Upgrading the Sub in a 2009 230.

[Dave Rittiman]

Looking to upgrade the stock Polk 10 inch sub behind the driver seat in a 09 SAN 230 and wanted to get some ideas what works the best. Just finished installed 4 Wetsounds Rev 10's on the FCT3 tower with a ARC audio amp and it sounds great, but looking for a little more bass. I have a 500 watt amp that will be powering the Sub, I can upgrade if needed as well. Can i get away with swapping the sub with a JL W6 either a 10 or a 12 and will it fit in the stock location ? One idea was to keep the stock 10 and build a enclosure under one of the rear seats near the batteries. How much of a difference does it make having a enclosure vs a open air sub ( which the stock 10 is Open Air from my understanding or does it have it's own enclosure) ?

Thx
Dave

[TN_Rider]

I just got a new system installed. Ill have a JL 10W6V2 for sale. It pounds with the right power.

[EarmarkMarine]

Dave,
If you have the factory Polk 10-inch subwoofer installed in the starboard coaming panel down at the driver's right hip then that is being used in an infinite baffle application and loading into the open gunnel cavity as its enclosure. The primary issue is that per the Polk sub's T/S parameters it is clearly not designed for an infinite baffle. A decent sub wrongly put to task and under damped.
We like to replace this with a JL Audio M series IB woofer which is a true infinite baffle design. This makes a big improvement. The sub is 4-ohms and really tops out at about 300 honest watts which can be stretched a bit depending on how liberal or conservative the amplifier is rated.
However, although a properly executed IB woofer can sound great, there is a limit to the controlled excursion and therefore the output of any woofer used in an infinite baffle. So if you like to push the bass hard then you should move away from this location and go with either an air suspension (sealed) or bass-reflex (ported) enclosure. Past that your largest challenge is finding a location that is exposed or properly vented so that the woofer is direct radiating into the open cockpit. If the woofer is concealed in a console or compartment then you have moved from one restriction to another.

David

[eff1fitty]

Dave, I took David's advice and had a JL 10" IB sub installed in that location and boy did it make a difference from the factory Polk sub. Bass response is like night and day. Along with the new sub, I had them rework the amp's wiring and it definitely made a dramatic difference as well. Very happy with the outcome and wished I lived closer to Earmark so I could give them a return on their advice. Thanks David!

[Dave Rittiman]

Great thanks for the info might have to try it they are pretty cheap only $ 209 on the JL website. Be I am getting a box build right now with a JL W6v2 to go under where the amps' are in front of the garbage can to use up some of that space. Also going to cut a hole cleanly in the garbage can door and vent it someway to get the bass to come out.

Thx
Dave

Dave, I took David's advice and had a JL 10" IB sub installed in that location and boy did it make a difference from the factory Polk sub. Bass response is like night and day. Along with the new sub, I had them rework the amp's wiring and it definitely made a dramatic difference as well. Very happy with the outcome and wished I lived closer to Earmark so I could give them a return on their advice. Thanks David!