I appreciate this might be a bit of an open ended question (and highly driver dependant) but, if you have a mid-bass driver that is better suited to a ported enclosure, is there any significant downside to using it in a sealed enclosure if you plan for the bass frequencies to be handled by a subwoofer?
The specific example is a Scan-Speak 21W/8554-00 8" mid-bass, which has an Efficiency Bandwidth Product (EBP, or fs/Qes) of 92. I understand that values under 50 are generally better for sealed enclosures and over 50 for ported; so this driver is very much in the "port it" range.
The predicted response for the driver in a 40 litre ported enclosure vs an 11 litre sealed indicates that it should be very similar down to around 130Hz, and only differing by ~2dB at 80Hz. If I were to use an 11 litre sealed design with a separate subwoofer crossed over at 100Hz, would this likely "work" (in the sense that there should be no negative consequences over 100Hz, and on the assumption the sub would provide sufficient bass below 100Hz)?
The specific example is a Scan-Speak 21W/8554-00 8" mid-bass, which has an Efficiency Bandwidth Product (EBP, or fs/Qes) of 92. I understand that values under 50 are generally better for sealed enclosures and over 50 for ported; so this driver is very much in the "port it" range.
The predicted response for the driver in a 40 litre ported enclosure vs an 11 litre sealed indicates that it should be very similar down to around 130Hz, and only differing by ~2dB at 80Hz. If I were to use an 11 litre sealed design with a separate subwoofer crossed over at 100Hz, would this likely "work" (in the sense that there should be no negative consequences over 100Hz, and on the assumption the sub would provide sufficient bass below 100Hz)?
It's generally easier to integrate subs and satellites when you seal the sats.
But if you might someday want to use them standalone, you might want to make them intermediate in size, tuned low to reduce the peak,
and stuff the ports when using subs.
Something like 17-18 liters,tuned somewhere near fs(the smaller box reduces extension, the low tune removes the resulting bump).
Sim it and see, also look at how others use the 21w(unless making a tall floorstander, I would probably never put it in near 40 liters).
But if you might someday want to use them standalone, you might want to make them intermediate in size, tuned low to reduce the peak,
and stuff the ports when using subs.
Something like 17-18 liters,tuned somewhere near fs(the smaller box reduces extension, the low tune removes the resulting bump).
Sim it and see, also look at how others use the 21w(unless making a tall floorstander, I would probably never put it in near 40 liters).
The issue is basically Wife Acceptance Factor; I've used those drivers in a pair of 40 litre tall floorstanders for years, but that's no longer "acceptable". I have however managed to negotiate a couple of side tables into the living room that are actually subwoofers. It occurred to me that I could then use the 8554 drivers to make a much smaller pair of sealed speakers (that would be acceptable in terms of size); as long as running them sealed wouldn't have a negative effect on the sound quality above 100Hz (vs the ported design). They'd always be used with the subs, so no worries there.
They'll be fine.
Don't sweat specific volume, you might be able to chop down your 'monsters' and only have to high pass them, your crossover
in them could stay the same(width & driver spacing from top staying the same).
I did this once, 27 to 13 liters, half the height, three inches off the depth(finish was easy,tho-they were white formica).
Don't sweat specific volume, you might be able to chop down your 'monsters' and only have to high pass them, your crossover
in them could stay the same(width & driver spacing from top staying the same).
I did this once, 27 to 13 liters, half the height, three inches off the depth(finish was easy,tho-they were white formica).
