DIY Sub Help

[aud19]

Just read through Andrew's nice Tumult project there and I'm working on convincing my uncle to make a DIY sub powered by his 125WX2 (at 8ohms I'm guessing) Hafler amp bridged to 250W.

First question, do you think the amp will work well in this scenario to drive a sub (likely sealed)? I know sealed box's crave power to really thrive, will this be enough?

Second, is the tumult driver the current top pic for performance/cost or has something better/cheaper come out? Or something you believe may work better with the Hafler amp mentioned?

Third, can you point me to some links/info for the design of the actual enclosure/bracing etc?

Finally, please feel free to offer any other advice or information that may be helpful.

Thanks :T

Jason

[ThomasW]

Nope the amp's too small.......

Current best buy is the Avalanche 15" from

https://www.ascendantaudio.com

Design depends on the tuning you want to use.

[David R.]

Seeing as hes from canada, has 250w's, and is thinking sealed.. A tempest (From CSS) in the 120L design of adires would probably do the trick.

[Paul H]

Second the motion ...

Paul

[ThomasW]

Might want to go low "Q" ported Tempest to get the free bottom end boost and slightly increased efficiency, since the amp is small

[aud19]

Thanks for the quick responses guys :T

I was concerned the Hafler would be a little small for running a big high excursion sealed design like the tumult...

Seeing as hes from canada, has 250w's, and is thinking sealed.. A tempest (From CSS) in the 120L design of adires would probably do the trick.

Actually I was thinking the 12" Shiva if we go from Adire, not the 15" Tempest. Forgive me for my ignorance... what's CSS and where would I find the info on an appropriate enclosure?

[David R.]

^ CSS is www.creativesound.ca They sell adires products in canada.

Designs for the shiva and tempest can be found on adires website, in the tech section..

If your thinking about a shiva and it will be used for HT, then go ported.. One of adires designs should work for you.

[ThomasW]

Spend the extra and get the Tempest.

The designs are in the apps section

http://www.adireaudio.com/TextPages/AppNotesPageFrameText.htm

[taz13]

I also vote for the Tempest, however CSS is out of stock on them, but they have stock on the Shivas with the adire logo.

[GrahamT]

I highly recommend the Tempest, especially in Canada. 250w and a big ported alignment will work great for this driver.

[aud19]

I highly recommend the Tempest, especially in Canada. 250w and a big ported alignment will work great for this driver.

You don't think 250W will be too little for the tempest?

[Andrew Pratt]

No 250 watts is great for the tempest...esp in a ported box. The Tumults are in another league offering 3X the displacement of the tempest but they're much more money and really do need more power. That said there's nothing wrong with powering the tumult with 250 watts for now and then upgrading to a more powerful amp later...for that matter if you sold the Hafler you'd easily have enough to buy a pro amp with ample power.

Given your location CSS will be very handy as Bob's a great guy to deal with and shipping shouldn't be an issue like it is for the rest of us on 60 lbs drivers

[Spearmint]

You don't think 250W will be too little for the tempest?

Check out Rod's Tempest, I have heard it and it can pump out some great SPL's with a 250w amp.

Rod's Build diary

[aud19]

Wow, thanks everybody! :B

So looks like a Tempest in a vented Adire alignment might be the way to go :P

Do I need to know anything else? :lol:

Thanks Spearmint, I'll give that link a read as soon as I'm finished. I'm getting quite excited here, kind of want to build one myself now too! 8O :lol: Jazz would kill me though!

[aud19]

Check out Rod's Tempest, I have heard it and it can pump out some great SPL's with a 250w amp.

Rod's Build diary

Oooh that Sonotube model looks nice! :drool: It's sealed though.... might need more amp for that.... though looks like he's using a 250w model as well....

Andrew I think the idea for using the Hafler is that it will reduce the cost of the sub for now while utilizing existing equipment. Hopefully down the line he can upgrade to a more powerful dedicated sub amp and move the Hafler back to dedicated 2-ch duty or to power the mains in the HT setup.

[Spearmint]

The sub puts out plenty of SPL's as is, we also hooked up my Crown K1 and it did perform better, but not that much you would rush out and change the amp. I think one of the reasons for going sealed was simplicity because it was his first go at DIY.

One of the good things about Rod's sub was the external box for the plate amp, this makes it easier to change amps at a later stage.

[Andrew Pratt]

The adire alignment is nice...I had two of those in my media room before I went to the IB...and then to the tumult. Anyway that alignment is pretty big (214 L) but it does put out some nice SPL when called upon.

[JonMarsh]

OK, just to muddy the waters a little, I vote for an Asendent Audio Atlas 15- same power will run it fine in similar configuration. XBL2 motor for better linearity- only slightly more expensive. Or see the design I posted two days ago for the 12 in a mid Q bass reflex. Last, if you want some great performance but not quite the same level of bucks, (say, 3/5), then an Avalanche 15.


Flame suit on....



~Jon

[Spearmint]

Flame suit on....



~Jon

Jon you sound a lot like me.... Love to spend other peoples money :lol:

Seriously though this is where you face a dilemma, i.e. go for something reasonably cheap and get great results, or spend a few more dollars and get fantastic results.

When Rod built his sub it was what he had budgeted to spend at the time, and there are usually some cost blow outs. Now that it is finished and he has heard my Tumult I think he has that sort of maybe I should have spent the extra coin, although we are talking big coin :E

But hey it is your money and I have no doubt whatever you decide on will be great, if you have an inkling to go something better then Avalanche 15 would be the go.

[JonMarsh]

Actually, if the Avalanche 12's pan out the way I THINK they will, I'm probably going to go with a few of those and a major LT circuit and tiny box. I can probably put two of them in the same enclosure size as a single 15, but have more power handling and higher output. Think about 58 liters per 12... think Sd of about 960 cm2 (better drag out that extra pair of Palladiums I have, or start saving for a K2).

[Andrew Pratt]

The only issue for us on this side of the boarder is shipping and duty tend to make the non Adire products slightly more expensive given the free shipping and good pricing CSS has on their drivers. That said there's no denying the possibilities those new drivers offer

[aud19]

That's a big factor Andrew, us Canucks have a bit less to choose from if we want to save some money. Though I can't say it's bad having to "settle" for Adire stuff

He was budgeting for B&W's $700 sub which the Tempest DIY should handily outperform and for much less money especially considering he can utilize the existing amp saving that cost as well. Probably have it built with all the materials for $450-$500 easily. Which should free up a few hundred $$ for a better receiver :T

[taz13]

And if you have an adjoining room Tempests give a reasonable cost way of experimenting with IB subs.

[aud19]

Any suggestions for amps in case he gets a mainstream reciever and uses the Hafler to power the mains? Keep in mind Canadian location and pricing not much over $300 if possible :T

[David R.]

cheap way would be a plate amp.. Creativesound has a 300w guy for like 250-300cdn i think?

If your looking for a amp now to, you could go with a larger amp and a high excursion driver like the tumult or avalanche.. But those cost more of course.

[Andrew Pratt]

$240 for 360 watts into 4 ohms which is perfect for the tempest!

http://www.creativesound.ca/details.php?model=SUB250RF

[aud19]

Yeah that's the one I was looking at at CSS, guess that's probably his best bet :T