I've read some stuff on this link, which lead me to here.
The Speaker Building Bible - Techtalk Speaker Building, Audio, Video, and Electronics Customer Discussion Forum From Parts-Express.com
From what I've learned, I definitely want a sealed sub.
I care about quality far more than volume. I don't really do 'loud.'
This guide told me to find a project that's been done / proven before, and do it myself.
FYI, my area is 15'x10', will be carpeted. I will be using the sub to listen to country music.
Can anyone suggest a build for me?
The people over on AVS make me think I should do 15".
Reading those articles, I found the text at the bottom.
"The reason is simply that a sealed driver will roll-off at 12db octave in an enclosure with a Qtc of .707. It is also possible to make the sealed enclosure slightly larger and obtain a roll-off of 10db per octave. A ported enclosure will roll-off significantly faster 24db/octave in an enclosure with a Qtc of 1. Other ported enclosures will have similar roll off slopes. The roll off slope of a subwoofer is VERY important when determining in-room response. When attempting to mate the woofer to the typical 20hz room lift of 6-8 db the sealed woofer’s 10-12db roll-off is significantly closer then the ported enclosure 24db roll-off. Matching the subwoofer roll-off to the room lift is necessary to obtain the proper balance between the fundamental and harmonic frequencies reproduced by the subwoofer."
on Subwoofers
Thanks for advice.
The Speaker Building Bible - Techtalk Speaker Building, Audio, Video, and Electronics Customer Discussion Forum From Parts-Express.com
From what I've learned, I definitely want a sealed sub.
I care about quality far more than volume. I don't really do 'loud.'
This guide told me to find a project that's been done / proven before, and do it myself.
FYI, my area is 15'x10', will be carpeted. I will be using the sub to listen to country music.
Can anyone suggest a build for me?
The people over on AVS make me think I should do 15".
Reading those articles, I found the text at the bottom.
"The reason is simply that a sealed driver will roll-off at 12db octave in an enclosure with a Qtc of .707. It is also possible to make the sealed enclosure slightly larger and obtain a roll-off of 10db per octave. A ported enclosure will roll-off significantly faster 24db/octave in an enclosure with a Qtc of 1. Other ported enclosures will have similar roll off slopes. The roll off slope of a subwoofer is VERY important when determining in-room response. When attempting to mate the woofer to the typical 20hz room lift of 6-8 db the sealed woofer’s 10-12db roll-off is significantly closer then the ported enclosure 24db roll-off. Matching the subwoofer roll-off to the room lift is necessary to obtain the proper balance between the fundamental and harmonic frequencies reproduced by the subwoofer."
on Subwoofers
Thanks for advice.
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Sorry, I forgot to answer two of your questions.
My carpentry skills are poor, but I can go slow.. and if all else fails, I can ask my brother who went to college for carpentry.
The $200-$300 is not to include aesthetic costs.
I haven't checked parts express... You mentioned they have kits. How do I know if their kits will hit 20hz or lower, or how many dB it loses over the spread, etc?
*Just checked parts express. They only have 1 sub kit in my price range, and it only goes to 30hz. . . and it's an entire kit, including the cabinet. I probably don't have to do much more than a few screws and wiring?
*
I'm a noob, be gentle.
My carpentry skills are poor, but I can go slow.. and if all else fails, I can ask my brother who went to college for carpentry.
The $200-$300 is not to include aesthetic costs.
I haven't checked parts express... You mentioned they have kits. How do I know if their kits will hit 20hz or lower, or how many dB it loses over the spread, etc?
*Just checked parts express. They only have 1 sub kit in my price range, and it only goes to 30hz. . . and it's an entire kit, including the cabinet. I probably don't have to do much more than a few screws and wiring?
*I'm a noob, be gentle.
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What sort of music do you listen to?
How loud do you want it?
Are there any size limitations?
A solid 30Hz output is respectable. I don't know why people think we can hear to 20Hz, I've got headphones that bottom out before I hear 20Hz. For music use, there's not a lot to gain by going that bit lower, unless you like large scale organ music, where 16Hz tends to be the target (and 16Hz occurs rarely in organ music, the buildings around the organ tend not to like it).
Chris
How loud do you want it?
Are there any size limitations?
A solid 30Hz output is respectable. I don't know why people think we can hear to 20Hz, I've got headphones that bottom out before I hear 20Hz. For music use, there's not a lot to gain by going that bit lower, unless you like large scale organ music, where 16Hz tends to be the target (and 16Hz occurs rarely in organ music, the buildings around the organ tend not to like it).
