Bass Shelter, subwoofers and two cats

Hello all. Trying to reorganise a massive project, bringing together a number of personal and semi pro projects together as the various subprojects are either interdependent or closely associated. I do most of these in step, working on a bit at a time

I have 5 years to complete the larger host projects and a fully equipped workshop and parts bin

Warning
The first 8 pages are full of very heavy going non-linear textual musings, revisions and misunderstandings. Best skip to post 156 as this is where systems are worked out and the real development work begins. I have found it impossible to convert the way my mind connects things to linear text, so the work part will mostly be pictorial with an open invitation for any aspect to be raised into a discussion

Breakdown of the subprojects

Tiny40s Subwoofer Challenge
Try to make a tiny subwoofer cab that can work down to 40hz or better with solid bass for close quarters listening. Been messing with this a bit and trying out a few things before making a full project of it

Volcanoe Bassinga Subwoofer
For my soundsystem. Trying to shrink deep low bass to small, highly transportable and adorable set of 4 cabs. Using pro-moble drivers

Volcanoe Bassinga, Marine Subwoofer
For my marine soundsytem, based on Polk Audio marine certified drivers

Volcanoe Nearfield Bass Monitor
For video and audio editing

Volcanoe Bassinga PR
Custom DIY marine grade passive radiators

Wavesinga Marine Subwoofer Driver
Custom DIY marine grade high xmax rotary motor driver

Club Sandwich
Porting boatbuilding FRP composites tech to subwoofer cab construction demo. Using digital workshop tech to eliminate messy bits. This will be used for cabs for the Volcanoes

These subprojects will be hosted on these project crafts

Bass Shelter
Mobile DJ booth. Promoting sound system hire, bass amp and guitar sales as well as new and used music shop and karaoke spot. Road transportable by trailer or carried on a 6m pontoon boat. This needs to have a self-sustaining electrical power systems for occupied use and an aux generator for letting rip. Following the local markets and events calendar

Volcano Soundsystem
Reggae, Dancehall and Reggaeton DJ plus karaoke and sound system hire. The focus here is massive bass systems and developing massive bass performance out of very small cabs. This will also feature a marine grade soundsytem and a set of marine grade 2.1 near to midfield systems

Bop
A 6m pontoon boat based on a pair of custom HDPE hulls with very narrow beams for good performance at displacement speeds. This vessel will be used as a floating music related for hire venue and family use. Built to marine survey

Tender to Bop
A Smartwave 3500 with a 30hp outboard. This vessel will dock with Bop as a central nacelle and petrol motive power. Basically a ute and lifeboat daughter craft. Built to marine survey

Bassinga
Daily use beachcat and on the water home office/nursery! An electric/human/wave powered craft that most of the subprojects will be fitted to

Bass Phoenix
A soundsystem masquerading as a beach exercise and transport machine 🙂 Built to Australian standards and marine survey. This chassis will be the basis of an etrike and water toy

I am in Hervey Bay, Qld. This is a sparsely populated area with large areas of calm water and long and empty beaches. It is also a major tourist hotspot and beach hire, markets, festivals and food truck type culture is alive and encouraged here. Noise pollution is not an issue as I will feature polite volume from the booth or tender, while nearby there is a loud Zumba joint that gets pretty loud. Some permits and are in place and some will be acquired once there are enough relevant details as the project matures

All comments and thoughts are welcome, as this more than experimental or downtime stuff. Anything that can pick out potential problems and pick apart misconceptions and fails would be amazing. I am well versed on the construction and marine side but acoustic design and electronics, I struggle

Bass shelter playlist
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLvXGZdJdbP2Lb-gYFxsxefvdCw0hHY3k7&si=FVas4cf5Nolw9BPg
 
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First step is to prepare a woodworking area. I am in a tiny home, the type that gets delivered on the back of two trucks and attached together. One of these sections is the parental retreat, and I am creating a home studio and a portable workbench in this area

Just outside on the tiny porch is my woodworking table and boatbuilding in the carport. Over the past few months, I have replaced most of the workshop power tools with a cordless system and keeping in the Ozito PXC brushless, a Bunnings house brand as well as a full-featured compound mitre saw, a bandsaw and desktop CNC

