Building your own sub / speakers

[Niva]

Having blown multiple subs in my house I went on search for something stupid sized, and as you may of guessed the prices are fucking stupid. Listening to a sub in the sony center that was 1300 sounded about as loud / deep as my logitech z5500's

A friend of mine whos right into building his own shit has suggested we build a couple of subs ourselves, in theory getting twice the spec for half the price, and after the success of me building my own center that turned out awesome im keen as.

anyone ever had a crack at building their own shit for car or home? I get box design can get pretty complicated but thats the mates job haha. be interested to see some pics or advice on what to do or what to stay away from.

will probably start off with something like this, can be had for around $150, and the budget around $300 for a suitable driver?

http://img.inkfrog.com/pix/kitsparts/1000w_48v_2.JPG

1000W 12V 80A Switching Power Supply Radio Charger



Suitable for Radio Power Amp. project
Input voltage : 110 / 220V Manual Switch
+ / - 10% adjustable output voltage
Daul fan design
Thermal control cooling fan
High Efficiency, Low Temperature, Small Size
Built-in EMI Filter
Over Load and Short Circuit Protection
Over Voltage Protection
Auto-recovery after protection
Dimension : (19 x 30 x 9)cm
Weight : 3.5Kg

[KAL SPL]

On a daily basis , yes :p

[Niva]

nice! I still have that speaker cable I got from you lol

can you comment on wether T-line is the way to go or just a bunch of wank?

[blackjack]

OK, I'll ask the stupid question: you can build speakers from scratch?? ie. not just the box!!

Mythbusters style-
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[KAL SPL]

wtf is T line ?

[protecon]

Transmission Line

[Niva]

OK, I'll ask the stupid question: you can build speakers from scratch?? ie. not just the box!!



No, not from scratch. Just buy an amp, a speaker, sort out a HPF and build a well designed box. by my calculations I should be able to have a sub that has an RMS way over 500w for the price of a 200w off the shelf item



wtf is T line ?

http://www.diysubwoofers.org/tls/

Plenty of vids etc on youtube, everyone speaks so highly of them. but not sure if thats just because they spent so long making the box haha

[mys1]

Why cant you build speakers from scratch? Its a magnte and a coil! (may not be able to make a good one, but they can be made :) )

[cplagz]

www.parts-express.com

;)

[Charger]

Hit up some good quality US brands if you want good bass, don't bother with the generic car audio junk we get slumped with here. To fill a big room you need to move big air so either a killer bandpass or T-line would be ideal, an efficient 15" or 18" woofer will be the go to make good bass that can thunder across your whole block. Ascendant Audio, Incriminator Audio, DC Audio are some US owned brands that make good quality woofers that are decently priced and suited to what you want. I used to dabble in car audio a lot a few years ago but don't bother so much anymore..

[[FL0SSIN]]

Lol at dabble, that fuckin jackaroo is still on of the most mental things Iv heard... Coke can used to be fun to watch

[_S9_]

I built a 6th-order dual bandpass box about 10years ago.

20L in one chamber, and 10L in the other. Using 2x 8" subs in Isobarik configuration. Similiar to the below;

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ZVgJtItVgnk/SPIlvviYs7I/AAAAAAAAAU0/jlOQHlFCrAk/s400/DIY-Isobaric-Sixth-Order-Bandpass-Subwoofer-Box.jpg

Driven by a 100W graphic equaliser P.O.S. - it was highly successful

All up cost me about $200 (inc the subs) - would build one again for sure.

[Niva]

Bit of a thread revival

bought this
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=120893754565

and this
https://secure.vividcluster.crox.net.au/jaycar2005/products_uploaded/productLarge_14698.jpg

Specifications:
• Power/channel @ 4Ohm 14.4V: 80WRMS x 2
• Power/channel @ 2Ohm 14.4V: 125WRMS x 2
• Power/channel @ 4Ohm 14.4V bridged: 255WRMS x 1
• Signal/noise ratio: >90dB
• Input sensitivity: 150mV to 6V
• Low pass filter: 50 - 500Hz @ 12dB/octave
• High pass filter: 50 - 500Hz @ 12dB/octave
• Bass boost: 0 - 18dB @ 45Hz
• Pass thru RCA: Yes
• Dimensions: 266(L) x 235(W) x 58(D)mm


Now just need to find the sub, anywhere local i can get a decent one from??