Chris
Why are you responding to your own messages??
OK. The board musta burped and didn't load the posted messages. I thought you deleted your message, so I deleted mine.
Anyhow... the enclosure needs to be solid and airtight. Rabbeted joints are good, but a butt joint can work as well. Just want you to be aware of it.
Parts Express #300-770 would do you, but I understand you want a bit more involvement. They do have quite a selection, so check out the drivers for something that suits you. Or a plate amp like they use in their kits. They may have some in-house designs on their website, and they have a forum where you can get help. Maybe there's a kit recommended in this diyAudio forum. You definitely don't want to do a "from the ground up" design. A web search is in order.
You're gonna listen to country music, not church organs or the Bass Daddies rap group, so don't get too hung up on "20Hz or lower". There's not much music down at those low frequencies.
OK. The board musta burped and didn't load the posted messages. I thought you deleted your message, so I deleted mine.
Anyhow... the enclosure needs to be solid and airtight. Rabbeted joints are good, but a butt joint can work as well. Just want you to be aware of it.
Parts Express #300-770 would do you, but I understand you want a bit more involvement. They do have quite a selection, so check out the drivers for something that suits you. Or a plate amp like they use in their kits. They may have some in-house designs on their website, and they have a forum where you can get help. Maybe there's a kit recommended in this diyAudio forum. You definitely don't want to do a "from the ground up" design. A web search is in order.
You're gonna listen to country music, not church organs or the Bass Daddies rap group, so don't get too hung up on "20Hz or lower". There's not much music down at those low frequencies.
I know.. that's why I was asking for someone to point me to a project that's been done before, that will match what I need.
I've seen some, but they never post their specs (dB loss over Hz spread).
What about this?
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=295-034
I've seen some, but they never post their specs (dB loss over Hz spread).
What about this?
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=295-034
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Here's 3 very different designs from Parts Express.
Parts Express DIY Project
Enclosure building at its simplest. And you don't need the 1000 watt amp. Other driver+amp combinations will work.
http://www.parts-express.com/projectshowcase/indexn.cfm?project=whtsub
You'll probably want your brother's help if you choose this one. Remember, measure twice and cut once.
Parts Express DIY Project
You might want more than this project provides, but if you choose it ask the PE folks about boosting it up with a different driver+amp. I'm sure they'll come up with something.
Mr. Google can surely point to more.
Parts Express DIY Project
Enclosure building at its simplest. And you don't need the 1000 watt amp. Other driver+amp combinations will work.
http://www.parts-express.com/projectshowcase/indexn.cfm?project=whtsub
You'll probably want your brother's help if you choose this one. Remember, measure twice and cut once.
Parts Express DIY Project
You might want more than this project provides, but if you choose it ask the PE folks about boosting it up with a different driver+amp. I'm sure they'll come up with something.
Mr. Google can surely point to more.
http://www.parts-express.com/projectshowcase/indexn.cfm?project=Drake
This makes me smile.
But I have a question.
The image only shows one brace in the measurements, but the other image shows multiple braces.
It looks like the hole in the braces are the same size as the sub's hole, but I don't want to assume.
Is the 15" ID or OD?
And this uses a rackmounted amp. If I get a plate amp as was suggested, I will need new dimensions.
~
Different question.
This has a pretty flat response. Don't I want a 6dB drop per X (every time the HZ is split in half I think?) because my home has studded drywalls?
This makes me smile.
But I have a question.
The image only shows one brace in the measurements, but the other image shows multiple braces.
It looks like the hole in the braces are the same size as the sub's hole, but I don't want to assume.
Is the 15" ID or OD?
And this uses a rackmounted amp. If I get a plate amp as was suggested, I will need new dimensions.
~
Different question.
This has a pretty flat response. Don't I want a 6dB drop per X (every time the HZ is split in half I think?) because my home has studded drywalls?
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There are no braces per se. He used a double thickness for the baffle (so yes, two holes of the driver's mounting diameter).
He also divided the enclosure into two sections. The rear section was room for the plate amp. PE is out of stock with the plate amp, so they want to sell the rack mount instead. But the design was for a plate amp.
ID or OD? You'll be cutting the holes, so you tell us.
He does mention tweaking a subwoofer EQ to optimize performance. You could add a circuit if you want that control.
You said you weren't going to be playing it loudly. If so, wall construction is less important. Notice that nobody mentions it in any of those PE projects. There's gonna be a natural dB/octave drop in any case. You can't avoid it.
You're not going to find a "perfect" project. It's DIY. You have to modify things things to suit *your* needs and budget.
