Space Saving Subwoofer Setup but want my trunk space

Upgrading to a Subwoofer Setup but want to save trunk space

How is everyone doing? I am looking to upgrade the Harmon Kardon Sound System on my M3. It is horrible in my opinion. I looked at the BSW setups for both the interior and subwoofer setups, both which I seriously considered. I also visited my local stereo shop and they are leaning me in another direction.

Changing my Front Speakers to the JL Audio C5-650 2-way system.
The Rear Speaker to the JL C5
Adding a JL Audio HD900/5 5ch amp
And a JL Audio 13TW5-3 as my subwoofer.

My question has to deal with my subwoofer setup. I would like to do some tricked out subwoofer setup, HOWEVER I don’t want to weigh down my car, nor do I want to lose my trunk as my primary concern is performance. I was thinking about something similair to the BSW box with some sort of plexiglass on the side and some lights in the glass so you could see the sub moving. Possibly with BMW etched on the plexi. Or a shallow box along the back seats of the car.
Similar to the one shown in the below link…however much more shallow like the one that JL Makes for the e90/92 shown in the second link. But I would like the plexi across the front and the back so if I folded down the seats you can see it moving. And etching along the back of the box with some lights in it as well.
http://www.zenclosures.com/BMW_3_Ser...p/bmw39905.htm
http://mobile.jlaudio.com/products_s...hp?fit_id=1608

I don’t know if after something like this is done if you can still temporarily remove the box? For example if I needed to fold down my seats and transport something, but that is nice to have. Not absolutely neccisary but nice to have.
With either setup I haven’t decieded if I want 1 or 2 subs. But I know I need something. I don’t want to be heard 2 blocks away waking up the neighbors and the dead. Just something that sounds nice. I had my car in for servicing (would you believe the day after I brought it). But they gave me a 328i coupe as a loaner, and the stereo sounds soooooo nice in it. So obviously I must upgrade.

I finally considered using my spare tire space. This is my least favorite option. Although the M doesn’t come with a spare. I planned on making my own spare tire solution.

Any suggestions, preferably pics of setups and suggestions would be GREAT.
Thanks in advance for all your help.

The Kid

sounds like it'll be a sick setup when you're done.

i just built my first box out of MDF shaped similarly to Zenclosures' box and love it--i was able to fit three sets of golf clubs in my trunk without too much of a problem, plus room for a cooler....

the weight of my enclosure (though not too heavy) plus a pair of large hand-screws that i tapped into the upper bracing of the joint between the seats and the rear deck hold it in place very well. plexi will make it a little bit lighter, but you should be able to find a solution for removing it, provided that you have some type of terminal you can access to remove the wiring. if you go for 2 13"s, you might be hard pressed to find a removable solution that's clean and will make sure you're not losing any of your power to unwanted vibrations.

best of luck!

Originally Posted by Orion329

sounds like it'll be a sick setup when you're done.

i just built my first box out of MDF shaped similarly to Zenclosures' box and love it--i was able to fit three sets of golf clubs in my trunk without too much of a problem, plus room for a cooler....

the weight of my enclosure (though not too heavy) plus a pair of large hand-screws that i tapped into the upper bracing of the joint between the seats and the rear deck hold it in place very well. plexi will make it a little bit lighter, but you should be able to find a solution for removing it, provided that you have some type of terminal you can access to remove the wiring. if you go for 2 13"s, you might be hard pressed to find a removable solution that's clean and will make sure you're not losing any of your power to unwanted vibrations.

best of luck!

Do you have any pics?

Orion set me a link to his shown below. My idea was something similiar but more plexiglass.

http://forum.e46fanatics.com/showthread.php?t=273622

Do you need 2 subs? I am and old guy now (31) and just have 1 sub and it puts out plenty of lows. If you go the 1 sub route you could do a custom box over the battery or buy a wickedcas box. (http://www.wickedcas.com/product.php...&cat=10&page=1) I made my own and I have been happy with it:

Originally Posted by r6vr6

Do you need 2 subs? I am and old guy now (31) and just have 1 sub and it puts out plenty of lows. If you go the 1 sub route you could do a custom box over the battery or buy a wickedcas box. (http://www.wickedcas.com/product.php...&cat=10&page=1) I made my own and I have been happy with it:

I really don't know if I need 2 subs. You and I are about the same age. However I still do want a little bit of Pizzaz or flash in my trunk. Thats why I like the plexiglass and the lights. I have seen this setup before and it is functional. However it covers my battery. Not to mention it really isn't flashy.

