Brian's Build Thread - Project: Zr2

[B_Rich]

*First of all, I would like to thank Jed (juddspaintballs) for helping me out SO MUCH during the designing stage. He deserves all the credit for the design, and he is a GREAT guy*

So this is my first build thread that I've ever done. I've never really done a big enough system to actually have one (I'm not sure if this one counts as a big enough of one either, but o well).

Here is what everything is going into:



She's been my baby for a little over 2 years now, and been pretty good to me.


Now, for the equipment:

I've had my 10" Type R's for about a year now, I've done sealed and ported, and I thought it was time to change things up a little bit. The sub isn't here yet (should be by Thursday) so I'll leave that as a little "surprise" for you guys.

And powering the *mystery sub* will be this:





*The Merlin MD3D will be ran at 2ohms = 1200w*

Here is the design that Jed came up with for me (for some reason I can't get this picture to be bigger):




As you can probably guess, it's a 1 12" ported upfiring enclosure.

1.59 cubes @ 32hz

You can criticize/comment on it as much as you'd like, but the cuts have already been made, and it will probably already be put half way together by the time you can respond.


It turns out my dad had a router I could use for rounding off the port pieces inside the box (who knew? lol)





A friend and I got to work on the cuts (he's the one with the table saw), and a couple hours later we came up with this:




That was at about 10:45 this evening, and we called it a night there.

I'll be assembling the box tomorrow and taking plenty of pics during that process as well.

To be continued...

[thrice4life44]

looks like its gonna be an overall nice build good luck with ya!!

[AceX]

I know what sub your running. Just a heads up, if you want to keep a secret, edit your photos...

[juddspaintballs]

(yeah, you gave away the subwoofer in the screenshot picture)

[timtp2004]

Hey jed is that google sketch up? Looks like a good design! Jed is the man

[Heathd]

I cant see the pics, but Im guessing that with that much power and that box size... you going with either an Fi Q or BL

[B_Rich]

Quote: Originally Posted by juddspaintballs

(yeah, you gave away the subwoofer in the screenshot picture)

lol damnit!

ahaha, o well. It was only a matter of time....

[ßɭĬƮƵ]

that box design looks good

[rustyspring03]

alpine good choice! some people are dumb and will over look what sub it is for quite some time. dont worry lol. box looks like a good design too.

[juddspaintballs]

yes, that is google sketchup. i'm not really good at it, just basic stuff like that.

[B_Rich]

Thanks rustyspring. I've been wanting to try out a Type X for quite some time now - I've always been a fan of Alpine.

I figure I'll give you guys an update while I wait for my corn dogs/pizza to cook.

Just piecing things together to make sure my cuts were correct:




My beautifully rounded edges:






It's finally starting to take shape:










And everything in minus the top piece (it's actually the back piece, cause it's upfiring, but who's keeping track)










All I need to do now is seal the inside up. I should have sealed the bottom of the port pieces as I put them in. It's gonna be a PITA to get caulk all the way to the bottom edges.


More to come later.....

[juddspaintballs]

While I'm thinking of it, add some 1" dowel going from the face of the box the sub is mounted on to the opposite side (that should be top to bottom). I forgot to mention that or draw it in earlier. Figure four pieces 11.5" IIRC long, spaced out evenly in a square around the woofer about 1-2" from the edge of the hole. That should stiffen up the box.


And I have that drill too. Love it. Your rounded edges look great. Glad you found a router.

[juddspaintballs]

If you like the box once it's all complete, take that roundover bit to all of the outside edges of the box. It really makes the box look nice and it keeps you from crushing the edges if you don't carpet the box. Only thing to watch out for is to make sure all of your screw heads are countersunk enough.

[eriley]

I want an ext. cab

[Heathd]

Quote: Originally Posted by juddspaintballs

Only thing to watch out for is to make sure all of your screw heads are countersunk enough.

nothing destroys those expensive carbide bits like a damn screw head poking out.

[Zr2Sputnik360]

looking good man! I'm glad I could help with the cuts. I still owe you for all the work youve done on my truck. I can't wait till you get that new sub in there!

[B_Rich]

Haha, thanks man. Btw, sputnik was the friend of mine with the table saw. Without him, I prolly wouldn't have this box - Thanks again.

So here is my update after I got everything finished up.


First off, this was my entertainment for the afternoon:




Good thing I came in for lunch around 1:00. Jed talked to me about some last minute bracing, which I agreed with 100%.






