# Sub install rear shelf- IB or custom sealed enclosure??



## jawn swagg3r (Aug 29, 2011)

Okay. I own a w210 1999 Mercedes E320. I wanted a system that will bump hard, loud, and clear. I've done a ton of research. I have a head unit and wiring and everything ready to install. The question here are subs and their amp(s). 

My car has a solid rear shelf. It's big. There are four 6.5" holes already for speakers. These will be too small, but the shelf would be easy to modify. I love the idea of the speakers firing into the cabin. However, i have heard a ton about Infinite Baffle (IB) subwoofer setups, where there is no sealed enclosure. So my questions that are going to decide my setup are:

FOR MAXIMUM CLEARNESS AND LOUDNESS

1. Should i run IB subwoofers, or mount them in the shelf, and seal the area under them, so they're effectively in a sealed enclosure?

2. Depending on your answer to question 1, what subs/how much power?
if i run 10 or 12 inch subs, i'll probably only be able to fit two. I'll attach a picture of someone who but two 12" subs in the same car.

.. i feel like i forgot something important. oh well.


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## jawn swagg3r (Aug 29, 2011)

bump?


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## dipitydoo (Aug 23, 2011)

ib subs can work well, but you will need to take the time and effort to properly seal off any and all leaks around the baffle and in the trunk. benefits include better efficiency versus subs in small sealed boxes, but excursion limited power handling is reduced. you'll want to look for a sub with a high Vas. personally, i prefer sealed boxes. i think output wise, a sealed box will potentially get louder with the right sub and right amount of power.


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## jawn swagg3r (Aug 29, 2011)

alright, so i'm going to install two 12" subs in my rear shelf and build a sealed enclosure under them. how big should the enclosure be? what subs/amp should i use? should it be one enclosure or two?

My main goal is to have a pretty loud system, but i dont want it to sound like the trashy loud systems that i see too much these days.


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## Danometal (Nov 16, 2009)

I would say that you need to go ported to get loud, but if you build it right, reflecting sealed subs off the back glass will be loud for sure.

If you're set on going sealed, get subs with the most Xmax you can afford. High excursion subs do very well in sealed boxes.


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## sqshoestring (Jun 19, 2007)

IB tends to get lower, though it depends on the subs you get. A sealed will sound just like a sealed in an suv/etc., if you mount it to the deck. If you go IB you should go larger for more output since you can't push the subs quite as hard, plus larger subs tend to have more output and efficiency on their own if you can fit them. That is why you see 15s IB on here, its free output and can get lower. You only need about half the hole size to blow IB through the deck if you don't want to chop it all up. But if you want it to go real loud and don't care about <35Hz I'd say go sealed and you know what you will have. IB you hit xmax, though if you throw down for a HD sub like a JBL GTi you can abuse it quite a bit and it has lots of xmax. It has braking rings so it will not xmax really. The infinity 12s I used hit really hard IB at 40Hz and higher (for what they were), but they only take 150rms running IB the typical half power most subs do IB. If you pound IB subs you need a subsonic filter on them (high pass) that will cut the really low bass and keep the xmax under control. If you pick the wrong subs IB you might have to change them out, your sub is tuned like a box in this case. Unless you get the GTi then just EQ it anyway you like and it will deliver. The pyle 15s I run now play down to under 30 no problem compared to the infinity quad 12s that had to be forced to do that. I need hardly any EQ on these, just to show the difference in tuning a sub can make. The infinity would blow me out of the car at 40-50 and up with no EQ. I hated that, I prefer near flat to low as I can get maybe a slight bump at 30-35 if any. So really depends on what you want out of the system. For all out SPL its not ideal, though like my infinity you can make it work like that somewhat and have a near empty trunk. Quad 12s was a large baffle, and it was really heavy in the car, but with 420rms on them output was impressive to me I didn't use it all very often and could have run 600rms rated...I never bothered, and that was with two LP at 50Hz and EQ cut at 50 to flatten them out.


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## jawn swagg3r (Aug 29, 2011)

thats a lot to take in. I am limited with options as the car i am installing in has a firewall between the trunk and the cabin.

Twin 12" sub install - E300TD W210 - MBClub UK

That is pretty much what i am looking into doing. Same car. I don't know if this has been done before but i am going to create a sealed enclosure under them. Does that make sense? like make an enclosure, but the speakers fire into the cabin. hmm. It might not be worth it. If you scroll down in the link above ^^ there is a picture of the speakers in the trunk mounted on the shelf, and it seems that they'd be just as loud as in an enclosure because they fire directly into the cabin. 

I'll find a pair of subs and an amp and post to give you guys a better idea. Feel free to suggest amps/subs, though


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## Danometal (Nov 16, 2009)

jawn swagg3r said:


> thats a lot to take in. I am limited with options as the car i am installing in has a firewall between the trunk and the cabin.
> 
> Twin 12" sub install - E300TD W210 - MBClub UK
> 
> ...


That's one sweet install for sure. I wouldn't mind hearing what FLI subs sound like. 

If you're up for it, I bet it will sound great. FWIW, I've had good results from sealed boxes in a closed trunk by taking out the rear parcel shelf speakers/factory subs/etc. to vent the bass into the cabin.


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## for2nato (Apr 3, 2012)

I have a 2002 w210 with 2 Oz ME 12" subs IB in the rear deck. OS Lanzar OPTI100 pushing them very effectively. Doesn't leave a ringing in your ears like my Kicker 18"s and LP5002. But who would expect that anyway. It sounds very natural and performs well at sub 50hz. I can post pics later.


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## chuyler1 (Apr 10, 2006)

I mounted up a 12" sub to the 7" factory location in my Mazdaspeed6. Don't think you have to cut holes to mount subs. They'll pump bass through just about any size hole. Check my build log (see signature) to see how I mounted the sub in my car. It was a pretty simple job.


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## for2nato (Apr 3, 2012)

Here you go. I took a little video to show you what an IB setup could do in your specific car. Being as we both drive the same ride I thought you might enjoy this. Video is uploading as I type this so give it a minute if it isn't ready right away.

Oz Audio ME12" Infinite Baffle in Mercedes W210 E Class - YouTube


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