Here is the box I have to work with - Which subwoofer?
 

<center><img src="http://hxpower.homestead.com/files/Speakerbox2.JPG"></center><p>5.0" x 7.0" = 35" sq.
3.25" x 7.0" / 2 = 11.375" sq ( multiplied by 2 for the two corners)

So the base area is 57.75". Now with a height of 8.5" I get 490.875 cu. in. or 0.284 cu. ft.

What do you guys recommend for something that would work in a box that small? It's going to have to be an 8" as there are many that only require a box volume of 0.30 cu. ft.
I have yet to find a 10" that can work with a box that small.

Also, when figuring required volume...are you supposed to subtract the volume the speaker/magnet take up...or are those already accounted for?
As in, if a speaker says it required 0.30 cu. ft. but it takes up 0.15 cu. ft. itself, would you really need a box that is 0.45 cu. ft?

with a 10" you want something like 1.2 cubic feet.
 

that small of a space.. you are lucky if you can fit a 6x9 in the hole much less have room for AIR . do yourself a favor ..put your amp in that space and get a detachable box that you can remove if need be.

It really depends on the subwoofer...you can't generalize..
 

Rockford Fosgate 8" subwoofers only require 0.3 cu. ft as well as JL and Boston plus there are many 10" subwoofers that only require 0.5 cu. ft. such as Boston Acoustics Pro Series.

Re: big audio buff
 

well, just posted for the first time, and i happened across this thread right away.....HX_Guy, i did car audio installations for 10 years (many show cars under the belt :) ), now while many companies have been expanding on new technologies, there is one i can still recommend with complete faith, Stillwater's Kicker Solo-Baric series.....these subs sound great, take abuse better than most (if not all), and work best in a sealed enclosure, which in my opinion give you the best response.....the only downfall to these subs are their hunger for power, you WILL need some solid amperage.....also, yes, you should acount for the surface area of your sub for best calculations.

regards
XSive

ps...give me a shout if ya wanna talk shop on car audio

How about something like this?
 

<ul><li><a href="http://www.blaupunktusa.com/BlaupunktUSA/Products/Speakers/Overdrive/Subwoofer/ODw1000.htm">http://www.blaupunktusa.com/BlaupunktUSA/Products/Speakers/Overdrive/Subwoofer/ODw1000.htm</a</li></ul>

Re: How about something like this?
 

interesting...wish they had Specs, Photos or Install Configs...but without, i'd be concerned about the throw, and the physics - looks like it's a "freeair" sub, and for $400...ouch

Hmm...
 

Really I want to keep this somewhat budget...I bought the car a week ago and I'm pretty broke now. :)

I already have an amp I will be using that was powering my old system. It is a Rockford Fosgate Punch 150S that puts out 150W RMS bridged @ 2ohms.

I looked at the Solo-Baric you recommended and it seems it wants a little more room then I have in the box I plan to build. Also, like you said, it's a power hungry sub.

Anything else you would recommend that needs 0.30 or less cu. ft. and itsn't too outragously priced? I'm really considering an 8" Fosgate HE or HE2 series right now.

If a speaker says that it requires .30 ft^3, that means you need
 

a box that is (.30+woofer volume)ft^3. The volume of the box that the speaker specifies does not include the area that the speaker itself occupies. So, you've got an extremely tiny box :)
I might suggest a JL Audio 6W0. It's only a 6" sub, but you're not going to be able to fit anything much bigger. Besides these are supposed to sound great for their size. Problem is that they're hard to find.

I've heard that it depends on the manufacturer... (more)
 

Some will actually include the speaker itself in the specs...so if they say you need 0.30 ^3 then you make a box with that internal volume, cut the hole for the speaker, and drop it in.

Others, like Fosgate, you have to subtract the area the driver itself takes up from the volume of the box. On a good note though, their 8" subs only take up 0.03 ^3 so that isn't too bad.

Not sure I understand your box dimensions...
 

I'm guessing it's narrower at the back? I gather it's roughly 11.5 x 8.5 x 7.5 internal...that gives .42 cubes air space.

I suggest you check out Image Dynamics IDQ subs. The IDQ10V.2 D4 only requires .25-.5 cubes sealed and they sound fantastic. It's got dual 4-ohm coils so you can run it @ 2 ohms to get max power out of your Rockford. I ran a 15" IDQ in my last car w/400 watts and it was very tight and accurate...even compared to many 12 inch subs. I'll be picking up a 12" IDQ in a few months because I can't fit the 15" in my A4 where I want to put it.

Here is the Image Dynamics site:
http://www.imagedynamicsusa.com/website/products/idq.html

And SouundDomain.com has good prices on ID subs