S-vol- Volume of airspace in the sealed chamber. Gross figures show the build size including any speaker
displacement.
P-vol- Volume of airspace in the ported chamber. Gross figures show the build size including all displace-
ment including the port itself.
Ext-vol- External volume of the whole enclosure. This includes the wood, speaker and all associated mate-
rials. When measuring a vehicle for compatibility use this figure.
Fo-The tuning frequency of the enclosure or in the case of a bandpass, it is the tuning frequency of the
ported chamber.
Eff- Efficiency of the enclosure with driver measured at one meter with one watt of power (per driver
measured) outside the vehicle.
Port- There will be shown a quantity (in parentheses), diameter and length for port applications. The diam-
eter denotes an inside measurement of schedule 40 (thick wall) PVC tubing cut to an overall size as speci-
fied by the length.
Gain- This shows how much more (or less) efficiency the enclosure has as compared to the same driver in
a sealed box.
BW- Bandwidth is the low and high frequency limitations of the enclosure as measured at -3dB from a mid-
band reference. This gives the usable frequency range of an enclosure (outside the vehicle) for comparison
with other enclosures.
Rpl- Ripple is the measurement of the variation in dB above midband reference efficiency through the
usable frequency range of the enclosure.
Overview While the conventional sealed box will be our most common recommendation for all around
performance and simplicity, there are specialized applications for the other types of enclosures listed in this
section. Single reflex bandpasses can be used when more gain and lower bass extension is desired from a
particular driver, but at the expense of either low bass extension or power handling capability. Bass reflex
designs have again gained popularity. With the success of the L7 in a ported enclosure, we have redesigned
the cabinets for our other lines of drivers to work in Bass reflex enclosures as well. These enclosures have
the efficiency of the bandpass enclosure but also have incredible sound quality characteristics.
The position of an enclosure in the vehicle can have as much effect on the sound quality as the type of
enclosure itself. Any vehicle with a large open interior, like a hatchback, will benefit from corner loading the
enclosure in the very rear. On a sedan or any other car with a conventional trunk, it is very important to
couple the enclosure to the interior through a package tray or rear seat area. Failure to do so will allow can-
cellation of much of the low bass information.
Terms Associated with Bandpass Enclosures
Kicker Technical Tips
Page 5
Vol. 1
To Next Page
Loading...
