I had the opportunity to take a thorough look at the RS2 subwoofer and decided to take a few pictures. There is a possibility that it can be upgraded, just not greatly. On to the pics!

Amp:




Sub and enclosure:






Amp size comparison:




The amp measures 3.5" x 4" x 1.5".
The subwoofer is 6.5" x 3" deep (2.75"below mounting point).
The space has room for 3" below the mounting point. There is room for about a 1" spacer, depending on excursion.

I am contemplating throwing in a Kicker 6.5" subwoofer and larger amp at first. Then I may figure out a way to increase the box volume (there is a lot of space that could be used) and try to fit a bigger driver.

*Note: The box can be taken apart even more. I will do that when I get more time to mess with it.*

UPDATED 12-09-07

I finally had time to update my RS2 subwoofer with a little more bass. Let the pics be shown first.

New subwoofer (eD 7kv.2) verse stock:





Ring (3/4") needed to space the new subwoofer to fit in the stock enclosure (note: I put adhesive foam weatherstripping over the wood and bolts.):






Now, for the specs. I happened to have a Crunch BlackMaxx 1000 sitting around with a 15" subwoofer from my old car. Running a DVC 7kv.2 running in series gives me 250 watts RMS of power. To keep in the theme of not seeing the subwoofer, the amp is hidden on the driver's side in front of the wheel well. This was easy to do since I was RAAMatting my car as well.

The only downside is that I had to compensate for the excursion of the subwoofer. I cut 1" wood circles and put them underneath the mounting points of the box. Now, this raises the box up about an inch and the tab at the front and at the rear need to sit on top of the normal point. However, with the cover and floor mat covering it, it is very hard to notice the difference.

My view: If you are looking for a nice upgrade to the stock system with more punch and better low end response, this is a great mod to do. Whether it is rap, rock, or techno, this sub mixes great with the stock speakers for a full sound. It is by no means a 500watt 15" subwoofer, but then again, this lets you hear ALL the music, not just the lows.

 

thats the rs2 factory subwoofer??what happend to the bazooka...lol thats a cool but really stupid design...i would try and hack that plastic or w/e enclosure make it bigger and put a bigger sub..but thats just me

 

Toss it and get a real sub and box.

 

yea i already got mine in..hehe

 

You find me an enclosure that doesn't take up more than 50% of the trunk and fit a 12" or 15" subwoofer, then I would. I had a 15" in my old car (which you can barely see in one of the pictures) and having it take up so much trunk space sucked. I do not want to get the eD box because it only fits a 10". I can save money and be the first to modify the current box if I have to settle for less than 12".

I want to mess with this first and then I will take my chance with working with fiberglass.

 

good luck...

 

rs2 has a sub.... cool. Design kind of weird though .

 

why not get 2 10's and put them in that space. I know you wanted at least a single 12, but 2 tens will give you more cone area, and you wont have to loose any space.

 

I want to know how this turns out so keep us updated.

 

is that a 6" sub?? I bet it sounds ok. Not great though.

 

x2

Just get a dual sub box for the Elemental Designs SQ-10 and you will be set. I have a single SQ-10 for now and it sounds just fine to me. The only reason I am going to be getting a second sub and rebuilding my box in the future is because I got some new components and I need more bass to balance them out.

 

The problem with 10"s is that they can not go as low as 12"s or larger. Sure, 2 10" subs have more cone area than a 12", but not more than a 15". I listen to music that has low bass frequencies so I want a subwoofer that can reach all the way down, not to mention that, even if it is only 6 or 7 hertz lower, it will span the entire spectrum of frequencies I can hear.

The point of this project is to save money and upgrade the factory subwoofer to gain some good sound. I am planning on using the eD EU700 since it is 7 inches, has nice excursion, and respectable power handling. I do not have to buy a box or build one. I hope to get this done for less than $200.

This is by no means going to be my final system, it is a way for me to get better bass and have fun doing it. My target system will cost a LOT more and I do not have that money to spend now.

Besides, thinking about this and modifying it will be more fun than just dropping something in!

I plan to keep this updated as soon as the middle of May rolls around. Until then, I have to worry about graduating, work, and being 2 hours from any decent set of tools.

At the very least I will dissect every screw and bolt that is on it. After that I will order the subwoofer and amp and do a test run with just a spacer. Then I will go through modifying the box to get more volume (I have a cool idea on how to mount it).