I know I lost a little bit of airspace, but I feel it was worth it.

I finally got everything put together and this is what it looks like:










(truck in the background, hehe )




Although I did have a router, I didn't have a circle jig . I don't build boxes often enough to go out and spend the money for one. So I just used a sawzaw to cut out the hole (like I normally would have done). I know a lot of you guys aren't a fan of cutting the hole this way, but it turned out a lot better than I thought it would, and it was all I had at the time. It will prolly need trimming when I put the sub in.


And this is how it will be sitting in my truck:



I might have the port on the other side, I'm not 100% sure yet.


And the builder himself:




Can't wait till tomorrow!

Thanks for looking

[tspears]

the box looks pretty dern good. now on the other hand. ur hole u cut is terrible.

[Sir Toad]

i don't like 'labyrinth' style ports(it restricts air flow with all the bends)......you'd been better off by running the port along the parameter of the box and placing the sub close to the 'exhaust' side of the port

but it looks good....

[juddspaintballs]

i initially tried doing it that way joe. the subwoofer is just too deep for that style design. to accommodate the labyrinth design and slower air speed, i slightly shorted the port from the usual length equations give to keep a near perfect tune. i also made sure he put in those corner boards and rounded the edges to help air flow more smoothly. labyrinth isn't my favorite style slot port, but design parameters and size restrictions called for it. plus it does make a good looking box before the lid is screwed on.

[Sir Toad]

my w7 was pretty deep and i pulled it off

but at least you accommodated for the restictive port.....now you should run it through bb6 and see how close it is...

[B_Rich]

Quote: Originally Posted by tspears

the box looks pretty dern good. now on the other hand. ur hole u cut is terrible.

I know right. It'll work for me though.

The hole is the only thing that I am disappointed in with this build. Everything else I'm very proud of. This has been by far the best box I've built.

More pics to come when I get it installed tomorrow

[Black96LT]

Box looks good. Looking forward to see what you have to say about the type X. I'm thinking about putting one in my Blazer.

[B_Rich]

The UPS guy came around 11:30 (earlier than I thought he would, which is just fine with me) with this:




















I had to run to the local audio shop (that isn't so local) to pick up some 12ga wire.

I'll be putting everything together this afternoon (after my pizza gets done )


My review of the Type X to come....

[stupid n00b]

no lunch + effort = results.

get this shit done!

[Black96LT]

Where did you buy your type X from?

[B_Rich]

Quote: Originally Posted by Black96LT

Where did you buy your type X from?

ebay, $240 shipped


So after trimming the cutout hole for the sub a little bit, I finally got her in.











No need to comment on the jubilee of wires, those will be taken care of after I get the amp mounted.

Yes, I know that the airflow isn't the best underneath the box like that. I've ran it like that with my Type R's with no problems at all (remember, I'm also only running the amp at 2ohms). I will be mounting it to the front of the box after I get things dialed in.

I'm not sure what I wanna do yet on terms of carpeting/paint/bed-liner. Any thoughts on that? I do think it'd be cool to bed line it with a nice dark black (same color as the sub).

The sub isn't hooked up yet (had to burn a nice bass cd, which I'm doing now, hehe) so I'll be going to the empty parking lot around the block to test things out.

What do you guys think?

[01cherryreds10]

I really like the rounded edges, looks like you don't miss a detail huh.

I'd say do it in bed liner because you have a Zr2, it will kind of go with the truck.

[Sir Toad]

i don't think you should use a burnt cd......they are compressed and unless you have an expensive burner you don't get an accurate burn....it will be loud but you will lose the dynamics.....looks good though....enjoy


you could always leave the amp where it is and use some fans to cool it

[juddspaintballs]

the response shouldn't be too bad...

[B_Rich]

Quote: Originally Posted by paint toad

i don't think you should use a burnt cd......they are compressed and unless you have an expensive burner you don't get an accurate burn....it will be loud but you will lose the dynamics.....looks good though....enjoy


you could always leave the amp where it is and use some fans to cool it

I know it's a burnt cd, and I know it's shitty quality. I do try and find the highest kbps I can find though - if it's distorting, I turn it down, I'm not stupid haha, jk Joe

Yeah Joe, it's either mount it to the front of the box with the fans, or stay underneith with the fans. I'll be messing with that this weekend prolly.


