New theater- need advice on speaker system

[BoredSysAdmin]

I would recommend two of these drivers:
Dayton Audio RSS390HF-4 15" Reference HF Subwoofer 4 Ohm 295-468

Each in a 300L Sonosub, 8" x 42" sonotube vent

GranteedEV, could you please explain this sub design for dummy like me a bit further...
I tried to look source for sonotube enclosure and all i found is this company:
American Paper Products

 

[GranteedEV]

GranteedEV, could you please explain this sub design for dummy like me a bit further...
I tried to look source for sonotube enclosure and all i found is this company:
American Paper Products

Rather than myself, how abouts I just link to three links that should give you a decent idea:

Patman's Sunosub Construction Resource Page
Patman's Sunosub II Construction Resource Page
Patman's Sunosub III Construction Resource Page

As far as sourcing the stuff, it depends on where you live. SonoTube is really just a brand name, plenty of companies make these products (Concrete Forming Tubes). Look for Quiktube and SonoTube down in the States, and NorthTube up here in Canada.

There is a sonosub modelling program here:

http://www.subwoofer-builder.com/sonosub.htm

You can verify your results with winISD etc.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

Thanks Granteed,
That explained few things...
I found a bit more info here:
Lungster.Com - sonosub
and here:
Lungster.Com - sonotube faq

 

[Mathu12]

Ok. I appreciate the advice on receivers and subs. I'll look closer at the receivers and see if I want to make a change. For the subs, I definitely wouldn't be able to put out $800-900 now so I think I'll continue to look for a DIY that I could do at a lower price. I am currently re-designing my room so that I can put the mains in front of my columns and the center & sub behind the screen.

 

[GranteedEV]

I definitely wouldn't be able to put out $800-900 now so I think I'll continue to look for a DIY that I could do at a lower price.

Maybe just put a sub on hold, until you've got everything else finished. Then evaluate how much you're willing to shell out on subs.

I am currently re-designing my room so that I can put the mains in front of my columns and the center & sub behind the screen.

SUb behind the screen is a bad idea. Would just make the screen flap wildly. Also not normally a good place for coupling to room modes. Again, better to add subs to the room than build the room to the subs.

 

[Mathu12]

Well, it seems I waited a bit too long for those Primus P152's. Went on there today to order 4 of them and they are discontinued. I'll have to investigate more on the surrounds now. By the way, does anybody have experience with this sub? BIC Formula F-12 12" Subwoofer 475 Watts 303-436. Looks pretty good. Thanks.

 

[gotchaforce]

For the sub you need to make a cinema F20, at your budget theres NO reason to build anything else

Lilmike's Cinema F-20 - AVS Forum

Also yeah, if youre doing DIY then stentorians should be your main speakers

 

[afterlife2]

Well, it seems I waited a bit too long for those Primus P152's. Went on there today to order 4 of them and they are discontinued. I'll have to investigate more on the surrounds now. By the way, does anybody have experience with this sub? BIC Formula F-12 12" Subwoofer 475 Watts 303-436. Looks pretty good. Thanks.

X 2: Amazon.com: Velodyne VX-11: Electronics

 

[Mathu12]

Since you both posted links to other ideas for subs, I'll assume that neither of you like the one I asked about.

Also, I've been trying to figure out how to add a picture of my theater layout idea. I finally got it so it's attached here. If you look at it, you can tell that it has a somewhat weird shape with the jut out on the right side and the odd shape in the back.

http://img13.imageshack.us/img13/2410/theaterlayout.jpg

You can see that my original plan was to have the sub placed in the left side column. Now, since I have been told that it's not good to put the speakers in the wall, I will need to try to select a different place for it. Also, on the right side of the room where the wall shifts over, I'm wondering if the odd shape will cause problems with the sound to the front and rear seating locations from the right side speaker. Any feedback on that would be appreciated.

Thanks.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Well, it seems I waited a bit too long for those Primus P152's. Went on there today to order 4 of them and they are discontinued. I'll have to investigate more on the surrounds now. By the way, does anybody have experience with this sub? BIC Formula F-12 12" Subwoofer 475 Watts 303-436. Looks pretty good. Thanks.

I have the $279 BIC PL-200 sub (use with P362), which is probably like the F-12.

It can shake every wall. I can tell you that. Not as tight as my Velodyne, RBH, or Rythmik. But for the much lower price, you can't expect too much. But if you just want your walls to rumble and get pretty good sound above 25Hz, not a bad sub.