The project has had a lot of false starts with trying to find some direction and only now coming together as a sum of ideas and a platform. The two marine platforms are ready for fitting out, with most of the systems now having been explored and marked feasible. The same can be said for the work areas. Trying to fit my ideal display desktops has been problematic, and I finally give up on a built-in system and now creating a movable desk to solve space shortage issues. Its tricky. This desk needs to accommodate a 58" monitor, pro audio and DJ gear as well as the nearfield monitors, a trundle trolley for the benching gear and a table to work on

We get a lot of blackouts in this area so I have reserved a 120 amp hour deep cycle battery to create a PSU for all the digital gear to protect them. I have to figure out a charging system for this that can keep it topped up through most of the seasons. Most of the gear except for the subs and TV are USB powered

On the electronics side, first up I need a solid 12v to USB-C port and a solid and clean 12v to 240v ac outlet. I have a USB-A type of car panel mount style on hand to start off with but to be replaced or supplemented with a high performance USB-C port. Recommendations?
 
We get a lot of blackouts in this area so I have reserved a 120 amp hour deep cycle battery to create a PSU for all the digital gear to protect them.
"120 amp hour deep cycle battery" usually means lead/acid, LiFePO4 batteries with built in BMS (battery management system) are now more cost effective both in terms of amount of cycles and the amount of power that can be drawn from them.
 
"120 amp hour deep cycle battery" usually means lead/acid, LiFePO4 batteries with built in BMS (battery management system) are now more cost effective both in terms of amount of cycles and the amount of power that can be drawn from them.
This is a new AGM battery that I picked up for the trolling motor on the centre console but then decided to save more and get the LiFePO4 for the crafts and leave the heavy one at home running the Roland gear, laptop and TV. Its weight will have a righting moment effect to the 58" monitor mounted to uprights on the back of the desk
 
10" Android Head Unit
This head unit will be used for developing the audio system. Initially its main use will be workbench audio processor to provide the filters and eq via the built-in signal processing and preouts. This will be built into a transport case with built-in speakers and subs and a LiFePO4 battery plus a charging port for the bench 12v/car or boat 12v

I will use switched TR sockets to disable built in speakers when running testing external speakers. TR plugs that have wire screw down terminals to be kept ina storage compartment

I have these boards on hand to choose from for building into the portable case to run off the small lithium internal battery and to build into a chassis as a bench amplifier

TPA3221 x 1 board
Cheap 30wx2 class d x 2 boards
TDA7492 x 1 board
Cheap IRS2092 x 5 boards
1kw IRS2092 x 1 board

12v-24v Stepper x 1
24v PSU x 1
Dual 36v PSU

Leaning towards the TPA3321 and TDA7492 as the built-in amps for mains and sub. Not sure whether to run them directly off the 12v battery or via the stepper. Recommendations?

I'll do a simple wooden and aluminium case to house the smaller amps, battery, stereo speakers (pair taken from z623), dual opposed subs (pair taken from z623s). With onboard equipment being

Dynabook Protégé X30W-J laptop
Yamaha AG06mk2 as the audio interface
DATSv3
Multimeter

This will serve as the music system for my work area and be the portable audio bench and our take-away music and karaoke centre. The switched TR sockets mentioned earlier will be used to bypass the internal speakers when benching smaller speakers. The head unit is an unknown quantity and may or may not work out, but I have the flexibility of replacing that with a brand name unit down the road

I will need to create a bank of balanced and unbalanced I/O on this case as pre-out loops to enable good bench use

Let's get to work. This below is are the looms and pinouts for the sockets for the head unit. The power and rem/acc and ground is obvious but what about the key wires? And reverse and illumination? Can I use the remote out in the RCA break out bundle to loop back in to the illumination? So that when the power button is turned on it then lights up? Will need something like that and automated with the ability to turn off would be better

For the moment, I will use the head units internal amps to drive the internal speakers. Just to see how well they cope for low volume use. They are supposed to use some TDA series class A/B chips. Another things to discuss and workout the merits off. The head units internal amps or build some class d boards into the case?

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Does anyone know about the type of mic input on this device?

There are two types of USB ports on the back. Can one of them provide direct USB access to the Android operating system? Such as hooking up a USB controller directly to Android for use within apps?

