I wish to step up from my two sealed DCS205 8" subs. They do a fine job down to ~27Hz in room, but surely they aren't quite endgame. I'm going for two subs again, around 40 liters per box, under 1000€ in total. I prefer sealed with DSP (MSO is great) and I do appreciate response down to 20Hz even if the content is scarce - shouldn't be a problem, considering my experience with the 8 inch subs.
There seems to be plenty of nice options for the drivers, but it's difficult to pick one in the absence of Klippel reports or even repeatable HD tests.
Browsing for subs with a strong motor, reasonable Xmax and low end extension I landed on the RSS315HO-44, which seems to reach very deep naturally (Fsc/F10 36/22 Hz) and scores even better in HD at hifi-selbstbau than the highly praised SDX12 (another great option, though expensive). @mayhem13 has mentioned the HO-44 making noise in high SPL use which might not be my case, but it does make the HF-4 a more reasonable alternative. It doesn't quite have the natural low bass at 45/26 Hz, but not bad either, and scores almost as well in HD.
I then wondered if I should go for two 10" units instead for force cancellation. I browsed loudspeakerdatabase again and came across the Peerless XLS10 830452 which seems like a very well regarded unit. It doesn't model very deep at 49/34 Hz, but the Qtc comes out to just 0.479. Now, I don't know if there's a significant benefit in "natural" low end extension - surely there's some benefit in having the impedance peak where output is most required - but it occurred to me that the low Q "allows" adding mass to the cones. 30g extra gives them a Qtc of 0.626 and similar extension to the HO-44 while requiring less amp apparent power overall. Seems like a cool idea, but no idea if it's worth the trouble. SW26DBACs would be another commercially proven choice for dual opposed and no extra mass required, but looking at the AudioXpress Klippel results, I feel like the cost isn't quite justified.
Next I remembered people praising low loss suspensions for "sound quality" or "chest slam" - my alternatives so far fare pretty poorly in that regard. I browsed again, and came across the SB34SWPL76, which models similar to the HO-44 while having a lot looser suspension. Not a fan of the cone to frame ratio, but it's not a significant problem. There's little data on the performance, but it does have me curious. I wasn't surprised to also find stuff like Wavecor, Scan-Speak or Peerless NE series when having the criteria for Qms or Cms. If I could find the Klippel proven 32W on sale, I might just splurge on those...
Any suggestions appreciated, though I don't see much use in "I've used X and it sounded good" 🙂
There seems to be plenty of nice options for the drivers, but it's difficult to pick one in the absence of Klippel reports or even repeatable HD tests.
Browsing for subs with a strong motor, reasonable Xmax and low end extension I landed on the RSS315HO-44, which seems to reach very deep naturally (Fsc/F10 36/22 Hz) and scores even better in HD at hifi-selbstbau than the highly praised SDX12 (another great option, though expensive). @mayhem13 has mentioned the HO-44 making noise in high SPL use which might not be my case, but it does make the HF-4 a more reasonable alternative. It doesn't quite have the natural low bass at 45/26 Hz, but not bad either, and scores almost as well in HD.
I then wondered if I should go for two 10" units instead for force cancellation. I browsed loudspeakerdatabase again and came across the Peerless XLS10 830452 which seems like a very well regarded unit. It doesn't model very deep at 49/34 Hz, but the Qtc comes out to just 0.479. Now, I don't know if there's a significant benefit in "natural" low end extension - surely there's some benefit in having the impedance peak where output is most required - but it occurred to me that the low Q "allows" adding mass to the cones. 30g extra gives them a Qtc of 0.626 and similar extension to the HO-44 while requiring less amp apparent power overall. Seems like a cool idea, but no idea if it's worth the trouble. SW26DBACs would be another commercially proven choice for dual opposed and no extra mass required, but looking at the AudioXpress Klippel results, I feel like the cost isn't quite justified.
Next I remembered people praising low loss suspensions for "sound quality" or "chest slam" - my alternatives so far fare pretty poorly in that regard. I browsed again, and came across the SB34SWPL76, which models similar to the HO-44 while having a lot looser suspension. Not a fan of the cone to frame ratio, but it's not a significant problem. There's little data on the performance, but it does have me curious. I wasn't surprised to also find stuff like Wavecor, Scan-Speak or Peerless NE series when having the criteria for Qms or Cms. If I could find the Klippel proven 32W on sale, I might just splurge on those...
Any suggestions appreciated, though I don't see much use in "I've used X and it sounded good" 🙂
Direct sound or sound quality and chest slam all refer to midbass……above 80hz and out of the passband of a ‘sub’ bass system. This is where 12-15” drivers really shine up to 400hz with their tactile dynamics.
If you place a pair of subs close to or under your mains, you can cross them in the 120hz range with a 2nd order low pass and get some of that tactile midbass.
But if your goal is just subs from 80hz on down, then my $$$ would be on a dual opposed with a pair of 12’s……10’s would be ‘ok’ if the box was large enough to accommodate the low tuning frequency you’d require.
You have a very good point about midbass and I feel like I'm a bit at odds. I've previously preferred crossing to subs at 80Hz or lower, but my new build will place the subs closer to the mains so higher might make sense, especially with my mains being very small.
Finding 12s that fit comfortably into 40 liters (or 50) dual opposed is a bit challenging, at least if I desire both deep extension and "clean" midbass. The SB34SWPL for example has high Le and seems to lack inductance control, which makes it better suited for crossing lower, if I understand correctly?
Finding 12s that fit comfortably into 40 liters (or 50) dual opposed is a bit challenging, at least if I desire both deep extension and "clean" midbass. The SB34SWPL for example has high Le and seems to lack inductance control, which makes it better suited for crossing lower, if I understand correctly?
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