Well it looks like my plans to move to front projection are...uhhh...panning out, so I'm thinking it's time to upgrade my single sealed Tempest (read: Big ass box that looks very ugly, but is well hidden for now) to something else. So I'm looking at a couple of different options and looking for some advice and to see what kind of ideas other people have.
So basically with the opening up of the front of my room (no more TV stand, audio rack being moved behind me....just LCR and a screen up front) I had a couple of ideas, but here's what I'm looking for in order of importance;
1. Sound quality: First and foremost on the list it has to sound good, not just for HT but for music as well.
2. Price: I haven't really set a budget yet, but I'm not afraid of spending money to get something special.
3. Has to be simple to build, I'm not that bad at wood working and such, but you can forget about me wanting to try and build odd-shaped enclosures.
4. Extension: I'd like to cover the full 20-80Hz with no problem, my sealed Tempest hits -3db at around 19/20Hz right now. But again if I can get really close but get a good jump in SQ I'll take that sacrifice right now.
5. Volume: This is a very distant 5th, I'm an apartment dweller so being able to rock on with 130db at 20Hz means zip to me. My typical movie watching is done at around -10/15 db below reference level. My low Q tempest with 250w is capable of more volume than I need right now for reference.
My various thoughts.
1. Keep the Tempest and add a couple of PR's and build a cabinet like the Adire Alignment (to mimic the curve of a sealed box with a little more extension). Or even add a couple of vents instead of the PR's, but my idea of an enclosure would be short and wide (like 30"Wx20"Dx20"H as a few numbers throw out there).
2. A couple of DPL-12's in the same style box and sealed using the BFD to get me that last little bit of extension.
3. 4 Tumult's and a couple of K1's...errr I was thinking of grabbing one in a sealed box with the BFD and a big amp, but I think I may be better off waiting until I'm a homeowner for such capabilities.
4. - ????
I'm not set on Adire, I've looked at the AV12/15's but I wouldn't make it into the pre-order, but maybe a couple of AV12's in a sealed box with a lot of EQ, but I doubt I would make use of their capabilities over say the DPL12's.
And that leads me to my last question. What makes a sub sound good or bad over the next one in the line. Everybody likes to talk about how good the driver is when it's playing at SPLs that would make my eyeballs explode in my head, but how about at normal levels? What do I gain or lose by say picking up a $600 Focal Kevlar 15" driver over a $150 Tempest? I know I lose some extension right off the top and gain some effeciency, but how about sound wise? What makes one sub sound different/better than another despite both using "quality" drivers in quality enclosures?
Andrew
So basically with the opening up of the front of my room (no more TV stand, audio rack being moved behind me....just LCR and a screen up front) I had a couple of ideas, but here's what I'm looking for in order of importance;
1. Sound quality: First and foremost on the list it has to sound good, not just for HT but for music as well.
2. Price: I haven't really set a budget yet, but I'm not afraid of spending money to get something special.
3. Has to be simple to build, I'm not that bad at wood working and such, but you can forget about me wanting to try and build odd-shaped enclosures.
4. Extension: I'd like to cover the full 20-80Hz with no problem, my sealed Tempest hits -3db at around 19/20Hz right now. But again if I can get really close but get a good jump in SQ I'll take that sacrifice right now.
5. Volume: This is a very distant 5th, I'm an apartment dweller so being able to rock on with 130db at 20Hz means zip to me. My typical movie watching is done at around -10/15 db below reference level. My low Q tempest with 250w is capable of more volume than I need right now for reference.
My various thoughts.
1. Keep the Tempest and add a couple of PR's and build a cabinet like the Adire Alignment (to mimic the curve of a sealed box with a little more extension). Or even add a couple of vents instead of the PR's, but my idea of an enclosure would be short and wide (like 30"Wx20"Dx20"H as a few numbers throw out there).
2. A couple of DPL-12's in the same style box and sealed using the BFD to get me that last little bit of extension.
3. 4 Tumult's and a couple of K1's...errr I was thinking of grabbing one in a sealed box with the BFD and a big amp, but I think I may be better off waiting until I'm a homeowner for such capabilities.
4. - ????
I'm not set on Adire, I've looked at the AV12/15's but I wouldn't make it into the pre-order, but maybe a couple of AV12's in a sealed box with a lot of EQ, but I doubt I would make use of their capabilities over say the DPL12's.
And that leads me to my last question. What makes a sub sound good or bad over the next one in the line. Everybody likes to talk about how good the driver is when it's playing at SPLs that would make my eyeballs explode in my head, but how about at normal levels? What do I gain or lose by say picking up a $600 Focal Kevlar 15" driver over a $150 Tempest? I know I lose some extension right off the top and gain some effeciency, but how about sound wise? What makes one sub sound different/better than another despite both using "quality" drivers in quality enclosures?
Andrew
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