The NSX is an extremely beautiful automobile. The lines of this car are second to none! Any upgrade to the car should follow suit. With interior modifications, many different things are desired. When I set out to design a sub enclosure for this car. I wanted to maximize the area, but keep with the fine lines of the car. No one wants a pink elephant in the front seat. So, I put many hours and attention to detail into designing the right piece to add to the value of the car to their owners.
In the start of design, I worked many different ways to get all the fine contours of the foot well. I used press fit molding many, many times to capture all the details of the car. I was trying to get every possible inch of air space. Also, trying to allow for the passenger side of the car to still hold a passenger. Unfortunately, in doing this, damage occurred to the car. That was another reason I put the effort forth, so others would not have to have their cars damaged or the risk of it in trying to do so.
The enclosures are all made with gel coat and multiple layers of fiber glass. When they are in final assembly, the face is bonded to the body and then reinforced with more layers of fiberglass to ensure an air tight seal and added strength to the seem. The enclosure is then fitted with a negative fit round solid in cased speaker wire to also ensure a completely air tight sealed enclosure. The speaker is held in place with special hardened steel aircraft fasteners to make assembly easier and give added strength. If the chosen driver does not have a gasket, I use weather stripping to create a seal. The enclosure must be air tight. You do not want random holes for wire and try to fill with glue. It will not work as well long term.
Here is a write up on each design. Version 1 is the largest enclosure. It comes in at about .80 cu. ft. of volume. Will hold many different drivers. The face has a 1 1/2" speaker recess to help with the sleekness of the design and allow for more foot space. This enclosure is about a 5 3/4" loss from stock. It is full fiberglass construction. Made very solid so not to have any flex or resonating effects on the bass. The press fit in the foot well also helps with that. Most all high end show cars utilize fiberglass custom enclosures to build their wall of bass drivers. So, it is obvious that fiberglass enclosures built properly will give the desired bass response.
Here are some pics:
The love of this enclosure and reviews were great. But, then guys started to complain about the loss of space. So, seeing that, I redesigned the enclosure again. This new molding process took many times and countless hours of finishing once again. In trying to give the community what it asked for, I designed V2. V2 is a 3" loss from stock. It has a volume of about .67 cu. ft. Made the same way as V1. But, this enclosure will not fit massive drivers like the V1 box will. If someone wants VERY LOUD AND HARD BASS, then the foot loss and the V1 enclosure is needed.
I have used the JL subs for many reasons. They are a great sounding driver. Will work for many different people, and they are about the only one with an integrated grill to protect the driver in a very sleek way. Seeing that the enclosure is in the foot well, that is a very needed attribute.
Here is a pic of the V2 enclosure:
Then once again guys asked for even smaller enclosures. Asked why don't you make one for an 8". First, an 8" driver will not give the sound quality as a 10". So, I hit the drawing board once again. The V3 enclosure took much more work. I needed to design an enclosure that would duplicate the angle and size of the factory location as close as I could. This took many hours of R&D, jigs, templates, and tries to achieve this. Then also took a completely fresh start to getting the press fit molding of the foot well once again. It was like starting from scratch.
The final result was an enclosure with about .35 cu. ft. of air space. Designed for the Earthquake SWS10. This is a great shallow driver. The sound quality and bass response is excellent! The final fit is perfect!
Here are some shots of that:
Final stages of the prototype:
Finished product:
V3 installed:
I have replaced many shop made custom enclosures. Many guys had literally no foot well space when they came to me. Some of the befores were comical.
Here is one:
The bottom line is a sleek, well fit, and value adding enclosure to the car. Depending on what the audiophile wants in sound, would determine the enclosure that best fits their needs. The enclosures can be fit with a custom made floor mat to either show off the beauty of the enclosure, cover all but the cone of the driver, or cover it all together. The choice is all up to you.
Any questions please feel free to ask!
Thanks,
Z
In the start of design, I worked many different ways to get all the fine contours of the foot well. I used press fit molding many, many times to capture all the details of the car. I was trying to get every possible inch of air space. Also, trying to allow for the passenger side of the car to still hold a passenger. Unfortunately, in doing this, damage occurred to the car. That was another reason I put the effort forth, so others would not have to have their cars damaged or the risk of it in trying to do so.
The enclosures are all made with gel coat and multiple layers of fiber glass. When they are in final assembly, the face is bonded to the body and then reinforced with more layers of fiberglass to ensure an air tight seal and added strength to the seem. The enclosure is then fitted with a negative fit round solid in cased speaker wire to also ensure a completely air tight sealed enclosure. The speaker is held in place with special hardened steel aircraft fasteners to make assembly easier and give added strength. If the chosen driver does not have a gasket, I use weather stripping to create a seal. The enclosure must be air tight. You do not want random holes for wire and try to fill with glue. It will not work as well long term.
Here is a write up on each design. Version 1 is the largest enclosure. It comes in at about .80 cu. ft. of volume. Will hold many different drivers. The face has a 1 1/2" speaker recess to help with the sleekness of the design and allow for more foot space. This enclosure is about a 5 3/4" loss from stock. It is full fiberglass construction. Made very solid so not to have any flex or resonating effects on the bass. The press fit in the foot well also helps with that. Most all high end show cars utilize fiberglass custom enclosures to build their wall of bass drivers. So, it is obvious that fiberglass enclosures built properly will give the desired bass response.
Here are some pics:
The love of this enclosure and reviews were great. But, then guys started to complain about the loss of space. So, seeing that, I redesigned the enclosure again. This new molding process took many times and countless hours of finishing once again. In trying to give the community what it asked for, I designed V2. V2 is a 3" loss from stock. It has a volume of about .67 cu. ft. Made the same way as V1. But, this enclosure will not fit massive drivers like the V1 box will. If someone wants VERY LOUD AND HARD BASS, then the foot loss and the V1 enclosure is needed.
I have used the JL subs for many reasons. They are a great sounding driver. Will work for many different people, and they are about the only one with an integrated grill to protect the driver in a very sleek way. Seeing that the enclosure is in the foot well, that is a very needed attribute.
Here is a pic of the V2 enclosure:
Then once again guys asked for even smaller enclosures. Asked why don't you make one for an 8". First, an 8" driver will not give the sound quality as a 10". So, I hit the drawing board once again. The V3 enclosure took much more work. I needed to design an enclosure that would duplicate the angle and size of the factory location as close as I could. This took many hours of R&D, jigs, templates, and tries to achieve this. Then also took a completely fresh start to getting the press fit molding of the foot well once again. It was like starting from scratch.
The final result was an enclosure with about .35 cu. ft. of air space. Designed for the Earthquake SWS10. This is a great shallow driver. The sound quality and bass response is excellent! The final fit is perfect!
Here are some shots of that:
Final stages of the prototype:
Finished product:
V3 installed:
I have replaced many shop made custom enclosures. Many guys had literally no foot well space when they came to me. Some of the befores were comical.
Here is one:
The bottom line is a sleek, well fit, and value adding enclosure to the car. Depending on what the audiophile wants in sound, would determine the enclosure that best fits their needs. The enclosures can be fit with a custom made floor mat to either show off the beauty of the enclosure, cover all but the cone of the driver, or cover it all together. The choice is all up to you.
Any questions please feel free to ask!
Thanks,
Z
