I have a few questions about subs.?

Hopefully I can help.

There ARE upsides and downsides from the both the ported boxes, and vented boxes.

Here is a question. How much power are you going to run your subs with? 200 Watts? 500 Watts? 1,000 Watts?

I learned from the local car audio shop that a low powered system in a sealed box isn't a good idea as it "strains" the subs, according to them. It has something to do with the air a woofer has to move. A low powered system has to move more air to work efficiently and sound nice. Since a ported box basically has a hole in it, no air is retained. All is let out, making the subs strain themselves, thus, making them have a shorter life span.

This is why they recommend a sealed enclosure for a low powered system. It'll last longer because there is plenty of air retained inside the box for the subs move. If you put a high powered system in a sealed box, it won't last as long because the air that the subs are moving is like...bouncing off of the walls, and hitting right back to the sub, thus, making the excursion even more then is supposed to be. This is my guess as to why a high powered system is said to work best in a vented box. A high powered system will work better and last longer in a vented box.

Now..about the boxes them selves. As I said, they both have their pro's. They both have their con's.

The 'cubic feet' of the sub's chamber refers to how much room it has of course. The smaller the chamber, the more 'boomy' it'll sound. But it might give the subs a slightly crappy sound, such as distortion. This too, is a reference to the whole "High powered subwoofer in a sealed box". Sealed boxes take more power to make them loud though, seeing as how no sound waves escape. I'm sure there is a "cut off" point power-wise though, hence the whole "A high powered system in a sealed box might not make the subs last long." If you take the subs and put them in a large, sealed box (probably the max cubic inch size the manufactuer), it should be alright from my understanding. Sealed boxes give a more accurate sound. If there is a sharp transition between bass lines or notes, the sealed box with pick them up. It won't smooth out and elongate the switch like a ported box will. I have experianced this first hand.

Ported boxes on the other another story. As I said, A low powered system isn't reccomended for this type of enclosure, due to the whole "air movement" thing. A ported enclosure, on adverage, might provide as much as a 3 Decial volume gain over a sealed enclosure. remember me saying a sealed enclosure takes more power to make the subs LOUD? You COULD have a low powered system, and use a ported box to make it seem louder and deeper, but at the expence of the life span of your subs. Its a win-lose situation. Ported boxes tend to be bigger (as you and I both have experianced), and they tend to be heavier than their sealed box brotheren.

The manufactuer had the subs come in a ported box for a reason I'm sure. probably becuase the woofers were designed to work best in that type of box. But if the manual thing mentions the usuage of a sealed box, then it will work in a sealed as well.

I have two 12s in a sealed box. I don't even know the air space volume of the chambers...heh heh. I have yet to put a woofer in there that doesn't sound good. And no, you don't have a drill a port in a ported box. A ported box already has at least one port.

It's really about the sound that you want. It's after you decide what type of sound you want, that you can decide what sub box you should get.

In general sealed boxes are use to create a fast and accurate bass response. In general ported(vented) boxes are louder and lower bass response. Go here for more = http://www.klausaudio.com/subwoofer-box-articles/s...

The bass in the car is influenced by something called "cabin gain" or transfer function, which reinforces the low bass. http://www.caraudiobook.com/car_audio_cabin_gain/c...

These below are to give you a General Idea of the bass response from certain box sizes.

A small sealed would make the sub play the higher bass notes or upper bass frequencies easier and louder, but sacrifices the lower end bass frequencies. Which mean low bass notes will play softer, even if after cabin gain.

A large sealed will play the lower bass frequencies better and sound more natural. With the help from the cabin gain, the bass will sound more balanced or flatter. This means the subs will play loudness of the bass notes like the way it was recorded, but this usually sound less impressive to the average person(unless if you're a sound quality purist who want the sounds as accurate to recording as possible).

A medium size sealed would be somewhere in between.

The same can generally be said about ported(vented) boxes, except the tuning of the port(vent) influences the bass response. The port is tuned at certain frequencies, depending on the port volume. Pre-built boxes are usually tuned at around 30-35Hz. You can get a custom box to get the tuning you want or try asking or looking for the frequency the pre-built box is tuned to.

These guys explain port tuning better= http://www.klausaudio.com/subwoofer-box-articles/c...

and from DD = http://www.ddaudio.com/dd/caraudio/enclosureInfo/p...

An Amp is important overwise it wont sound good to be honest and you wont get that much power to you subs at all. Your local car accesseries or Halfords so,ething like that will have a wiring kit for you. I think to run two subs get about a 400 - 600 and if you budget isn't pushed then higher if you can. Make sure you have a bass box for the subs if you want it to sound bassy thenmake sure you have one for them or one each depending on how you want it to look lol. If you end up getting two amps for some reason get a power block save you running two power cables through the car. Also put the ACR and the Remote wires ( from head unit) down one side of the car and the power cable the otherside so you get no interference in the system. Good luck and enjoy :) lol

Different types of boxes will produce different types of bass: i like ported boxes

Sealed boxes: For deep, precise bass

A sealed box is an airtight enclosure housing your subwoofer. A sealed box is best for any music that demands tight, accurate bass. Expect flat response (not excessively boomy), deep bass extension, and excellent power handling. Since a sealed enclosure tends to require more power than a ported box, use an amplifier with ample wattage for optimum performance.

Ported boxes: For forceful bass

Ported boxes use a vent (called a port) to reinforce low bass response. You get more output than you would from a sealed box at any given amplifier wattage. Some people prefer the sound of ported boxes for rap, rock, heavy metal, or any hard-driving music. Ported boxes can deliver deeper bass than sealed boxes, though they need to be much larger than sealed enclosures to accomplish that.

the box does need to be in the subs recommended range because if its too small it will not hit as hard and if too big its like its not in a box at all

you cant just drill a hole anywhere in a box to port it, it has to be a certain size and in a certain location for it to sound right

a vented box will already have to holes/vents/ports

if you can fit the ported boxes that are within mtx's suggested range they should be louder than a sealed box. that being said, a correct sized sealed box will outperform a ported box that is too small. if you can use the two larger single ported boxes that sounds like your best bet.

the reason why a sealed frys subs quicker is because the coil(s) heat up faster due to lack of air flow i would go with a ported box (with long skinny ports) not a vented (round tube ports) because your subs will last longer than with a sealed, altho sealed moves subs more with less power ported boxes always hit harder and louder than vented , sealed hits the hardest but way less loud.so go double ported box with like a 800w amp also run each sub un bridged. if dual coils run pos to pos and neg to neg. all amps push harder unbridged with 2 subs due to a lower ohm load

WELL IT DEPENDz IF U WANT THE BASS TO SOUND REALLY BAD*$$....I MEAN IF U DO JUX GET THE SEALED, THAT WAY U CAN FEEL THE WHOLE STREET SHAKE!!