Best material to build boxes with?
Printed From: the12volt.com
Forum Name: Car Audio
Forum Discription: Car Stereos, Amplifiers, Crossovers, Processors, Speakers, Subwoofers, etc.
URL: https://www.the12volt.com/installbay/forum_posts.asp?tid=23159
Printed Date: May 18, 2024 at 2:22 AM
Topic: Best material to build boxes with?
Posted By: mindctrl
Subject: Best material to build boxes with?
Date Posted: December 21, 2003 at 4:47 PM
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
Replies:
Posted By: pureRF
Date Posted: December 21, 2003 at 5:39 PM
3/4 MDF with bracing is fine. (unless you have some extreamly high spl sub)
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dream it, build it, fiberglass it
Posted By: NowYaKnow
Date Posted: December 21, 2003 at 6:40 PM
Agreed 3/4" MDF is the choice 90% of the time..Certain times you can get away with 1/2 and sometimes people go the extra and use 1"...My choice is 3/4" MDF if it's a real high power application just use extra bracing and you may want to double up the face of the box to support the subs more..I've used 3/4" particle board before that works well too but I'd still prefer MDF. I think 3/4" mdf for a 4 x 8 sheet at home depot is like $15 - 20 but I haven't checked in a while. Good luck,
Mike
Posted By: jeffchilcott
Date Posted: December 21, 2003 at 8:38 PM
3/4 MDf or some use plexiglass or fiberglass....fiberglass is nice to form and custom fit time consuming and somewhat expensive
Posted By: Csr
Date Posted: January 30, 2004 at 1:06 AM
im also building a box my questions how often do i space the braces?
Posted By: Fosgate3
Date Posted: January 30, 2004 at 5:35 AM
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.
Posted By: DYohn
Date Posted: January 30, 2004 at 10:01 AM
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: https://www.diysubwoofers.org/caraudio.htm
Posted By: jeffchilcott
Date Posted: January 30, 2004 at 3:32 PM
3/4 to 1 inch MDF
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2009 0-1000 Trunk WR 154.0DB 2009 1001+ Trunk WR
2007 USACI World Champion
2007 World Record
2006 USACI Finals 2nd Place
Posted By: pureRF
Date Posted: January 30, 2004 at 5:17 PM
you could use 3/4 then get some fiberglass and coat the inside with 2-3 layers of the fiberglass, this will help a lot with air leaks and strength.
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dream it, build it, fiberglass it
Posted By: Clean Install
Date Posted: January 31, 2004 at 2:10 AM
3/4 mdf...... ------------- If we learn from each success and
each failure, then we can improve ourselves
Posted By: Julian59
Date Posted: January 31, 2004 at 2:41 AM
To All. Everyone is saying 3/4 MDF that's cool but the real question is what speakers are you going to use, What's the size 10s, 12s, 15s, 18s, 30inch what??????? . We all know MDF is the best but we need to know the speakers first and how many. VMAX and all that. Julian59
Posted By: Fosgate3
Date Posted: January 31, 2004 at 6:38 AM
you can definately do that with fiberglass but really not neccesary. If you just build the box right to begin with, use silicone sealant on the inside, fiberglass coating is really not needed. Make sure to use wood glue. I recommend TightBond II brand woodglue b/c it is more resistant to moisture than Elmer's is. One of the biggest problems that cause leaks is the cutout for the woofer. I have seen more boxes that have this problem (built by others of course) than I can count. Even I have had this problem a handful of times. The secret to doing this is just taking your time when cutting the hole out.
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