Wanted to start a discussion regarding subwoofer recommendation, specifically for a truck, but possibly could apply to other vehicles as well. Recently picked up, a pickup truck. It is a quad cab, has the rear 60/40 split seat. This space underneath seems like a very logical location for allocating subwoofer(s) and amplifier(s). The discussion I'd like to open up, is how do we choose what subwoofer(s) to use? It seems simple enough. There is this amount of space, so put this that utilizes that much volume there. But how do we know it's the right choice?
For example, our truck has this beautiful weather mat that is a perfect addition for my sometimes not so neat son. It's wonderful to just yank the mat, spray it off, and put back inside. Protects the carpet. So going out and purchasing a prefab enclosure is not an option for my particular installation. That and it seems any company making a subwoofer enclosure right now, fabricates one for the crew cab because it has more floor space, but haven't seen any options at this time for the quad cab. Anywho, so the height of the enclosure is already affecting a choice right there. Naturally, a shallow mount subwoofer becomes recommended, but that puts it either upfiring, or downfiring. I've heard a few truck installations where the subwoofers are upfiring, and they've always been, frankly, less than exceptional. Undesirable is a good word. Even with regular non shallow mount subwoofers. Why is that? Does the seat bottom absorb sound waves, causing cancellation? No hard surface to reflect from? Is it because these installations typically include a pair of subwoofers under the left and right rear seat, and the spacing between could be causing cancellation? Would downfiring a shallow mount subwoofer achieve better results?
I ask, because of the desire to take this discussion even further. If we are strictly limited to shallow mount subwoofers, which often work best in sealed enclosures and have a higher FS - would a smaller cone subwoofer be a better choice, in a ported enclosure? I know, I know. Blasphemy. Some smaller cone subs spec to have lower FS, and a higher Xmax, but would that indeed have an increased output, and still cover low frequencies well enough for a, "SQ" install? Would cabin volume be another contributing factor to whether the smaller ported subwoofer could indeed outperform a sealed shallow mount? I imagine if this was in the trunk of a car, it would be an interesting discussion as well.