Beats subwoofer enclousure modification

[lajchi]

As I am a bit of a car audio enthusiast, and all my previous cars had some modifications, from minor to extreme, I started to research how to make the sound better in the Formentor with the beats system. The system is OK, but the subwoofer is barely there, and loudness could be better as well.

I stumbeled upon this video.

Basically, the spare wheell subwoofer is in an "compression" box, which has a closed bass reflex channel. Apparently in some VAG cars with more advanced systems, the bass reflex channel is open, and the subwoofer is 20-30% louder than the enclosed version.
In the video, they are modifying the original enclousure, and cutting away the plastic which is closing the end of the bass reflex port. After that is done, it seems that the difference is noticable, and the comments in the video confirm it as well.

Apparently on some of the newer cars after 2023? this modification is no longer possible as they removed the channel within the enclousure.

I wanted to see if somebody on this forum already tred this modification, or will I be the one to mess something up

Some people are also changing the subwoofer itself for more output and better sound quality, as well as adding and DSP amplifier to make the system better, but that requires some "significant" investment.

Let me know what you think and if somebody already tried it out.

 

[lajchi]

Operation successful.

I followed the instructions on the video and opened up the "Port". It is not the nicest looking modification, but it works.
Compared to the enclosed version, this plays quite lower, and a bit louder. Definitely worth the 30 minutes of cutting / breaking / sanding / melting.

I think the next step will be to replace the subwoofer speaker itself, as the quality of the original one is quite poor.