Subwoofer...Why DIY?

[jinjuku]

I noticed that you recommended ones which are like $75. My budget for 1 or 2 drivers is upto $300 (go higher only if really necessary). A few choice of drivers would be helpful. I saw the TC sounds drivers, it increases my budget to $400 for 2.

Man oh man... TimK and I built a 36L/sealed enclosure for the 1260W and it does sound sweet. We A/B them against his TC Sounds Epic 12s and at low-moderate levels couldn't discern between the two. Of course, the Epic has ridiculous X-max so I am positive at high-very high levels the SPL would be crushing. For a tad over $50 dollars each I would say these are a nice sounding value-sub and X2 I don't think I will want anything else--very musical.

The 1260w's are $54 at Amazon. Since I have a Prime subscription shipping would be included.

 

[darien87]

I saw the TC sounds drivers, it increases my budget to $400 for 2.

That looks suspiciously like the driver in my Rythmik.

 

[Sylar]

Given your budget I would go with the Infinity Reference 126Xw dual opposed X 2 if you could place them.

They are a much easier build than the ported Kappa

The kappa looks good . I think the kappas are available back here. Someone bought them recently in one of the forums.


How much power would be required to power single sub with two 1262's in a dual opposed config?

I have a Marantz 7005. Could this drive a sub? I use 4 ohm PSB T6 with B5 bookshelves. The Infinity driver specs mention it being 2 ohm.

Edit:
I noticed that the Power handling for the drivers is 300W. Am i safe to presume i would not need any more than 10W to drive them at moderate levels of sound? I understand that usually 1 Watt of power is all that is needed for most home use to drive at levels that are quite loud itself.

 

[Sylar]

That looks suspiciously like the driver in my Rythmik.

would that make 'em any better than infinity or dayton drivers?

 

[jinjuku]

The kappa looks good . I think the kappas are available back here. Someone bought them recently in one of the forums.


How much power would be required to power single sub with two 1262's in a dual opposed config?

I have a Marantz 7005. Could this drive a sub? I use 4 ohm PSB T6 with B5 bookshelves. The Infinity driver specs mention it being 2 ohm.

Edit:
I noticed that the Power handling for the drivers is 300W. Am i safe to presume i would not need any more than 10W to drive them at moderate levels of sound? I understand that usually 1 Watt of power is all that is needed for most home use to drive at levels that are quite loud itself.

Just get between 600-800 RMS and you will be good to go.

 

[Sylar]

all right. To design a box what process should I follow?
What do I need to decide on first? Driver?

 

[jinjuku]

all right. To design a box what process should I follow?
What do I need to decide on first? Driver?

I thought you were going with an already established design

 

[Sylar]

I thought you were going with an already established design

I meant do I build a box first and then choose a driver? Or do I need to decide on driver before proceeding?
I havent decided between Infinity and Dayton drivers. I will need to check out what driver is available back here.

 

[gmichael]

You can get more bang for you buck with DIY. (Or maybe that's BOOM for your buck) I built a sub that would easily cost twice what I paid to buy. It also gives you a feeling of pride knowing that you built it. There are possible drawbacks though. If you are not good at working with wood, you could end up with something that looks like it fell off a truck and then got run over. And even if you are good at working with wood, it does take time to do right. Do you enjoy this kind of work, or is it just a drain on your time and effort. You are the only one who can answer that.

If you are up to the challenge, it can end up being very rewarding for years to come.

I built one with a very good 18" driver powered buy a 2000 watt RMS amp. Including the BFD EQ, paint, wood glue, screws, etc. it all came to under $1100. To buy an equal sub would have been well over $2000.

 

[gmichael]

I meant do I build a box first and then choose a driver? Or do I need to decide on driver before proceeding?
I havent decided between Infinity and Dayton drivers. I will need to check out what driver is available back here.

You should choose a driver before you design the box. Each driver will act differently in different boxes.

 

[jinjuku]

You should simply build an already proven design: Box, Driver, Amplification.

 

[Nestor]

Folded horns and tapped horns exploit acoustic properties through cabinet design to yield high outputs with considerably smaller amplifier power requirements. The trade-off, however, is size, and this I believe, is the primary reason these designs are rare in manufactured consumer subwoofers.

A large enclosure means higher shipping and warehousing costs, and finishing expense. I'd expect WAF would also be a factor.

With DIY, however, you have control over several variables: performance requirements, budget, enclosure size, finish, and budget. For example, if the subs are going to be hidden in a dedicated home theater room, there's little point in exotic veneers and a piano-gloss finish. Paint 'em flat black and devote the money to something else.

