....in regards to my previous post about my Accord's system (please see threads below---What Is Up With My System?")...

Because I have been complaining that my bass is not traveling outside of the vehicle the way I want it to (two 15" Rockford Punch XLC's powered by a Rockford Punch 800.2 in bridged mode), could the problem be my sealed enclosure? A fellow mobile audio buff co-worker suggested my sealed box is robbing my subs of their "maximum rumbling abilities"....that the sealed design is not really allowing the bass from these subs to hit as powerful as I want---its too controlled, too accurate...would switching to a ported or bandpass enclosure for these 15's make a difference in the way the bass is heard IN THE STREET even if the new ported box I get is still placed behind my rear seats, in the closed trunk----with the rear seats always folded up? Would there be a difference in the way the bass is going to carry by switching from sealed to ported in my case?

 

I good ported box would definitely increase the SPL inside and outside of the car. But the ported box would also be bigger than the sealed box, so are you willing to lose more trunk space???

But before you get to all of this, maybe you should look into different subs. XLC's are old and weren't exactly Rockford's top subs back then....

I'd suggest a single Kicker 15L7 in a 4.5-6 ft^3 ported box.... My bass carried for atleast a 1/4 back in the day when I was running a 15L7 in a 3 ft^3 box in my 94 LS sedan. That car rattled like crazy too, but the bass was still very powerful even with the trunk fully opened.

 

Thanks Si,

Appreciate the input, man....I sure am going to look into new subs; that was gonna be my next inquiry----I know these XLC's were Rockford's middle ground model, but I wasnt sure if they were the culprit of the ineffective bass....I should have gone with Kicker in the first place---I had their SS12 box years ago and it was a BEAST---I loved it. Kicker is definitely my first choice for new subs; how about two Kicker 15" L7s? Could my Rockford 800.2 power these efficiently in bridged mode? This thing puts out about 800 watts RMS mono; could it kick the Kickers good enough?

And do you think with a ported box and these Kickers, the bass will be definitely heavier in carrying outside of the vehicle?

 

One more thing, to help your bass carry more, you should lower the rear seat when your playing your tunes....

 

Oh, also, I wanted to tell you, Si, the reason I have hung onto the XLCs so long is because I was doing some 'Net surfing and noticed there were a ton of soundoff vehicles---some even competing in the likes of IASCA and USAC---that used XLC subs, believe it or not! Some vehicles had like six XLC 12s, or walls of XLC 15s....some just two XLCs, like in my car...so I figured they couldnt be all that bad....I bought this box off the shelf from a shop my installer friend worked at, the subs already mounted in there, ready to rock.....

 

Yes, I wanted to inquire about this, AS WELL....is the problem that the bass is getting, well, "trapped" in the trunk? I didnt really want to drive around with what I like to call a "ghetto rigged" interior, with the seats down....is there ANY way around not dropping the seat to get the bass to carry? Would switching to the ported definitely help SPL a bit?

 

The RF amp will not being able to push 2 15L7's to what you want them to be at. With the new L7's, I think they have an RMS handling around 1200 watts, so the most yoour amp could do would be 1 15. BUT, you could do the L5's.

Again, if you go this route, I'd definitely look into getting a class D amp - something along the lines of a DEI 1100d or Memphis ST1000d (one per sub). These amps are smaller in size compared to an 800.2 and will also drain less juice.

As for the sound outside of the car, the square Kickers can definitely do the job. The bass is very deep and hits very hard.

I'm pretty sure my friends old set up in his 92 Integra hatch with a single 15L7 and Memphis ST1000d was in the low 150 db range. My 15 was in a smaller ported box and in a less-db friendly car and I hit 144 db's.

 

I see....what about dropping down to L7 12's? Would they hit hard enough to be heard in the street? I wouldnt have a problem dropping down to 12s...plus, my box would be smaller, as well....how about Kicker square 12s hooked up to my bridged 800.2...good or no?

Would dropping back to an L5 make a night and day difference? Would the L5 hit almost as hard as an L7 in 15 inch size?

 

The lowering of the seats definitely helps. It allows the sound to travel better. You'll also have slightly less trunk rattling. The only other way of improving how the sounds would travel into the cabin would be to remove the rear 6x9's completely. That would leave 2 open pathways for sounds to travel through.

As for the XLC's, I too have seem them in action before and they can put up #'s. But, like you mentioned, there were times when there were more than 2 subs. Also, the enclosures that I saw these subs in were huge and mostly likely ported. Another thing, maybe XLC's don't carry very well outside and away from the car... I know for a fact that the 15L7's do....

 

VERY interesting....do you think, in your opinion, that with my seats remaining up, the Kickers can do the job of adding stronger bass in my system, and thus a bit more boom outside? I cant believe my 15's arent shaking other vehicles around me---these XLCs just seem to "give up" when the volume gets louder...

What about your thoughts on me dropping down to L7 12's?