So this discussion has gone on for awhile and I hadn’t planned on putting in my two cents, but for some reason I feel compelled to do so today. Just as others have stated before it’s an unneeded risk and probably not a good idea. Surely you’ve heard a car go by with a pounding sub and heard the vibration of loose body parts and such. Why put less robust PCR boards and their gazillion solder points through needless stress?
mtrycrafts I usually agree with you or at least enjoy your throw caution to wind approach but not today. After reading your post I just had to try the water test for myself…I just could not believe that you witnessed no water movement with Telarc’s 1812 cannons.
So I conducted my own unscientific experiment to see what’s up.
Equipment and supplies used:
B&W ASW600
Technical Specifications : ASW 600
Freq. Response: -3dB 26Hz – 33/150Hz adjustable (EQ at A)
Freq. Range: -6dB 22Hz – 40/180Hz adjustable (EQ at A)
Drive Units: Unit 1: 250mm (10 in) dia paper/Kevlar® cone long-throw
Sub Woofer Amplifier: Class B
Power Output: 150W continuous
Rated Power Consumption: 220W
0.4 Gallons [US] of water = 3 lbs.
1 pitcher (plastic) 1 lbs.
1 12x8 Pyrex casserole dish 3.5 lbs
First I would like to state that it is my belief that my subwoofer is not of the same caliber as many of those being used by others in this forum…thus if it is able to produce significant vibrations then surely a more power/lower going sub would be able to create even more vibration. (Of course I’m ignoring the fact that my sub is only 43 lbs. and may be less solid then other subs, however since I already stated that this was an unscientific experiment so I can do that
)
So I started with the pitcher first and Telarc’s 1812 cannons. This resulted in a slight back and forth movement of the water in the pitcher along the same axis as the driver’s movement. By in larger it was fairly uneventful…hmm, perhaps you were right I thought, but then I grabbed one of techno CDs which has a nasty little base sweep in it. This resulted in the whole pitcher shifting about a ½” forward and then back along the axis of the driver’s motion. But there still seemed to be little movement on water’s surface. At this point I wondered if the 6” column of water was damping the bass’s kinetic energy before it reached the water’s surface. So into the kitchen I went and out came the casserole dish. This container obviously allowed the water to have a much larger surface area and reduced the water’s depth to 7/8” So back to the 1812’s cannon…well not much different perhaps a slightly larger wave…perhaps not…to close to call even for this sloppy experiment. So in with the techno….and here is when it got interesting…well at least for me it did
This dish was placed so that its 12” length was perpendicular to driver’s axis. After starting up my CD it was apparent something was going on because the dish started to rotate… it rotated 90 degrees and stopped, the whole time displaying a checkered ripple pattern that was only visible from aprox. 1 ft. from further distances is just appeared as a slight disturbance of the meniscus.
So what does this mean…well, nothing really
Except that in my environment, with my taste in music, and my equipment there is kinetic energy and the resulting forces doing something on top of my sub. Will this hurt a receiver…who knows…over time…who knows…but it all comes back to why risk it? Gamble at a casino not with you’re A/V equipment!
Who has to much time on their hands…me