# Advice on a subwoofer



## JTDINVA (Sep 10, 2008)

I recently went from having towers in my living room to a soundbar (polk). This, of course, was at the request of my lovely wife. Since I do have a dedicated room in the basement I try not to rock the boat too much when it comes to the other rooms in the house. On to the question ....

When I purchased the soundbar they (crutchfield) had a deal that gave a free subwoofer (PSW10). I'm not unhappy with the performance of the sub but it's a little on the large side for the space it's in. Anyone have any suggestions on something with a small footprint that comes in relatively cheap ? I realize that's like an oxymoron but I figured I would throw it out there and see if anyone has any ideas I hadn't thought of. Thanks in advance for your suggestions shacksters.

John


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## erasma (Apr 18, 2009)

Hi there

Well there are a few!

Energy have a few small subs - sunfire as well

What do you want your sub to do?

I am looking for a sub as well - want one that goes to 15Hz or less


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## bonehead848 (Jan 21, 2007)

Do you have any wordworking skills? If so you may want to try your hand at building a sealed sub. That way you could make it the exact dimensions you want and it will be cheaper and perform better than other subs in your price range. I know this does not directly answer the question you are asking but it is a great option.


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## erasma (Apr 18, 2009)

bonehead848 said:


> Do you have any wordworking skills? If so you may want to try your hand at building a sealed sub. That way you could make it the exact dimensions you want and it will be cheaper and perform better than other subs in your price range. I know this does not directly answer the question you are asking but it is a great option.


Can I ask - Making ones own speakers are they that good? I mean I am looking at spending $4k on a sub can one be made better then that? & the time it takes to know how they work???

Will I build a sub to play sub 20Hz? with no port noise?


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## Mike P. (Apr 6, 2007)

> Will I build a sub to play sub 20Hz? with no port noise?


Not a problem. Click on the link in my signature to see what members have been building.


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## bonehead848 (Jan 21, 2007)

erasma said:


> Can I ask - Making ones own speakers are they that good? I mean I am looking at spending $4k on a sub can one be made better then that? & the time it takes to know how they work???
> 
> Will I build a sub to play sub 20Hz? with no port noise?


woah, psw10 to a 4K budget is much larger than I was expecting, haha. DIY does not take terribly long to learn especially on a site like this where people will be very helpful. For your budget getting below 20 would be a piece of cake. If you are really interested I would post a thread in the DIY subwoofer area with your budget, space requirements, and thoughts.

If you decide against DIY or just want some retail subs to look at check out the JL Audio Fathom f113 and the SVS line.


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## eugovector (Sep 4, 2006)

Anytime you try to shrink the size of a sub enclosure, you start sacrificing performance per dollar, so shrinking and enclosure and budget is usually a recipe for disaster.

At 14x16x14 the polk is already on the lowend of medium sized. The Aperion Bravus 8D is 13.5x12x12 which is about as small as I'd try to go if you're still interested in a serious subwoofer. It rings up at $499 however (note, I have 2 of these subs, let me know if you want more info.)

You can also consider a taller enclosure with a small footprint. The HSU stf-1 is an example of such a sube with an 11x16 footprint, but a 19 tall enclosure: http://www.hsuresearch.com/products/stf-1.html

On the invisible side, you can try for a sub designed to fit under a coffee table or tall sofa like this one from parts express: http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=302-047

Note, I haven't heard it and in no way am endorsing it from a performance perspective, only an aesthetics perspective.


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## erasma (Apr 18, 2009)

I currently am running a Cerwin Vega 12" Sub 

I am looking to buy now 
Mordaunt-Short™ Performance™ 9 subwoofer
or
True Subwoofer EQ 12 Signature - TS-EQ12

Not sure which to get

But this is not my thread sorry for hijacking it

still there are some compact subs - SunFire is one I know rocks.


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## nova (Apr 30, 2006)

You could also look at this little beauty from SVSound the SB12-Plus. Pretty small, cost effective and performance to boot. All in one small attractive package that may please the wife as well.


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## eugovector (Sep 4, 2006)

Unfortunately the SB12 is only 1" smaller than his current sub.


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## erasma (Apr 18, 2009)

Get one of these

Mordaunt-Short™ Performance™ 9 subwoofer

Just been playing with it now!!!! oh my word does it play well - nice tight low bass with tons of power!!


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## salvasol (Oct 31, 2006)

What about  this  :yes:


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## erasma (Apr 18, 2009)

I can't beleive how much air the dual 10" move!!

then again the port is really of large size! very happy with how fast the bass is & how low it goes fills the room really well


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## epereira (May 12, 2008)

I would look at the following brands that all have small footprint subwoofers:

Velodyne
Bob Carver's Sunfire
Definitive Technology

i have had subs from Velodyne and Sunfire and can recommend them. I have not had the pleasure of owning a DT sub but they have great reviews.

Erle


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