[stumps.]

http://www.theloudspeakerkit.com/ ???

[Niva]

well finally got all the parts and threw a box together,

went with a kenwood w3013 sub, which is rated at 400w RMS
have the amp running 4Ohm which is 255w RMS
the 1000w power supply
built the box to 1.65 cubic feet, for a mix between low and clear
jammed it in the corner and FUCK MY TITIES

to put it into perspective, parents run a pretty nice jenson sub which set them back $1500, these still retail at 12-1300 in the shops and it blows the fucking doors of it. Cost me about 350 including wood and buying a jigsaw.

got the amp and power supply running in one of the end cabinet things, watching movies with it half volume rattles the garage door (other end of the house)



One wierd problem we did run in to, which im glad my mate was around to fix was when we first hooked it up the was just constant buzzing from the sub and very low sound coming through it. but wouldnt happen if you plugged an ipod straight in, turns out we had to run a ground cable from the amp to the chassis of my pioneer amp and it went away! goes to show how handy some people are, never would of thought of that myself


http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j152/jhoskisson/23042012037.jpg


http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j152/jhoskisson/23042012038.jpg

[dmwill]

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/SHiOt4hmmS4" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>...

[Brett Allan]

If you wanted to run a smaller amp, on a smaller budget, I am pretty sure you could also use this;

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/E-FUEL-30A-SWITCHING-POWER-SUPPLY-DUAL-DC-OUTPUTS-9V-12V-18V-240V-HOBBY-RC-/390402077939?pt=AU_Toys_Hobbies_Radio_Controlled_V ehicles&hash=item5ae5c6f4f3

I bought a 40 amp Power Supply from dick smith for $70, and running 2 12" subs off a bridged 4ch amp, it runs them comfortably.

[Niva]

Yeah but I was going for big sound :) but was suprised just how big at how little cash was handed over!

[Brett Allan]

Looks good either way, and definatley sounds good from what you have said :D

not sure if I missed it, is the box ported?

[Niva]

another thread rival,

got bored with this sub... plus I think it might be blown sooooooooo

opinions on something like this in the lounge:

http://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/yanchep/audio/american-audio-pxw-18p-800-watt-powered-sub/1012556076

is it ok to go from RCA to XLR?

[BLACK HULK]

I was looking at turning my spare JL Audio 13w6 sub into a home theatre sub as the 12" Dali sub cant keep up with the towers at high volume. In the end I just use the theatre for movies and bought a Behringer studio setup for the lounge room with twin 12" subs and 2 monitors next to the tv. The speakers are XLR converted to RCA works a treat

[Trolley]

another thread rival,

got bored with this sub... plus I think it might be blown sooooooooo

opinions on something like this in the lounge:

http://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/yanchep/audio/american-audio-pxw-18p-800-watt-powered-sub/1012556076

is it ok to go from RCA to XLR?

Why not spend $800 on a brand new sub actually made for music/home theatre? For example Yamaha have a huge range and this time of year they'd be greatly discounted. A 10-12" sub is plenty big enough to fill a lounge room and sure as hell won't have the stupidly huge footprint of that thing on Gumtree! A cool conversation piece and definitely has the potential to annoy the fuck out of your neighbours but I suspect in a small environment that it will sound like complete arse.

[RGVFAST]

I have a SVS cylinder sub. They start around 800 bucks, with the top of the range at about $2500.

They create masses of bass and take up very little room. Forgive the photo as the lens makes the sub look much wider than reality, you can even lay it down behind a couch or furniture to be almost invisible.

http://img707.imageshack.us/img707/5558/g9f6.jpg

[Niva]

Why not spend $800 on a brand new sub actually made for music/home theatre? For example Yamaha have a huge range and this time of year they'd be greatly discounted. A 10-12" sub is plenty big enough to fill a lounge room and sure as hell won't have the stupidly huge footprint of that thing on Gumtree! A cool conversation piece and definitely has the potential to annoy the fuck out of your neighbours but I suspect in a small environment that it will sound like complete arse.

honestly for less than 1k I think id be lucky to get a decent sub with close to 150wrms, currently I have 255rms

[RGVFAST]

This SVS is 800 Watt (400 RMS) run 800 bucks in OZ. The model up is $1500 with 3500 Watt (800 RMS) and the top line one is 3600 watt (1000 RMS)

The 1k RMS feel like its enough to disrupt your heart rhythm.

http://www.svsound.com/subwoofers/cylinder/pc12-nsd

[Niva]

well ill just shut the fuck up! cheers dude, any idea if anyone has them in stock for a listen?

