Line-x on an mdf enclosure?

[k5james]

Is it safe to Line-x an mdf enclosure? I'm leaning towards Line-xing the tub of my blazer and I'd like to Line-x the enclosures I got from Greg to match the tub.

 

[zeroz400]

My uncle bed lined a few Washburn speaker cabinets and they looked pretty nice. Cant tell you if it changed the sound but its doable.


Later

 

[bigblazer433]

I rhino lined an mdf box and it worked great and looked great too

 

[AudioMaster]

Nothing wrong with lining the box. I've done it to a few of my PA cabs and my old box for my 15 so I wouldn't have to worry about it getting wet.

 

[MrArmyAnt]

Are you doing the real line-x yourself or an offbrand? how much does it cost for the setup to do it? how much air do you need?

 

[k5james]

I was going to have them line-x'd by a real place.

 

[chevyin]

It wont hurt. If anything, it will help deaden the box a bit more, even if only slightly. Just remember to tape off the ring of surface area that the speaker will mount to.

We'll of course need some pics.

 

[MrArmyAnt]

I'm bed lining my storage/sub solution. It does help to ad density to the box. Make sure it's sealed from the inside though, some wierd people seal the outside and who knows how that line-x will effect any sort of sealing caulk.

 

[Uncle Fester]

Line-x

I am looking into the cost of becoming a Line-X dealer, and one of the uses they suggest is sub woofer boxs..so there will be no problem at all, just make sure your box is atleast 3/4" MDF.

 

[MrArmyAnt]

I am looking into the cost of becoming a Line-X dealer, and one of the uses they suggest is sub woofer boxs..so there will be no problem at all, just make sure your box is atleast 3/4" MDF.

All sub boxes should be at least 3/4"s inch to begin with for sound purposes.

 

[chevyin]

Before we get carried away here, it should be noted that a sub box does not require any sort of lining material to deaden it. A properly built box will be of sufficient thickness and have adequate bracing so as to not flex, regardless of the covering material. Ive seen a couple bed liner companies advertise this use, as if it will really help performance. If it helps your sub system's performance a noticeable amount, the box was screwed up to begin with. Ive even seen a few sound deadener companies advertise this use, its bunk. If you want to line it to match your interior etc, sure its fine, it wont hurt. But don't start thinking its necessary, or some super secret trick you know to gain performance, cuz its not. The only reason I even mentioned that it -might- help performance in my first response was to reinforce the idea that it wont hurt anything to use it.

 

[MrArmyAnt]

Before we get carried away here, it should be noted that a sub box does not require any sort of lining material to deaden it. A properly built box will be of sufficient thickness and have adequate bracing so as to not flex, regardless of the covering material. Ive seen a couple bed liner companies advertise this use, as if it will really help performance. If it helps your sub system's performance a noticeable amount, the box was screwed up to begin with. Ive even seen a few sound deadener companies advertise this use, its bunk. If you want to line it to match your interior etc, sure its fine, it wont hurt. But don't start thinking its necessary, or some super secret trick you know to gain performance, cuz its not. The only reason I even mentioned that it -might- help performance in my first response was to reinforce the idea that it wont hurt anything to use it.

^I agree. Now if your subs are really hard hitting and the resonance of the box is to high, you can lower it with a resin/lead shot mixture on the inside. ads weight and density = lower resonance. but bedliner mostly just looks better

 

[chevyin]

If your box is flexing (vibrating), its not properly braced, the walls are too thin, or you aren't using mdf/equivalent. A box with the right bracing should not require any artificial mass loading. And this is coming from a guy who concretes his vehicles, so you know Im not biased against mass loaders, they just need to be utilized where they are needed and not where they are not.

But adding lead shot to resin is an interesting mass-loading idea ArmyAnt. Im always looking for new/cheap/interesting ways to sound deaden and mass load, that's another one I'll have to try out.

edit: Oh and always be sure to mount your box rigid to the vehicle's sheet metal. This gives maximum transference of acoustical energy to the chassis (those low lows) while minimizing alien vibrations from box hop.

 

[1crzy88]

my whole interior is lixe-xed, my dash with a 15" LCD tv, doors, kicks, and soon to be my custom rear pannels with 2-10's and an amp on each side. have at it. Kind of hard to keep the dust off of though. you can do a search and find some stuff ive sold on here.(door pannels)

T

 

[Blue85]

If Line-X is going to affect the performance of the box, it means you are putting it on the inside.

 

[MrArmyAnt]

Not so. Increasing mass on the inside or outside still effects the overall mass.

 

[chevyin]

Like I said before, if you need to use Line-X (or similar mat'l) on your box, you screwed up the design/build of the box in the first place. Generally speaking, a speaker enclosure should not require any additional mass loading. Period.

Don't fall into the all-to-common misconception that enclosure interiors need some sort of spray-on material to dampen, absorb sound waves, reflect them, or anything else along those lines. If you want to follow the idea that sound waves inside the box need manipulating, just throw some polyfil in the box (1lb per cu ft) and be done with it. There's plenty of info on polyfil and how it works if you want to google it. But, if your box is already properly sealed and braced (when necessary), adding a coating to the box's interior will make no audible change in performance. Waste of time.