Facing subs to the front, is sound quality sacrificed?

**O.D. Showtime** · #1 (**permalink**) 09-17-04, 11:17 PM

I am in the process of putting in a new sound system right now. I've removed the Mach 460 and all of my aftermarket stuff has come in. I am just realizing how much of a p.i.t.a. an aftermarket system can be. First off, the single 12" box I got barely fits in my trunk, and faces horizontally to the other side of my trunk (it does not face toward the front or toward the back). I was gonna mount my amp to the box, but the only available room on the box is on the top of the box, but when mounted there, the amp doesn't allow the trunk to close all the way. So I guess I'll just have to let it sit on the floor of my trunk for now until spring when I do a custom enclosure. The enclosure I had in mind involves a rear seat delete, with the sub mounted on the back board piece of the seat delete. My question though, if I mount the sub here, it will face the front of the vehicle, will any sound quality be sacrificed by doing this? Will it be significantly less loud by facing it to the front, as opposed to the back? The sub is a Rockford Fosgate 4212 Punch, 400 watts rms. Thanks.

**GTPhreak** · #2 (**permalink**) 09-17-04, 11:44 PM

If you have the subwoofer facing forward in the rear seat area, completely sealed off from the trunk, you will gain both SQ and SPL.

whatnext · #3 (**permalink**) 09-18-04, 09:14 AM

i personally think they sound better when you face the front of the subs toward the inside of the car. you dont get as much bass sometimes but it sounds much clearer and you still get a lot of bass. my friend and i just put two 10's in my 87 and it sounds really good. they almost sound louder then my friends 12's. thats my opinion though, you can always try it one way and if you dont like it then reverse them before you bolt everything down.

MyEarsHurt · #4 (**permalink**) 09-18-04, 07:10 PM

I had my subs pointed towards the back, towards the side, and straight up, and to tell you the truth, I didnt notice much difference. The only difference I noticed really was that when I faced the sub towards the back of the car, you get a lot more rattles. Other than that, not much difference, none that you will notice at least.

**GTPhreak** · #5 (**permalink**) 09-18-04, 08:28 PM

If he faces it into the cabin and seals it from the trunk like he is talking about, it will be louder and cleaner because it has less airspace to fill because of the removed trunk airspace

Kerpal · #6 (**permalink**) 10-07-04, 02:22 PM

try different directions and see...

facing my sub towords the rear of the car sounds best (loudest by far) in my '90 GT hatch. this direction is usually the best way for hatchback cars, but with the beater 240SX hatch I used to own it actually was much better with the sub facing towards the front of the car... the lesson being that every car has different acoustics, and the best way to find out is to test each setup youself whenever possible.

removing your rear seat and aiming the subs into the cabin of your stang certaintly has the potential to sound good... definately the best way to go for sound quality concerns, and should deliver at least relatively good spl (volume) as well.

arcwcb · #7 (**permalink**) 11-10-09, 03:10 PM

To be honest, the most SPL you can get from a mustang is with rear facing subs, rear seats down and passenger seat all the way forward and laying flat (Outlaw SPL rules I think). You do gain a lot of rattles, but if you put down 3 or four layers of sound deadening mat (I like Rockford Fosgate DeadSkin), you can really clear up the sound and gain a deeper sound. There's nothing wrong with forward facing subs, demo SUV's and stuff always have forward facing walls in them, but the less power the sub can handle, having the extra air space of the trunk to increase the sound really helps. If you're running some big power to it, it doesn't matter how you face it. A 400W sub shouldn't shake anything that bad though. But to each his own. Just what I've found from the different systems I've had in my cars and what I've heard from different companies and different shops. Good choice going with Rockford Fosgate though! A+

toolow91 · #8 (**permalink**) 11-18-09, 09:22 PM

bass is omni directional guys it shouldnt matter which way u face it unless its sitting with the sub on the floor then thats a problem but other wise up down or sideways it shouldnt matter ..

**StangGT1995** · #9 (**permalink**) 11-18-09, 09:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by arcwcb

To be honest, the most SPL you can get from a mustang is with rear facing subs, rear seats down and passenger seat all the way forward and laying flat (Outlaw SPL rules I think). You do gain a lot of rattles, but if you put down 3 or four layers of sound deadening mat (I like Rockford Fosgate DeadSkin), you can really clear up the sound and gain a deeper sound. There's nothing wrong with forward facing subs, demo SUV's and stuff always have forward facing walls in them, but the less power the sub can handle, having the extra air space of the trunk to increase the sound really helps. If you're running some big power to it, it doesn't matter how you face it. A 400W sub shouldn't shake anything that bad though. But to each his own. Just what I've found from the different systems I've had in my cars and what I've heard from different companies and different shops. Good choice going with Rockford Fosgate though! A+

This has got to be the mother of all thread revivals. A 5 year old thread, seriously?

**timeless2** · #10 (**permalink**) 11-18-09, 09:54 PM

In my experience, keeping the cones firing to the rear and/or down has always produced the most pleasing aural tones, watt for watt.

ahall2004 · #11 (**permalink**) 11-18-09, 11:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by toolow91

bass is omni directional guys it shouldnt matter which way u face it unless its sitting with the sub on the floor then thats a problem but other wise up down or sideways it shouldnt matter ..

While bass is omni directional, facing the subs towards the rear of the car will be the loudest. Facing it this way you make the trunk of your car act like a second box, allbeit not a sealed one by any means. You will get more rattles from this but its much louder this way and I wouldn't put a system in my car any other way.

Just watch any of the shows on tv (Unique whips is one I know of) and you will see thats all they do unless they don't have the room.

Only way I would consider facing them forward is if they are in a sealed enclosure where the rear seat is and the trunk is the airspace but that still isn't the preferred installation.

rbonella · #12 (**permalink**) 11-19-09, 08:17 AM

Bass waves expand, the farther away you can get your subs from you, the better it will sound. Mustangs especially always sound best when the box is in the trunk and the seats folded down (not practical most of times) then the whole cabin becomes the second enclosure and the bass can expand, Yea it will rattle, but there are things to help that.

2BADSTANGS · #13 (**permalink**) Yesterday, 08:03 PM

Ok, here goes my disertation on this ol' thread... First let me say, it all does all depend on the vehicle/ system combo. However 90% of the time, rear facing subs do produce more output without sacrificing SQ. It has to do with standing waves and the subs "loading", similar to the effects a bandpass enclosure has on subs. As far as bass being "omni" directional... it is not, it is still a sound wave, just a longer one, another part of the reason rear facing usually works best. Shorter (higher) sound waves are more directional. It adds the length from the subs to the back of the trunk and back (approx 6ft) to allow the wave to complete. A good example is subs in a single cab truck compared to subs in a 4 door caddy.... Thats automtive low frequencies in a nutshell, I could go on and on...