[RGVFAST]

I dont know anyone one that stocks them in Perth. I have one you can listen to if you are anywhere near basywater.

The mob below in the link stock them over east, as well as a joint called deephertz.

http://www.elite-electronics.com.au/Home_Entertainment/Subwoofers?zenid=99931b7d778e1a74e73c5c5a0304cd08

[Trolley]

well ill just shut the fuck up! cheers dude, any idea if anyone has them in stock for a listen?

lol
How big is the room? Don't get too wound up in the watts unless you have a stupidly huge home theatre room. For example, I run this Yammie sub: http://au.yamaha.com/en/products/audio-visual/speaker-systems/subwoofers/yst-sw515_black__a/?mode=model

"270 watts" peak power... the volume on it doesn't even see 9 o'clock on the dial. A sub's output will also be determined by the signal being fed to it. When connected to my old Yamaha AVR the sub volume was around 1 o'clock on the dial. Now with my new Onkyo (3k AVR), it sits under 9 o'clock and can be audibly heard outside the house.

If you're game enoughto buy blind and on repuation, Steve @ Eastwood Hifi over east is FANTASTIC to deal with and has bullshit prices on a lot of decent gear. My AVR arrived in 5 days from them.

http://www.eastwoodhifi.com.au/specials.html

They've got the same sub I'mrunning on special for $600. It's one of the tightest/most musical subs in its size (10")

[XsQuiZiT]

I got a quote from Deep Hertz for a SVS SB12 NSD. It was $879 delivered for charcoal black or $929 for gloss black.

Might check out the YST-SW515

[Trolley]

Might check out the YST-SW515

Try West Coast Hifi. I got mine for $550 many years ago which is nearly half the $rrp (Morley store)

[protecon]

If anyone needs help with boxes or designs I can help.
I also have testing kit to determine the thiele-small parameters of any driver - really handy for precise custom enclosures or those random second-hand drivers.

[Niva]

Hey dude I might take you up on that.

ive decided to do what I did lastime and just buy a bigger amp and bigger speaker... will my 1000w 24v power pack take a stupid big amp?

I want 10 million watts rms

[protecon]

Personally I would stay away from car amplifiers & inverters - Have you looked at the iNuke 6000?

http://www.behringer.com/EN/Products/NU6000.aspx

https://www.storedj.com.au/products/BEH-NU6000DSP

Hook it up to your PC to tailor x/over curves etc.
http://www.behringer.com/assets/NU6000DSP_P0AEO_Filter_XXL.png

[Niva]

is $800 about right for it? itchy clickin finger

[protecon]

is $800 about right for it? itchy clickin finger

They used to be on fleabay for about $700 but no longer.
1800W continuous output into stereo at 4 ohms (http://forum.speakerplans.com/behringer-inuke-nu6000-vs-kam-kxd7200-bench-tested_topic69202.html).

[Trolley]

Niva: what front speakers and receiver are you running that is going to keep up with a sub taking 1800 watta?

[Niva]

at the moment the front speakers are wharfedale diamond 9.5's.. not expecting these to be able to keep up, amp is a mid range pioneer.

I am just waiting for my cousin's new DJ gear to arrive and I'll be grabbing his mackie 12's.. Just trying to find a way to have them in the right spot and be hidden as they dont exactly look at home in a lounge room.

[d1mitch]

mackies are not bad at all ive played on some mackie at velvet lounge and we had them absolutely thumping

[Trolley]

Mackies and 1600w sub. Glad not to be Niva's neighbour :p

[d1mitch]

i wish i was, then we could join forces and ruin everyone in the neighbourhoods day.