I've got a friend who's 14 year old son is interested in DIY audio. He doesn't have much $$ to build a system and I'd like to help him build a subwoofer. Currently, he mounted an old 12" mid-bass speaker in a 5-gallon bucket with no crossover.
I'd like to keep it under $150 if possible. He is using a basic receiver so the sub would most likely need it's own amp as well. He lives in an apartment, so it doesn't need to be too loud and I'd like to get him down to at least 40hz.
Let me know your design ideas, driver, amp & box size/design. Thanks!
Curt B.
I'd like to keep it under $150 if possible. He is using a basic receiver so the sub would most likely need it's own amp as well. He lives in an apartment, so it doesn't need to be too loud and I'd like to get him down to at least 40hz.
Let me know your design ideas, driver, amp & box size/design. Thanks!
Curt B.
I think it can be done - but its difficult to compete with a decent pre-made powered subwoofer such as this little Polk going for ~$82 shipped - two of those could be purchased and not be much above $150.
Polk Audio PSW10 10" Powered Subwoofer, 35Hz-200Hz, 50W Continuous Power, Single
anyhow - look at ApexJr for an inexpensive plate amp - that first amp (KRK) in the list for $56 doesn't look shabby -check the others in his list. He probably has some good subwoofer drivers too on other pages.
ApexJr Subwoofer Amps
Look what ApexJr has for 12" - that KRK speaker looks good
Speaker Stuff
Partsexpress often has sales on their Dayton branded drivers
besides regular vented & sealed, you might be able to make a push pull slot loaded vented sub - but that might eat
into the $150 budget too much vs one good driver.
Polk Audio PSW10 10" Powered Subwoofer, 35Hz-200Hz, 50W Continuous Power, Single
anyhow - look at ApexJr for an inexpensive plate amp - that first amp (KRK) in the list for $56 doesn't look shabby -check the others in his list. He probably has some good subwoofer drivers too on other pages.
ApexJr Subwoofer Amps
Look what ApexJr has for 12" - that KRK speaker looks good
Speaker Stuff
Partsexpress often has sales on their Dayton branded drivers
besides regular vented & sealed, you might be able to make a push pull slot loaded vented sub - but that might eat
into the $150 budget too much vs one good driver.
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oops - funky fs on that KRK12 - might still be ok as KRK stuff sounds pretty good - - the cheap CV looks ok
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A compact one that I've built uses this 8" from P.E. One caveat is that it works best at low volume levels, due to the small (2") port diameter that I used.
Dayton Audio SD215A-88 8" DVC Subwoofer
and this amp
Dayton Audio SA70 70W Subwoofer Plate Amplifier
I put it in a 1.0 cu. ft vented box, with a 2.0 x 4.5" vent that tuned it to around 38 hz.
A different option would be to add a Passive Radiator (instead of a port) such as this one used in the "Triska Sub" project.
Dayton Audio SD215-PR 8" Passive Radiator
Triska sub project write-up for PR version here
The Triska Sub
The response on this sub is very clean and smooth, especially at lower levels.
It might be a good learning experience for a beginner. And is within your budget.
Dayton Audio SD215A-88 8" DVC Subwoofer
and this amp
Dayton Audio SA70 70W Subwoofer Plate Amplifier
I put it in a 1.0 cu. ft vented box, with a 2.0 x 4.5" vent that tuned it to around 38 hz.
A different option would be to add a Passive Radiator (instead of a port) such as this one used in the "Triska Sub" project.
Dayton Audio SD215-PR 8" Passive Radiator
Triska sub project write-up for PR version here
The Triska Sub
The response on this sub is very clean and smooth, especially at lower levels.
It might be a good learning experience for a beginner. And is within your budget.
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freddi,
Wow, that Polk 10" is so cheap, it's hard to compete with that. For the money, it looks like a good option.
Dave R,
I liked your driver choice, at just $29, that's a bargain. I was also considering that plate amp from P.E.
I think this kid would love the process of a DIY project so I'll probably go that route with him instead of just buying an off the shelf sub even if that may be cheaper.
Thanks for your input guys, I appreciate it.
Curt B
Wow, that Polk 10" is so cheap, it's hard to compete with that. For the money, it looks like a good option.
Dave R,
I liked your driver choice, at just $29, that's a bargain. I was also considering that plate amp from P.E.
I think this kid would love the process of a DIY project so I'll probably go that route with him instead of just buying an off the shelf sub even if that may be cheaper.
Thanks for your input guys, I appreciate it.
Curt B
Curt- where are you located? I and I'm sure many other on here would be happy to help, but shipping drivers is pricy.
Maybe a quick and easy project like this:
Subwoofer
OR
For ~$35 more, do a double-ended version: like what you see here, but with a driver in each end, so the forces between them cancel out (for less vibration in the enclosure)
Factory Subwoofer Amplifier and Bluetooth Adapter Frequency Response Curves
Options and ideas:
Look up 'bucket sub' and 'sonotube sub' for a load of images and build tips. Some of the sonotube ones look very good, in my opinion.
