Gents, I'm a little new to car subwoofers and, while I think I understand the basics, I wonder if someone can help me sort the choices I'm considering. I want a 10- to 12-inch sub and am considering both the MB Quart Reference and Premium series and the Image Dynamics ID and IDQ series.

I am very much more interested in Sound Quality than absolute SPL trunk-rattling. What are people's experience with these two brands or any others to consider for Sound Quality?

 

mb quarts are nice subs..but they don't get low enough..i'd go with the image dynamics..awesome sub..i'd also look into the fi q(ficaraudio.com)

 

^^ aggreed

IDQ's would be my first choice...fi q is a serious sub...GREAT sq and spl combo, but is extremely power hungry...idq's will be quite happy with 300-400w rms.

I personally have the idq v2, but I know the v3 is revised with the larger surround and nearly double the excursion, meaning louder at any volume. However, I've heard from some that the v3, despite having more output, loses out some of its 'musicality and accuracy' to the v2's. Just think of the v3's as the happy medium between the v2's and idmax's. Personal preference IMO...can't really go wrong with either.

 

consider the image dynamics idmax v3?

 

Thanks for the recommendations, guys. I decided to go with the IDQ10 v2, 4ohm. I'm looking forward to getting everything installed and tuned up. This will be my first car stereo installation, although I have a lot of experience with home audio and pro audio so I get the gist of what I'm doing.

 

best of luck, you won't be disappointed. loved my idq 12 v2 since day one, not even using full power...even have it crossed up to 100hz with time alignment and it plays/blends incredibly

 

JL Audio

 

i suggest u get a custom box made..

 

Why a custom box? I'm very handy with tools, I can build a box out of MDF I think, and cover it in carpet or paint it with black lacquer. The box size recommended by Image Dynamics for a sealed box is .35 to .70 cu ft. That's a fairly small box.

 

i understand the idea of time alignment, but how do you do it in a car stereo?

 

either through a capable headunit (premier prs-800 and prs-880 have it along with other high end headunits) or an aftermarket signal processor..basically just adds or subtracts delay to each speaker driver to account for vehicle reflections/placement/distances so the soundwaves all reach the 'optimal position' at the same time, or as close to the same time for the best imaging.

I love the prs-8xx's because they come included with the rta (external mic) so it auto-callibrates everything for you...instead of having to buy a laptop and mic with analyzing software

time alignment is pretty much a must if you're going to be seeking an accurate and well-imaged sound stage especially in harsh acoustical environments as cars...didn't really realize how much I was missing until I got it

 

that def seems kinda small

Prefab boxes are either too small or too big..and most are tuned too high

i'd do 3 cubes tuned to 25hz

 

This is probably the million-dollar question: how does one tune a sealed box? Also, I agree those sizes are fairly small but that's what Image Dynamics recommends as ideal (in other words, probably the best compromise for a generic box). I still want to build my own -- why not learn? That's what makes it fun.

 

That's kind of what I figured. Probably more than I need to consider (but then that's what I thought when I did my first car mod so many years ago).

 

Whoops..i was talking about a ported box lol..

 

IMO image dynamics subs do indeed work very well in small sealed enclosures. I have mine in a 1cft box and I've gotten very good results. I bought the sub/enclosure used and I believe the seller said the box was custom fabbed by a shop, but you should be able to get good results if you use a box building program such as winIsd or UniBox, which already have pre-config'd boxes based on a database of subwoofer models

 

I'm running 2 idq10 v.3's in a 3cuft box tuned to about 27hz and they sound very nice.

 

I would have definitely ran my id in a ported box but unfortunately that meant more than doubling the enclosure space and thus losing most of my trunk space

but yes, they do sound incredible ported

 

 

just to add...image dynamics subs, I find, are quite transparent even up to 120hz...I have mine crossed at 120hz@24db right now with my mids at 50hz@18db (I know, I know, theoretically goes against the laws of tuning) but I really have a hard time 'locating' where the subwoofers is at...they are very musical. Of course, it wont beat out a DIY sub, but it really does well, especially for the money.