High quality tools are nice, but you can get used tools for a fraction of the cost, and re-sell them if you don't want to keep them.

 

[panteragstk]

I very big in to "if I can do it, why pay someone else", but I don't yet have the tools to build a cabinet of any sort. I have the know how, and have always been able to borrow tools, but it's time I buy my own. I plan to get a table saw, router, brad nailer (for other stuff), and a compound miter. That will let me build anything I need to (for the most part).

I've read and re-read quite a bit about DIY subs and speakers and my conclusions are that you can get a LOT more bang for your buck (like the above post says) if you know how to build a proper cabinet. Plenty of DIY plans with cut sheets and great instructions. Rythmik will send you their box designs if you email them. Nice guys.

 

[GranteedEV]

As far as dual opposed goes, I don't think it's necessary. I mean it can be fun but doesn't seem to have any real tangible benefits unless you like to put lamps etc atop your sub. Nothing wrong with it, but I would try to be a bit more... zealous

What do I suggest?

I haven't yet modelled the box size requirements, but these 15" woofers looks fantastic:

Stereo Integrity | HT Subwoofers

Hopefully someone can run it through a sim. Otherwise I will when I get home. The qts and fs seem optimal though IMO, and the Le looks reasonable / usable.

If you want a truly great sub, the JBL W15GTI is a fantastic choice because of its high thermal power handling, and excellent upper frequency extension. The difference between a driver that can cross over at 100hz and a driver that can only be used at 60hz and below is probably the biggest one you'll find.

My number one suggestion is to buy two drivers at the very least, so you can even out room modes. What are your box size requirements?

Folded horns and tapped horns exploit acoustic properties through cabinet design to yield high outputs with considerably smaller amplifier power requirements. The trade-off, however, is size, and this I believe, is the primary reason these designs are rare in manufactured consumer subwoofers.

Don't forget that the other tradoff is bandwidth. Horns have a narrow bandwidth up top so your mains better be able to cover a wide bandwidth and keep up with the horn. Of course many drivers themselves, even not in a horn, will have high mass and inductive rolloff below 100hz.

 

[Sylar]

If you are not good at working with wood, you could end up with something that looks like it fell off a truck and then got run over.

Not an issue since I can get this done back here at a low cost.

 

[Sylar]

You should simply build an already proven design: Box, Driver, Amplification.

I was a little reluctant to go with the car driver, read some reviews, since I barely found many people using this for home use, mostly been for car. I read some of your earlier posts about the same, and you recommend these hands down

I checked out what drivers are available. The 1262 is not available here, but the 1260 is available.

Following are prices,
1260 @ $75 available here
1262 @ $175 shipped from US
Kappa @ $250 available here (not sure which model)

If you want a truly great sub, the JBL W15GTI is a fantastic choice because of its high thermal power handling, and excellent upper frequency extension.

I know JBL sells here, I might be able to get this one, again maybe not.

 

[panteragstk]

From my research the reason most don't use car drivers is that the manufacturers don't post all the specs needed for correct modeling.

 

[jinjuku]

I was a little reluctant to go with the car driver, read some reviews, since I barely found many people using this for home use, mostly been for car. I read some of your earlier posts about the same, and you recommend these hands down

I checked out what drivers are available. The 1262 is not available here, but the 1260 is available.

Following are prices,
1260 @ $75 available here
1262 @ $175 shipped from US
Kappa @ $250 available here (not sure which model)


I know JBL sells here, I might be able to get this one, again maybe not.

Hit the link that I provided earlier. It will take you to the Parts Express forum where I believe a good 7 or 8 builds have been done.

When you have guys comparing the $65 *USD* Reference to the $190 TC Sounds Epic 12" favorably that says everything you need to know.

 

[jinjuku]

As far as dual opposed goes, I don't think it's necessary. I mean it can be fun but doesn't seem to have any real tangible benefits unless you like to put lamps etc atop your sub..

Tangible benefits vs ?.... One tangible benefit of the InfiniDOS is that you get a lot of driver area in a relatively small package.

 

[Sylar]

Hit the link that I provided earlier. It will take you to the Parts Express forum where I believe a good 7 or 8 builds have been done.

When you have guys comparing the $65 *USD* Reference to the $190 TC Sounds Epic 12" favorably that says everything you need to know.

All right. I think i have done enough of reading. Will take the plunge and see how it works out. Also, since this is cost effective, this is probably my best bet creating a sub first time.

Thanks for the advice and being patient with me

I have created another thread here for the build.