ICE : Stealthboxz bass enclosures

GSXRMovistar · 28 Feb 2006 at 00:13

Yes I know it has a rather chav name but does anyone have or have experience of the Stealhboxz bass enclosures by AutoAcoustics (Linky).

I’m looking to improve the bass on my ICE setup in my e46 but I still need to keep as much boot space as possible and from looking about this seems to be the best solution. I’m gonna try and get over to the guys that did the rest of my install this week and check out one they have in a demo car but thought I’d might as well see if anyone had any thoughts on them?

Phil W · 28 Feb 2006 at 00:15

Nice designs, made with the thought kept in mind that you need the right ammount of space so that the sub has enough air behind it

DRZ · 28 Feb 2006 at 01:27

Im sorry, but LOL.

The idea that you can bung any old driver in any box is laughable. Enclosure design is so horrendously complicated that even today, people dont have complete mathematical models for every situation. You need to match the drivers Thiele-Small parameters to the enclosure. To do that properly, each enclosure needs to be tailored to a particular driver.

If you want to go down the route of the typical car audio "enthusiast", thats fine but they generally turn out to be incoherent, badly designed, "lumpy" sounding bags of arse.

If you actually want it to sound, well, good (I use that hesitantly because car audio is a bit rubbishy at the best of times) then you either need to speak to someone who actually knows what they are about (which will probably take a long time once you start filtering the wheat from the (abundant) chaff) or do the maths for yourself.

Sorry if this post seems a little abrasive, I just cant really convey the contempt I have for the general thievery that goes on in the car audio world!

EDIT:

Just read a bit more: VELCRO?!?!? What on EARTH?! I found that on the sub that a few of my mates and I built (as part of a Maths assignment

) that the 18mm MDF front panel needed no less than 24 screws per side plus glue to adequately reduce panel resonances.

And they want to use VELCRO?

Total joke.

GSXRMovistar · 28 Feb 2006 at 01:45

DRZ said:
Velcro...

To secure the actual unit into place (not together), although from what I've read it's a fairly tight fit anyway.

DRZ said:
If you actually want it to sound, well, good (I use that hesitantly because car audio is a bit rubbishy at the best of times) then you either need to speak to someone who actually knows what they are about (which will probably take a long time once you start filtering the wheat from the (abundant) chaff) or do the maths for yourself

Well like most people I'm not looking to create a perfect sound stage in my car, I'm looking for something that plays music (radio/MP3s) to a degree that I can enjoy whilst driving.

Now there's not a hope in hell of me sitting down and working out calculations on volumes/waves/mathematical models etc as I've got better things to do and as mentioned above this is just getting some driving music into the car.

But I'm open to ideas/suggestions for alternative solutions.

willd58 · 28 Feb 2006 at 02:00

Aslong as when you say "sound good" your not talking home hifi seperates sound good kinda thing.

DRZ · 28 Feb 2006 at 02:01

GSXRMovistar said:
To secure the actual unit into place (not together), although from what I've read it's a fairly tight fit anyway.

Velcro has no place in anything to do with anything. Either fix it in properly or dont bother. Especially if you want "slam"! (the first thing to lose by not doing things properly)

GSXRMovistar said:
Well like most people I'm not looking to create a perfect sound stage in my car, I'm looking for something that plays music (radio/MP3s) to a degree that I can enjoy whilst driving.

Now there's not a hope in hell of me sitting down and working out calculations on volumes/waves/mathematical models etc as I've got better things to do and as mentioned above this is just getting some driving music into the car.

But I'm open to ideas/suggestions for alternative solutions.

A better suggestion would be to choose either a sub that comes as one complete package or pick a driver and take it to someone who knows about building enclosures and have them knock one together for that particular driver based on the Thiele-Smalls. It will sound alright then!

Off the shelf boxes have a slim-to-none chance of sounding good.

Another idea would be to think about the subwoofer: Is it a requirement at all? Depending on what you listen to, there can be far prettier and sonerous solutions to your needs. Bigger, better or both front speakers, better tweeters and vastly improved crossovers ought to be higher up any improvement list than a sub. If you still feel you need more bass, then go for it. Chances are that unless you want to impress everyone at the local cruise, a significant improvement at the front will be more than ample. This may or may not require an improved HU / Amplifier. If this is the case, disregard any numbers you see. They are almost entirely complete ********

Vanilla · 28 Feb 2006 at 09:23

Usually you build the box based around the sub. With that box you'll be doing it the other way around!

That box is very small but there are some sub that are made to work in that kind of size.

Added difficulty given that BMW's are notoriously hard for getting bass into the cabin.

