Subwoofer Recommendations for a W210

[Tolahouse]

I've read all the posts in this section about subwoofer's but they all apply to the W124 that has the First Aid kit on the rear parcel shelf. Does anyone have any suggestions as to what to do in a W210 (E420)that has it's First Aid kit in the rear armrest. I am swapping the headunit for a Pioneer one with MB Quart speakers all around and PPI Amps. I am now stuck on what to do for the best bass response - bandpass, wavebox, ported, free air or what? What are the good designs that don't swallow up all the trunk space and what make subs go with MB Quart speakers. I am having 6.5 components up front, 4 inch coax's on the rear doors and 6.5 coaxs on the rear shelf. Anyone been this route?

[bdrought]

What music do you listen to??

Theres a few options on the W210, but they all depend on what your goals are.

Bri

[Tolahouse]

My musical tastes cross all bounderies - from R&B, R&R, Classical, Reggae, Opera, Rap/Hip Hop or even audio books it all depends on what mood I'm in.

[LRGaston]

In my W210, I'm currently using 1 12" JL Audio W3 sub in a simple sealed enclosure. In your rear deck, you have two 6" cutouts per side. One has a speaker, the other just foam. I just cut the foam out so the bass could port into the cabin. It probably wasn't necessary, but I wasn't sure what kind of effect the gas tank was going to have.

The JL is designed to work in small enclosures, but one disadvantage to this particular model is that it is deep. The minimum depth for my box was just under 9", including a trim panel so the sub would appear flush with the box. I made the box to have 2" "legs" on the ends so I could get extra clearance for the spare, as the box overlaps the spare by about 4.5".

Hope this helps

Lloyd

Dear Tolahouse,

Hi there. I have some question about MB quarts speakers you have in your rear door and rear deck. Which MB quart speakers are you using for the rear fill? Do you know if PKC 113 or 116 goes into door location or into rear deck?? Thanks for your time.

[Tolahouse]

Lloyd, what does the single JL sub sound like and what do you have driving it. I am a baffled by the decription of your design because the spare tire in the W210 has it's own enclosure under the floor mat. Do you have any pictures of this design it does sound interesting.

[Tolahouse]

AMGCKlass,
The rear door of the W210 has openings for 4inch speakers and the MB Quarts in the 110 range fit in here nicely, for the rear deck you will need 6.5inch speakers, this equates to the 116 ranges in the MB Quarts lineup. I went for coaxial speakers (RKC 110 & RKC 116)in the rear mainly to provide that rear fill for the seperates upfront.I may be wrong but I seem to remember that the PKC's are seperates and that would mean finding locations for the tweeters in the rear (maybe cutting the trim - OH NO!!)
And sorry for the late reply - I promised my wife to stay away from the computer at home for a few days.

[This message has been edited by Tolahouse (edited 04-12-2000).]

Toulahouse,

Thank you so much for sharing the info with us. I just want to know what you were doing to your sound system. It sounds like you are doing a major installtion for your car. GOOD LUCK and keep us informed.. Thanks for your time..

PS> yeah,, I also promised my gf that I will stay away from my computer..but she's not here right now=) hehe....i know how you feel...Take care.

[LRGaston]

Tolahouse,

It's difficult for me to say how it sounds. The sub only has about 1.25 cu. ft. of airspace, which is about the minimum for this sub, and I do get nice, tight bass from this box. However, in my previous car (a VW Passat), I had two 10" Boston Acoustic subs in a much larger ported box, and they moved ALOT of air, so my current set up somewhat pales in comparison, although most people, my wife included, would find that it is more than adequate. In any event, I am adding another sub whenever I get time to build a new box.

When I built the current box, the sub was powered by a Rockford Fosgate 600a5 , but when I decided to add another sub, I bought a 6 channel Memphis MB-17, which is now powering my system. The sub has dual 4 ohm voice coils which I have wired for a 2 ohm load. The Fosgate was rated at 200 watts into 2 ohms, the Memphis is rated at 300w.

The reason my box has legs is due to the fact that it goes across the entire trunk, overlapping part of the spare tire and even some of that basket thingy that holds it down. In my Passat, I had the same issue, but removing the box only involved disconnecting the subs, whereas my current box also contains the amp, eq, and crossovers for my Boston 6.53's. So instead of trying to find a way to quickly and easily disconnect all that stuff, I just modified the box to make sure I could get the spare out. At the time I made the box, the E was our only car, so this was of prime importance.

I don't have any pictures of the box, so I'll try to describe it. Imagine it to be about the width and height of the gas tank, and about 9" deep. The box is seperated almost evenly across its width. The driver's side is the enclosure for the sub. For the other side, I built a hinged panel that contained the EQ and crossovers on one side and the amp on the other, so all you see when you open the trunk is the sub and the amp. I chose this design mostly out of space considerations, because the EQ and crossovers had a footprint nearly the same size of the amp.

I hope this helps and wasn't too long-winded. If you have any other questions, you can e-mail me at lrgaston@worldnet.att.net.

Lloyd

[This message has been edited by LRGaston (edited 04-12-2000).]