Baby is awake and happy, so time to continue setting up the outside work areas. I have to cut out half the back wall of the car port to drive the long trailer holding the 6m hulls through this hole so I can park the car under shelter too! If anyone saw the TV footage of the murder scene, they would have seen the hulls parked roadside
 
The battery
What do you guys reckon, will this be sufficient to drive the head unit and build in TPA3221 or similar amps for a few hours at polite volumes? Looking for recommendations for a charging interface from a lid mounted solar panel as well as a 12v DC port. An interface that would allow me to charge it while it's being used. Very confused as to the correct type of charging system. I am able to add another batter later
 
I will use switched TR sockets to disable built in speakers when running testing external speakers. TR plugs that have wire screw down terminals to be kept ina storage compartment
Not sure what the TR sockets are, I would reccomend Neutrik Speakon for any speaker wiring connections. They come in 2 pole, 4 pole and 8 pole types.

Not sure whether to run them directly off the 12v battery or via the stepper. Recommendations?
Higher input voltage if the devices take a wide range is generally better.
The head unit is an unknown quantity and may or may not work out, but I have the flexibility of replacing that with a brand name unit down the road
Nothing more expensive than buying the same product twice, in my opinion.
And reverse and illumination? Can I use the remote out in the RCA break out bundle to loop back in to the illumination? So that when the power button is turned on it then lights up? Will need something like that and automated with the ability to turn off would be better

Reverse will trigger the display to show the back up camera signal feed. Illumination wire will dim the display, used to dim the display when you turn your dash lights down in a vehicle / headlights on.

Not sure about the key2 function or the usb inputs.
 
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The battery
What do you guys reckon, will this be sufficient to drive the head unit and build in TPA3221 or similar amps for a few hours at polite volumes?

No. 1 hour at 7 amps draw. No documentation on that Android head unit as to how much current it consumes.

If you want good quality solar panels, battery management / charging / inverters etc, check out Redarc solutions for campers:

https://www.redarcelectronics.com/au/
 
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Not sure what the TR sockets are, I would reccomend Neutrik Speakon for any speaker wiring connections. They come in 2 pole, 4 pole and 8 pole types.


Higher input voltage if the devices take a wide range is generally better.

Nothing more expensive than buying the same product twice, in my opinion.


Reverse will trigger the display to show the back up camera signal feed. Illumination wire will dim the display, used to dim the display when you turn your dash lights down in a vehicle / headlights on.

Not sure about the key2 function or the usb inputs.
No. 1 hour at 7 amps draw. No documentation on that Android head unit as to how much current it consumes.

If you want good quality solar panels, battery management / charging / inverters etc, check out Redarc solutions for campers:

https://www.redarcelectronics.com/au
Thanks man, greatly appreciated

The TR plugs are what I know mono guitar lead type ‘tip’ ‘ring’ and TRS is ‘tip’ ‘ring’ ‘sleeve’ stereo headphones type. The switched one are the type that disable internal routing when plugged in

I do have a bunch of speakons in the stash

Regarding the voltage, would that up stepper cause noise issues?

I agree with the buying once sentiment but units like this are at the upper price range and I think it would be interesting to see how the no name holds up. Will have use for 4 such units if this one holds up

The keys may be for driver settings depending on key used. My last car had that. There might be some potential to use a 2 way switch to instantly shift from one set of settings to another. Reverse seems useful if a switch is used. I wonder if the head unit can record the video together with audio from the mic input

Battery is difficult. They take up space which may make the case too large. I will have to find a balance. Does an extra battery add another hours use?
 
The head unit has a blue blade fuse, 15 amps? I can't make out the writing. The power chips are
https://powermavelectronics.com/shop/ic/yd7388-amplifier-ic/

Is there a way to subtract the amp draw at full flight from the 15 amps to arrive at a max draw via pre-outs only?