He also divided the enclosure into two sections. The rear section was room for the plate amp. PE is out of stock with the plate amp, so they want to sell the rack mount instead. But the design was for a plate amp.
ID or OD? You'll be cutting the holes, so you tell us.
He does mention tweaking a subwoofer EQ to optimize performance. You could add a circuit if you want that control.
You said you weren't going to be playing it loudly. If so, wall construction is less important. Notice that nobody mentions it in any of those PE projects. There's gonna be a natural dB/octave drop in any case. You can't avoid it.
You're not going to find a "perfect" project. It's DIY. You have to modify things things to suit *your* needs and budget.
I think you'll find that people here start with the driver first. if you find a driver and amp, say: Dayton Audio DCS380-4 15" Classic Subwoofer 4 Ohm and Dayton Audio SA100 100W Subwoofer Amplifier , we'll happily tell you how large a box to build to get the roll-off you want.
With the speaker above, If you wanted a 12db per octave rolloff you'd build an 8ft^3 box 2'X2'X2' or any variation that would get you 8ft cube.
With the speaker above, If you wanted a 12db per octave rolloff you'd build an 8ft^3 box 2'X2'X2' or any variation that would get you 8ft cube.
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6db drop per octave (yes each octave is a doubling of frequency, one octave higher than 32hz is 64hz.) would require a very large box or lots of power and active signal boosting.
Hey,
Dayton Audio RSS390HF-4 15" Reference HF Subwoofer 4 Ohm
This one is reference too. Only $30 more and 3" bigger. Good idea?
~Just noticed you pointed me to a much cheaper 15" dayton. How do they compare?
Revboden,
What roll-off do I want for my room (remember I'm more concerned about quality/detail than volume)? I realize perfection isn't an option, but what's my best bet?
And what do I want, 6dB roll-off or -6dB roll-off?
Should I just use this? good compromise? " That driver in a 8ft cube box would give a 8db roll off. max of 105db using 58 watts. "
It puts me a little over $300, but not too much.
Here's a picture of my room. I will have (furniture, not speakers) bookshelves up against the back of the sofa to close off the room more. That turns my room into 10x15 with a few gaps where there aren't book shelves. I could put up some sort of door if it helps a lot. I will carpet the floor, too. The desks will be turned into wall-braced counter tops with a soft material on top (and thus no legs).
Dayton Audio RSS390HF-4 15" Reference HF Subwoofer 4 Ohm
This one is reference too. Only $30 more and 3" bigger. Good idea?
~Just noticed you pointed me to a much cheaper 15" dayton. How do they compare?
Revboden,
What roll-off do I want for my room (remember I'm more concerned about quality/detail than volume)? I realize perfection isn't an option, but what's my best bet?
And what do I want, 6dB roll-off or -6dB roll-off?
Should I just use this? good compromise? " That driver in a 8ft cube box would give a 8db roll off. max of 105db using 58 watts. "
It puts me a little over $300, but not too much.
Here's a picture of my room. I will have (furniture, not speakers) bookshelves up against the back of the sofa to close off the room more. That turns my room into 10x15 with a few gaps where there aren't book shelves. I could put up some sort of door if it helps a lot. I will carpet the floor, too. The desks will be turned into wall-braced counter tops with a soft material on top (and thus no legs).
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
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I like Dayton Audio RSS315HF-4 12" Reference HF Subwoofer 4 Ohm paired with Dayton Audio SA100 100W Subwoofer Amplifier
Your budget really doesn't allow for an amp suitable for the 15" model, IMO. The pair above are right at the border. You should be able to hit low-90s SPLs fairly easy, which is probably louder than you have in mind right now, judging from what you've said. You'll likely have plenty of headroom to spare. And Parts Express will provide free tech support. They want you as a long-term customer! I wouldn't be surprised if you could get advice straight from the Drake designer Darren K himself. He's been at PE for years, has lots of DIY experience, and knows PE's products. And there's liable to be some right here that know these parts and how to best utilize them.
Your budget really doesn't allow for an amp suitable for the 15" model, IMO. The pair above are right at the border. You should be able to hit low-90s SPLs fairly easy, which is probably louder than you have in mind right now, judging from what you've said. You'll likely have plenty of headroom to spare. And Parts Express will provide free tech support. They want you as a long-term customer! I wouldn't be surprised if you could get advice straight from the Drake designer Darren K himself. He's been at PE for years, has lots of DIY experience, and knows PE's products. And there's liable to be some right here that know these parts and how to best utilize them.
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