In-Boat Speaker Enclosure Question

I want to add a couple of Polk Audio DB651 speakers in my boat.

I would like to make an enclosure for them and just mount the enclosure on a storage "shelf" that I have.

Is there a optimal size that I should try to make the enclosure?

Should it be airtight or should I leave an opening as a port?

Thanks

Your not going to get any reasonable bass with these speakers so having an enclosure is not needed.
IMO just having some sound deadening behind the speakers in a stock location will go farther than any enclosure.

Maybe he doesn't have a stock location, like my old SAN 210, I never put speakers in because I was chicken to cut the holes.

I want to put these up in the bow of the boat. There is a shelf that runs along either side of the boat for storage.

I don't want to cut any holes so I was just going to make a small box out of treated wood that will be a custom fit in the front corner of the shelf. Then cover it with the same carpet so it looks factory.

It is basically how the rear 4 speakers were mounted from the factory. But the mid enclosures are basically sealed and the rear ones don't even have a top to them?? And, these 2 are not the same size.

I would think you I would want some type of opening in it?? And I am not sure how much different the size makes, can't imagine it would be much.

Give Polk Customer Service a call and tell them what you are trying to do. You can find their number on their website.

I think they would be able to give you a quick and correct answer.

All you really need a "baffle board" to mount the speaker through that will separate the front a rear of the speaker. No sealed enclosure necessary.

FJK,

Its an infinite baffle speaker designed for the large volume of a car door for example. While a small sealed enclosure will seriously limit the lower bandwidth of this speaker its still preferred over an open enclosure so you have front to rear acoustic isolation.

You can port anything with a small PVC tube. But with this speaker in the size of enclosure I'm envisioning, you're probably going to get a pronounced single note effect. It wouldn't be too hard to trial and error with a couple of different tube lengths. There's just no way to model this in advance.

Go with sealed. Its predictable in this application, both sonically and in power handling. And just like Mike said, it doesn't have to be a complete enclosure as long as you have good isolation front to rear.

David
Earmark Marine

Thanks all.

Looks like I will just focus on making something that will fit into the area I want it to go in and look good. Then play around with covering the top for a completely sealed box.