Question for the stero guru's

[GripDisLegacy]

Over the weekend I bought a 12in Rockford Fosgate p2, The enclousre that I had bought you can make ported or sealed what would sound best?

Thanks
Grip

[holyjoetart]

I like a fully sealed box, you hear less of the voice coil, more bass, just make sure its fully sealed, lots of silicone

[fweasel]

"Sound best" is a subjective term. As metnioned, a sealed enclosure will sound tight and accurate, but requires a proper volume matched enclosure and more power. A ported enclosure uses a tuned port to amplify a certain bass frequency. They can sound good when properly matched to the installation, but IMO, tend to sound too boomy for my tastes.

[CSTMIZR]

^^^+1

"Best" sound is a matter of user taste. The vented enclosure is restrictively tuned and will "enhacnce" certain frequencies, giving more of a booming effect. Where the sealed enclosure (properly sized) will present a flatter reponse across the low-end frequencies and relies on the mechanics of the driver (sub) alone to reproduce the music more accurately.

Translation:

Vented = more boom with less power, less accurate or realistic to the recording (good for bassheads and listening to music with rolling basslines)

Sealed = tighter "snaps", more even reproduction across the low-end range, more power needed to achieve the same "percieved" volume. (good for audiophile, listening to variety of music and better with tight transients like bass drum)

I go sealed, with a rear deck vent, but to each his own.




(A glib response.....................vented=hiphop, sealed=rock)

[Infamous1]

^^^+1

"Best" sound is a matter of user taste. The vented enclosure is restrictively tuned and will "enhacnce" certain frequencies, giving more of a booming effect. Where the sealed enclosure (properly sized) will present a flatter reponse across the low-end frequencies and relies on the mechanics of the driver (sub) alone to reproduce the music more accurately.

Translation:

Vented = more boom with less power, less accurate or realistic to the recording (good for bassheads and listening to music with rolling basslines)

Sealed = tighter "snaps", more even reproduction across the low-end range, more power needed to achieve the same "percieved" volume. (good for audiophile, listening to variety of music and better with tight transients like bass drum)

I go sealed, with a rear deck vent, but to each his own.




(A glib response.....................vented=hiphop, sealed=rock)

Excellent explantion, I vote sealed for any quality sub and powerful amp. Vented or ported for big bass. If you can try both and see wihich sound you like more. Chances are if the box can be switched to either the enclosure may not be the required volume for a vented setup.

[frathouse87]

I've tried both. I like how the sealed enclosures keep with the beat much better and give you better rhythm with the song. With vented, sometimes close beats would kinda flow into eachother and get off rythm ever so slightly to where your like...uhhhh

Also, I believe that sealed enclosures are better for your subs because they are not fluctuating as far in free air, thus not over stretching the spider and blowing the sub.

Zac

[FishingFiend]

If you've got the watts to drive it, sealed gets my vote. If you're a thumper and don't have enough watts, vented will work fine.

[112 dB]

I've been able to get some pretty tight, responsive and deep bass from a ported enclosure, but I spent a lot of time with Term-Pro and the theile-small parameters to do so. I also had to sacrifice output in order to get the response I wanted.

The information you get from the manufacturer (Rockford, iirc in your case) usually is geared towards a good sound with decent output. I'd say that unless you listen to a lot of really low notes (bass discs or Sir-Mix-A-Lot), go with a ported enclosure.

I'm a bad example - My last system was built for sound quality but I used a ported enclosure tuned to 27 or 30 Hz (can't remember which), but had to sacrifice output to get the responsiveness I wanted. The box was also 2.5 cu ft for one 12 inch driver - not what I would call compact. This time around, space is at a premium, so I'm going the small, sealed enclosure route.

Good luck!

[112 dB]

Did you also purchase an enclosure? The volume of the box you've already bought might mean your decision is already made ;)

[deneb]

If you know the TS (Theile-Small) parameters, you can use software like WinISD to model how a driver will perform in a given enclosure. Although you get a great deal of room gain in a car interior.