Sub - $250 subwoofer?

[maseline_98]

Looking for sub for my brother-in-law. He's almost 100% a movie watcher and the room size is only about 12x12x9. I was thinking a dayton or a polk, but didn't know if there were any other "budget" subs out there that I didn't know about.

[Glen B]

I'm using a 12" Dayton for HT. Its a good performer for the money. The only issue is it makes a very loud and scary thump when first plugged in.

[Chris D]

Don't the SVS guys have a real budget sub?

[ClosetSciFiGeek]

What about the Bash 300watt class 'D' Amp paired with a 12" sub on closeout?

http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=300-750

[maseline_98]

What about the Bash 300watt class 'D' Amp paired with a 12" sub on closeout?
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/show...number=300-750

I've never built a sub before, but it doesn't seem to be all that hard. Which 12" do you recommend?

Also...Do I need anything more than a box, the plate amp, and the sub?

[ClosetSciFiGeek]

12" Powered Sub on a Budget

I wouldn't say it is my favorite, but it will do for a home theater sub on a tight budget of $250 for a 12" powered sub:

Dayton's 12" DVC Classic sub(wire it for 4ohms)

http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=295-490

Here's what I came up with for general design:
Use 3/4" MDF($25 a 4' x 8' sheet at your local Home Depot or Lowe's)
34hz -3db down point
2.5166ft^3 internal volume enclosure size
External dimensions 18" x 18" x 19" with one internal brace
4" diameter by 9.89" length port
89.8db/watt efficiency

Pair the sub with a Bash 300w amp(currently backordered) and enjoy.

You might also wait for a good deal on a closeout sub from Parts Express or Madisound.

You shouldn't need anything other than enclosure(build it from mdf, paint/veneer/formica or whatever you choose to finish it, plate amp, some speaker wire to get from plate amp to sub(and either solder leads or crimp some connectors on), Sub(possibly gasket material for sub, black weatherstripping in a tube from autozone works great), screws or bolts and nuts to mount sub to enclosure. A router is helpful to cut the circle for mounting the sub and a tablesaw makes mdf cutting much easier. Both of these can be done with a jigsaw and circular saw with a good guide if you are really careful.

[john trials]

I just built a 12" sub using the Dayton RSS315HF-4

http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=295-464

and the SA240 amp

http://www.parts-express.com/wizards/searchResults.cfm?FTR=sa240&search_type=main&WebPage_ID=3&searchFilter=sa240

in a 2 cuft enclosure that I made. $230 can get you a really nice sub (I guess a little more $ to buy the MDF). I watched a movie with it last night with my daughter. My wife said it sounded like the house was going to fall apart!

Here are some plans, similar to what I built: http://www.zaphaudio.com/archives.html 8th speaker down the list.

A 12" sub with 240 Watts will be more than enough for a 12 x 12 x 9 room. My room is 16 x 12 x 8, and my amp is turned up less than 1/3 of the way to full. It's really loud.

[maseline_98]

I just built a 12" sub using the Dayton RSS315HF-4

http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=295-464

and the SA240 amp

http://www.parts-express.com/wizards/searchResults.cfm?FTR=sa240&search_type=main&WebPage_ID=3&searchFilter=sa240

in a 2 cuft enclosure that I made. $230 can get you a really nice sub (I guess a little more $ to buy the MDF). I watched a movie with it last night with my daughter. My wife said it sounded like the house was going to fall apart!

Here are some plans, similar to what I built: http://www.zaphaudio.com/archives.html 8th speaker down the list.

A 12" sub with 240 Watts will be more than enough for a 12 x 12 x 9 room. My room is 16 x 12 x 8, and my amp is turned up less than 1/3 of the way to full. It's really loud.

It appears that I need a router(which I don't have) to mount the actual speaker...I was thinking I could just cut a circle out with a jigsaw and attach it that way....

[ClosetSciFiGeek]

You Can

If you were using smaller drivers it makes this challenging to nearly impossible, but with a 12" sub the arc of the cut is much shallower and a jig saw is perfectly fine. You won't be able to recess the drive like you could with a jig saw, but I don't see that as necessary for a sub. Draw a good circle with a compass or some string, a pencil and a finishing nail. Drill a hole drop your jigsaw blade in and go.

[maseline_98]

If you were using smaller drivers it makes this challenging to nearly impossible, but with a 12" sub the arc of the cut is much shallower and a jig saw is perfectly fine. You won't be able to recess the drive like you could with a jig saw, but I don't see that as necessary for a sub. Draw a good circle with a compass or some string, a pencil and a finishing nail. Drill a hole drop your jigsaw blade in and go.

Okay...I was under the impression that it had to be recessed...I don't think it really matters all that much on what the sub actually looks like...

[aprilia88]

I cant recommend the 240 watt pe amp.

I can't talk about the newer production runs, but I have purchased four of these(back in 2005) for friends and they have all gone bad. Sorry PE. I have had much better luck with the bash amps. For what its worth, I do believe the dayton rs line of subs to be among the best available for sound quality.

[ClosetSciFiGeek]

Recessing speakers is for edge diffraction issue that should be much more important at higher frequencies than subwoofers operate at. It shouldn't matter much for a subwoofer. I don't think recessing subs is not necessary, though I think it looks nicer.

[john trials]

I didn't recess my RSS315HF. It is not necessary, as ClosetSciFiGeek said. The hole for the driver can be cut with a jig saw or equivalent tool.

If you are going to recess the driver, make the baffle very thick, as you will be cutting away a lot of material.

I've also read about problems with the SA240 amps, but I've also read a lot of people who say they've had no problems at all. Mine works fine, although I tried using the speaker level inputs once, and the sound quality was terrible. Definitely only use the line-level inputs.

[maseline_98]

I didn't recess my RSS315HF. It is not necessary, as ClosetSciFiGeek said. The hole for the driver can be cut with a jig saw or equivalent tool.

If you are going to recess the driver, make the baffle very thick, as you will be cutting away a lot of material.

I've also read about problems with the SA240 amps, but I've also read a lot of people who say they've had no problems at all. Mine works fine, although I tried using the speaker level inputs once, and the sound quality was terrible. Definitely only use the line-level inputs.

Maybe it would be worth the extra $40 to go with the bash amp. It has a little more power and comes with a better sense of reliability. His budget is only $800 for the whole system and I thought $250 would be pushing it as it well...but I also feel that a good sub is really important in reproducing the 'theater experience' at home. I will see if he wants to use my old sony (6x100...can't remember the model offhand right now) receiver in the time being until he gets some extra cash. That would leave around $500 for the speaker set and there are some budget polks that could be had for that price range....

One of the main problems is. I don't want him to feel bad when he gets the system home and it's not up to par. But the only systems that he has really experience was some crappy wireless HTIB that he had before and mine. I would just feel badly if he spent $800 and wasn't happy with it at all...my friends and family seem to always come to me with their computer/home theater advice and it's hard to tell them the truth, "You need more money...if you only spend x amount of dollars, you're not going to get what you expect and will be essentially wasting the money". My motto is: "buy it once, buy it right, or just buy to upgrade"...

[ClosetSciFiGeek]

Wholeheartedly agree with you assessment. It is difficult to explain to folks who do not share our hobby that you typically cannot get the performance of some of our systems without parting with a significant portion of cash. That said I think most of us doing DIY are doing it cheaper and dare I say better than most commercial systems for far less money.

[joeybutts]

eD's DIY 12 kit.

http://www.edesignaudio.com/product_info.php?cPath=2_136&products_id=906

add amp.