A lot of the materials can be scavenged, depending on how much you want to DIY / how much you want to spend time instead of money.
e.g. if you can find spare parts (mostly a big power supply brick from a laptop or similar) + buy a prebuilt amplifier board that works with that voltage, you could do the amplification for about $20.
mordikai,
I'm located in the Indianapolis, Indiana area.
hollowboy,
Thanks for the bucket idea. The 14 year old boy may really like that since he is already using a bucket. I'll show him that link you provided. For the amp, I think I'll end up buying something for him, not enough time for and amp project.
I'm located in the Indianapolis, Indiana area.
hollowboy,
Thanks for the bucket idea. The 14 year old boy may really like that since he is already using a bucket. I'll show him that link you provided. For the amp, I think I'll end up buying something for him, not enough time for and amp project.
where does the plate amp mount in a bucket sub ? a couple of support rails or box could be made for the plate amp and run it outboard.
I will use a minidsp 2x4 and an older crown amp for my subwoofer.
If you were using a plate amp, its fairly easy to use four pieces of wood to build a simple box to hold it.
You pretty much have to run the amp outboard, there is no way to mount a plate on the bucket.
Randy
The cheapest way to get hold of a sub driver is to buy a used sub. They are for nothing in the local papers and second hand shops, to say nothing of Fleabay. He lives in a city, I know Indy isn't NYC but it's big enough, I've been there. If he can find one with a dead amp or a battered box, so much the better as it will be cheap. Then you help him design and build something with the bits.
Oh, and a friend did precisely this. One blown sub, torn driver, in one SH shop, another with a dead amp, robbed the driver, binned the rest. Sounds great.
Oh, and a friend did precisely this. One blown sub, torn driver, in one SH shop, another with a dead amp, robbed the driver, binned the rest. Sounds great.
I second the recommendation for the Dayton SD215A-88. It's cheap and has specs that model optimally in a moderate sized vented enclosure. If you can show him how to download WinISD, he can play with the box size and the port length and really learn a thing or two about box modeling. The 70W amp linked along with the sub is the perfect compliment for it too. For $100, he'd get a great learning experience and a 1 cu ft sub flat into the low 30s.
Dan
Dan
randytsuch,
Thanks for the tip on the voxel sub. That's amazing that you can get down to 35Hz with a 5.25" driver. The amp is very cheap too at under $30. With that setup, I could do this for under $100. That's pretty amazing. Since he lives in an apartment, that may be a good setup for him so he doesn't annoy the neighbors too much.
Curt B
Thanks for the tip on the voxel sub. That's amazing that you can get down to 35Hz with a 5.25" driver. The amp is very cheap too at under $30. With that setup, I could do this for under $100. That's pretty amazing. Since he lives in an apartment, that may be a good setup for him so he doesn't annoy the neighbors too much.
Curt B
Well I don't think he will be able to rattle the walls with a voxel, but in an apt that is a good thing lol
Yeah, its surprising performance. All the other subs I've seen like this take complicated, tl type boxes. This one is a simple box with a long port.
The one issue I did see in the thread is you can get port noise if you push it too hard. Need to move some air to hit the lows.
Randy
Thanks for your input guys. I'll go over to his house this weekend to see what kind of equipment he already has and come up with a design for him. I'll let you know what we decide on.
Curt B
Curt B
If that's what he is using now, I'd seriously reconsider some of the suggestions made here, like that 82dB/1W/1M Voxel sub. He's likely going to be left seriously unimpressed.
I was going to suggest my "Boom Unit" build (The Subwoofer DIY Page v1.1 - Projects : The Boom Unit), which is quite a bit more efficient and gets down to below 40 Hz, and the DCS205 is a lot more capable than the DCS215 (8.8mm Xmax vs. 6mm) but then again we're comparing an 8" driver to a 12" driver in a big cabinet that puts out quite a bit of SPL at bass frequencies and a 14 year old boy at the listening position who has to be impressed by the results.
What other equipment does he have? If you're only interested in 40 Hz, I've got a design that uses the Dayton PA310 pro audio 12" driver available for $59 at the moment. Box size is fairly big, but at 95dB/2.83V/1M, it will keep up with almost any "Hi Fi" system.
Update:
Well, I decided to go with the Dayton Audio SD215A-88, 8" driver and the Dayton Audio SA70 plate amp. I think this will him a lot of bang for the buck. I'll put this in a 1 cubic foot ported box and that should get us down to 38hz.
The plate amp is on backorder until the end of Oct. but we will be busy building the box until then. Thanks for your input everyone, it was very helpful! I'll post some pictures when we get it done, probably early November.
Well, I decided to go with the Dayton Audio SD215A-88, 8" driver and the Dayton Audio SA70 plate amp. I think this will him a lot of bang for the buck. I'll put this in a 1 cubic foot ported box and that should get us down to 38hz.
The plate amp is on backorder until the end of Oct. but we will be busy building the box until then. Thanks for your input everyone, it was very helpful! I'll post some pictures when we get it done, probably early November.
So you know, Shawn A lives in Richmond, IN, just down the road a bit from you. He designed the Triska. I'm up in NE IN myself. If you are interested, I also host a DIY speaker get together in the Spring in Ft Wayne.
Wolf
Wolf
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