seat, that is 180 pounds extra...now, take 141 pounds in a speaker box and 2 subs, and keep that weight constant on your rear springs...you'll notice some sag eventually.

Now here comes the hard part...how would you build the box? Are you going to fold down/take out your rear seats so you can have more airspace and therefore better subs, or are you just gonna use the entire rear cargo area and have them firing up towards the ceiling? You are going to have to make sure that along with your box you leave room for an amp rack and extra batteries...unless you hide the amps behind the rear quarter panels, in which case some major cooling is going to be needed.

I am not going to be one that comes in and criticizes you...I say do what you wanna do and be happy with what you do...if you want to put 12 12's in your Ex, then do it...as long as it makes you happy, then that is all that matters. Only you can tell yourself what will make you happy and what will not. Like I said, I am all for you doing it, because it is "YOUR" vehicle and odds are you are spending "YOUR" money on it...now if the 'rents are paying your car payment and insurance, I would make sure I had their permission first before doing anything to "their" car.

And by the way, if I lived near ya, I would be willing to help you out with it as much as I could. Like I say, it will be a challenge and in the long run it might just be worth it. I would sell ya my 15's and box, but it's a pain to ship...from what I hear...hahahaha. But anyways, whenever you begin construction or whatever, make sure to post pics and keep us posted on progress...I might be the only person, but I will enjoy looking at them and watching progress...good luck!!!