thanks for the advice sean. im going to just listen to it and if it sounds the same or better ill keep them in till my next comp. if it sounds worse im taking them out regardless of db increase. if it does sounds better tho i might just go ahead and permanently install them.
First thing i need to do tho is line the inside of the boxes with polyfill to try and reduce the hollow sound it has at lower volumes due to the ports being so large and the long shape of the box.
the boxes are 35"deep and only 18.5" wide including the 4" wide port. so it has a less than ideal shape for minimizing standing waves. I might also add 45's to all the interior corners to reduce this effect as much as possible.
of course i need to do all of these one at a time to see if i can notice a difference which is going to be a pain for various reasons
i have less than others running tens. and im not having any issues with the subs acting as in free air. they actually remain highly controlled even below tuning.
i had 62" of port area in my old box and it wasnt as loud but it was also a different alignment with the subs up port back.
i wish i had a meter to play with so i could test box positions to find which is the loudest. sq wise it sounds the same weather i have the boxes all the way forward or back. but judging from thorshammer on ca.com all the way back is the loudest.
Im guessing this has to do with back wave cancellation even though he claims its a perfect seal which theoretically eliminates any waves from the cabin to get back into the trunk. but i still think this must be the reason at least to some effect since smaller air space should = more output ceteris paribus