The TPA3221 board that I have looks very well-built. I might get another one of these, so I can use only those as the internal amps. I never hear anything regarding these on the forum. Are they as good as the more powerful ones in the series? As long as I can get my target volume with a good battery life

Target volume from the case built in speakers would be max average 96dB at 1m nearfield

This is about my working distance. Will need to achieve good battery life for this with the backup solar panel deployed at daytime and a small wind turbine at night. A horizontal axis 400w DIY wind turbine would be fun. I have a BLDC washing machine motor that might turn out to be nuts for this 🙂

But that turbine is for the booth roof. Getting high speaker efficiency is going to be the key for extended and unsupported battery life

The panels on the canopies of the water crafts will receive quality panels and related gear. I just remembered that I have a trade account with Supercheap group. Their shops include BCF and Supercheap Auto. Au market branded products with proper warranties. This case, on the other hand, might be the place to experiment with an eBay or Ali type diy panel

For the moment, I will run it from the 120 amp hour AGM battery and measure its drain. Then go about acquiring any extra LiFePO4 battery and the charging system
 
The TR plugs are what I know mono guitar lead type ‘tip’ ‘ring’ and TRS is ‘tip’ ‘ring’ ‘sleeve’ stereo headphones type. The switched one are the type that disable internal routing when plugged in

I do have a bunch of speakons in the stash
TS plugs temporarily short the tip to the sleeve when plugged in, even a temporary short can destroy an amplifier at high power.
The tiny contact area heats up, wasting power. 1/4" TS are only rated at 1A, 25V DC, 25 watts. 200 watts or so is about as high as you should go with music.
Use the Speakons for speakers..
Does an extra battery add another hours use?
Depends on the battery and the load.
To figure watt hours, just take the battery voltage times amp hours.
12v x 7AH = 84 watt hours.

Your system will have a quiescent load, the power used whether the music is playing or not.
Quiescent may be 5-15 watts.
Class D amps are generally in the 90% efficiency range above quiescent.
Music generally doesn't average more than 1/8th of the peak power.
A 96dB 1w/1m system would hit 106dB with 10 watts, so might only average 1.25 watts, under 1.5 watts figuring amp losses.
 
TS plugs temporarily short the tip to the sleeve when plugged in, even a temporary short can destroy an amplifier at high power.
The tiny contact area heats up, wasting power. 1/4" TS are only rated at 1A, 25V DC, 25 watts. 200 watts or so is about as high as you should go with music.
Use the Speakons for speakers..
Hey Art, Déjà vu or we have had this exchange before.? I keep thinking TR when it is TS, maybe because of the TRS? Thanks for picking up the shorting issue, (again?)

Depends on the battery and the load.
I think I will stick with the battery model linked earlier. It's nice and light and the proportions match the intended use. I am able to fit three of those in. The supplier is an Australian UPS builder, so this is a trusted source and free of quality issues and worrying about if it is a fake and things

Load? You must have twigged on to the fact that I am floundering 'a bit' here!

A 96dB 1w/1m system would hit 106dB with 10 watts, so might only average 1.25 watts, under 1.5 watts figuring amp losses.
Allow me to lean on you here a bit, please. Is it better to get those 10 watts from a small chip amp like a TPA3118 type or the TPA3221 that I picked? Maybe I am imagining this, but that dry short kick feels a lot more credible coming from a larger amp, even at very late night volumes. I keep wondering about whether this is about dynamic peaks. Or managing the back EMF from the big motors. Apologies if this sounds inane, I just spent the day in the sun on the beach with the baby and a litre of coffee!
 
I don't think we had the 1/4" conversation before, I had to look up the specs to see how low they actually are.
Switchcraft makes a 1/4" TRS with a nylon ring that can avoid the shorting problem. I used them in the 1970s after shorting problems before going to high power connectors that could not short-circuit amps.

Low power amps reduce cost and the quiescent load, but it's better to size an amp for the use, if you clip a small amp it sounds like crap and will draw more power with peaks getting no louder.

You could fit 3 of these batteries in the same space as the 7AH model, and have 30% more power.
https://www.lanplus.com.au/index.php?route=product/product&language=en-gb&product_id=513&path=80
That said, a single larger frame battery would have better power density and more AH per $$, using less space.
And the larger batteries use decent size connectors, those T2 (1/4" 6.35 mm) connectors are only good for 24amps using 10AWG (2.59mm) wire,
not enough to safely handle the amperage three of these batteries can produce, ~150 amps.
Use fuses or circuit breakers on each battery to be (more) safe.

Screen Shot 2024-08-28 at 12.44.52 PM.png

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You could fit 3 of these batteries in the same space as the 7AH model, and have 30% more power.
The seller offers a free upgrade to the 10AH, which is what I actually have here. I didn't take it out of the box again, so forgot about the upgrade offer.

