# Deciding to upgrade the subwoofer (again)



## Dieselard (Jan 2, 2012)

Ill start out by saying I have the 2012 Cruze RS with the stock system (not pioneer)
4 Months ago I bought the pre-amp bazooka 8" 100w and tied in the signal into the speaker wires and the power into the fuse box (#6)

It sounded decent, and im just looking to upgrade to something that sounds better, and doesn't sound like distortion. The reason i went this was was because I didn't want to disassemble such a new car, didnt know where to put an amp, or bolt the box down and get to the spare tire. How are you mounting the box in the trunk?
Now I was looking at selling that bazooka, and buying different equipment. I had 2 JL audio 12W7's ported in the past and they sounded great, and a RF power amp that worked very good with that sub combination.

I am now looking for sound quality, Not rattling the trunk apart or giving me a migrane after a hard day at work. But also have the thump when you turn on your favorite song (bazooka couldn't do much)

I was thinking one 8: W7 in a ported or sealed box, not sure on an amp yet. Since i was out of the car qudio for awhile is their better equipment for less money?

Also The way I wired the signal for the bazooka in was with wire taps, Would I be able to use these for the amp or do I have to do it from the back of the radio (easiest way)

I can build my own sealed/ported boxes out of birch wood or MDF, if somebody can make a box out of fiberglass that fits in the spare tire, for a reasonable price let me know.

Thank you in advance!


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## myselfalex (Jun 13, 2012)

Check out Xtreme's sticky about subwoofer boxes, much info there about his most recommended 8", 10", and 12" subs and amps, not to mention his custom made boxes as well. Whether you want the custom box or not, the thread has LOTS of info on the sub/amps, don't think he does fiberglass boxes at all, but you'd be best to ask him directly as I only "think" I read him say that.


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## Dieselard (Jan 2, 2012)

I am leaning to go with the IDQ 10" sub Image Dynamics IDQ10 V.3 D4 (IDQ10-V3D4) 10" Dual 4 ohm IDQ V.3 Sub I had the ID CTX 65's and they were amazing speakers on a 400w RF amp, they are still working to this day sounding excellent

I am hoping he would chime in here as I would most likely have a box built, I remembered I do not have my router, and saw for cutting....

Also The braces, and flush mounting look excellent.

I have had hifonics amps in the past and didn't particularly care for themI saw the boston acoustics gt-125 and the CEA rating is 600wrms x 1 at 2 ohms and the other RMS rating is 475

I saw also this in another thread 12' 10" 8" subwoofer box for 2011 2012 chevy cruze custom fit fiberglass sealed | eBay
looks to save some space.

Also, if you have a subwoofer in your cruze already and you are reading this, do you leave the backseats down? and which way do you face the sub?

Thank you


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## SkullCruzeRS (Nov 3, 2011)

My combination is a Alpine SWR-843D 8 inch sub powered by a Boston Acoustics GT2125 amp with a box made by Xtreme. The whole set-up including wiring and the PAC adapter was about $500. It gives very nice deep bass without all the rattling or panel vibration which is what I was going for. I keep the seats up and the sub is facing away from the seats. As far as securing the amp I mounted to the top of the box and secured the box with Velcro to the floor. This way I can remove it if I ever need to get to the spare.


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## XtremeRevolution (Jan 19, 2012)

Dieselard said:


> Ill start out by saying I have the 2012 Cruze RS with the stock system (not pioneer)
> 4 Months ago I bought the pre-amp bazooka 8" 100w and tied in the signal into the speaker wires and the power into the fuse box (#6)
> 
> It sounded decent, and im just looking to upgrade to something that sounds better, and doesn't sound like distortion. The reason i went this was was because I didn't want to disassemble such a new car, didnt know where to put an amp, or bolt the box down and get to the spare tire. How are you mounting the box in the trunk?
> ...


JL W7 subs are good quality, but not the best, and definitely not the best *value*. You pay a *lot *for that brand name because everyone knows it, and they know they can charge for that. 



Dieselard said:


> I am leaning to go with the IDQ 10" sub Image Dynamics IDQ10 V.3 D4 (IDQ10-V3D4) 10" Dual 4 ohm IDQ V.3 Sub I had the ID CTX 65's and they were amazing speakers on a 400w RF amp, they are still working to this day sounding excellent
> 
> I am hoping he would chime in here as I would most likely have a box built, I remembered I do not have my router, and saw for cutting....
> 
> ...