Thanks for the post and thanks for the pic.

The Kid

Originally Posted by TheKid550

Do you have any pics?

i have a few for you to look at, though my goal was to be as subtle as possible and allow me to access my spare. i even have a piece of stock fabric covering the enclosure in the back.

i have two 8" subs, i think they're more than adequate for what i listen to, though many people would argue that you need 2 10" subs or more, especially when faced with the great sound-proofing our trunks have.

the amps are mounted on fiberglass panels mounted to the underside of the rear deck.

how about upgrading the stock hk subs? did you consider the bsw sub upgrade?

Originally Posted by ILLuSioNz X

how about upgrading the stock hk subs? did you consider the bsw sub upgrade?

I seriously thought about the BSW systems...both the in car speaker replacements and the subwoofer. But I wasn't to sure on the sound quality.

I've heard too many times you get what you pay for... and you buy cheap and you buy twice. Plus I don't know if people are really being objective with there reviews of it. What are we comparing it to?

Thanks for the help
The Kid

if you're in the NYC area, look up mobile addictions. they will set you up to what ever you want

Originally Posted by Bimmer Dude Xi

if you're in the NYC area, look up mobile addictions. they will set you up to what ever you want

Actually I am in the NYC area. About 1 hour 10 mins outside the city. I looked up there site but they have no pics posted. I would love to see there work before I take a hour plus drive out to them.

I will give it some thought. Have you used them before?

pm'ed

Originally Posted by TheKid550

I seriously thought about the BSW systems...both the in car speaker replacements and the subwoofer. But I wasn't to sure on the sound quality.

I've heard too many times you get what you pay for... and you buy cheap and you buy twice. Plus I don't know if people are really being objective with there reviews of it. What are we comparing it to?

Thanks for the help
The Kid

i was talking about their rear deck mounted 12" subwoofer box...you get to choose your sub.

Originally Posted by TheKid550

I seriously thought about the BSW systems...both the in car speaker replacements and the subwoofer. But I wasn't to sure on the sound quality.

I've heard too many times you get what you pay for... and you buy cheap and you buy twice. Plus I don't know if people are really being objective with there reviews of it. What are we comparing it to?

Thanks for the help
The Kid

Not sure if you're aware, but everything we sell is backed by our 100% guarantee -- buy it, install it, and if you aren't impressed, send it back for a full refund, no questions asked. More details here:

http://www.bavariansoundwerks.com/ourguarantee.php

I seriously doubt your car stereo shop will offer a similar guarantee, and if you don't like it it's too late -- your car is already hacked up. With us, if you aren't happy, just take it out and send it back.

As for getting what you pay for, you're right, you do. With BSW, you get factory direct products, which means that we engineer and source products directly from the manufacturer so we don't have to pay lots of middlemen in between...so YOU get way higher quality equipment for the money than you'd expect.

At a car audio shop, you're not just paying for the equipment -- you're paying for the rep firm, the distributor, the distributor's distributor, the multi-million dollar marketing budget, and the equipment. So I'd be willing to bet that dollar for dollar, our products are higher quality than just about anything you can buy.

Oh, and I forgot to mention that we also just so happen to engineer them for your exact BMW, spending countless hours fine-tuning it for incredible sound quality before you ever receive it.

Sheesh, and we've been talking about DROPPING prices. Maybe we should raise them?!

Originally Posted by r6vr6

Do you need 2 subs? I am and old guy now (31) and just have 1 sub and it puts out plenty of lows.

You really only need 1 good sub.

Things have changed for us older guys. Back in the 90's, you needed multiple subs powered by multiple amps and lots of batteries and isolaters to get some good SPL.

Now you can get more and better sounding bass with 1 amp and 1 sub. Subs now optimized for boxes that are about 50% in size from 10-15 years ago.

Recommend that you stay away from shallow mount subs if you are looking for a good amount of bass from a single sub setup. The techonology has gotten better but I haven't heard one that is very satisfying with the exception of the SI Mag and BM.

Shallow mount subs are kind of pointless unless there is a rare tight restriction on depth. Most of the time, you'll save a LOT more space by going with 1 sub vrs 2 and going with a sealed box. In fact, a single 12 will be rather small like r6v6r's box.