Works for me. I just wanted it to be clear for others who have no idea. They would be certain that a 12" would prevail "most of the time", when that is not fact. If we are talking equal money, that takes a product of the same model line out of it.
I would go as far to say, for equal retail money, a 10" would prevail most of the time.
I totally disagree with your last statement.
So you are saying that if there is a $500 10" sub and a $500 12" sub the 10" will play deeper???
This is not going to be the case in a majority of the time.
I would put my money on the 12" as having more usable reponse down low over the 10" explicitly for the reasons I stated above.
Especially if they are sealed systems.
With ported systems it will directly correlate to the tuning frequency of each enclosure and the capabilities of the individual driver.
10" subs fit a niche for people constained by space. If 12" and larger woofers did not offer the following advantages: deeper usable response, increased output efficiency, higher output capability; there would be no need for them.
If "most 10 inch subs" played deeper than 12" subs, why do you think most companies flagship woofers are their biggest offerings? SVS= 13.5", JL Audio= dual 13.5", Velodyne= 18" and a 12" in the same cabinet, HSU= 12" (I Think), Paradigm= 15" or an 18" and the list goes on.
My rule of thumb is, if space is not an issue, get the largest sub for the money. Obviously there are a
few larger woofers out there that do not play well down low but they are very few. Please cite some examples of where a 10" woofer is the better choice in terms of response down low. The only sub that comes to mind off the top of my head is the SVS entry level 10" option. It is good down to about 18hz or so. However, for the same price I am quite positive there are other options out there that feature a 12" that will have more energy at those frequencies.
You also need to remember that room size plays an integral part of subwoofer selection.
A 12" driver if given equal terms as the 10", will always have lower response than the 10". In a ported application, even if tuned to the same frequency, the 12" will "seem" to play deeper as it will have more output capability at the tuning frequency. Like I stated above in a sealed application, unless a 10" has significant amount of excursion the 12" will again play deeper. It is a matter of the amount of air moved. A 12" cone can move more air per distance traveled than a 10" cone period. Unless the 10" cone can move a significant amount of distance to make up for the loss in cone area the 12" will win out most every time. However, it will be dependent upon sub woofer design. You could not put a 12" PA speaker against a 10" home theater woofer. You would have two completely different designs for different applications.
