Custom fibreglass sub box?

[JoeBob]

Is it easy to do custom fibreglassing to make stuff like in the Alpine civic? Reason I want to know is because factory made boxes seem to cost a ridiculous amount, and it'd be cool to build my own. The stuff in the Alpine civic is just amazing, and I'm willing to fork a little extra for the materials but if its too difficult to make a fibreglass box then I'll probably just make a normal one or buy a factory one. Another question: Does a fibreglass box compromise sound quality for better looks?

Thanks in advance

 

[jrivard00]

I've never seen the alpine civic so I really don't have anything to go by. But to answer your second question, sound quality won't be diminished if you fiberglass correctly. (no air bulbes, use reinforment, etc)

 

[CycloneAWD]

Having used to work in the car Audio field...I do know that working with resin over wood work is a lot more extensive...BUT that being said, if you want the ultimate show ride...and a great sounding ride, fiberglass is definetly the way to go...I dont know about the civic you were talking about, BUT I have seen a Alpine Bimmer and that was MACK...

Fiberglass is really a lot more money and work...but the final product makes the panties drop Bro...

 

[JoeBob]

Hmm....well its something I've never done or seen done before so is there the possibility that I will screw up and have to start all over again? (and lose all the expensive materials)

Also, approximately how much would it cost to make a box with this stuff that fits in the back of the trunk that fits 2 10" subs?

BTW this isnt something I'll be doing within the next 10 months or so, so I have tons of time to research

 

[guedo512]

isnt the alpine civic the on with the center drive seat and steering wheel? if it is then its going to take a lot of work and cash to accomplish.

 

[igs]

Originally posted by JoeBob
Does a fibreglass box compromise sound quality for better looks?

Yes it does.

 

[JoeBob]

isnt the alpine civic the on with the center drive seat and steering wheel? if it is then its going to take a lot of work and cash to accomplish

Yes thats the alpine civic but I'm only thinking of making a sub box for 2 subs.




But if sound quality is compromised then I probably wont do it, function over fashion for me!

 

[stik6shift00]

yea the alpine civic is awesome, I read somewhere that it cost over $250,000 to make it look like that.
I would save your money for fiberglass youll get sick of a simple box in the back

 

[Morphius]

Originally posted by JoeBob
Does a fibreglass box compromise sound quality for better looks?

Originally posted by igs
Yes it does.

Fully depends on the quality of the box. Layers of composite, type of resin, core material, paint, etc.

 

[igs]

Originally posted by Morphius
Fully depends on the quality of the box. Layers of composite, type of resin, core material, paint, etc.

No it doesn't. Plastic will never sound as good as wood.

 

[ArticNemesis]

Wood base, fiberglass over top of the wood box. That is how I assumed most people have done it anyway.?

Therefore, you have your normal box, but hidden and made presentable with fiberglass customization.?

 

[igs]

Originally posted by ArticNemesis
Wood base, fiberglass over top of the wood box. That is how I assumed most people have done it anyway.?

Therefore, you have your normal box, but hidden and made presentable with fiberglass customization.?

That defeats the whole purpose of using composites in the first place. Oh wait, people only care about having that "ricer" look. What was I thinking???

 

[brcewane]

Here is a great site that will show you the entire process of building that center drive Alpine car.. including all of the fiberglass work
http://ecominet2.alpine-usa.com/html/adc/2003_civic/2003_civic.html

 

[VOTBLINDUB]

Originally posted by igs
No it doesn't. Plastic will never sound as good as wood.

i agree with that, but the plastic is outside as long as the wooden boxis inside itll sound fine, just gotta know what youre doing and itll sound fine, bro, dont worry

 

[JoeBob]

just gotta know what youre doing and itll sound fine

I dont know what I'm doing tho hehe. And I dont know why some people call fibreglass sub boxes rice, i mean if designed and built properly it can be more practical than a wood box and still sound the same. Wwhat I'm thinking of right now is having an arch made of fibreglass, and the subs on both ends of the arch with the amp in between. Not sure if that would all fit but I'm not going to bother desigining it until I know everything involved in making it.

 

[EuroGSTSpyder]

A fiberglass box can sounds just as good as any wooden box if done corectly.Most ppl however use to few layers and doesnt make it thick enough to withstand the pounding of a good base.If the FG box is made right and is made rigid enough it wil sound just as good. Maybe not for serious DB drag or quality competitions with special meassurment equipment in the higher range but for any car on the street with "normal" listening it wont be any different at all. I assure you you can not tell the difference as long as its made correctly.

 

[goalieman24]

yeah im working on one right now.... as long as you dont go cheap with it and just slop 1 layer of the resin on, it will sound good. i dont think some of the guys would spend so much time making a fiberglass enclosure if it sounded bad. the green one with the red mitsu logo sticks out and theres a red one too, both of those look like they took a lot of time and im sure they still sound very good

 

[brcewane]

Just be prepared to do the most sanding/filler you have ever done in your life

And also get the right safety equipment.. proper ventilation, a good canister mask, safety glasses, and rubber gloves when applying the Resin (it gets chemically hot)

Also invest in a good palm sander like the Mouse, or the 3-padded one from Sears is really nice that does curves really well.

