Upgrade the woofers or the box?

[soulburner]

To make it quick, ordered one of those Rockford powered enclosures which was a sealed single 12". Had it for 2 days and the structural integrity of the box began to fail and started leaking air. So I sent it back and meanwhile I had gotten a set of Kicker CVR 12's and some trashy Boss and Sony Xplod amps for 100 bucks from a coworker, II sold the amps for 10 bucks to some poor soul on my shift. The subs are in the prefab Kicker box with side firing port, I'd like to get a little better low end response and can't seem to find out any specs on the box or what that box is tuned to, I've read posts and guesses anywhere from 32 to 48hz and 2.6cf total volume. Since I've got that little extra cash from sending the Rockford back, should I dump the subs and run the box with another set, or use the CVR's in another box?... Problem being I don't think I'm capable of building, nor have the tools to build a box. So looking at prefabs, I noticed this one while browsing Sonic.

http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_86036_NVX-VCE212.html

Any thoughts or opinions? I mean, I know it's overpriced and I could build it for much less, but that's not really an option. Noone close by I trust to build one either. The amp I'm using is a SPL Gorilla 5500.1D. I know the setup isn't very good, am I just trying to polish a turd or is there anywhere to go with it?

Another option I've been mowing over in my head is running 4 powerbass m series 10's and biting the bullet and attempting to build a box. "No substitute for cone area" is what I keep reading and 4 cheap 10's falls nicely into budget.

[jcarter1885]

I personally would keep the subs and build a box for them, the cheapest option. Harbor frieght for tools as they are cheap if need be and one is in your area. If you build a good box then in due time when money is better upgrade to better 12" subs.

[soulburner]

How well would this work? Just randomly searching around online for box designs and seen this. I think I could manage this, have the wood cut instore at lowes and just assemble it at home and cut the circles for the subs.

[soulburner]

So I ended up building that box, it didn't come out very clean. The guy who did the cuts at lowes had the front of the box off a little, I managed to salvage it, had a few gaps that I filled with liquid nails. I think a little sanding and paint would help it out, but since now I'm not so intimidated by building a box I think I will rebuild it later with a little more detail and add a 2nd layer to the baffle.

Overall I'm very pleased, notes that weren't very audible are now felt.

[diegoclass2010]

good job on the box! it always the first one that scares you.. after that is piece of cake, it all a learning process keep it up!

[soulburner]

good job on the box! it always the first one that scares you.. after that is piece of cake, it all a learning process keep it up!

Thanks!, I think I placed the woofers too close together, the baffle is flexing. I guess I'll need to put a little bit of bracing inside of it.

[Al LaPorta]

looks good for a first build!

[soulburner]

looks good for a first build!

Thanks man!, my mind is already churning with new ideas... I really want to build a large 4th order walled at the C pillar at the end of the year. But so many choices on woofers and amps, it's melting my mind... lol

[Calibasshead]

I got wood cut at lowes and Home Depot before and the cuts never ever came out right. I just went out bought saws for the next builds. How does it all sound now?

[soulburner]

I got wood cut at lowes and Home Depot before and the cuts never ever came out right. I just went out bought saws for the next builds. How does it all sound now?

Yeah, I had a little issue with the cuts, but to be fair to the worker who cut them, he had to hold a few of them straight by hand, and only 1 of them was off. It sounds pretty good, it gets a bit lower and a lot louder than the Kicker prefab, I'm satisfied with the output from most of the frequencies but still not getting the low end that I would prefer, So I'm trying to figure out if I should upgrade the 12's or just move on up to 15's or a 18. These are the dimensions I'm working with right now, so if anyone has opinions on how to best use let me know! Budget on the woofer would be $300-400 range. I have a little store credit on Sonic, would like to use that toward it. The best thing I could come up with was a DC lvl 3 or 4 15" or 18", but if someone has another opinion I'm all ears.