[Vizzo]

Just checking to see if anyone competes with their Cobalt in any of the national sound organizations. IASCA, dB Drag Racing, MECA, etc... Hoping to find out what works and doesn't work with these cars as far as SPL is concerned.

 

[Big_Bass_Balt]

Honestly I don't know how our cars would hold up in a sound comp. The horrible acoustics just kill us and anyone with a cavalier or something of the sort would basically just bend us over. I have 2 12" Kicker L7's and I've been almost matched by a cavalier with alpine type-e's its bad...real bad.

 

[mlhseabee]

I'm running 2-12" Kicker CVRs in my trunk. I had the trunk completely redone with a custom fiberglass enclosure though. So far, I've been coming out on top in local soundoff competions, but the design of the box definately increased the acustic levels. That and the a**ton of dynamat under the interior panels. Your sound quality in the terms of competions is all gonna depend on how much money you're willing to drop. I have about 4k invested so far.

 

[Vizzo]

I'm not an SQ person at all. Just dB Drag for a hobby. I actually don't listen to it musically unless someone wants to hear it. I'm trying to figure out what I can do to my box to up the SPL. Every car is different and this is my first sedan. Post pics of what you have also if you are willing to share.

 

[mlhseabee]

I would love to post pics of what I have, but the car is in Gulfport, MS and I'm deployed in Ethiopia, Africa. To explain what I did though is I molded two separate boxes into the trunk, right over top of the wheel wells. I angled the speakers so that they shot the sound waves directly at the center of the trunk lid, therefore bouncing back into the cab of the car. I've removed the upright portion of the rear seat and replaced it with 1/4" Plexiglass. After all was said and done, from both the trunk and interior, it all looks perfectly molded together, and the trunk is now an airtight speaker enclosure. My buddy and I did all the work on it. He drives a Scion B, I think thats the boxy looking one. He stripped the entire interior, dash included, and molded all new panels out of fiberglass. I think he has well over 9k invested so far. What can I say? We have noghting else better to spend our government paychecks on.

 

[xyankees214x]

Honestly over the summer i was planning on saving some money and getting some tweeters and another l7 and kicker amp so make my sound system even more beast. But ive decided, its really pointless for me to do any more audio work to this cobalt. the rattles are to bad, everything inside the car rattles and the trunk rattles unbelieveably. you cant sound good when your trunk is sounding like a bee hive. And please dont tell me well get a dynamat because yes dynamat is great to a point. After a certain point shit starts rattling again. Once i get my truck then ill start to do some more audio work, But as for now the balts done.

 

[PLUR13]

Honestly I don't know how our cars would hold up in a sound comp. The horrible acoustics just kill us and anyone with a cavalier or something of the sort would basically just bend us over. I have 2 12" Kicker L7's and I've been almost matched by a cavalier with alpine type-e's its bad...real bad.

I have to disagree with you on that. My car is tuned for SQ competitions, and I have been scoring between 280 and 310 in all 6 comps I have been in. Took first place in all of them. ANd in 4 of those events, I ran SPL as well with the car tuned for SQ, and have hit between 145 and 147 in each of those. Whoever said it is all about the amount of money you are willing to spend is dead on. The entire car was dynamatted when the panels were removed to paint them, and the doors were completely sealed up with dynamat and a little bit of duraglass in places we couldn't get the dynamat. The trunk was carpeting was completely removed and dynamatted as well. I am also running a set of $1,000 component speakers on a $600 amp, and for subs I am running 2 $500 subs on a $1000 amp. The box was also professionally built by one of the instructors at the Installer Institute in FL. Not trying to bring up how expensive my stereo was, just saying that if you're willing to spend the cash that it takes, you can compete in sound comps with our cars.

 

[dtadla]

A simple cheap and admitted ghetto way to get rid of the trunk lid rattle is to get some foam door weatherstriping and put it around the lid where the lid and the car meet. It's ghetto but it does usually work.

 

[xyankees214x]

Its not just trunk lid rattle, its the whole car lol. everything does. And actually from playing my bass when i open and close my trunk theres something running around in my spolier, bolt or nut or something fell off inside the spolier

 

[mlhseabee]

I would get your car checked then. I mean, even before I dynamatted the entire car and put the custom box in, I was running with the same 2 12s in a dual ported MDF Carpeted Box. Nothing but the lisence plate rattled. I hate to say it, but maybe your car rattles like that just because. Try the weather stripping though. It does work. Also, have you tuned your amp properly? I had a friend complain about the same thing, but it was because his amp was tuned incorrectly.

 

[PLUR13]

I would get your car checked then. I mean, even before I dynamatted the entire car and put the custom box in, I was running with the same 2 12s in a dual ported MDF Carpeted Box. Nothing but the lisence plate rattled. I hate to say it, but maybe your car rattles like that just because. Try the weather stripping though. It does work. Also, have you tuned your amp properly? I had a friend complain about the same thing, but it was because his amp was tuned incorrectly.

I was thinking the same thing cause mine didn't really rattle that much either before I dynamatted it

 

[xyankees214x]

yeah i got it tuned right, i didnt do it myself had a pro audio shop do it.(friend works there) but yeah just about everything rattles, from the antennea outside the car, license plate, trunk lid, spoiler, sun roof, drivers side door, and the piece of hard crappy cardboard behind the back seats rattles like you would not believe. and that piece of cardboard or wood or whatever it is rattles so much the side panals around it on the walls of my car keep cming out of place and i constantly have to put them back in. It is such a pain

 

[mlhseabee]

Yours is the first balt I've heard of that rattles so much. I think you just got the sh*t end of the stick. Otherwise, they hold up pretty well.