 

I wish you wouldn't make statements like that, as people might get the wrong idea, because it actually depends on the specific subs in question. There are 10" subs that will play lower than some 12" models, so bigger doesn't always mean lower. Size doesn't necessarily determine output either, because it's not just the radiating area, but also the stroke contributing. Also, many 10" can provide flat response down to <20Hz in a car due to cabin gain, so that takes care of "the entire spectrum of frequencies you can hear".

Definitely agree an EU-700 (think they're now called "7Kv2") would be worth trying as an upgraded driver for that little enclosure.

 

I would have thought my statement about my future system being really expensive would have made it clear that I am talking about high quality subwoofers. A JL 13W7 will hit lower than a 12W7 will hit lower than a 10W7. I know it depends on the enclosure and where it is located in the car. It must be assumed that the box will match the driver perfect (we will say designed for lowest frequency reach) and will be placed in the same spot.

It may be apples to dragonfruit, but even though my friend always had a louder system, my one 15" Audiobahn(500 watt RMS) hit lower than his 2 12" Polk MOMOs, his 3 12" Alpine Type Rs, and his 2 12" Infinity Kappa Perfects (All pushing over 1000watts RMS). His systems spanned a 2002 cavalier and now 2005 WRX while mine was in a 94 cavalier. At least they had trunks in common. I will concede that it could be because we are not using "high end" brands if that may be the case....I loved that 15".

Of course, now I notice a lot of the companies like eD, JL, Infinity, and etc. do not list the frequency range anymore, unless I missed them. I do notice that, with the exception of Infinity, the quality sites post the t/s parameters whereas Audiobahn and, I assume, other "lower quality" brands do not.

I am still learning so feel free to correct me if I am wrong. I have been without a REAL subwoofer for 6 months now and it makes me sad. This little project is suppose to boot myself back into learning audio again.

 

its ALLLLLLLL in the install. Box,tunning frequency,chamber(if more than one sub). cubic ft. position of sub.facing of sub.how big of a box and how much wattage coming to that box if its one size or another. plenty of variables

i am going to say its about 70-80% install about about 20 sub

 

btw how expensive your equipment is doenst matter either. A $700 sub will sound like butt in a poorly made box.

 

Nothing wrong with what you stated, I think we both understand what each is saying. By stating that a bigger diameter sub does not necessarily equate to lower frequencies, I was just trying to clarify so others didn't get the wrong idea about your initial statement.

We should all try to help those that don't understand, as there are a lot of people who learn from what's posted on these boards.

So are you going to try the a 7Kv2 in that little box? I doubt you'd need any more internal volume, it might work great as-is, with nothing more than some polyfill added. If the stock driver is 4 Ohm, I suppose you'd want the 2 Ohm DVC model, since you could wire it in series to maintain the 4 Ohm load on the stock amp.

 

I got ya. It is true, I have learned more than I could imagine from here.

Keeping the stock amp is not an option. At about 40, the amp is past its RMS value, especially on bass heavy songs. It will hit the first note fine and then drop in volume for the successive beats after. The 7Kv2 looks to be the best option out there as it has more power handling, should fit the hole quite well, and is just shallow enough (with a spacer ring) to fit. I want to pick up a 150 watt RMS amp to drive it. From looking at torn apart interiors I got the idea to mount the amp behind the passenger side, rear seat, plastic panel. Should fit snuggly with minimum wire needed to run.

 

Does the stock sub tie to the stock wiring harness? I lost my sub after my z1 install. Sounds like it's not getting any power. It turns on but is really weak and I played with the EQ settings 100 times. I think I'm missing a connection or something in the harness since it was wired for a regular TC and all I did was plug it in.

Any help would be great!

 

I beg to differ, it doesn't matter if you paid 10,000 for your sub or 100 for that sub, its all going to depend on the install on who will hit lower.

For example, I had an 12" RE SX sub in a 2.0cuft box after displacement tuned to 32Hz, that hit LOW. End up hitting 139db@42Hz. Sub facing rear and port facing rear.

Now I have a new setup, a 15" Fi BL sub in a 3.5cuft box after displacement tuned to 33Hz, it now it doesn't hit as low as the 12". But is it loud you ask?? Yes it is loud. Check out my car flex thread. Getting this setup metered this weekend, hopefully break 140s but will be higher than 42hz. Sub facing up and port facing rear. (crx style box)

And another thing my FI will kick JLs butt....JL is over marketed, over priced items. Don't get me wrong JL is good stuff but I will not pay for their products. Another thing is that when I was in college, I worked a shop doing JL installs, we were the only authorized dealer for many miles. Every JL install I did sounded very nice, but worth the price tag?? NO.