My sub enclosure!

[Bassackwards]

I've gotten several requests for details on my sub enclosure so here goes!

After watching numerous videos I decided that I could come up with a better way than laying inside the trunk with an open container of epoxy resin and messy fiberglas.

My first plan was to scavenge a piece of the molded carpet section off the passenger side from a wreck and use it to form my enclosure on a bench where I could stand or sit.

Then I had an epiphany, just incorporate that carpet into my enclosure!

I didn't take enough pictures but I have a few that I'll share below.

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[Bassackwards]

First I trimmed the molded carpet to fit inside my pristine carpet. Not shown are a couple of skinny wedge shaped cuts that I made to make it just a tad smaller than the original, only about 3/4” tapering to 0. One on top and one on the right when looking at this picture. I pulled the edges together with wood and screws.

 

[Bassackwards]

When I was satisfied with the fit I coated it with several coats of epoxy resin inside and out. I removed the wood braces and made sure that my cuts were solid.



Next I made the front from 1/2” plywood. It is plenty strong enough for this application. After several tweaks to get it just right I used wood to space the top and attached the bottom to the enclosure with screws. I began laying down the fiberglass. I avoided the wood bracing.

 

[Bassackwards]

I added a premade ring from Sonic to move the speaker out for more air space and added lots of resin to the enclosure and fiberglass where needed

 

[Bassackwards]

I sanded it smooth to remove any pointy or rough areas and applied a final smooth coat of resin.

I planned to cover it with carpet but it is too tight. I toyed with the idea of covering it with veneer. In the interim I just painted it with black oil based paint and pounded it into the space.


It sounds pretty good to me and yes it thumps hard at 75 with the top down

 

[Bassackwards]

I have no idea how much air space this enclosure has. I made it as large as possible given the space I had to work with. It must be close to 1 cf. After it is all done I am satisfied with the way it turned out and am so glad that I didn't use a 10".



When ordering I changed the amp and forgot to change the sub in my cart to match. I had already mounted it when I realized and even though Sonic was willing to take it back I decided to just keep it after consulting with Rockford Fosgate. Turns out they know more about Alpine amps than Alpine.

It's a 12" Punch P2 dual 4 ohm vc. Since the amp isn't rated for 2 ohm while bridged mono the sub is wired to 8 ohm. RF stated that I'd lose a little volume but that the amp would run very cool since the output would be reduced. It's rated at 500w @4 ohms bridged and RF estimated 350W @8 ohms. Nevertheless, it rocks!

 

[Bassackwards]

The remainder of my system is standard with most info found here. I abandoned the amp and used a F03 kit to send preamp signals to the trunk and speaker leads running up the driver side back to the F03 kit and out to the speakers.

I did tie the wiring between the 6.5s and the 3.5s together in the doors to feed the tweeters in the A pillars, It worked.

 

[DavidM2023]

Awesome write up thank you!

 

[Bassackwards]

The molded carpet section from the wreck is encased in epoxy resin and is now a permanent part of the enclosure. It got very stiff and strong when fully soaked with resin. I did use fiberglass to bridge the gaps between the carpet and the plywood.

 

[4sdvenom]

Very nicely done.
Saving this thread for future use!
Thank you for the write up.

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