Now for my review:

First of all, whoever said 1 12" Type X will NOT be louder than 2 10" Type R's was right. The Type X is NOT louder, but it hits MUCH MUCH harder while still competing in the same volume range. My rear view mirror shakes just as much, I still have all the rattles that I've had with my Type R's (maybe even more, due to the sub hitting harder) and I'm still satisfied with the loudness of the sub - remember, I'm not trying to break any SPL records here. It's not a LOT quieter, but don't get me wrong this thing still kick you in the kidneys pretty damn good. I'm still going to be tuning it within the next week, but I feel I have a good starting point as of right now. It's definitely $240 well spent, imo.


Who here believes in "break-in" periods?

[juddspaintballs]

I'm not a believer in break-in periods.

If you want to get louder in the future, give up some more space (vertically) and we can do more about it.

[Black96LT]

Is the SQ better with the X compared to the R's? How does it sound with rock music?

[eriley]

Be careful if you mount it on the box, you don't want it to flex with the box or you can rattle parts of the amp loose and it will fail

[B_Rich]

Quote: Originally Posted by Black96LT

Is the SQ better with the X compared to the R's? How does it sound with rock music?

SQ is a lot better. It's not night and day, but it is better.

Haven't tried it with rock music yet, but it should do just fine.

[B_Rich]

Quote: Originally Posted by eriley

Be careful if you mount it on the box, you don't want it to flex with the box or you can rattle parts of the amp loose and it will fail

Yeah, I know there is a HUGE controversy on that topic.... some people say the amps are just fine, some say you should never do it. I know the inside of your cab vibrates a LOT just by driving down the road (bumps, turns, accelerating, stopping, etc.) I think I'm just gonna leave it underneath the box and get some fans down there.

[Sir Toad]

i've been mounting amps on enclosures for a long time with no issues.....the amps get shaken more from just driving.......

and i am a firm believer in break in period.....BUT in all reality the drivers should be broken in then tested to get the t/s parameters (as they will change ) and then design the box.......that is in a perfect world.

[Heathd]

Work and design looks top notch.

[B_Rich]

Thanks Heathd.

[B_Rich]

Quote: Originally Posted by Black96LT

Is the SQ better with the X compared to the R's? How does it sound with rock music?

Just a little update for ya. I threw some Disturbed and Breaking Benjamin in tonight and it handles the rock music flawlessly. The double bass notes hit wonderfully, didn't get sloppy at all.

I'll be updating again when I start to cover/paint the box.

[Black96LT]

Quote: Originally Posted by VoRtEcZr243

Just a little update for ya. I threw some Disturbed and Breaking Benjamin in tonight and it handles the rock music flawlessly. The double bass notes hit wonderfully, didn't get sloppy at all.

I'll be updating again when I start to cover/paint the box.

Thanks for the update. Good to hear since I listen to rock music 75% of the time. My type X should be here Tuesday...

[bangin'dime]

Hey vortec, does the type x hit those low notes well? and how low does it go?

[B_Rich]

Quote: Originally Posted by bangin'dime

Hey vortec, does the type x hit those low notes well? and how low does it go?

ahahahaha, does it hit it the low notes well........ that's a good one

jk bro, it handles the low's beautifully.

I'm not sure how low it goes.... I haven't really tried to bottom this thing out (I don't plan on it either). The only thing I've heard that hits harder and plays the lows better is a 12w7 in JL's H.O. box off of a 1000/1.... but that'll run you about $800 for just the sub/enclosure.

[PandaS10]

bedliner works awesome. i've used it twice with nice results.

[Phontain]

Looks good.

For future reference.. I made my own circle jig with a piece of plexi-glass, works fine and only cost a few bucks.

[sLonoma22]

it came out real good, with good plans, boxes should always come out like this. keep up the good work! soon you'll be walling it off with mega bass before you know it!

[B_Rich]

Quote: Originally Posted by sLonoma22

it came out real good, with good plans, boxes should always come out like this. keep up the good work! soon you'll be walling it off with mega bass before you know it!

ahaha, if I wanted to do that, It'd be done already

Thanks for the comments guys, I have some ideas of what I want to do with the box. College just started up, so I'm not sure how much time I'll be having on my hands.

[juddspaintballs]

i had the MOST time to play with audio in college

[Heathd]

Quote: Originally Posted by juddspaintballs

i had the MOST time to play with audio in college

Not me

[B_Rich]

Quote: Originally Posted by juddspaintballs

i had the MOST time to play with audio in college

That's good news to hear