The Bargain Hunter's subwoofer ...

[keith_correa]

In WinISD, in the "Box" section, go to Advanced-->Qa, change the default from 100 [which indicates ~ no stuffing] to 5-10 [heavily stuffed] depending on the stuffing density - a lesser # indicates greater density.

So, in WinISD, lower the volume of the box to account for the loss due to the bracing and then change the Qa #. You will see for yourself the effect.

 

[mpw]

last 2 days have been quite hectic and the subwoofer is completed and singing now..

here are some pics..

the damping comprises of stick-able bitumen and 6 mm felt sheet.

as of now, no polyfill used..

My wife's hair dryer being put to good use ) to warm up the stickable bitumen..

The first photo shows also the sealed enclosure we made for fixing the plate amp..Hypex DS 4.0

some more pics..

and the last one is how it looks like as of now... no external finishing done on the subwoofer..

will do later as time permits..

hope you have enjoyed reading and contributing to this thread.

Its been a roller coaster ride for me especially after my friend who was helping me with the subwoofer cabinet got into some bad times on his business front.

I wish him well and thank him for his ready support. I hope the business cycle turns around for him soon. Sometimes its the gestures that matter more than anything else.

Many thanks also to FM Surrealstix for helping me with the right carpenter etc..

Thanks mate !

:clapping::cheers:

regards
mpw

 

[keith_correa]

After 17 pages not one sentence on how it sounds?

 

[manniraj]

Great looking and should be sounding awesome mpw :clapping:

I think you can get that SVS footers which one of the FMs listed under the SVS subwoofer thread. Should be a nice addition.

 

[Naturelover]

Congratulations!
Yes, the listening experience please.

 

[mpw]

After 17 pages not one sentence on how it sounds?

Lol...:lol: :lol:

Keith...I powered up the sub last evening..

Havent done any tweaking at all !

I thought I could play the pied piper for some more time before I put up my listening impressions ....

today played music for about 4 hours and i seemed i was re-discovering my CD collection again..

Daft Punk
Explosions in the Sky
John Coltrane
U2

The dayton driver goes well with the Merlins. I am told the SEAS L26ROY would have been better but there is no stock ( even today ) and it would have been costlier for me also vis a vis the original price target.

I am glad i came across the Dayton RC10HF4 - thanks to FM Kapvin.

These are only preliminary comments and as i manage to understand the Hypex and my room some more... i would be able to tweak some more.

The subwoofer is quite heavy and i like its form and contour.

mpw

 

[bibin3210]

Mahesh, a small correction in the model no. It is actually Dayton RSS265HF-4

Thanks,
bibin

 

[mpw]

Thanks bibin for the correction..

i bought the Dayton RSS265 HF-4 driver and the damping materials from diyaudiocart

excellent service overall..and ofcourse nice to communicate with FM Bibin as well.

regards

 

[captrajesh]

I'm glad that it worked for yiu Mahesh. Hearty congratulations.

 

[Soundstage]

Great job Mpw!

Would love to listen to your setup sometime.

 

[mpw]

I'm glad that it worked for yiu Mahesh. Hearty congratulations.

thanks captain !

I am relieved as well.. sometimes with all the technicalities to be considered its easy to be stunned into inaction.

But last weekend - i just went for it and got lucky !

I try to keep the chain as harmonious as possible.

It may not be perfect right now - nothing is - but there is room for tweaks and gradual performance improvement and that will be enough for me.

Great job Mpw!

Would love to listen to your setup sometime.

soundstage,

I would like to listen to your setup too....

Mine is not so complicated and quite straightforward..

couple of Naims running into Merlin TSM's and a TT and a sub..

regards
mpw

 

[spirovious]

Congratulations Mahesh. Happy to read that its singing.

 

[Hari Iyer]

Congrats on your build and glad to note that you are getting benefit out of the new setup.

Though i do not "believe" in using sub for music (unless if i am watching a bollywood movie on HT), but may still consider listen to your setup just to check if my perceptions have changed. Also will like to check if the variable phase helped in better control of the subwoofer setting.

 

[mpw]

hari,

one swallow doesnt a summer make.

Beliefs ( atleast in audio ) come from a long period of observation and hearing and it is possible you have come to your conclusions accordingly.

I used to be on the same boat before but we realize its the room that makes the music and not the presence or absence of a sub-woofer.

But maybe an occasion can be found in the near future where we can enjoy some music together.

regards
mpw

 

[docd]

Mahesh
Congrats on your latest venture. Glad to know that it's had a happy ending!

 

[Hiten]

Congrats Mahesh.
---
Listening to full range, two way or with sub or three way is an individual choice. No single driver can do justice to full frequency range of music. I am not an expert and I could be wrong but I have not seen a typical two way speaker which can go below 50~40hz with good linearity and level (purely specification and measurement wise).
There is good amount of low end information in popular music. Adding a sub helps. Not sure but I had posted somewhere low frequency content of popular music (Dire Straits I think). I will do it again and post when time permits.
Regards.

 

[mpw]

Thanks Hiten !

Yes...it is more complete especially as my room is
On the larger side....additional base support is always helpful

Making music by Zakir Hussain - is fuller now...

It's funny...each additional step makes you discover more ....and the past seems .....well....seems...the past..

My room did need a sub and I am happy I got one albeit
With some struggle.

Regards

 

[manniraj]

Thanks Hiten !

Yes...it is more complete especially as my room is
On the larger side....additional base support is always helpful

Making music by Zakir Hussain - is fuller now...

It's funny...each additional step makes you discover more ....and the past seems .....well....seems...the past..

My room did need a sub and I am happy I got one albeit
With some struggle.

Regards

When you do it yourself its more fun and above all the enjoyment of making something to sing to your tunes is priceless :clapping:

 

[Nikhil]

Congratulations mpw!

Great to hear that the sub project finally worked out!
I did not realize how huge that puppy is sitting next to your gear.
Go ahead and make the second sub. Double the pleasure!

 

[mpw]

it is quite large mainly because it has a separate enclosure within the main cabinet for the Hypex Ds 4.0 plate amp. That adds about 6 inches of depth.

I like the form factor and it plays well.

It may not be perfect ( one can always nitpick ) but it adds something which was missing ( largely due to my room size ) and i am quite satisfied.

Last evening i played George Harrison Marwa Blues atleast 5 times..it was addictive..

2nd sub looks unlikely at this point but really i dont know....maybe next year.... maybe not at all...

Got a lot of info on using phase adjustment feature, i plan to try that out as well in a few days.

Now i am convinced enough to go in for finishing the subwoofer with veneering. Its working out costly though. The veneer itself costs Rs 5000 a sheet.

Let the rain stop in Mumbai and maybe then it will be easier to do all this work.

www.diyaudiocart.com has vinyl laminate but i have to consider it fully yet.

regards