@researcher A couple more questions.
The box is pretty big 3/4" thick.. maybe 1.2-1.8 total cf or more but i can't remember what the actual cubic feet of the box. more then 1 less then 2 I think... I guess I could measure it out right? Pioneer recommends for this sub that is installed in it: Enclosure Use: 0.85 ~ 1.75 Cubic Feet.
The subwoofer that is currently installed in that box is a really beefy pioneer.... From 2005! Model TS-W306C
Looks like this:
View attachment 133548
These are the specs:
- 12" Subwoofer
- Power Handling:
- Peak: 1000 Watts
- RMS: 400 Watts
- Impedance: Single 4-Ohm
- Composite IMPP Woofer Cone with Interlaced Aramid Fiber
- Cone Reinforcement Arcs
- Wide Roll, Three-Layer Fiber Woven Radial Surround
- 4-Layer Aluminum Voice Coil
- Polyester-Imide Resin Coated Voice Coil Wire
- 12 Slit Aluminum Voice Coil Bobbin
- Conex Spider
- Damper Ring
- Top Plate Standard
- Projected Pole Yoke with Vented Pole
- 83 oz. Double Mass High-Power Magnet Construction
- Stamped Basket with Magnet Cover
- Molded Gasket
- Spring-Compression Wire Terminals
Sounds Tight... Controlled. no real boom sound that a ported would produce. I would even say the base is really accurate. If I did not look up the speaker model I would "assume" it was a relatively new subwoofer..(like I did) but it is 17 years old.. It was installed in that sealed box for the last 17 years... I did not remove the woofer but from the pictures it looks extremely over built.. should I dare say pioneers old "quality??"
I did not even have my license yet and this woofer was thumping...
So I was window shopping newer subwoofers.. I don't know what im looking at per se. there are ALOT of no name brands that im no so sure about... but If I had to choose a subwoofer right now I would choose this $100 pioneer champion svc series subwoofer. (TS-W311S4)
looks like this:
View attachment 133549
Would there be any benefits of upgrading the subwoofer and keeping the box? I don't know what im looking for nor do I know what im missing out on haha.
now you're getting into the engineering part of car audio, see how fast you went down the rabbit hole? lol..
ok you'll be doing a lot of reading to learn all the specs/parameters for subwoofers and speaker enclosures. Most of the time the reason speaker enclosures don't come up in car audio is because most speakers are in the panels of doors, rear decks, dash, etc.. They use that as the box to reverberate the sound. To get to your question about comparing both of these subs. I had to do some digging on your sub the ts-w306c. And you're right, it is more "beefy' compared the newer w311s4. It's not that either is bad but here's the quick summary..
the 306c is only 89db sensitivity but the 311s4 is 95db, more is normally better, but think about your application. You're pumping 400watts, you've had to turn the gain down to about 25% of max on the amp just to match the stock unit driven speakers. If you were to get the 311s4 it would be even LOUDER! because it's 6db more efficient. The rule is for every 3db increase you effectively increase the volume by 1/2. Usually I like to use the example of 100watts into a speaker, increasing it 3db it's like upgrading the amp by 50w to 150w. But in this case you would up it by double! (6db increase of sensitivity) so using my example what was at 100w sound level is now 200w (using the lower efficiency number of course)..
Now that's why I would not recommend going to the newer speaker. Plus looking at the other specs, your "older" speaker has a better free air resonance by 10hz, Fs is the name. Lots of people put down the free air number but I like it because it tells me what the speaker cone resonates at naturally. the 306C is at 32.6hz the 311s4 is 42, a good 10hz lower. To me I like that a sub has a lower "Resting spot" is what I like to call it. Plus the frequency response is better with the 306C, 18-500hz, sure 500hz is NOT bass but mid bass, but I like that you could select a different low pass filter point to have your sub give some of the mid-bass "warmth". I also like a speaker that has flexibility in how you can set it up via the filters. The 311s4 is only 20hz -125hz. Ok just a subwoofer's regular domain.
Also, doing a quick look at the specs without doing a lot of calculations (oh ya there's physics formulas involved), the 306C can be in a larger box putting more air out. The 311s4 is about 20liters smaller which is good if you want a small slim box.
Now the construction, the 306c is impressive! Kevlar (aka aramid) fibers in the poly cone, nice! And the surround is kevlar threaded, probably a composite rubber. They didn't say but then there's the dual magnet structure, **** is all I have to say! This sucker is to hit HARD.. Not that the 311s4 is lazy but I just don't feel it has the same muscle. I'd compare it to a bigger v8 engine at 300hp or a turbo 4cyl at 300hp. Both have the same "power" but a V8 is just going to develop that power with grunt. Sort of like this 306C. The reason it can be "this old" is because it was made with materials that don't really care about the weather in a car audio environment. For example back in the day I installed a system for my dad with a mid-level kenwood subwoofer in a q-logic box (3/4" mdf, beefy!) and that was in 96! He passed away and I inherited that box.. it's still completely fine, no age! crazy isn't it?! Good stuff like that will last a long, long time. The problem happens when the surrounds of the speaker are cloth or foam, that is what moisture/heat will destroy! Coated cloth? same demise..
The other reason you like the speaker is it is as you said, in a sealed enclosure, those types always hit harder. If you really wanted it loud get a ported enclosure, lol.. or want to go deaf?? Try a bandpass enclosure.. I'd be selling you hearing aids shortly! lol...
Whoever built that box knew what they were doing, they wanted a tight, controlled, focused bass with the ability to have some mid-bass low end as well. I have to tell you that your "spidey senses" were correct in the 306C is more of a competition level subwoofer than the regular 311s4. Is it that Pioneer is cheaper quality now? Not sure but I bet they make a 306C equivalent today but be prepared to pay for it, like everything else..
Sometimes in the past audio makers just hit it out of the park and never come back to it.. Like some headphones I got back in the day, Sony MDR-V6, turns out it was one of the best headphones ever made, studios use them now to record music. Sony was smart, they have continued to make it for over 30 years! See? Sometimes a product is made that is just the best, regardless of what year it was made..
I think you have a really nice sub you're going to have a lot of research time on your hands to find something as good as that one. Now there is one exception I have to throw in here, it's not just the speaker but the speaker enclosure that it has to work with, they compliment each other. That box you have should be beefy! That speaker would rip apart anything cheap!
I wouldn't buy the new 311s4 champion series sub, it's just an average subwoofer speaker.. you've been spoiled by a higher level speaker..
And using that box with a new speaker would require you to measure the internal volume of that box to know how it will interact with a new speaker.
?
*sigh*..
.. It sounds good most of the time... but on certain songs / frequencies its as if the speakers are "worn" or "loose" as in they move more than they should. I have the bass at -3 (-10 to +10 values) and the mirrors are just about useless if over 23 (out of 35) on volume level.