Zen Enclosures subwoofer box

[Racemaster]

It is upgrade time once again.The fit and finish of the Zen box is top shelf.
I chose the 2 x 10" front firing box as I wanted tight not boomy bass.
The inner cubic feet dimension had to reduced for the subs I am using.
The "Zens' also were very fast in building and shipping the box to me.
I think it arrived packed very good in about a week.

I scored some Hertz HX-250 subs for $220 a piece on a closeout.
They are installed with Spax screws,pre-drilled and a touch of wood glue.

The box fits nice and tight in the trunk opening.

To power these pups I chose a Hertz HCP 1DK 1000 watt monoblock amp.

I machined some 3/8" aluminum hex stock into standoffs to hang the amp from the rear package tray area.The ends are tapped for #10-32 screws.

It hangs nice and sturdy and still leaves enough room to slide the box out.

Here it is all wired up.

I wrote a quick file for the Helix DSP to upload tomorrow which should be close to tune this in.

Anyone that has wondered about the zen boxes should not hesitate,they are quality pieces.

Any questions,please ask away.

Jeff

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[mumbles]

Man, between your plug fabricating / machining and z06psi's welding skills, you guys have me totally envious!
Again, nice choice of equipment... I never would have guessed those subs would fit just by looking at them, the look pretty deep.

Once you have the DSP dialed in, I'm interested in hearing your impressions!

Oh, and I agree with you statement regarding zenclosures boxes... great products and customer service!

 

[z06psi]

Looks great! So the rear of the Zen box doesn't go past the back of the cross brace above it?


The only reason I did not do this was because I wanted to retain the pass through if I ever needed to carry a larger item.

 

[Canoman]

Nice work on the standoffs. I'm considering something similar. Just curious... How long are these standoffs?

Thanks.

 

[15RRGT]

Nice! I chose the very same Zen box, but I stuffed it with Rockford P3’s and I don’t like how they sound. Plus the weight, omg the weight.......

 

[ahl395]

Very nice and clean install :cheers:

I've been very happy with my Hertz speakers I'd love to hear a set of their subs. Shoot me a PM if you're ever in the Jersey City area

Nice! I chose the very same Zen box, but I stuffed it with Rockford P3’s and I don’t like how they sound. Plus the weight, omg the weight.......

Surprised, I did a setup of two Rockford P3s in another car and they sounded pretty good for a midrange sub.

The weight.... :lol: :lol: Take a look at my sound system thread and you may faint :headbonk:

 

[Racemaster]

Thanks gents!
To Canoman,when I made the pieces I started with them at 2 3/8" long.I kind of wanted to see where the amp would land on the package tray ribbing from underneath.When I found a good landing spot,I cut them back to 1 7/8".You might get away with 1 3/4".It is all to clear that well which houses the gps antenna I believe.I have a lathe and a bridgeport in my garage,so whipping stuff up like this takes no time at all.You could use hollow tubing and just make the screws longer.That would work.
To 15RRGT,I am also surprised the rockfords did not sound good.Did you have the "zens" taylor the cubic feet of the box for those speakers?They had to close mine in for the hertz subs.

And yes the weight of the box is substantial,but being heavier and rigid yields better bass reproduction.

 

[rosc0w]

Such a good amp mounting idea! Do you think two amps with the same dimensions as your Hertz could be installed in this manner if the speakers were removed from the rear tray?

 

[z06psi]

Such a good amp mounting idea! Do you think two amps with the same dimensions as your Hertz could be installed in this manner if the speakers were removed from the rear tray?

Go here.

https://www.mustang6g.com/forums/showthread.php?t=94006

 

[rosc0w]

Go here.

https://www.mustang6g.com/forums/showthread.php?t=94006

Thanks. Missed that shot from your build thread.

 

[Racemaster]

First tune on the sub system today.

Not too bad except for the hole at 60hz which may be the car.
If there is time tomorrow I will give it another tune.

I also have the gain set on the low side,maybe about 10 o'clock position.
That is telling me that I might have been able to get away with a single 10" or 12" and 350-500 watts.

I am not looking for window rattling bass,just clean powerful bottom end.

 

[Shouldhavegotthegt]

Nice! I chose the very same Zen box, but I stuffed it with Rockford P3’s and I don’t like how they sound. Plus the weight, omg the weight.......

I’ve got The 12” P3 prefab box and it’s huge. I was thinking of buying another P3 and doing the zenclosure box. My friend that does car audio says that the P3s don’t work in such a small box because there is an air hole in the magnet and there is just enough room to get the sub in. No air is probably getting to the woofer in your setup (according to my friend). Need to find some subs that either more shallow or flat in the back.

 

[mumbles]

First tune on the sub system today.

Not too bad except for the hole at 60hz which may be the car.
If there is time tomorrow I will give it another tune.

I also have the gain set on the low side,maybe about 10 o'clock position.
That is telling me that I might have been able to get away with a single 10" or 12" and 350-500 watts.

I am not looking for window rattling bass,just clean powerful bottom end.

I'm guessing that is a graph of the entire system and not just the subs? Otherwise, I'd say you need an HPF since the subs seem to be playing all the way to 20kHz ;)

Do your windows rattle too much with the current tune? The graph shows you have plenty of output available in the sub-bass region just below 60Hz and a rise in the mid-bass region around 80Hz... not sure what you are listening to, but lots of music tend to emphasize the mid-bass region which could be where your rattling is coming from.

You can use your Helix to try and cut the output at wherever the problem frequencies turn out to be. Remember, a graph is just an indicator and doesn't always match what your ears tell you. For example you can have a graph that would get high points in a competition for being "flat", but when you listen to the system it sounds "lifeless"... I happen to enjoy a bit of "impact" in my music, but the corresponding graph will look a little rough.

 

[Racemaster]

Eric,of course it is the whole system

I already pulled a bunch out at 80hz and 100hz to get where it is.
The sub xover is set at 75hz with a 24db slope and the midbass at 85hz with a 12db slope.The 10hz gap helped knock down the 80hz hump.

I think the hole at 60hz must be the car,as it is far enough away from the xover point.I knocked down 30,40 and 50 already to get closer to the dip.

I will see if there is more time today to play around some more with it.
But right now it is sounding real real good.

 

[mumbles]

Eric,of course it is the whole system

I already pulled a bunch out at 80hz and 100hz to get where it is.
The sub xover is set at 75hz with a 24db slope and the midbass at 85hz with a 12db slope.The 10hz gap helped knock down the 80hz hump.

I think the hole at 60hz must be the car,as it is far enough away from the xover point.I knocked down 30,40 and 50 already to get closer to the dip.

I will see if there is more time today to play around some more with it.
But right now it is sounding real real good.

Awesome, glad to hear you are getting things where you are happy! If I were closer, I'd love to have a listen...

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