I have a 92 Camaro convertible and I have 2 kenwood 12's powered by 2 Kenwood 300 watt amps and it doesn't hit worth a flip. my neighbor has one 10inch bazooka tube that hits better just because he has a hatchback. is there any way i can optimize the sound in a convertible?

 

I've seen some professional installs where they actually carve out holes in the rear seats and mount the subs in them. Are your subs in a box or board? Anyway, those Kenwoods may not be powerful enough to produce good bass....you may need a more powerful amp.

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92 Camaro RS LO3, 5-spd, T-tops
Mechanics:
Open Air Element w/K&N Filter, Flowmaster 3" Cat-back Exhaust, Z28 Grille w/aftmkt fog lamps
Electronics:
Alpine 8030 Alarm System, Valentine One Radar Detector (How did I ever drive without one?), Pioneer DEH 7450 Head Unit w/6-pack CD changer, Pioneer DEQ 7600 Sound Processor, 2 Kenwood KAC-90 Amps powering 2 12" Pro Red subs and 4 Infiniti speakers.
NEXT UP: SLP 1 3/4" Headers/Y-pipe, Centerforce Dual Friction Clutch kit

 

I bought the car with this system in it so i don't know its history or anything but I do know It's a custom built box that fits in the trunk perfectly and that whoever installed it knew what they were doing because the two amps have got a capacitor. I assume the amps are pushing hard enough because when I open up the trunk I can hear a rattling sound, I'm not sure if it's the box,speakers, or car, but I'm pretty sure it is the speakers. do you think there is just the possibility that the speakers are too old?

 

Convertibles do have a distinct disadvantage when it comes to bass, unless it is a t-top. But there are few options.

1. Buy a much more powerful subs and get a large amp to power them.

2. Aura makes devices called bass shakers. They are placed under the driver and passanger seats and are powered by a 35 watt amp. They simulate the feel of bass giving the effect of a louder system. I don't have personal experiance but I haven't heard any bad things about them.

3. Buy a hard top. Probably out of the question.

our best bet is probably #2. It is still relativily cheap and should solve most of your problems.

Jim

 

do you think you could measure the box and give me some dimensions. I would like to make a box for my car, but I don't know what size to make it

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91 rs, convertible, K&N, Edelbrock open element cleaner, 3.73, B&M mega-shifter, goodmark cowl-induction hood,tinted windows

 

I have a system in my 92TA conv with 2 12' lanzar that hit plenty hard enough to top up or down. Espically with my top up, Plus no anoying rattles.

Straight veiw looking into trunk subs are free air mounted on a board. The 2 smallest amps are 50Watt these run my dash speakers, and midrange. The middle one is a 100watt use to run 2-6" components. The last one is a 200-watt amp bridged to 4-ohm. http://sites.netscape.net/bulldogfrazier/stereo
running subs.

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Keep your ride shinning with pride

 

just like you said before.....convertables get screwed!!! your speakers wont sound like your neighbors no matter what you do. you can't match the resonant effects of all that glass. I got good bass with just the head unit in my hatch back!! I relocated my 6x9s to fire towards the glass,it sounds incredible with the added power of my amp.

the stuff you have now is exellent equipment(if it's still fresh) 300w x 2 is PLENTY of power for hard hitting bass. dont try to build up a system to compare to your neghbors car,you will just end up dissapointed,there are advantages to a convertible that outwiegh the disadvantages.

my recomendation is to check out convertibles with nice systems to get ideas. for example: my friends '96 mustang GT ragtop (barbie car) it has some kind of factory system,BOSE or somthing,it sounds good for a stock system because of the stratiegic location of the speakers,there's like 8 speakers in there! not only are the speakers put in the right places,but the bigger ones seem to sit in small enclosures. the bass sounds very well tuned but not hard hitting.of course it's only a stock system and I always expect more.

I just hooked up a complete system in my sisters BMW ,2 10" rockford "punch" in a healthy sized bandpass box. it only has a 65w x 2 amp for power (hand-me-downs)it's got incredible power but it doesn't sound quite right,obviously a larger amp is in order and the bandpass enclosure is questionable.does it need to be bandpass? and is the enclosure even the right size for those speakers? who knows,I believe that could be a large part of the problem. if you do need to replace equipment,you should replace or repair your amps first,because even the most oldest beat up speakers will sound real good with the right high power amp.