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simple comon sence question that i dont know yet

Posted: Fri Mar 14, 2008 11:58 am
by cornilion
if u have a 500rms sub set in ur car compared to the same exact set up in a caravan or any van wich one would sound louder??? does the bigger volume space of a van make the bass louder or less since it has so much of a space to cover compared to small car where the bass is like right in ur face????

i think its somthing so easy to answer but i dont know lol..
thnx ahead for any answers :roll:

Posted: Fri Mar 14, 2008 12:12 pm
by Rold Gold
The "sound" will differ from car to car. It may be louder in the OPEN backend of a van over the closed truck of a car as the bass-wave doesn't have to penetrate the steel and foam of the back seat.

I know it's a BASIC answer but I'm sure somebody will chime in.....

Posted: Fri Mar 14, 2008 12:15 pm
by twisted
generaly the larger cabin space will not be as loud with the exact same setup. as it held true with my 2dr yukon and my suburban. i started with the same 2 12" subs in my yukon that was loud as hell and put them in my suburban with same setup as was in the yukon and it doesnt have near the output as it did when i had it in the yukon.

Posted: Fri Mar 14, 2008 1:06 pm
by gkitching
Likewise, the subs I have on display in my big showroom NEVER sound as good in the showroom as when installed in the car. This is an obsticle that has always been an issue for me. However bandpass boxes do work good in the showroom because the driver is enclosed within 2 chambers and the 'loading' on the sub is the same inside a car or sitting on the showroom floor. Although I don't like the sound characteristics of a bandpass box. Sooo..

The answer is less because there is more air volume to 'excite'.

Posted: Fri Mar 14, 2008 1:15 pm
by bdubs767
gkitching wrote:Likewise, the subs I have on display in my big showroom NEVER sound as good in the showroom as when installed in the car. This is an obsticle that has always been an issue for me. However bandpass boxes do work good in the showroom because the driver is enclosed within 2 chambers and the 'loading' on the sub is the same inside a car or sitting on the showroom floor. Although I don't like the sound characteristics of a bandpass box. Sooo..

The answer is less because there is more air volume to 'excite'.
what is it a small sound room....I enjoy my sub in the home far more than the car.

Posted: Fri Mar 14, 2008 1:32 pm
by HoseHead
A low end that's tuned is my goal.
In the car or in the home theatre, my sub volume is rarely "loud", per se.
And it depends on the source. In the car, I'll adjust sub gain and sweep frequency on just about every track...probably because it's right there on the dash, but at home, it's too cumbersome to fine tune so one of 5 presets is usually selected. :D

I would have to agree that the larger area of a van would bring the volume down at same set level, but the acoustics of the chamber are so different, you won't know which would sound "better" until you try it. Remember, better is subjective. Better for you is not necessarily better for me. You only gotta please you.

HH

Posted: Fri Mar 14, 2008 2:07 pm
by Rold Gold
I thought that my 4 12's sounded louder in my Cherokee than they did in my Accord.

Guess I'm wrong............. :doh:

Posted: Fri Mar 14, 2008 2:21 pm
by nico boom
In the old day's, my 8x 15inch Cerwin's were positioned just behind the front seats, in a w-shaped "wall", and they pressurized the area in front of them.
Bass however was only heard when walking away from the car; the further you walked, the lower the bass seemed to be.
The full wave length of those low notes seem to develope only outside of the car.
So I would say you need a big volume for the low notes to fully develope, but the pressure-buildup in a small volume makes you "feel" the low notes as well.
The aura "bass-shakers" worked with this principle as well; bolted to your car, they only moved the bodywork a bit, but it "felt" like bass... :wink:
That's my 2cents for what it's worth.
nico

Posted: Fri Mar 14, 2008 2:50 pm
by fuzzysnuggleduck
What I noticed is that listening is more "comfortable" for me in a vehicle with more airspace. I assume that's because the actually SPL is lower and if the same kind of setup was in a smaller cabin due to the woofers having more airspace to contend with.

I can get my stereo going pretty loud in my 4Runner and my comfort level is still high.

Posted: Fri Mar 14, 2008 3:03 pm
by gkitching
bdubs767 wrote:
gkitching wrote:Likewise, the subs I have on display in my big showroom NEVER sound as good in the showroom as when installed in the car. This is an obsticle that has always been an issue for me. However bandpass boxes do work good in the showroom because the driver is enclosed within 2 chambers and the 'loading' on the sub is the same inside a car or sitting on the showroom floor. Although I don't like the sound characteristics of a bandpass box. Sooo..

The answer is less because there is more air volume to 'excite'.
what is it a small sound room....I enjoy my sub in the home far more than the car.
No this particular store's showroom is roughly 1400 sq ft. w/ 10 ft high ceilings.

I guess I was wrong in saying "good" when I should've said "loud". They don't sound as loud in the showroom as they do in the car.

Sorry