JBL Spare Tire Sub?

[TMBLKDG]

Has anyone used one of these in a 4th gen wagon?  Do they fit and do you actually get musical bass out of it or just a lot of thumping/rattling?  Seems like a great idea if it works good.

https://www.crutchfield.com/p_109STADBAS/JBL-Stadium-BassHub.html

[silverton]

musical bass, vs thumping/rattling?

all bass is is thumping. depends on what's loose in your car if it's gonna rattle. If you've never had a subwoofer before, a 600 watt 11" definitely won't break your ear drums.  look in to bass tubes if you want more subtle.

One of the reviews on that unit says it didn't fit in their 2022 crosstrek.  so ymmv on fitment.

[TMBLKDG]

42 minutes ago, silverton said:

musical bass, vs thumping/rattling?

all bass is is thumping. depends on what's loose in your car if it's gonna rattle. If you've never had a subwoofer before, a 600 watt 11" definitely won't break your ear drums.  look in to bass tubes if you want more subtle.

One of the reviews on that unit says it didn't fit in their 2022 crosstrek.  so ymmv on fitment.

Have played around with car stereos for a long time so yes, have had subwoofers before and have built my own speakers.  Never been into the "share it with the neighbors" kind of setups, but the 12" JL powered by a 350W amp I had in my WRX sounded great and could easily be heard outside the car if you turned it up.  That speaker produced very tight, accurate bass that extended well down into the 20 hz range.  Whether a sub is just a thumper or actually sounds musical depends a lot on how it's tuned and the enclosure type. Is it really peaky around it's resonant frequency (thumpy) or is it more linear in its response?

Given that I have a wagon, I really want something concealed, or that at least looks like part of the car but understand I may not get what I want.  I didn't mind that JL taking up space in the trunk of my WRX and it was concealed in there but no easy way to conceal things in the wagon and I'd rather not have a big cube sitting back there.  Another option I'm considering is something like this:  https://www.crutchfield.com/p_20648TP122/Kicker-48TRTP122.html?tp=112

I've never looked at a late model crosstrek so I don't know how similar they are in how the spare tire is stored, but given how similar Subarus all seem to be to each other in many areas, that's a good point.

[GearJamr]

The JBL is intriguing.  I currently have a 10" sub mounted in a sealed unit that fits in the back rear of the cargo area.  It's not really in the way, but it does tend to move around some so this would be a nice replacement.

I need to fit large hockey bags in the cargo area so having anything on the floor area is a non-starter for me.

[TMBLKDG]

9 hours ago, GearJamr said:

The JBL is intriguing.  I currently have a 10" sub mounted in a sealed unit that fits in the back rear of the cargo area.  It's not really in the way, but it does tend to move around some so this would be a nice replacement.

I need to fit large hockey bags in the cargo area so having anything on the floor area is a non-starter for me.

Indeed it is.  I saw that and thought "that's a great idea if it actually fits and sounds good."

I've done a lot of business with Crutchfield over the years because they really do have excellent service and a great return policy.  When I get my car back from the shop (hopefully next week) I'll take some measurements and if it looks like it'll fit I'll probably order it and see for sure.

[GearJamr]

9 hours ago, TMBLKDG said:

Indeed it is.  I saw that and thought "that's a great idea if it actually fits and sounds good."

I've done a lot of business with Crutchfield over the years because they really do have excellent service and a great return policy.  When I get my car back from the shop (hopefully next week) I'll take some measurements and if it looks like it'll fit I'll probably order it and see for sure.

I'd be very interested in hearing/seeing how it goes.  I've bought some things from Crutchfield (including home audio) and the items are always shipped fast and as advertised.  Fortunately I've never had to return anything.

My biggest curiousity is whether the foam tray would still fit.  Not a deal killer by any means, but would be nice.

Edited September 27, 2022 by GearJamr