Do Sub-Dudes Work?

[timoteo]

I live in an apt where I only have a neighbor under me & dont have to worry about sound traveling to others either side of me. I have hardwood floors and try my best not to bother the people below me (they're pretty cool peeps). I just ordered a Sub-dude(HD) to set my sub on. There have been 2 times that they have complained that the bass was rattling their wall-heater. (building built in 1928)

I'm hoping, from what I have read that this should help with vibrations & low frequencies going through the floor of my place & bothering them. I dont expect a miracle from it but has anyone had good experiences with one? was this a good buy?

 

[mperfct]

I live in an apt where I only have a neighbor under me & dont have to worry about sound traveling to others either side of me. I have hardwood floors and try my best not to bother the people below me (they're pretty cool peeps). I just ordered a Sub-dude(HD) to set my sub on. There have been 2 times that they have complained that the bass was rattling their wall-heater. (building built in 1928)

I'm hoping, from what I have read that this should help with vibrations & low frequencies going through the floor of my place & bothering them. I dont expect a miracle from it but has anyone had good experiences with one? was this a good buy?

I have heard good things about them helping the very thing you are looking for. I haven't tried it myself, to be honest. As long as there is a favorable return policy, why not try it out and see if it helps?

 

[jamie2112]

Those Grammas and subdudes won't stop sub frequencys from rattling your downstairs people. Subs in an apt are tough. You really must just watch your volume I hate to say....

 

[mperfct]

Those Grammas and subdudes won't stop sub frequencys from rattling your downstairs people. Subs in an apt are tough. You really must just watch your volume I hate to say....

But wouldn't they help minimize mechanical transference by isolating the sub from the structure of the building?

 

[timoteo]

?

YEAH...what mperfct said!...?

 

[jamie2112]

Very minimal at best in the downstairs neighbors eyes. I say this generally with apts. The gramma or subdude will reduce vibration but in order not to PO your neighbors you need a house....... really though,apts are tough to do subs in, the grammas are great for decoupling the sub to the floor and it will "tighten" up the low end but the bass waves travel through walls. You have heard a car sub crusing down the street from a block away, I know I have on a daily basis. Well Imagine that power in your apt.......would your neighbors hear it?? That is an extreme example but I am sure you get the picture....I would do a sub level test with your downstairs peeps and see when levels are too much for them. Just a thought.....

 

[Alex2507]

Subs in an apt are tough. You really must just watch your volume

I find the time of play to be the biggest factor in not being a complete DB. Having been an apt. and condo dweller for the duration if my sub (and even dual sub) owning life, I suggest you turn your sub(s) off after 8:00 PM.

 

[majorloser]

I have two (2) Subdudes under each of my HSU VTF-3HO's with Turbos. It takes two of these side-by-side to fit under the sub completely.

I notice a HUGE reduction in room vibrations and vibrations in other room. They are meant to de-couple the subwoofer from the floor. My home is one story with concrete slab construction. I have also added bass traps and acoustic panels since purchasing the Subdudes to further control unwanted reflections and vibrations.

The Audioholics Store has pretty good prices for the Subdude with free delivery:

http://store.audioholics.com/product/1398/66200/auralex-subdude-trade--subwoofer-flotation-device

 

[Alex2507]

That's good to hear Major as I have a couple of Gramma's coming.
Even though I am only running little pee-pee subs,
they still want to be taken seriously.

 

[mperfct]

That's good to hear Major as I have a couple of Gramma's coming.
Even though I am only running little pee-pee subs,
they still want to be taken seriously.

pee-pee subs. hehe. You made me laugh out loud.

 

[j_garcia]

I was going to buy those before you got to them Alex..... So I was experimenting with my sub yesterday, as I have some spare MoPads lying around. I put two sets under my sub, which sits on concrete. I didn't think it would make a difference, but I saw a review of one of these and the user had concrete subfloor as well and said it helped. The difference was quite immediate and very noticeable, and now I will have to go out and purchase one at full price thanks to Alex and his pee pee subs

 

[lsiberian]

regardless of their sound isolating capabilities which are actually very good and very underrated by some people on this site. They will make your subwoofer tighter and improve the SQ a lot. This in turn means you can keep the db gain lower thus resulting in a significant drop in disturbing your neighbors. That being said if you crank it up then nothing will help. Even a house.

In an apartment you should need much gain on any sub. because the living areas are easily filled by even a 10" sub in most setups. So the combo of the isolating pad and the easy room filling will help a lot. I speak from experience. I live on the 2nd floor and by putting my sub on a gramma. I can barely hear it in my bedroom. On the floor it's much more noticeable. What it does for the downstairs folks. I don't really care they have very loud kids that make lots of racket. Of course I have sensitive ears so my listening volume is low to begin with.