I might stick with the TPA3221 for now and see how much the case draws. Would I need a clamp type meter for this? Would a 50Hz sine wave overlaid with 1khz be the right way to send the test signal through the line in and have the system do work splitting that up to the channels. Can this load up the amps/system to a steady draw at 96dB and max volume?
 
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Not my boat, online image used to illustrate the hull type for the tender. My hulls are in storage. This will be a very wet boat. Not only spray but dripping human traffic. This vessel will also need an efficient music system. Again, the largest load will be the subs. Also in physical terms too. The vessel doesn't have a great deal of displacement for large subs or battery banks. It will already be loaded with the 72v hybrid electric/petrol/solar drive system. I need to build in the audio performance of the JBL BB3
https://www.jbl.com/bluetooth-speakers/BOOMBOX-3-.html

Not inclined to buy, would rather DIY. The BB3 is in common use here and seems adequate, except for could use more detail in the bass. Audio system is best run off the 72v propulsion system to make use of the available regen options. A good 2-3hr battery life before the petrol regen kicks in with polite levels surrounding the vessel would be good. I can get around 600w of solar on the canopy to keep the batteries topped up when only the audio system is playing
 
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Looks like my only reasonable option for power
https://ds18.com/products/hydro-micro-marine-grade-amplifier-4-channel-400-watts

This has on board filters so all I will need will be main speakers, subs and the Yamaha AG06mk2 or another similar but budget unit. A waterproof case with a clear lid will suit, as well as music from iPhone over Bluetooth.

Speakers I am not too sure off yet. Maybe I can use a 15" Rosso in a ported box? I wonder how well it can handle salty air? This might not be the best place to use car type marine subs as efficiency is a requirement
 
Spent today taking a closer look at how the two vessels will dock. Getting the booth onto the boat might be problematic. Since the tender will carry the drivetrains and will slot between the main demihullls and be raised and locked into position, I can get away with something simpler

The tender makes up most of the central deck when raised
Contains the electrical system and drivetrain
Contains a marine grade sound system
The sonar and nav
Petrol tank

I am now thinking of having the booth as ground based and trailer transported only

Instead, a better system will be to have the two main hulls 2m apart and a narrow deck on top of each, plus a two-meter fore deck. If I implement the main hulls rear and centre cross-beams as 'U's and a pair of rails on that, they can allow the tender to be winched into position boat trailer style. Once docked, the tender floor will form the central main and rear deck. I have experience building dry docks, so this can work very well

The cockpit position on the tender will have great view while driving the larger hulls. I think I will pass on the petrol outboard motors for the main hull and instead have them electric too. Will be much cheaper initially and self serviceable, plus I don't need the larger craft for speed. I will have to ration the item weights between the two vessels. Maybe only one motor and EV range extender on the tender and another set on each main hull, forming a three motor system when driven while docked? The tender only needs to carry enough battery for sound system use and a reservoir for the drive train. Power from shore to mothership and such can be from the range extender and won't use much fuel for the expected runs, plus it can go slow on the 600w of rooftop solar. The main hulls will have a roof/cabin over the docking bay so can carry a lot of daytime cruise solar panels

So this cabin would best designed to augment the bass from the tender mounted sub/subs, direct and amplify to the shore or a raft of vessels/sups and such. Maybe if the tender was only tasked to carry two up, then I can get away with a single 18" driven of that marine amps channel three and four and bridged.

A central nacelle on the tender deck will be cool. This can form the sub cab and driving seat and deck chair if long enough. I will use a lot of foam based construction on this vessel to keep weights down. Under the tender deck will be a 3.6m SUP fitted. This will form the lower part of the central nacelle and be out of the water usually but there for extra level flotation and a good way to carry a SUP

A lot depends on the capabilities of the tender hulls. They just might not allow intended use. In that case, the booth would be taken on again. The tender hulls need to be sink tested and with weight placements. (sand bags). The main hulls are already done to survey

Pic, picking up the hulls after getting them filled with survey grade foam. I bought an old trailer for its main frame and converted that to hold the pair of hulls, and I also converted it to dual axle. Maybe I can just build this to 2m and have the tender pulled up the side like a floating porch?. Lots to work out, big project

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