I'm looking for a light weight subwoofer for my mobile application. I know this is not the car stereo forum, but I figure this would be the best place to ask.
Anyway, weight is a GREAT concern, my vehicle is very sensitive to weight put in the rear, so I'm hoping to keep the entire enclosure (it will be a sonotube) no more than 20 lbs (9 kg) maximum. My current set up, the woofer alone is 25 lbs (11.33 kg), and the enclosure is rather heavy. Are there any neodynium magnet based subwoofers? I'd like a 12" (300 mm) or so, with high power handling, good performance, 500-1000 watt power handling, fairly efficient etc. I'm not a fan of 83 dB efficient woofers. Enclosure can be around 1.5 cubic foot (42 liters).
A quick search yielded Diamond Audio's TX line having N/D magnets, http://www.diamondaudio.com/products/index.cfm?page=productList&type=28&line=1&model=
Unfortunately the weight is not listed and the efficiency is rather low.
I also found AuraSound's woofer, but they're outta the price range..
http://www.madisound.com/aurasound.html
Anyway, weight is a GREAT concern, my vehicle is very sensitive to weight put in the rear, so I'm hoping to keep the entire enclosure (it will be a sonotube) no more than 20 lbs (9 kg) maximum. My current set up, the woofer alone is 25 lbs (11.33 kg), and the enclosure is rather heavy. Are there any neodynium magnet based subwoofers? I'd like a 12" (300 mm) or so, with high power handling, good performance, 500-1000 watt power handling, fairly efficient etc. I'm not a fan of 83 dB efficient woofers. Enclosure can be around 1.5 cubic foot (42 liters).
A quick search yielded Diamond Audio's TX line having N/D magnets, http://www.diamondaudio.com/products/index.cfm?page=productList&type=28&line=1&model=
Unfortunately the weight is not listed and the efficiency is rather low.
I also found AuraSound's woofer, but they're outta the price range..
http://www.madisound.com/aurasound.html
I'd say $200 US or so. I'm not looking for the hugest Xmax and PE woofer on the planet. My stereo blasting days are over 🙂 Although I would like it to get loud when I need to.
Never heard of the brand you mention, so it may not be available here.
I found 2 more potential candidates:
A cheaper aurasound that weighs only 10 lbs (4.3 KG)
http://www.madisound.com/pdf/aurasound/NS12-513-4A.pdf
and a slightly heavier (16 lb)
Sonic Craft (i think a madisound house brand, with a aurasound motor)
http://www.madisound.com/pdf/SC12NRT.pdf
Never heard of the brand you mention, so it may not be available here.
I found 2 more potential candidates:
A cheaper aurasound that weighs only 10 lbs (4.3 KG)
http://www.madisound.com/pdf/aurasound/NS12-513-4A.pdf
and a slightly heavier (16 lb)
Sonic Craft (i think a madisound house brand, with a aurasound motor)
http://www.madisound.com/pdf/SC12NRT.pdf
there are some Neo Pro drivers available via partsexpresss that might be worth checking out. High power and efficiency with low weight. Enclosures might be large, but sensitivity will definately be high
Do a search for Neo Pro on partsexpress.com... the 2nd half of page 2 and most of page three might be of interest
Do a search for Neo Pro on partsexpress.com... the 2nd half of page 2 and most of page three might be of interest
That sonicraft on sale at madisound looks like the perfect solution. The listed weight is 16lbs, with the sonotube you should be under 20lbs.
[edit] That weight seems a bit high, since an Ascendant Audio assasin 12 weights only 15 lbs, and has about the same throw.
Dan
[edit] That weight seems a bit high, since an Ascendant Audio assasin 12 weights only 15 lbs, and has about the same throw.
Dan
You won't find a neodymium based woofer within your budget. I would look at a ferrite magnet sub (Boston G1, JL W1, etc.) which are in the ~12-15 lb. range. Both of their 12" subs work in ~1cf sealed or larger vented. The rest of the weight reduction will center on your enclosure design. If you use 1/2" mdf or hdf and thin tempered hardboard bracing (masonite), you could keep the entire system weight under 25 lbs.
If you can stretch your budget, you could build the enclosure from TIG'd 3/16" aluminum sheet. I built a 1cf sealed enclosure for a Boston G1200 some years back this way and it worked great. I used Peal & Seal on the inside to damp the walls. If there was any flex, it was not noticeable. The system hammered & weighed under 17 lbs.
There are plenty of options for you. Good Luck!
If you can stretch your budget, you could build the enclosure from TIG'd 3/16" aluminum sheet. I built a 1cf sealed enclosure for a Boston G1200 some years back this way and it worked great. I used Peal & Seal on the inside to damp the walls. If there was any flex, it was not noticeable. The system hammered & weighed under 17 lbs.
There are plenty of options for you. Good Luck!
How about TB's new compact neodymium-motor drivers?
http://www.tb-speaker.com/detail/1208_03/wt-1427.htm
They just updated their site a couple of days ago, not seen any for sale. But when they go for sale they should be pretty cheap judging by their history.
http://www.tb-speaker.com/detail/1208_03/wt-1427.htm
They just updated their site a couple of days ago, not seen any for sale. But when they go for sale they should be pretty cheap judging by their history.
As was mentioned earlier, NEO based pro audio drivers may be a good solution. While they don;t have as much excursion capabilities as some car audio subwoofers, they tend to have good reliability, power handling, and wide bandwidth. BMS woofers are carried by www.assistanceaudio.com in the US and their 12ND630 and 15N630 would be good choices, around the $200 mark. Also, Eminence has a new line of NEO pro audio drivers coming out and their Kappalite 15LF would be a good choice, though probably slightly more expensive than your budget.
