Azure

Ok, I'll ask the experts here for your opinions, and whether this seems plausible or not. I have a 10" powered Mirage HOME THEATRE subwoofer that kicks some serious *** . To make things better, it fits nicely in the lower trunk space in the 'Bird. My question for you guys is this - since it usually plugs into a wall, is their any safe way to use this sub in my car? It would hook up like any stadard car sub, at least as far as to the deck...but I want to hear how I may go about it, or if it's even a fire/safety hazard? Thanks.

DJSexay

won't work, home electric is 120V AC, in the car, we have 12V DC. Those inverter things that plug into a cig. ligher will not provide enough current, and you would likely short something out.


but... you could disable the built in amp and run the box off a regualar car amp.

mike

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Jim85IROC

iTrader: (2)

Short answer... no.

Long answer...
You'd need to use a DC-AC converter with enough output power to make the sub amp happy. This would be extremely expensive, and very inefficient. You'd be dealing with a system that was 10% to 25% efficient, so it would be a massive drain on your car's electrical system.

The other alternative is to build a new DC power supply that bypasses the AC input to the sub amp, but unless you're VERY familiar with amplifier and power supply technology, that won't be an option.

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TrueBlue91RS

Best to enjoy it for what it was meant for: home entertainment.

You could rip out the sub, but you'd need a different amplifier to run it. And at that point you might as well pick up a new sub anyway rather than take apart a perfectly good home speaker.

[This message has been edited by TrueBlue91RS (edited December 03, 2001).]

Azure

Points well taken - thanks. *goes Ebay sub hunting...*

AJ_92RS

Go www.ubid.com sub hunting instead. They got better prices than Ebay.

Actually I just got the most recent Crutchfield and they have good name brand subs. Just about every manufacture right now is having a "buy one get one free" or "buy one get one for ~$20 more."

For any of you who want a 'cheap' descent sounding sub set-up, they have a special right now that if you buy one Jensen amp (there's two to choose from) then you get a free pair of Advent subs.

I don't know what size subs they are. The catalog says to call for details. But hey, for "FREE", how bad would a set of 8"s be? That's probably what they are.

I know Jensen and Advent aren't the best on the market, but the amps are ~$90-$160 & you get FREE subs. Not bad products for what you pay.

AJ

[This message has been edited by AJ_92RS (edited December 03, 2001).]

AJ_92RS

Just outta curiosity I went to www.crutchfield.com and looked for the special.

They're 10" subs!!!!!!!

I think I'll make a post about them for all the po-folk like me.

AJ

Oh. Here are the links.

http://www.crutchfield.com/cgi-bin/S...XA2100&o=P&a=0

http://www.crutchfield.com/cgi-bin/S...XA4100&o=P&a=0

Chris Luongo

Okay, a few considerations about the home subwoofer. First, the disadvantages.

It's probably not designed to endure extreme cold or heat. It's probably in a larger box than most car subwoofers. It needs 110VAC to run. And it might look silly in your car.

But you do have a big advantage, you already own it! If you have an hour to spare, why not experiment and see what results you get?

First of all, before you invest any money, just drag the sub, a home stereo receiver (or Walkman with RCA-out adapter, and an extension cord out to your car. Hook up the home stereo and sub, plug them in, and toss them in the trunk.

Tune the home receiver and the car radio to the same station, match up the volumes on both, and see how it sounds. If possible, compare to a friend's "real" car subwoofer that fits within your budget.

Anyway, if you like the sound of it, all you need to do is buy a 12-volt DC/110-volt AC inverter that will put out the necessary power. Your subwoofer will state how many watts it consumes; you'll need to buy an equal or greater converter. Shop around for price, and see if it's worth it to you.

You'll also need a car amplifier power kit to wire the inverter to the battery, as well as an RCA cable from your head unit... but you can still re-use these items later to power a "real" car amplifier.

My guess is that for the money you'd have to invest in the inverter (figure $60-80), you might as well not bother, but if you have other needs for the inverter anyway, it might work out to be a fair deal.