03-09-2017, 07:59 PM | #1 |
Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2016
Drives: FR-S
Location: mississauga
Posts: 576
Thanks: 227
Thanked 122 Times in 89 Posts
Mentioned: 7 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
|
DIY: Cheap subwoofer box
Hey everyone!
First off I'm going start off my saying, this is the first guide I've ever made so be patient with me and if there are any flaws (Which I'm expecting) let me know so I can make this guide or future ones better. Disclaimer: I'm not responsible if you damage your vehicle or get your pickle stuck in a blender using this guide or anything I tell you to do. Do this at your own risk. ------ I recently met a fellow brz owner who had the oem plus audio pack installed. Long story short, he let me sit inside his car while he played some music. It sounded great but the subwoofer was pretty weak. Maybe I'm used to having dual 12 inch subs in my old car's trunk. Even he was talking about how he disliked the bass and was looking to upgrade. That got me thinking. Can't we just use an old enclosure from a car at a junkyard without paying lots of money for custom ones? Here is what I've had from a previous car (Nissan Sentra SER spec v) You literally can get one for 20 bucks on kijiji, Craigslist or even eBay if you do a small search. If you have a junkyard close to you, you can ask to look around and pick one up for pretty cheap. I'm not going to show you how to wire an amp, there is a handful of guides on how to do so. What you do is take the old subwoofer out (if you think it still works or want to use it anyways, go ahead. Just make sure you have a positive and a negative wire). Sometimes it's a pain to pull the old one out, use a small pry bar or a screw driver. You'll end up with this As you can see, there is a red wire and a black wire (red positive, black negative). Wrap any other wires with electrical tape or cut them off as you won't need them. I reused the subwoofer as it wasn't bad at all. The white crap around the sub is bathroom tile sealant. This step ensures that there are no leaks (I haven't applied mine yet as I'm thinking about replacing the sub) Outside the box, you should see the wires connected into some sort of a plug. Cut as close to the plug as possible, the more wire you have , the better. Get yourself 2 connectors that will run from the amp to the sub and the sub to the amp. ATTENTION: this step can be done in so many ways. 1. You can just solder the wires together and call it a day. Downside is, you won't be able to unplug it quickly if you need to access the spare tire or jack. 2. Wire connectors. Will post a picture later but this option is usually best. You can get them at any parts store. NEVER TWIST THEM TOGETHER AND JUST PUT TAPE ON THEM! The vibrations can cause the wires to lose connection and could possibly fry your amp/ battery/ other things What I did was, cut out connectors from an old HID kit that I didn't need Solder them together using a soldering iron. Or if you don't have one, you can use a lighter Once you're done soldering them, I suggest you use different color electrical tape for each the positive and negative on both the amp and your new sub. I know you can reverse the connection so you can tell easily which one plugs into the other but I prefer it that way so no one would plug the positive and negative together on my amp Once your done, plug them into your amp and enjoy! To tie it down, use industrial Velcro ( that stuff is pretty damn strong) How it looks in the trunk: Impressions: I'm stunned as to what that little thing can do! It also fit snug on the side so I still have all my trunk space! I'm going to upgrade the speaker as it does have damage on the rubber part. It's a lot bassier than the oem plus sub. NOTE: this is a 10 inch sub. I modified the box earlier for it to fit. Total cost of everything (estimate) Sub enclosure: 20-50 usd Sub: you can buy a used one for 10 bucks or go all out and spend hundreds. Bathroom tile sealant: small bottle of it goes for less than 15 usd (you don't have to use this, it just gives better quality but a messy look) Connectors: you can get those for less than 5 bucks or find something around... or if you get it yourself from a junkyard, cut the connector that comes along with it and bam, it's free. Cheapest Total if you don't use sealant and ur own connectors: 30 bucks Amp: you can pick one up for 20 bucks used too. You don't need a powerful one. Wiring kits are cheap too It took me an hour to do this. Thanks for reading my guide, if you have any questions, Let me know ! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk |
Thread Tools | Search this Thread |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
Subwoofer now available | Opie | Electronics | Audio | NAV | Infotainment | 97 | 08-15-2015 08:23 PM |