Best material to build boxes with?

Hi,

What's the best material to build a box with?  I would like to keep spending down to a minimum, I was thinking some 1" MDF?  1" HDF just seems so pricy.  Any and all opinions and comments are welcome.  Thanks.

--mindctrl

depends on the size of the box. also the material can be related to the size of the woofer and the size of the box. For instance, if you are building a sealed box for a 10inch MTX 8000 (really small box) you really could get away with 5/8inch MDF. that is the smallest I would ever use. Like they said up there, SPL is a factor too. The average Joe on the street who isn't a competitor can get away alot with building a box for two 12s out of 5/8 mdf. The audiophile on the other hand, would want something alot more rigid/stronger.

I once read in a Kicker manual years ago that if you are building a box for 10inch subs or smaller (8s, 6.5s, etc) you can use 5/8 inch MDF. For 12s and 15s, nothing smaller than 3/4 inch MDF. 18s can be 3/4 if the box is well braced but it was actually preferred (and I agree) that you use 1 inch MDF.

As for braces, my contention has been to put a brace on any area of the box that is just plain huge and open. As you see, there isn't any scientific approach to it!  Really it depends on the size of the box and just what you plan on doing with it. A box for two CompVR 12's to sit behind the seat of a single cab chevy truck wouldn't really need a brace in it, other than the center divider. A box for 4 Kicker 15L7's (the Solobarics) on the same plane (or rather same face of the box) in a common air enclosure (no dividers) would need a brace, in fact several braces. That woudl be a BIG box.

Hope this helps you. I've been building boxes now for 14 years. If you need more info or want to know if I have a specific design, PM me.

3/4" MDF is the best compromise material between the rigidity you need and the weight you don't need.  It also wins in the cost category.  Just don't use particle board, and don't use 1/2" plywood.

I usually install a 1.5" to 2" wide brace anywhere there are unsupported walls inside the enclosure that are half the woofer diameter or greater.  Meaning, if the enclosure is for a 12" speaker, I'll put in a brace every 6".  But I have no scientific basis for this, just what fells right to me.  :)

Check out this resource: http://www.diysubwoofers.org/caraudio.htm

3/4 mdf......