GSXRMovistar · 28 Feb 2006 at 14:33

DRZ said:
Velcro has no place in anything to do with anything. Either fix it in properly or dont bother. Especially if you want "slam"! (the first thing to lose by not doing things properly)

Agreed it may sound better if bolted/welded to the car but I need this to be removable as I need the extra boot space at times. Also I suppose it depends on what sort of velco they use, as some of the heavy duty stuff is pretty impressive (Have used it at work to secure some very large equipment).

DRZ said:
Another idea would be to think about the subwoofer: Is it a requirement at all? Depending on what you listen to, there can be far prettier and sonerous solutions to your needs. Bigger, better or both front speakers, better tweeters and vastly improved crossovers ought to be higher up any improvement list than a sub.

I've already replaced the standard factory gear with slightly larger speakers (mid/tweeter components) but anything larger that could give better bass would require modifications to the door panels and that’s something I want to avoid.

Suppose all I can do is pop along to the installers and take a listen to their demo car, if that produces better results than what I’m currently getting I’ll make my mind up then.

djbenjo · 28 Feb 2006 at 14:54

Heavy duty velcro is more than capable of holding down a sub, even in the event of an accident, you would be suprised how strong the stuff is.

Wossi · 28 Feb 2006 at 16:17

You're best off popping over to talkaudio and telling them what you want and they'll be able to help you out with regards to the actual sub and someone should be able to design you a box, which are easy to make yourself.

eidolon · 28 Feb 2006 at 16:43

My brother had a pair of stealthboxes and they're actually really well made. Sure they're an off the shelf solution and won't suit all drivers but for a neat, uncomplicated solution they're fine.

DRZ · 28 Feb 2006 at 17:08

eidolon said:
My brother had a pair of stealthboxes and they're actually really well made. Sure they're an off the shelf solution and won't suit all drivers but for a neat, uncomplicated solution they're fine.

They have been designed with two things in mind:

1) Make loads of money from unsuspecting folk
2) Fit in that gap in the wheel arch

Because of that, there is a distinct possibility that they might not actually properly suit any driver. Of course, any driver that fits is going to run inside that box but at what quality?

My personal opinion of those enclosures is to steer well clear (unless you see the maths with the Thiele-Small parameters for that particular driver producing results that match that box...)

djbenjo · 28 Feb 2006 at 17:14

Most people just buy a sub and a box, with little consideration for complex maths and physics. Are you an audiophile?

DRZ · 28 Feb 2006 at 17:18

djbenjo said:
Most people just buy a sub and a box, with little consideration for complex maths and physics. Are you an audiophile?

Doing a degree in Acoustics...

...so kinda, yeah

GSXRMovistar · 3 Mar 2006 at 12:42

Well I visited the installers this morning and checked out a demo car (another e46), which had one of these fitted. I was very impressed by the results, nice clear bass at an acceptable level and not the sort of thing you hear banging about in the local McDonalds car park.

Yes it would probably make the audiophiles here cry but it sounded good enough for me so I’ve placed an order and should have all the gear fitted in a couple of weeks time.

Durzel · 3 Mar 2006 at 13:08

To be honest, in my opinion it is the middle ground between a bog-standard one-size-fits-all box and a proper fibreglass install. Stealthboxez look pretty decent and from what I've been told they're put together pretty decently (they should be for the price!). If you're looking for a comprimise between paying next to nothing for a generic box and a full blown boot install they fit the bill perfectly.

To be honest, the cu/ft, mounting depth etc is all listed on their site so as long as that closely matches the sub manufacturers recommended box sizes I can't see how you can go wrong.

GSXRMovistar · 11 Mar 2006 at 23:11

Well I’ve had one of these installed in the bay today and I must say I’m really impressed with the results/sound considering its smallish size.

At first it seemed a little boomy and lose sounding, but after playing around with the equalizers and various settings I’ve got it sounding tight/sharp and part of the complete sound rather than something making a separate noise over the top.

If you want to improve the bass in your car without giving up too much boot space then I’d really recommend one of these.

eidolon · 11 Mar 2006 at 23:21

DRZ said:
They have been designed with two things in mind:

1) Make loads of money from unsuspecting folk
2) Fit in that gap in the wheel arch

Because of that, there is a distinct possibility that they might not actually properly suit any driver. Of course, any driver that fits is going to run inside that box but at what quality?

My personal opinion of those enclosures is to steer well clear (unless you see the maths with the Thiele-Small parameters for that particular driver producing results that match that box...)

My point was that for the average, non audiophile that wants half decent bass but without sacrificing the entire boot with a 6th order bandpass box then they'll do just fine.