I sort of assumed laws of physics were suspended and this thing would act like a proper woofer with flat response until it couldn't.
I don't know, in my experience this is rarely used in the back of any car. Almost any dealer/vendor/friend/anyone will an opinion asked before purchase will recommend even a slightly bigger option for the trunk, hatch , back ect where room is not at such a premium - especially the height issue is not so exteme so the woofer can have a more traditional motor and maybe be ported.??? The application for this category of sub is average user, buying one and easily throwing in the back. Installers design their own boxes and use external amplifiers. I suspect some of them don't use EQ either.
So no, this has to have better response. What is there is unlikely to blend into anything else.
Can we stop describing things that 'start', and I use the term with a copious amount of salt, at 35Hz, and mostly output way above 50Hz, as 'subwoofers'. They're mid/bass drivers. We see TV sets advertised with 'subwoofers' of 125mm and smaller, ridiculous.If the Sprinter's original sound system did not have a subwoofer, you should check to make sure the factory head-unit even outputs low frequencies. Many have a high-pass filter in place, which lets them get a little more volume out of those 4-inch "woofers." I ran into this problem when I wanted to add a subwoofer to an economy car (Honda Fit/Jazz). The head unit does not even output subwoofer frequencies, so I never added one....![]()
A speaker whose primary purpose is to reproduce frequencies under 100Hz or so is commonly referred to as a subwoofer.Can we stop describing things that 'start', and I use the term with a copious amount of salt, at 35Hz, and mostly output way above 50Hz, as 'subwoofers'. They're mid/bass drivers. We see TV sets advertised with 'subwoofers' of 125mm and smaller, ridiculous.
I have zero room in, e.g., my X3 for a 'sub in a box', or even a decent 'mid-bass' in a box. The boot is used as a boot, which is presumably why the factory fitted bass drivers are under the seats. Unless you don't actually use the boot there's literally nowhere else to put a large driver enclosure in a modern car.I don't know, in my experience this is rarely used in the back of any car. Almost any dealer/vendor/friend/anyone will an opinion asked before purchase will recommend even a slightly bigger option for the trunk, hatch , back ect where room is not at such a premium - especially the height issue is not so exteme so the woofer can have a more traditional motor and maybe be ported.
This is really an option my world for under the seat only and only when the $1200 custom made one is out of budget.
This type of buyer/folks will be happy with the extra bass/midbass and the hidden quality in their 1995 Accord. It is like a stock sub that is often under the front seat. Those are sometimes crappy low quality 5 or 6" woofers in tiny plastic boxes, this is better.
Just taking the seat out for most requires a paid installer and you newbs better get clear on dealing with airbag sensor wiring and stuff. For those who can do it they likely already have a whole different plan that doesn't use this type of product.
The transfer function of the car will reinforce the 40-80hrz bass a lot. I suspect it is fairly flat to 45-50-60hrz in a small car when used with say a lowpass at 100hrz.
Then the crossover shaves about 6db down at 100hrz and then likely 15-20 boosted in car by 50hrz. Pretty 'flat' then.
I've used this type of product years ago, mainly out of curiosity and wanted hidden bass. It did sound pretty bad to me but I do think it has a customer. I ended up building a custom 0.7cuft box for a good 8" that fit between the front seats and modified the armrest area there. Much better, way better.
That same car also had a regular 12" sub in the back hatch area at one point, that blew the under seat model away, not even close - a different world but it required a .8-1.0cuft box that was squarer to accommodate the huge motor and about 6db bass boost to sound 'flat' in car moving (which was likely about 10db-15db up by 40hrz with no road noise.)
******************************
Amir or anyone, if you go custom and need small boxes high output, the drivers below are deep but are otherwise small for their output & work well in very small sealed small boxes with 3-6db of PEQ 2-3band bass boost. (or use the passive radiators in a larger box or find a way to make a port work by putting port outside of the box)
They have large, Klippel tested X-maxes and I have some here I plan to use that measured well at home. They are beasts.
