Sub in cabinet/shelf

[NapaDRB]

I know, bad idea but I don't have any other options. All gear other than L/R and surround speakers sits in a cabinet that is 30" tall with shelves at 2" and 15" height. Sub sits on 2" shelf, all electronics on 15" shelf and TV on top.

The question is I assume it would be better for the sub to sit directly on the floor (carpet over slab) than on the 2" shelf. I am going to have a new cabinet built to raise the 15" shelf to make room for a larger sub under it, so if this is correct I will have it built with no "bottom" so it stradles over the sub.

Any ideas or suggestions will be welcomed, this cabinet will be "custom" made so I am flexible.

Once I get the measurements figured out on the new cabinet I will be back to seek recomendations on the best small subwoofer.

 

[Gimpy Ric]

You can of course try it in the cabinet, but you'll get the most output from a corner. But there's an article here:

http://www.audioholics.com/tweaks/get-good-bass/

Good Luck!

 

[avaserfi]

You can of course try it in the cabinet, but you'll get the most output from a corner. But there's an article here:

http://www.audioholics.com/tweaks/get-good-bass/

Good Luck!

One thing to note about corner placement is while they are louder they can make the bass much boomier at certain frequencies.

 

[NapaDRB]

Thanks for the quick replies but as noted above there is no other option than in the cabinet. This is a horrible room with slabfloors, peak ceiling, doorway on one side of the cabinet and fireplace then doorway on the other side. There is no reasonable way to get a cable to any othe location and even if there was there is only one other location possible and it might be worse than where it sits now.

 

[j_garcia]

2" off the floor probalby won't change a whole lot. As long as it isn't completley enclosed in the cabinet, it will probably be OK. It IS going to vibrate the rack and things in the rack though...

 

[ParadigmDawg]

I believe it is going to affect the sound since sound wraps around the entire sub but hey, we live in the real world and have to do what we have to do. I bet it will be better on the floor than on the self so I think if you have to put it in there than this is the best way to do it.

By the way, my sub sounded worse in the corner.

 

[j_garcia]

Corner placement depends entirely on your room. Mine likes to be near the corner, but not IN it.

 

[NapaDRB]

j garcia,

That was one of my points, the vibrations can't be good for the electronics. The other thing I was thinking was I'm always hearing about speaker "spikes" so figured the sub would be better sitting directly on the floor.

Greg,

You bring up a good point about the sound wrapping around. Would I be better off trying to size the area in the cabinet where the sub will sit fairly close to the sub? One negative I see to that is I would be locked into what ever sub I build the cabinet to fit.

 

[Buckeye_Nut]

I know, bad idea but I don't have any other options. All gear other than L/R and surround speakers sits in a cabinet that is 30" tall with shelves at 2" and 15" height. Sub sits on 2" shelf

In a cabinet on a shelf?

Yikes

It sounds like it's no larger than a breadbox, so surely you can find room for it outside of the cabinet. You want to move those sound waves and move some air....not stuff them in a box.

 

[NapaDRB]

Buckeye,

Small velodyne in sig, a little bigger than bread box, but that is the whole point of this thread, to rebuild the cabinet with something that will fit a larger sub.

It isn't the size so much that prevents me from moving it, it's the fact that there is no good way to run a cable, and even if there was the only other spot would be hard against the wall in a rear corner between couch and loveseat.

 

[j_garcia]

What is the price range for the sub? Since that is going to be a relatively large factor in this whole thing.... At the $700 price point, I'd say look at the SVS SB-12Plus, which is a sealed sub and will be less affected by the cabinet.

I think this was asked a few times, but do you plan on enclosing the sub completely? That would be a bad idea, you will need to at the very least, allow some kind of opening so the sound has a way to get out into the room.

 

[NapaDRB]

j garcia,

$700 isn't out of range but I have to get this cabinet designed first so I know what will fit.

Current sub is front firing, front ported pulled as far forward as possible.

The front of the cabinet will be open, are you saying I need more than that? Which relates to something I asked earlier, am I better leaving as much space as possible around the sub in the cabinet or building it close to sub?

 

[j_garcia]

The front of the cabinet being open is a good thing, and having a front firing sub would be a good thing in this case. Yes, more room around the sub would be better, a few inches at the very least.

Link to the SB-12 Plus.

 

[NapaDRB]

j garcia and everyone,

Thanks for the help on this I'm going to start getting some measurements together for the cabinet.

That SVS sub looks great, let's see if I can make it fit.