-Chris
-Chris
cbrunhaver said:
The major problem I see w/ pro drivers (neo, ferrite, or otherwise) are the large enclosure requirements. A bigger enclosure translates into more weight. A 15" driver will need a HUGE enclosure.
Not necessarily. In my first post I was aiming for the BMS 12N630. About 9 lbs, high powerhandling, nice Xmax and easily suitable for enclosures under 2 ft^3.
Wkr Johan
Wkr Johan
I wouldn't say that most pro drivers necessarily require large boxes for automotive use. Typically, they have strong motors (low Qes), and so their box size for a give alignment is pretty small, albeit with a typically high F3.
Cabin gain in cars is a great thing and so you only really need to get to a 40-50 Hz f3 to get flat in-car extension to 20 Hz or below.
BMS is a little different than some pro audio companies because they woofer as somewhat over engineered and have triple shorting rings and somewhat longer Xmax/higher mass than some other pro audio subs.
By the modeling I've done, that BMS 12ND630 in a 1 cubic foot sealed box with 50% stuffing and a 80 hz 2nd order lowpass would yield and F3 of ~42 Hz and a Q of around .7 - pretty much ideal for a car audio SQ system.
http://www.bmspro.info/index.php?show=item&usbid=10285&id=5047865
Their 15N630 or 15N840 woudl be good as well and look good in 1.5-2 cubic feet sealed.
-Chris
Cabin gain in cars is a great thing and so you only really need to get to a 40-50 Hz f3 to get flat in-car extension to 20 Hz or below.
BMS is a little different than some pro audio companies because they woofer as somewhat over engineered and have triple shorting rings and somewhat longer Xmax/higher mass than some other pro audio subs.
By the modeling I've done, that BMS 12ND630 in a 1 cubic foot sealed box with 50% stuffing and a 80 hz 2nd order lowpass would yield and F3 of ~42 Hz and a Q of around .7 - pretty much ideal for a car audio SQ system.
http://www.bmspro.info/index.php?show=item&usbid=10285&id=5047865
Their 15N630 or 15N840 woudl be good as well and look good in 1.5-2 cubic feet sealed.
-Chris
cbrunhaver said:
Don't take me as an outright naysayer. The point I am making is that there are so many great mobile audio subwoofers ready to go, while reinvent the wheel?
The OP states that weight (& budget) is an issue. A larger enclosure will weigh more than a smaller one. A 1.5 cf box, more than a 1 cf and so on. In addition, he mentions budget. IME, he could spend ~$100 for a ferrite based mobile subwoofer designed to work into a smaller enclosure, not to mention lighter, and get equivalent performance to a pro driver in a larger one. To me, that just makes more sense.
But, YMMV. The rest of it is just bench racing.
Well, he want a Neo motor, he could use dual AE speakers SL-10 to get a sensivity of 86 dB/2.83V. They can work in 0.25 cu.ft each so 0.5 cu.ft box. Could increase the box to 1.5 cu.ft to improve the rolloff.
http://yellow.mynethost.com/~bv1263...id=51&osCsid=15cdf158b400b1fa7c9a96c58759e4a3
http://yellow.mynethost.com/~bv1263...id=51&osCsid=15cdf158b400b1fa7c9a96c58759e4a3
Hello Eric,
Please keep us posted. I'll be embarking on a similar project sometime this summer. My limit is 30lbs, in which I will try to squeeze two 12" woofers, an enclosure, amplifier, and all cables. The woofers will have to face opposite directions to cancel out mechanical energy, otherwise the fiberglass box would shake too much. Amp will have to be low power and class D, and the power cable will have to be short and thin.
Dan
Please keep us posted. I'll be embarking on a similar project sometime this summer. My limit is 30lbs, in which I will try to squeeze two 12" woofers, an enclosure, amplifier, and all cables. The woofers will have to face opposite directions to cancel out mechanical energy, otherwise the fiberglass box would shake too much. Amp will have to be low power and class D, and the power cable will have to be short and thin.
Dan
Any of you ever consider an IB between the trunk and cabin? I know it wouldnt work so well for say a hatchback, but for anything with a trunk the enclosure weight is basically nothing(except perhaps some reinforcement to the back of the seat and rear paneling).
BassAwdyO said:
I have considered it, but it would be difficult to use large woofers, making the setup much less efficent per pound.
Dan
If you are interested in the Stryke/AE SL10, rahter than buy them from John, you can now buy them from his source at a lower pricing of $63 each. www.lorentz-audio.com
Just an update on my search for lightweight drivers. So far the top choice would be a pair of Peerless CSX 10" woofers in a 2 foot long sonotube. Each woofer is 6.2 lbs, and the tube is 3 lbs, putting the combined total at 15.4 lbs.
Stuffing, wiring, end caps and mounting brackets will quickly push the weight closer to 20lbs. Alpine makes a class D monoblock that weighs 6.2 lbs. If you keep the power wire short you can get away with 10 awg. The entire setup should be around 25lbs.
Dan
Stuffing, wiring, end caps and mounting brackets will quickly push the weight closer to 20lbs. Alpine makes a class D monoblock that weighs 6.2 lbs. If you keep the power wire short you can get away with 10 awg. The entire setup should be around 25lbs.
Dan
I never understood why everyone uses such large wires for car stereo amplifiers. 12 guage wire is rated at ~3300 watts to home code(30amp breakers in my local area at least) and the lengths of wire from the circuit box to the outlets in your house far exceed the lengths put into a car. Does your amp surpass 3300watts? I think you can get away with less than 10 guage
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