 

[Mathu12]

Thanks alot to everyone that has posted here to help me with my theater. I have received all my Stentorian parts from parts express. I purchased all the components to make three of them (two mains and one center). I have three sheets of 3/4 MDF and am wondering if this is the best material to build with? I have read several posts that compare MDF to plywood and there seem to be pros and cons to each. I would like to get some feedback from you guys. I guess I question the strength of MDF and the ability to get screws to hold without tearing when mounting the drivers. Any advice will be appreciated.

Also, I'm still pondering the sub build. I have seen several posts from jinjuku about the infinity reference 1260w with the bash amp. Would this "car" subwoofer work well in my theater? If I wanted to build two of them, could I power them with the Crown XLS 1000 and be ok? Also, I have the same question that I have for my Stentorians- what is the best material for the enclosure? GranteedEV recommended two sonosubs and I am ok with these but the idea from jinjuku is a bit cheaper. Is there a good, detailed plan out there for a box for these? The PDF I saw only shows the box- there are not details for port dimensions, braces, etc..

Thanks again for all the help.

 

[GranteedEV]

Thanks alot to everyone that has posted here to help me with my theater. I have received all my Stentorian parts from parts express.

Hey, good to see you're still around.

. I have three sheets of 3/4 MDF and am wondering if this is the best material to build with?

It's perfectly fine. Brace it well. Don't forget to make the speaker aperiodic(heavy stuffing + a hole), as Curt did. Email correspondence with the designer is a good idea.

I guess I question the strength of MDF and the ability to get screws to hold without tearing when mounting the drivers.

I recommend gluing some Hurricane-Nuts to the screw-holes for the drivers.

Also, I'm still pondering the sub build. I have seen several posts from jinjuku about the infinity reference 1260w with the bash amp. Would this "car" subwoofer work well in my theater?

Those 1260Ws are fine for a home setup, but at the end of the day they're 12 inch woofers. I personally think the 15s are that much more worth it:

The extra headroom and extension should pay dividends IMO.

Also, the above was modelled assuming the bash 300w amp actually delivers 300W. I would expect that it's pretty optimistically rated, whereas I'd bet the crown is not.

As far as sonosub vs MDF - both are again, perfectly fine. The sonosubs will weigh a lot less though, which you'll probably thank yourself for at the end of it.

 

[Mathu12]

It's perfectly fine. Brace it well. Don't forget to make the speaker aperiodic(heavy stuffing + a hole), as Curt did. Email correspondence with the designer is a good idea.

This is a good idea. I think I will create a list of questions and email Curt.

I recommend gluing some Hurricane-Nuts to the screw-holes for the drivers.

Can you recommend a type of hurricane nuts? Would you use a typical glue like Titebond II or use an epoxy?

Those 1260Ws are fine for a home setup, but at the end of the day they're 12 inch woofers. I personally think the 15s are that much more worth it:

I agree that the 15's would be much more powerful and have a better sound in general but the value in the 12's is so much better for me. I think I could be happy with them if I can find a good plan for a box.

I've seen some posts that discuss subs and sub building and programs that help people design a box. Is there something that would take the driver and amp I'm using and give me a box design with dimensions including port dimensions?

Thanks.

 

[GranteedEV]

Can you recommend a type of hurricane nuts?

Whatever fits.

Would you use a typical glue like Titebond II or use an epoxy?

Any typical wood glue will be fine. Hammer 'em in nice an good though.

I agree that the 15's would be much more powerful and have a better sound in general but the value in the 12's is so much better for me.

Maybe you need to get the Stentorians built before you make his leap. I honestly feel you would thank yourself for shelling out the extra money, but before that, you need to get an idea of the value behind what we've recommended thus far.

You're pinching pennies when you're this --><-- close. We're talking an extra week, maybe month, of saving up, yet contrast that with the time you'll spend actually enjoying them. The dayton will flat out play cleaner, louder, deeper, and the amp is better too, to the same extent.

Don't get me wrong, I think that the Infinity would be a fun build for the heck of it, maybe in a random living room but this is your dedicated HT room here. The real investment isn't the extra $200, it's gonna be the time spent building. Why not get it great the first time?

I've seen some posts that discuss subs and sub building and programs that help people design a box. Is there something that would take the driver and amp I'm using and give me a box design with dimensions including port dimensions?

Designing a box isn't hard.

 

[jonnythan]

I generally don't recommend DIY subs these days unless you're willing to do measurements and apply DSP to it. The commercial subs from SVS and Rythmik do such a great job applying filters to the signals to optimize response it's difficult to replicate yourself.

 

[Mathu12]

Hi guys. I have started my build now. It's pretty slow but it is coming along. I got my first speaker glued together today and got the front panel holes cut out. I would like to show the progress of my build on here as I go. Should I put it all in this thread or start a new thread? Thanks.