Audiobahn AW1251T (Dual Voice Coil) 12" Woofer, Sealed enclosure size?

[JoT]

I've got the speaker listed in the title, and I'm considering putting it into a 2x2x2 cube, but I'm thinking that maybe 8' of airspace is far too much for this speaker. Thoughts on this?

If it is far too much, what may your thoughts be on getting a second speaker and using the same box for an Isobaric setup?

http://www.sonicelectronix.com/viewitem.php?id=136

I'm looking at this amp to power the speaker(s). Think it's enough for two dual voice coil woofers?

I'm looking at you, Ryan and Korndog

Thanks for any help you can provide.

 

[punkgamingmaste]

Subwoofer Specifications:

Subwoofer Size 12"
Impedance Dual 4 ohms
Dual Voice Coil Yes
Peak Power Handling 800 watts approx.
RMS Power Handling 400 watts
Surround Material Foam
Sealed Box Volume 1.0 - 2.0 cubic ft.
Ported Box Volume 1.3 - 3.15 cubic ft.
Sensitivity 92.1 dB
Frequency Response 24Hz - 1kHz
Top Mount Depth 5-1/4"
Cutout Diameter 10-7/8"
Warranty 1-year SE

look at the part i put in bold.

a 2 foot by 2 foot by 2 foot cube would be way to big according the whats the site says.

 

[JoT]

Ya know...I hadn't actually looked at the site I linked, except to make sure that it was the right woofer. Usually recommendations are crap, aren't they?

 

[Know Nuttin]

you'd only be feeding it 150w (you'd need to wire it in series, for 8ohm operation). I"m assuming this is for your room? If so, it should do fine.

give it about 1.5cu ft, that's about perfect for most 12" subs. You have to measure the inside of the box though, not the outside And you also should take into account the volume of the sub, when designing the box and the dimensions.

 

[JoT]

Yes, it's for my room. So I should maybe be looking at maybe an 18" cube? Almost 2 cubic feet, subtract a bit for the sub (maybe around a half foot) and end up with 1.5'?

 

[Xtreme Barton]

thoughts on a slot ported box ?
do you want it to just be thunderous or a mild bass for computing ...

there are many various ways to wire these up .. it doesnt list that your amp is 2 ohm stable but it very well may be ... if thats the case then you could have some serious power ... otherwise like mentioned above you will be running 150 watts into 8 ohms.. whick if the box and placement are good then it will be plenty loud..

if you add two then you will most likely be looking into 250 watt range .. two would defiently thump .. im guessing though one would be sufficient .. given space and such ... i would highly reccomend building a slot ported box (kinda complex) and tuning it to a low frequency .. they are excellent ..

if you just want a plain setup than i would recommend a sealed enclosure. with its max rec. cubic ft.... the max air the better .. and really the less power you have to use to reach its "prime state"..

 

[JoT]

I've never heard a slot ported box, but I prefer to have more thump than sound. I use my current sealed sub for games, music, movies, everything, and it's awesome, it's just not enough to keep up with my mids and highs when I turn it all up. So I'm adding

 

[attack]

if you like the thump why not goto a ported? You can hit lower with a ported.

 

[JoT]

Every ported setup I've ever worked with wouldn't go as low and hit less than the compared sealed box. I've gotten used to the quick response and thump of the sealed setups, I've become biased

 

[Know Nuttin]

sealed is fine, a properly designed ported box will work just as well and can be better than a sealed box, it just depends on the application and the proper building/design of the box.

In any case, with that little power on a sub that likes 400RMS, I would actually recommend going ported. they tend to be more efficient than a sealed box.

the only real caveat with a ported box is that it's a good idea to get an amp with a subsonic filter. that amp you showed doesn't have one.

If you really want sealed, I've always done 1.5-1.75 cu ft sealed boxes. You could just go with a 1.5, and if you want a bit smoother bass response, buy a lb of polyfill and stuff the box.

 

[Korndog]

you could get away with a 8cuft box tuned to 25hz if you'd like. the responce around 55hz will be kinda loud. Get two PVC pipes (they usually come in 12") and cut them down to 11", that should be okey. as far as sealed box hitting lower then a ported, very not true with this sub. winISD says a ported box will hit 6db louder @ 30hz, 8db louder at 20hz. should be noticibly louder. But if u were to use a sealed box, it should sound alright. just don't expect its rated power handling and in either case, don't expect tight bass

 

[Ryan T]

I would not go ported with that subwoofer . I searched around and couldnt find the T/S parameters for it so it would be very hard to design a proper enclosure. You could fallow their recommendations for a sealed enclosure but that is likely tailored more for car audio. The nice thing about sealed enclosures is they tend to work pretty well even if yuor off a bit. So in other words its the safest bet to go with a sealed enclosure when you dont have the T/S specs.

I dont beleive the PE plate amp is stable into 2 ohms. But you can E-mail the PE tech support and they should be able to answer you right away.

