The main goal for my civic is to keep it as factory(or looking as factory) as possible, retain full functionality and an upgrade or two for modern comforts. I bought the car for $300 with a hole in the block, a flat tire and shredded speakers. Motor fixed, new tires and components from Alpine to the rescue.....even kept the factory '94 radio!(Thanks to the SoundByte) Now I want a sub to supplement the low(very low) range that the components just cant hit.

I want to keep ALL of my trunk space, so I was thinking of a cabin mounted sub. It has to look factory though. So after some searching I found this:Stealth Subwoofer Install Meets my criteria perfectly. Any of you audio gurus attempt this before?

 

I'm not a huge fan of the way he built the "box" I just don't like that expanding foam stuff. It tends to break loose over time and can cause more of a headache than it is worth.
That said, I've seen those kinds of set ups before and they aren't bad.
Well, I've heard one that was just flat terrible, but it had no tuning at all.
I've heard others that just used 6x9's back there and it sounded rather good. Not sound quality competition good, but tons better than it was.

How much space do you have to work with?
There are some options for shallow mount subs that all have a decent sound.
and some subs, like boston acoustic that don't need as much space, ie, .75 cubic feet versus 1 cubic foot.

I'd also look real hard at infinite baffle set ups as that would make the install a good bit easier... or at least, it could make it easier since you wouldn't have to make a box using the car itself like they did in that build.

 

I agree with you on the spray foam. It does flake after time.

I was planning to see how much space I had today, but I forgot I had to go to my nephew's birthday party. Now its beer thirty nothing will get done, lol. Here is the area I am looking to hack up...right behind the driver seat(if you couldn't tell):



Depending on bracing in hoping I can fit a 8" or if I am lucky 10" shallow sub. >0.5 cu. would be all I need.

I am unfamiliar with infinite baffle setups. I just had a quick read on google, but still a little vague on it. Ultimately I want to produce deep and fairly decent quality bass, so I am leaning toward building a fiberglass enclosure. I am not totally against building the box "in car" either(it will be hot!)

Thats all for today though. Enjoy your night folks. I've already started.

 

Reading upIB subwoofer FAQ page

 

Free Air Subwoofers? Please explain.

Best read so far. I am sort of leaning toward an Ib install like you suggested. Very simple.

 

So my weekend of laziness is over, haha. Back to business. Thank god it was cool out today. Removed the back seat(required) and found a nice surprise:



Nasty shit, eh? Fuel pump doesn't look like its ever been touched. Def. something I will knock out after work one day:



Then it was on to the trim that covered the desired real estate,



Underneath,



Looks like everything is in factory shape/unmolested. Plenty going on in this corner though. Peeled back the moisture shield(?) and took a few measurements.





I can certainly build a box here. Rough dimensions for the space are 19.5"Wide x 6.5"Tall x 4"Deep. I'll be going with those dimensions to give myself a little wiggle room if needed. Keep in mind that the cavity changes shape and is not uniform at all. It might be best to go with a fiberglass enclosure to get the best sound quality here. There are many openings that in theory would be problematic for a IB setup(wave separation issues). Any thoughts?

 

Why not build a box and mount it inside?

 

MDF would likely take up a lot of room. Funny thing though, I found a shoebox that fits in the cavity. It is just about the dimensions I would need for a sealed enclosure. Saves me quite a bit of work for mock up.

 

MDF rear panel and fiberglass front, you would only lose .75; could mange a 8" shallow mount

 

I like the way you think.