Underseat subwoofers

[Gothy666]

Just curious, but has anyone tried installing an underseat subwoofer to try and round out/add more bass? If so, what did you use?

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[TYMBOM]

No. Replace the junk that I right behind your head and you’re good. I had subs under the seat in my M5 and it does not take the place of proper equipment.

FYI, there is nowhere near enough airspace to do anything meaningful or proper under the seats.

 

[zrk]

the junk

Someone I trust very much in the field says this is not the case at all (@tadda), what sort of issues did you come across yourself? Frequency response, air movement, etc? With the EQ dialed in, and the "Tadda Mods" the subs sound quite nice and responsive.

What did you go with? What were the things you were biggest things you were looking for there?

 

[TYMBOM]

Someone I trust very much in the field says this is not the case at all (@tadda), what sort of issues did you come across yourself? Frequency response, air movement, etc? With the EQ dialed in, and the "Tadda Mods" the subs sound quite nice and responsive.

What did you go with? What were the things you were biggest things you were looking for there?

All of it, lack of real enclosure, infinite rattles, lack of power, plastic baskets on the drivers, on and on. Every bit of it was ripped out of mine, sound deadened, replaced with Focal K2 components, JL Audio for bass, amplification and sound processing.

 

[Bassoonytoon]

I think the issue is that we have created subjective ideas of what is considered junk and what is considered great.

My uncle had a recording studio with Genelec monitors (I think they were 1236a’s or something similar). Easily the best sounding speakers I’ve ever heard. The thing is, they don’t “thump” the way car audio speakers do. They deliver a balanced and well-tuned sound. I suspect that many people would not be satisfied with this kind of sound in their cars. We have become so used to a certain kind of sound (usually excessive bass to the point of needing to really “feel” it) that anything that does not meet our expectations is considered junk.

The factory JBL system is very nicely balanced. Don’t get me wrong, our cars’ stereos aren’t studio-reference quality, but they are tuned fairly well. Using the modifications @tadda wrote about eliminates most (if not all rattles) and improves to low-frequency response.

I could go on about how I’m an orchestral musician and conductor and my ears are my life, or point to some sound engineer readouts I remember seeing in another thread somewhere, but ultimately if someone wants something more out of their stereo, it doesn’t matter what objective reasoning is given indicating the system is good.

To me, the worst part of the system is the inability to create a true forward-facing soundstage, particularly at lower volumes. Still, there is a decent soundstage that responds well to more power (more volume fills it in nicely).

If you want more bass, go for it. Personally, I don’t think it’s needed but I don’t think adding an under the seat subwoofer would add much to the sound. If you look at some of the audio builds on the forum, you’ll see that in order to substantially improve the sound you need to spend a lot of time and/or money and basically redesign your car’s interior. Maybe this is the sign that our JBL system isn’t that bad after all - if it takes that much to fix it is probably pretty good already ?‍

 

[TYMBOM]

It is subjective like speed is to some. I personally couldn’t listen to it, at all when I was stock. No amount of eq tweaking could even make it tolerable…..for me.

 

[Gothy666]

Well, I plan to do the enclosure port mod and Dynamat the rear floor. If the underseat sub is not possible, had anyone placed a hideaway sub behind the front seat?

 

[TYMBOM]

Well, I plan to do the enclosure port mod and Dynamat the rear floor. If the underseat sub is not possible, had anyone placed a hideaway sub behind the front seat?

Serious question, why not just remove the factory equip and upgrade? You will end up with a better overall result and not add weight, etc.

 

[TYMBOM]

Well, I plan to do the enclosure port mod and Dynamat the rear floor. If the underseat sub is not possible, had anyone placed a hideaway sub behind the front seat?

A few random pics.

 

[Gothy666]

Serious question, why not just remove the factory equip and upgrade? You will end up with a better overall result and not add weight, etc.

Cost mainly. Between a mortgage and a 2022 Audi Q5, don't want to drop 3k into a sound system.

 

[TYMBOM]

Cost mainly. Between a mortgage and a 2022 Audi Q5, don't want to drop 3k into a sound system.

Fair enough.

 

[Sam B]

You can also build an enclosure on top and frame it in for mid bass. Then add a sub in the back

 

[Gothy666]

I do wonder if anyone has done a custom box with 6x9 speakers in place of the 8" woofers...

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