![]()
Test Bench: The E180HE-44 Full-Range Subwoofer from the Dayton Audio Epique Line
In this article, Vance Dickason characterizes the E180HE-44 woofer, from the Dayton Audio Epique lineup. As with the E150HE from the same range, the E180HE-44 uses the patented Multiple Magnet Air Gap (MMAG) technology, invented by Enrique Stiles and patented by Step Technologies. The E180HE is...audioxpress.com
12% off with coupon right now
5.25" with 14mm X-max, $99-12%
![]()
Epique E150HE-44 5-1/2" DVC MMAG Extended Range Subwoofer 4 Ohm per Coil
Epique E150HE-44 5-1/2" DVC MMAG Extended Range Subwoofer 4 Ohm per Coil Epique E150HE-44 5-1/2" DVC MMAG Extended Range Subwoofer 4 Ohm per Coil Like. No. Other Combining world class performance with a reasonable cost, the Epique E150HE-44 5-1/2" carbon fiber cone woofer from Dayton Audio sets...www.parts-express.com
7" with 14mm X-max, $125-12%
![]()
Epique E180HE-44 7" DVC MMAG Extended Range Subwoofer 4 Ohm per Coil
Epique E180HE-44 7" DVC MMAG Extended Range Subwoofer 4 Ohm per CoilEpique E180HE-44 7" DVC MMAG Extended Range Subwoofer 4 Ohm per CoilLike. No. OtherCombining world class performance with a reasonable cost, the Epique E180HE-44 7" carbon fiber cone woofer from Dayton Audio sets a new standard...www.parts-express.com
7" with a plain 0.6cuft MDF box, easy to test? $190-12%
![]()
Hi-Fidelity Passive Dayton Audio Epique 7" Mini Subwoofer Kit
Hi-Fidelity Passive Dayton Audio Epique 7" Mini Subwoofer KitHoused in just a 10” cube, the Hi-Fidelity Epique E180HE-44 7" Passive Mini Subwoofer Kit is the perfect solution for providing high performance bass response without taking up much space. With the Epique high excursion extended range...www.parts-express.com
Example, Qty 2, 5.25s in a sealed 0.25cuft box with a couple of bands of bass boost of about 3db
The reason for a 5.25 is with the small diameter the box can be made in shapes to fit really small spaces but it will be more square vs flat like the JBL.
- at 125 watts (250-400 where the boost is applied, use a beefy amp)
- 107db max output outside(more in vehicle)
- excursion hits 12mm around 45hrz at max output in example, (these are Klippel tested X-maxs)
- divide the box and have 2, 0.125cuft boxes and 107db anechoic -3db down at 50hrz
- in a car that will would maybe be 110-115db max output with nice extension to 30-35hrz due to 10-20db cabin gain there, in the RV I don't know how much
The 7 is very versatile as well and the tuning and design options far exceed any single examples but the one above gives the idea.
View attachment 452690
Not sure what year you have. Do you have the Harman upgrade sound system? If so that is pretty decent right, with some decent DSP adjustments available? Different market have different sound options in these.I have zero room in, e.g., my X3 for a 'sub in a box', or even a decent 'mid-bass' in a box. The boot is used as a boot, which is presumably why the factory fitted bass drivers are under the seats. Unless you don't actually use the boot there's literally nowhere else to put a large driver enclosure in a modern car.
Thank you! I keep talking about this level of cabin gain in my posts but thank good god you had this.Had this on the laptop, don't remember where it came from. Amazing what happens in a small confined area.
??? The application for this category of sub is average user, buying one and easily throwing in the back.
This is why I'm confused by everybody on this thread dunking on the frequency response of this subwoofer.Had this on the laptop, don't remember where it came from. Amazing what happens in a small confined area.
You need to read reviews of these products both in Amazon and YouTube. Not a single one involves any kind of EQ or installer. Nor are they kids. Folks just wire them up and find a place to stick them. Many mention that they wanted an easy solution and this was it. There are a ton of them costing $100 to $150. You think they are going to completely revamp their system with Eq and such???I have no doubt that a lot of teenagers throw subwoofers into their cars with zero tuning.
I don't mind them being whatever they are as long as they are documented as such. As with high end home audio, the truth only comes out when we measure them. The industry with tiny exceptions, runs completely open loop with no one performing critical analysis of them, leading to random selection of products.I certainly don't disagree that this thing would be a one-note fartbox if placed in a living room....
RV companies buy these vans with features they like. In this case, Airstream RV company had deleted all factory audio and instead, put in an aftermarket Kenwood head unit and a subwoofer way in the back of the van. The head unit was very expensive, I suspect around $1,500 so they did this with good intentions. Alas, they left the van speakers as is. I did upgrade the door speakers with much better JBLs. That made a small improvement but did not change the overall picture. As I noted, I took out the custom sub to make space for Lithium batteries. I have now bought another set of speakers to upgrade the tweeter and larger in-door woofers (the existing one is a 4 incher!).If the Sprinter's original sound system did not have a subwoofer, you should check to make sure the factory head-unit even outputs low frequencies. Many have a high-pass filter in place, which lets them get a little more volume out of those 4-inch "woofers." I ran into this problem when I wanted to add a subwoofer to an economy car (Honda Fit/Jazz). The head unit does not even output subwoofer frequencies, so I never added one....![]()