All in all it is worth it in the end... I did mine for a show and never did get it all hooked up to see how it sounds since I am selling my car

Frame:

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Before Resin:

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After Sanding:

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After Paint:

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[xxconvict]

Thats a prettty bad install right there! was it 100% sealed? or are they free air subs?.......anyway, if i were wanting to learn how to fiberglass or anything having to do wiht fabrication i'd go to www.carsound.com and go to their forum and go to the sub forum "matt bogadart(sp>?) on fabrication". The guys there will direct u to anything u need to know or will tell u with out flaming you unlike some forums i know......OR i can build you one!

 

[brcewane]

Originally posted by xxconvict
Thats a prettty bad install right there! was it 100% sealed? or are they free air subs?.......

I think you mean "bad" in the good way, and if so thanks They are just free air subs right now... my second step was to enclose the two areas that the subs were in and properly line the inside of the enclosure... but I didn't have enough time to get it all done before the car show I was in... The cool part is that the whole unit simply lifts in and out of the back when you remove the strut bar.

So I haven't finished it yet since I am selling the car.. going for the practicality of 4-doors and the fun of a turbo... WRX time for me. I'll probably make an enclosure for the WRX though

 

[jrivard00]

Originally posted by brcewane
I think you mean "bad" in the good way, and if so thanks They are just free air subs right now... my second step was to enclose the two areas that the subs were in and properly line the inside of the enclosure... but I didn't have enough time to get it all done before the car show I was in... The cool part is that the whole unit simply lifts in and out of the back when you remove the strut bar.

So I haven't finished it yet since I am selling the car.. going for the practicality of 4-doors and the fun of a turbo... WRX time for me. I'll probably make an enclosure for the WRX though

I would hate to have a light bulb in my tail light go out. Must be a PITA to rip the enclosure out just to replace a tail light bulb.

 

[xxconvict]

Originally posted by brcewane
I think you mean "bad" in the good way, and if so thanks They are just free air subs right now...

Yeah i ment bad as in "badass" ....good work

 

[goalieman24]

Originally posted by jrivard00
I would hate to have a light bulb in my tail light go out. Must be a PITA to rip the enclosure out just to replace a tail light bulb.

he said it simply lifted out... but that is one very nice enclosure

 

[VOTBLINDUB]

You know, from what i see and hear at competitions fiberglass is used more for spq or just to make it more visually appealing. It really depends on what you want out of the enclosure. If you just want it to look really nifty and different, then go with fiberglass. Boxes made for spq are part fiberglass, the bottom will be made from mdf and only the "lid" or a fiberglass structure with a wooden frame. For spl i see just wooden boxes, they maybe be sealed with fiberglass resin, for corners to avoid air leaks. So far i havent seen an psl car heavily rely on fiberglass alone. With that you'd need a really thick layer so its about half inch to three quarters, thats a whole lotta fiberglass there. Nobody makes wicked thick boxes like that, so people use wood. Fiberglass can probably resonate the sound waves pretty well if it's really thick, REALLY thick. Im planning on doing SPL with my car, so i dont have a drop of resin in there, i just used liquid nail with the blue stripe for everything, ie for laminating and sealing. The box i have now is ported, which increases my DB level just because of it's design. I had JL Audio design a specific one for my car's dimesions and my W7 12. Only thing is, the carpeting on the box was done by my buddy at a caraudio store nearby, i dont know how to do that yet, so i didnt want to make it horrid looking or lopsided. Overall that box ran me 65 bucks, it was 30 in materials(mdf, screws and liquid nail), 35 was for carpeting it. They also did me a huge favor by cutting the round hole in the front wall at that store, for free. Even if you do not know people in a store, i dont think they will charge you an arm and a leg and a left nut to just make a round hole in a sheet of mdf. So dont expect to pay over 100 bucks if you make a box yourself, like i did. If anybody has questions i could answer a few, from what i know and did. I still yet have to try out fiberglass, i'll be doing some body work on my eclipse in the srping so i'll get my fix then, hopefully. This new box was a fairly easy build, the plans were clear and i had all the materials. It really isnt hard to make your own box. Just be sure to make it carefully, and make your cuts straight and such. Mostly its labor, materials is nothing. Obviously it helps if youre good with your hands. Fiberglass requires a lot of sanding, this i hear from everybody that did work with it. I completely understand that, if you want that smooth shiny look when its painted and clearcoated. What i see in SPL cars is completely different tho. They look like the "work in progress" poster cars. There are immense amounts of saw dust and glue spilled everywhere, but man, do they sound nice. I'm a fan of SPL and SPQ both. I just cannot afford SPQ. Plus those cars are judged on physical appearance a lot more than SPL cars. I am not saying one is better than the other, tho, dont get me wrong. I've noticed that SPQ cars dont hace huge amounts of bass, its just to get the feeling of more bass. SPL just makes it feel like your skull is gona cave in. Im gonna wrap it up, cuz im sure you dont feel like reading a book here.