 

[no. 5]

regardless of their sound isolating capabilities which are actually very good and very underrated by some people on this site. They will make your subwoofer tighter and improve the SQ a lot.

"Will"?

If the subwoofer is already decoupled from the buildings structure, such an isolation device will have no effect on sound quality, or sound transmission to the neighbors.

If the subwoofer is not already decoupled for the structure, for such a device to be effective, the cabinet/structure interface must transfer enough energy to the building's structure to produce audible resonance in the listening room, and audible structure borne vibration to the neighbors.

And the Sound Transmission Classification of the building's walls and floors must also be considered; even with the sub is decoupled from the floor, the floor and walls will still let some sound through. If the sub is on an isolation pad, but the walls have a STC of 20, the neighbors will still get annoyed.

It is not as though an isolation pad can't, or won't do any good, it's that the effectiveness of one depends on the buildings construction and the subwoofer in question. Without knowing how the sound is being transmitted to the neighbors, you cannot guarantee that buying an isolation pad will be effective.

 

[Alex2507]

I just got the Grammas. The first thing I noticed is that if you knock on them they resonate/sound much more than these things that I built a while back:

http://forums.audioholics.com/forums/showthread.php?t=46291

I guess actually measuring something/anything would give me a lot of talking room, but that's work. I just read somewhere in a thread that Swerd and Savant participated in that you could use a laptop, RS SPL Meter and REW to take measurements, but that's work too. I think I'll just continue talking out my @$$.

I really have to hand it to you guys that actually 'know' what your talking about because of things like 'school' and/or 'research' along with making observations while taking real 'measurements'. If I can ever get my home improvement projects under hand I will be taking steps to join your ranks.

I know who you are.

 

[majorloser]

Has anybody ever contacted Auralex to see what the difference is between the Gramma and the Subdude?

 

[avaserfi]

Pretty sure it is just size. Also target audience. Gramma's are targeted more towards pro-audio people and sub-dudes towards home audio.

 

[lsiberian]

"Will"?

If the subwoofer is already decoupled from the buildings structure, such an isolation device will have no effect on sound quality, or sound transmission to the neighbors.

If the subwoofer is not already decoupled for the structure, for such a device to be effective, the cabinet/structure interface must transfer enough energy to the building's structure to produce audible resonance in the listening room, and audible structure borne vibration to the neighbors.

And the Sound Transmission Classification of the building's walls and floors must also be considered; even with the sub is decoupled from the floor, the floor and walls will still let some sound through. If the sub is on an isolation pad, but the walls have a STC of 20, the neighbors will still get annoyed.

It is not as though an isolation pad can't, or won't do any good, it's that the effectiveness of one depends on the buildings construction and the subwoofer in question. Without knowing how the sound is being transmitted to the neighbors, you cannot guarantee that buying an isolation pad will be effective.

The sub being coupled to the floor is implied in the statement. Obviously if you already have a gamma or some other device then it wouldn't help to replace it. However putting a gamma below another device would further decouple it from the floor and reduce vibrations. Obviously diminished returns would be in play, but it would still help. Not to get into a logical or philosophical discussion, but it is reasonable to conclude that many apartments are built in such a way as to benefit from the pads. I will stand by my statement based on my observations with my own addition of a Gramma Pad. I also believe that sufficient scientific evidence that could be formed to argue that position. There are exceptions to this statement as in many cases.

But it will help in many situations. It may not be enough in many situations and there are other better solutions. Including moving the subs closer to the seating area. Making two of them your end tables will allow you to have low gain while having decent response.

 

[no. 5]

The sub being coupled to the floor is implied in the statement.

Yes, but a question remains: how much energy is being transferred from the cabinet into the building's structure?

For some subwoofer's it will be a small amount, but large for others; obviously then, a subwoofer that is transferring a large amount of energy into the building's structure will benefit more from an isolation pad than one that that is transferring a small amount.

Not to get into a logical or philosophical discussion, but it is reasonable to conclude that many apartments are built in such a way as to benefit from the pads.

Absolutely, I never said anything to the contrary. I only brought out the variables involved in using an isolation pad to appease the neighbors.

 

[majorloser]

Pretty sure it is just size. Also target audience. Gramma's are targeted more towards pro-audio people and sub-dudes towards home audio.

I got this response back today from Auralex:

"The SubDude and GRAMMA are inherently the same design and implementation of decoupling theory, simply made in different dimensions, with some different aesthetics. If the GRAMMA suits your needs better than the SubDude, there should be no difference in performance between the two."

So it doesn't matter which one is used.

 

[j_garcia]

IMO, the difference between the two is the shape, not just the size. The Gramma and Great Gramma are designed to better suit the shape of typical pro speakers as is shown on their site, while the SubDude is geared towards HT. I am not sure the SubDude is large enough for my sub, so I may have to go with a Gramma. Went to Guitar Center this weekend and they don't carry any of these particular items.