Repost from install/fabrication forum..

Hey all. Im about to build a new box for my IDMAX as im not happy with how its performing and im almost certain the current box is too big.

What im after is very hard impact on bass notes. I listen to alot more techno and rock than anything else so im not too fussed if I lose abit on the very bottom end. Is there a point at which making the box smaller will actually decrease the impact the sub has?

The Sub is an IDMAX 12" v3 with dual 2ohm coils, amp is an Arc Audio 1500XXK so power isnt an issue but as best i can remember (been a while since i played with settings) it has no subsonic filter.

The box im looking at build is 1 cu.ft gross internal volume (basically the smallest enclosure they recommend on the info/spec sheet) but would I gain anything by making the box smaller?

The box is going to be made out of 25mm MDF, 50mm screws, liquid nails on joints and no-more gaps on the joints internally so flex/sealing wont be a problem.

If anyone could offer opinions on this it would be great as im not overly interested in trying multiple different boxes and due to the shape of my current box adding bricks/phone books to try things isnt really an option.

Thanks,
Dave

To be honest, the idmax probably isnt the problem.
the IMPACT is from midbass. your "crappy fusions" will NOT keep up.

Please read the beginners guide to bass in my signature.
The answer for you, is some nice front splits in well deadened doors.
A sub ALONE will NOT hit with sharp authority, you need good splits to get that sharp definition along with the low, low thump.
For why, read that link.

Any questions?

edit : Nice userpic

What a coincidence, me and my cousin just put ARC1500xxk for his IDMAX in around 1cuft encl (northfield build). The bass just excellent, impact and transient response is excellent. Suit techno very well, but liquidity is right, have to have strong midbass presence to make the impact more pronounce. For some reason, his sub hit much harder with the old RF 1001BD.

Its hard to describe in words whats lacking in the bass deparement, but I know some people swear by ported boxes with their IDMAX's. Personally I'm a sucker for a nice sealed box but I would love an IDMAX full stop.

Buy reducing the size of the box you cause the low end response of the driver to decrease, in a sealed box this effect isnt that great although can still be noticable. As a trade of you get more output in the higher frequencies (im being very general) I would put the IDMAX in a (net) 1cu.ft box but I wouldnt go any lower as there is not a lot to gain in terms of SQ/SPL for a bass driver.

Give it a shot and see what you think, if nothing changes/and or you dont notice an inprovement maybe look at getting some nicer splits, you dont have to get super dooper splits (you already have a nice amp ) but a decent low end set can make a big difference.

thanks for the replies all. yeah im aware that my midbass is lacking but its the output from the sub that i was trying to describe. As kev said its ahrd to describe whats lacking/what im talking about but i think ive got the replies I was after.

Ill try a 1 cu.ft box and see what the improvement is like.

And yes SD/splits are on the cards but im nto too sure if i really want to spend the money on my car as i do want something else

Hmm. Did you read that tutorial?
Have you tried swapping the phase on the sub?

yeah Ive swapped phasing, changed crossover frequencies, adjusted gains, repositioned the box etc.

While I know my system has problems other than this (lack of SD, crappy fusions) this is the thing I'd like to sort out first as ive got a pile of mdf sitting round and it wont cost me anything to build a new box (other than screws etc)... that and im now on holidays so ive got time to play

I hope it works then. If the materials are lying around it cant hurt. Just dont chuck on the old box untill you know the new ones an upgrade.

SUGGESTION.

If you think your box is too big, take out your idmax and fill up the box with enough solid objects (phone books, scrap mdf, whatever) to take the volume way down to approximately what you want, then try it again. If it gets better, build a new box, or simply glue/screw filling items down inside the box.

Thats one option. May as well test things.