sub question

i just bought a new jl 10w3v3-4 for my car. it says it needs a .625 cubic inch sealed box. the box i have is 1 cubic foot. would it work or do i need to build a new box?

Try it.... failing that add a baffle to the inside of the box to make it smaller internally

^ bingo

thanks guys, will i know if i need to change something? like will it sound bad? what should i look for?

Kevin,

Definitely stay with the JL specs. A box too large will lose midbass punch and have reduced power handling.

Also, check the JL website for their ported specifications. If you can spare just a bit more space the ported version is incredible.

David E. M.

ive never heard a ported sub i liked. i dont listen to rap. i want tight punchy bass for rock and blues and country.

Kevin,

I’m not going to pitch you on a ported box.

However, I don’t want other readers to get the wrong idea about what a ported box is supposed to sound like when properly executed.

I agree that most of the ported woofers you’ll hear will sound awful. That’s because they used universal or off-the-shelf pre-fabbed boxes that are terribly misaligned.

Using a high quality driver in a ported box tuned for a linear response and for the specific driver will yield a natural sound. Many of the very best studio monitors and home speakers are bass reflex. When it comes to faithful reproduction it won’t matter if it’s rock or Bach.

Again, there is good and bad of everything depending on how it’s done.

David M. E.

ill agree with you on that. i have a 15" klipsche that is ported and sounds amazing. however when using it in a car i think sealed sounds better. part of this is because its not a big open space. ported in a boat sounds better in my opinion too. its also a heck of a lot easier and and no real gamble in building a custom sealed box. like you said with a ported box...it has to be perfect, and im not that good with tools lol. and i take back my statement on having never heard a ported sub i liked. i was referring to in a car situation

David, i've seen your work...freakin amazing.

David is right on with what he saying. As long as you build it to the correct specs it will still be accurate and musical but w/more output.
I build ported enclosures in 90% of the boats I work on. The main problem with boats is its all open and subs don’t work that well in this
type of environment. Do to the lack of loading. If you notice the factory sub is built into the floor below the driver and has very little output. Depending on the sub you could take that same speaker and stick it in a ported box and increase the output substantially. JL subs do sound good in ported box.

Although David, and Sigmodes are correct the gained output they speak of is only a 3-6 db dise at the tuned frequency of the box. With your listening preference, I would not recommend anything other than a sealed enclosure.

The sub you have will play in the box you have, it will just have a decreased power handling, and may be a little "LOOSE>

Try it. If it sounds like ass, just try putting something that will reduce air volume in the box. E.G. bricks, 2x4's, or even styrofoam, although styro does have a bit of compression to it, untill you get the desired sound.

Me personally I love the roar of a vented, or ported enclosure, but HATE the actual sound.