subwoofers: which do you believe in?

[mike c]

Big drivers = slower / Small drivers = faster

or

Big drivers are no slower than small ones because it requires a smaller movement to produce the same frequency.

 

[mtrycrafts]

Big drivers = slower / Small drivers = faster

or

Big drivers are no slower than small ones because it requires a smaller movement to produce the same frequency.

If small drivers are faster, they are not subs but midrange or higher

 

[Seth=L]

If small drivers are faster, they are not subs but midrange or higher

I used to think a larger driver was slower, but I have seen my errors. It is all about enclosure designs and room acoustics. And not to mention wimpy amps get you crap bass.

 

[mike c]

fast - slow

what about "tight" and "sloppy" ... another set of terms used with large and small drivers

 

[gmichael]

Depends more on the cunstruction than the size.
But size still matters.

 

[Seth=L]

Uh, oh, there are two votes for faster, slower.

 

[Sheep]

Larger drivers usually have beefier motor structures as well as a more powerful amp.

When people say "faster, slower" they usually mean transient response. The art of starting and stopping the driver, but I highly doubt any decent driver would be that much slower at starting for it to be audible.

SheepStar

 

[j_garcia]

It is all about the driver design, size alone doesn't tell you the whole story.

 

[Audioholics]

Option #3 - "I'm using the wrong parameters to judge a subwoofer..." lol.

 

[evilkat]

While I can't say that I agree with any of the above options, I have to say that different subs sound better with music/movies. You just have to find the correct sub for the correct use.

For instance my Outlaw LMF-1 is okay with music, but is outstanding with movies. I think it really depends on more things than driver size.

 

[zumbo]

The pretty one.

 

[mike c]

of course, I'm talking about subwoofers from the same series ...

e.g.
velodyne DD-10 vs. velodyne DD-18

nobody is gonna say one of these is sloppy ... but it's just an example

 

[sleeper]

Interesting topic.

Apples and oranges, really.
I've heard a 10" woofer in an isobaric enclosure makes some deeeeep bass that almost caused me to loosen my bowels. (Good times! ) I've also done live sound using dual 18" woofers per box and not have gotten lower than 30Hz, and that's with room loading.

Apples and Oranges, beer and liquor.

sleeper.

 

[Seth=L]

It is pretty simple if you think about it. Take an 18" woofer for example, it doesn't need to move a lot to achieve high spls or to produce low frequency bass. A smaller driver will have more exertion, and if it doesn't I won't play as low. But they all play at the same relative speed.

 

[mtrycrafts]

Option #3 - "I'm using the wrong parameters to judge a subwoofer..." lol.

You modified the test, like Kirk did at the Academy A winner.

 

[dave1490]

Larger drivers usually have beefier motor structures as well as a more powerful amp.

When people say "faster, slower" they usually mean transient response. The art of starting and stopping the driver, but I highly doubt any decent driver would be that much slower at starting for it to be audible.

SheepStar

The art of starting and stopping the driver is called dampaning factor and this is an amp rating,some have 40, some have 500 bryston, some have 3000 crown.some have 20,000 crown macro teck.for sub,s id get the most damping possible.ps if you want sloppy just turn off your subsonic filter.

 

[tubesaregood]

Take a sub like the older Polk db10 in my truck. It's a driver with a high mass cone designed for small sealed enclosures, and it has great transient response, in my opinion. Put it in a 3 cubic foot vented enclosure tuned low, however, and you've got a floppy-*** subwoofer (not to mention a greatly decreased power handling I'd expect).

 

[Dolby CP-200]

Well I guess you can guess what I voted for 18” sub bass moves more air and its twice was loud in getting the results that I’m looking for.

Selth=L

Is right I often watch the 12” sub driver moving faster to get the huge timpani sounds from Return of the Jedi when the emperor arrives at the death star. There’s a deep timpani sound that plays slowly for a few minutes where it vibrates and rattles the living daylights out of the kitchen window on the JBL 4645 but I can only get slightly less out of the Eltax A-12 R 12” sub bass in the past with tests.

So the 18” wins.

Sleeper

Is right some frequencies will do that, the 12” sub bass that is use for sub bass extension of all the five channels except LFE.1 does just that on some passes like opening credits to The Sound of Music that I was playing yesterday vibrated my eyes for a brief moment.

 

[Audioholics]

(voice of Captain Kirk) Too many assumptions... head hurting... bad science... must not explode...

 

[Seth=L]

(voice of Captain Kirk) Too many assumptions... head hurting... bad science... must not explode...

What's bad science?