Weak Bass & Road Noise

[ScottDoom]

Shortly after getting my Versa, I installed a Pioneer deck unit and also scored some Clarion speakers with a retail of $350/pair for really cheap.

However, the bass is still pretty weak and I can only hear/feel it at low speeds. If I get up the highway speeds I can only hear the treble.

With my last two vehicles, I had only rear-mounted Pioneer 6x9" speakers with no subwoofer and they provided enough bass that I could hear and feel it at high speeds.

I think the problem with the Versa hatch is that all the speakers are door-mounted, and the doors are rather thin.

So I'm wondering if Dynamat would help? Or is that just one of those consumer rip-offs that actually do nothing? I've never really looked into it. Something to pad up behind the woofers in the doors so they bring more power back into the vehicle...

I may just get a small subwoofer and amp...

[Shad0wXCalibur]

You'll need a subwoofer. It's possible to get bass out of just the speakers but there's no substitute for the low, clean bass of a subwoofer. I got the box, amp, and sub and built mine for a little over $100. It's not a window-breaker but I don't need a 500 watt setup for just music. Rear deck mounted speakers work a lot better in the bass department because it's using the entire trunk as an enclosure.

[kartracer90]

Dyanmat will reduce the amount of road noise for sure expecially if you cover the entire outer door skin, floor, and trunk lid and sides mostly i would recomend just the doors first and if need be then the other. Everything about the versa is thin nothing on them is thick enough to keep out all the noise of the road. As for the rear mounted 6X9's your talking about, keep in mind your compairing for vehicle to another, your comparing 2 different speakers, and one with alot more surface area than another. Comparing that kind of thing to another is almost impossible to really make a fair comparison.

[Kingdom934]

You'll need a subwoofer. It's possible to get bass out of just the speakers but there's no substitute for the low, clean bass of a subwoofer. I got the box, amp, and sub and built mine for a little over $100. It's not a window-breaker but I don't need a 500 watt setup for just music. Rear deck mounted speakers work a lot better in the bass department because it's using the entire trunk as an enclosure.

Yep. Rear deck speakers make a big difference. My mom's Camry 6X9 does a way better job with the lows since it has all the trunk as the enclosure VS my Versa 6 1/2 door. If you want really good lows on the V, Need a sub.

[ScottDoom]

I think I'm going to put in Dynamat first. Is there any alternative to Dynamat that works really well?

I've read some reviews on Dynamat, and it sounds like it helps people a lot in getting better mids and reducing road noise. Plus it makes the doors feel heavier, which is another complaint I have about the Versa... Cheap doors.

[Shad0wXCalibur]

I would say compared to other econocars, the Versa is quiet and the doors have a big feel to them. Compared to a full size sedan? No, but drive a Yaris or a first gen Neon and you'll see what I mean.

I did just recently try out some sound deadening to get rid of the somewhat "hollow" type sound the speakers have and to see if it would help reduce road noise further. I used a spray instead of a solid mat called Quiet Kote by Cascade I believe. I bought two cans to do the front door panels. One can per panel. I masked them off real good and had at it. Before I put the panels back on, I decided to try a 2nd ghetto layer. I used the foam eggcrate liner from our bed and cut it out to fit over the plastic liner attached to the door frame and cut out the holes for everything and stuck the panels back on. Surely ghetto but it was free and I think it may have actually done something. After my first drive, I won't tell you it made a huge difference but I did notice. Coupled with my Cooper CS4 Touring tires, it felt like I was driving something higher level instead of an econocar. The doors felt heavier and had a solid thud when you closed them instead of that hollow sound. Oh and you'd be surprised at how much those plastic panels absorb wether you sound deaden them or not. I left them off because my speakers hadn't come in yet and drove around without them and THAT was loud. You could hear everything the tires were coming into contact with. Tar strips, cracks, rocks, etc

Edit: I had the idea to put something directly behind the speaker to absorb some resonances but theres a steel beam right behind it. I just sprayed some of that Quiet Kote stuff at it. Don't know wether it did anything but my system sounds pretty decent so far. And here's a pic of the stuff

[CrankyVersa]

Not to rain on Shadows advice, but rubberized undercoating from the auto parts store will do the same thing as the VB-1. Also its a lot cheaper too, i like the pro line from Duplicolor.

[randy8876]

I'm ordering about $300 worth of sound deadening stuff from Second Skin. I used it in my Dodge Ram and even with an aftermarket exhaust it is much quieter than any truck I've ever been in.

You can save some money doing a bulk purchase with some other people in your area, or waiting for a B stock special.

[Shad0wXCalibur]

Not to rain on Shadows advice, but rubberized undercoating from the auto parts store will do the same thing as the VB-1. Also its a lot cheaper too, i like the pro line from Duplicolor.

I never really thought about that. I'll try that because that Quiet Kote stuff isn't exactly cheap so I was gonna stop at just the front door panels. I'll get a few cans of that stuff and do the rear panels too and maybe some other areas. What other areas do you think will make a difference? I'm not bothering with the trunk since it would take so much to cover and it's already pretty blocked off by the back seat and rear shelf.

[CrankyVersa]

I would do the floor as well as the front firewall in combo with some Dynamat extreme or your mat of choice