Car Audio Subwoofer Placement and Mounting Guidelines

  • 1-2 hours
  • Beginner
  • 35-75

It’s important to place your car audio subwoofer in the right spot in your car because it determines the quality of sound that’s produced. You can either choose to work with the car manufacturer's suggested locations or you could customize the location of your speakers to get high quality sound. After purchasing any particular car audio system, make sure you read the owner’s manual and understand the do's and don’ts. There may be specific instructions that you might have to follow when mounting the subwoofer. If there aren’t any specific instructions keep in mind the guidelines given below.

Placement of Speakers

Subwoofers are speakers that are manufactured to produce low tones. Because of the low notes that they produce, subwoofers help your other speakers work effectively. Along with the subwoofers, you also need to place your speakers in the right location. To get the sound that’s produced by your home stereo system, you must place your other speakers at the right distance from you. Instead of placing your speakers in the dash or the doors, consider fitting your speakers in the kickpanels. This is because speakers placed in the kickpanels produce centralized sounds instead of sound that’s channelized towards the sides of the car.

Types of Subwoofers

Regardless of where you place your speakers you need to install and mount the subwoofer in the right manner so that it produces strong bass. There are 2 types of subwoofers that are commercially available. The first type is an unpowered subwoofer that isn’t equipped with a built in amplifier. The second type is equipped with an internal power supply and doesn’t require too much wiring. Apart from this, some subwoofers need to be mounted on a box or an enclosure while others are space saving subwoofers that don’t require an enclosure.

Installation of Subwoofers

To complete the mounting and installation you will require a few materials and tools. A tool kit, a saw, needle nose pliers, electrical tape, screws, a wrench and a glue gun are basic tools that you would need. Once you have these within reach, take your component subwoofer and position it in the enclosure. You will have to connect the leads to the terminal cup and secure the subwoofer in place with the help of mounting screws. Component subwoofers have to be connected to the amplifier to draw power. If you’re using powered subwoofers, you will not have to connect wires to the amplifier, but you will have to fix a patch cord. Since these powered subwoofers take up less space, they’re a better option.

General Placement of Subwoofers

If you own a sedan and have purchased a component subwoofer you will have to place it in the trunk and give it enough power so that the sound travels through the backseat of the vehicle. Alternatively, place the subwoofers in the front of the car and position them in such a way that they fire towards the rear of the vehicle. The best placement of subwoofers in an SUV is any area that’s close to the rear door.

Since these are only guidelines for the placement of subwoofers in your vehicle, you may have to change the location and the position of the speakers depending on the type of car audio system you purchase. It’s best to try out a few different locations before completing the installation.