If you would consider selling the audiobahn driver and spending some money on a more home audio suited driver it may give you getter results. A lot of the time the car audio drivers arent up to the task of reproducing low bass in a home. They are designed with the massive cabin gain of a car to give you the low bass (at least from what i've seen). You could get the lower end dayton DVC 12" drivers for $40 a piece I think. Or one of the DVC series 12" drivers for a little over $100. Any of those drivers would probably fair a lot better than the audiobahn in a home enviroment. Anyway thats just my two cents.


Ryan

 

[Xtreme Barton]

slot ported are super nice man ... just a little difficult to build .. sealed are quick and easy way out in my mind ... not bad .. but no comparison in my eyes..

ive built tons of boxes and my favorite is the slot port... you dont necissarily have to have a subsonic but it is idea for long run .. you can get one if you want.. but seing your response is low as 24hz i personally dont think it is necissary .. plus your not killing it with a ton of power anyways ...


what is your budget if i may ask ??

 

[Korndog]

hey ryan, the t/s para. are already in winISD alpha version. everything u said is true though, audiobahn subs are definitly not homeaudio material (not even car audio imo, but if i say too much i might get flamed ).

 

[Xtreme Barton]

yeah but you have to consider one thing guys !!!

he already has it

 

[RobxMcCarthy]

slot ported are super nice man ... just a little difficult to build .. sealed are quick and easy way out in my mind ... not bad .. but no comparison in my eyes..

ive built tons of boxes and my favorite is the slot port... you dont necissarily have to have a subsonic but it is idea for long run .. you can get one if you want.. but seing your response is low as 24hz i personally dont think it is necissary .. plus your not killing it with a ton of power anyways ...


what is your budget if i may ask ??

I don't think this is true.. Sealed aren't a quick and easy way out. A good sealed box is just as hard to build as a good ported box. Because of the pressure experienced by a HIGH power sub in a sealed enclosure you need REALLY good bracing. and for the enclosure to be air tight. The ports relieve this pressure in a ported design and eliminate a large portion of this problem.

Some people prefer the sound of a sealed enclosure as it is "generally" more musical for genres other than rap. I'm not saying a ported box isn't but sealed enclosures have the best transient response.

Ported is best for home theater / rap.

As a final example I have a 10 inch in a sealed enclosure and it goes down to 20 hz just fine.. Of course it's below the audible spectrum but when it's playing at 20 hz and you talk you can't even understand what you're saying.

 

[Korndog]

yeah but you have to consider one thing guys !!!

he already has it

he could try to sell it, and avoid buying another one.

I don't think this is true.. Sealed aren't a quick and easy way out. A good sealed box is just as hard to build as a good ported box. Because of the pressure experienced by a HIGH power sub in a sealed enclosure you need REALLY good bracing. and for the enclosure to be air tight. The ports relieve this pressure in a ported design and eliminate a large portion of this problem.

Some people prefer the sound of a sealed enclosure as it is "generally" more musical for genres other than rap. I'm not saying a ported box isn't but sealed enclosures have the best transient response.

Ported is best for home theater / rap.

As a final example I have a 10 inch in a sealed enclosure and it goes down to 20 hz just fine.. Of course it's below the audible spectrum but when it's playing at 20 hz and you talk you can't even understand what you're saying.

very true, ported boxes are easier, used to make them in 30min at my old job (carstereo shop). wouldn't have to worry about any air leaks because there was less air pressure, only difference between a sealed/ported was that i had to use a holesaw to make a hole or two. Vented aren't a lot harder, the planning and assembly can take a little longer though (fortuantly we charged an extra 150 for that )

 

[Xtreme Barton]

dude a sealed box is easy ... air tight ??? not hard at all

you do know that a ported box is more difficult period... not just rap genre either.. please dont get me started .. really good bracing ... were not talking competition here either .. if you want we can discuss that some other place ..

and i laugh at your 10 inch sub ... LOL

please thats a joke .. especially if you canmt build a sealed box for it with out it being complicated..

 

[Xtreme Barton]

yeah i would liek to see you throw a slot port box together that quick tuned correctly ..

and a sealed box is an easy cure for one who doesnt want to build a complex ported enclosure


and you do know that you only want air to leak out of the port right ... that is the correct way of building ..

 

[Ryan T]

There is a big misconception about sealed subs in my opinion. Yes they are the easiest to build, BUT to build them well isnt an easy task as Rob mentioned.

My favorite sub i've heard was my first "real" sub which was a Adire audio tempest in a 230 Liter sealed enclosure. It had a Q or .577. That was probably the hardest enclosure i've built since it had a full length (top to bottom) cross brace. It took nearly two full sheets of 3/4" MDF but when it was done it was the tightest sub i've ever heard. It isnt nearly as easy as you think to build a box with a full cross brace that is sealed properly. Yes a slot vent can be hard but in reality it isnt any different that putting braces in an enclosure. You just have to have the measurements correct for the tuning point.

Now it was also freakin huge and weighed more than me. So it wasnt exactly practical. the point is though, you should build a sub suited to your tastes. If you want a sub that can thump and bump like nobodys business then you will likely want a high Q sealed sub or maybe even ported if your after higher spl. If you want a super clean sub that can reproduce all the little nuances of an upright acoustic bass then your probably gonna want a low Q sealed sub. If you want a HT monster that can shake the house then you want ported or PR sub tuned really low etc.


Ryan