The IDQ10s are excellent. Keep in mind though, the IDQ12s are just $40 away. I can build you a custom box for any sub, custom to the dimensions you want or what I figure would utilize the smallest footprint in the Cruze for a given volume. 

Hifonics amps are not the same as they used to be. They've changed their game considerably. They used to be a bit on the lower quality and were overrated. A 1600W amp they used to sell might have bench tested *maybe *900W. That's no loner true. Many of their amps are now CEA-2006 certified, which guarantees that they will deliver the rated power at 14.4V and a certain level of distortion. For the price of that Hifonics amp I listed on onlinecarstereo.com, you really cannot beat it. That Boston Acoustics amp you were looking at that does 600W @ 2 ohms is great, but all you'd need to spend is $18 more to get double the power. It's ultimately your call. 

I've been playing with the subs in my Cruze, and I've noticed a few things. With the back seats down, the bass is almost 2x louder. It's significant. I'm glad I have a 15" IDQ sub. However, the road noise also starts coming in, which is less than ideal. I just keep them up and I get plenty of bass output. 

myselfalex was right; I don't build fiberglass boxes. Too difficult to get the same amount of bracing and rigidity.


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## Dieselard (Jan 2, 2012)

The $250 for the idq12" is pretty steep, for sound quality, and maybe a pinch of split what size sub do you recomend? I see you have a 15" idq
Your honest opinion is the idq with the price tag?

Also what would you be able to build me a box for, with shipping to pa?
I'm looking to keep this car for awhile and do not want to be doing this again.

I also saw your recommended the 8" type r sub, would this be what I am looking for?


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## XtremeRevolution (Jan 19, 2012)

Dieselard said:


> The $250 for the idq12" is pretty steep, for sound quality, and maybe a pinch of split what size sub do you recomend? I see you have a 15" idq
> Your honest opinion is the idq with the price tag?
> 
> Also what would you be able to build me a box for, with shipping to pa?
> ...


$250 is not steep for an SQ based 12" sub. It's actually a great deal. To get that kind of sound quality, you're going to have to step into the realm of a Morel Ultimo SC or one of these Aurasound subwoofers:

Madisound Speaker Store

It the Ultimo SC will cost you $550, but I can assure you it won't sound 2x as good. There really are very few subs that sound as good as the IDQ series, let alone for that price. 

If you want a sub that you will keep for a very, very long time, the IDQ V3 series is your best bet. You can spend less, but don't expect it to sound as good. The IDQ is a perfect match for what you're looking for. It has excellent sound quality, and digs pretty deep. One particularly great thing about them is the high roll surround that maximizes cone area. As an example, the 10" has 399 square cm of cone area. To compare, something like the RE Audio SEX has 330 square CM of cone area, which gives the IDQ over 30% more cone area for the same general size. On top of this, it has a very low moving mass, and a healthy amount of excursion. The 12" is going to be similar. While most 12" subs come in at 480 square CM of cone area, the IDQ12 will come in at about 550 square CM. These are significant differences. 

You will have a very, very difficult time finding an IDQ15 V2 anywhere. I bought mine last year, and in the time I've spent checking ebay, only one other has come up for sale. They were made in 2002 and are no longer in production, but they consistently win SQ competitions and are built with very high quality. I have 4 IDQ V2 drivers and they all still work perfectly. One pair of IDQ10 V2s I bought were used to win the MECA State Class A SQ championship. You really have to hear one to know what I'm talking about. The transient response, accuracy, and transparency is something you will have to spend a whole lot more money to get. The only drivers you can get easily now are the IDQ V3, which only come in 10" and 12" sizes. 

For you, it will depend on how much output you want and how much you can spend. Any of these subs I listed will give you excellent sound quality and suit you very well, but if you're thinking about the future, grab a single IDQ12 or IDQ10. You may find after a while that a single Alpine Type-R might not have enough output it, especially with how much bass is lost with the rear seats up in the Cruze. It is a very impressive driver...for an 8" sub, but the IDQ10 will have 2x the cone area, and the IDQ12 will have almost 3x the cone area. 

The way I see it, if you get an excellent SQ sub now, you won't be wishing you had something better later, so you won't waste your money trying to "upgrade" and sell off your existing sub. Car audio doesn't have too great of a resale value.

Let me know if you have any other questions. Sorry if I was a bit long-winded. Shoot me a PM if you want and I can send you my cell number if you want to pick my brain on any questions instead of going through the forums.


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