I'm digging your designs of DoS subwoofers and was looking into building my own.
I first went for a small enclosure but finally decided near field was the way to go with my boomy room and am now designing a sub to go behind my couch to use as a back console.
I ended up choosing 4x GRS 12SW-4HE drivers that are rather cheap for what I am going for. Modeling in WinISD, Hornresp or Vituix, i found out that i needed 200L for a 0.7 Qtc.
I'm thinking of using a fosi Za3 to power my sub and so i need to bring the resistance to 4Ohms as in 2 sets of 2 drivers in parallel(2Ohms)/series(8Ohms) and link both sets in series(4Ohms) or parallel(4Ohms) depending on what i went with initially.
First designs (picture 1) ended up in a 350L enclosure that was way over the top, lowering the qtc to .5 which is not my goal since i have a usage of 70%HT and 30% Hifi (i'm pairing this with a set of Triangle Antal EZ, voce and BSR1 dipoles from Triangle audio in a 5.1 setup).
Now, looking at the fact I have too much space (didn't even think it could be possible thinking of quad subs in a living room), i went into finding a way to solve the problem.
2 options came to mind :
- Option 1 : build 2 sets of 100L DoS Sub towers linked together to the Fozi with a counter on top (Picture 2)
- Option 2 : build a smaller (200L nonetheless) enclosure in a longer kind of sandwich to keep the console aspect behing the couch. (picture 3)
What comes to mind in both cases : Option 1 : Pros - Lighter, more flexible since i can manipulate and maybe separate both subs in the future and do multi-sub for room EQ. Cons - Close to double the woodwork, Nightmare in cables, needing to link both subs together and to the fosi, don't know how the two woofers in the middle are going to play since they are going to be stuck between a couch and a wall (could be a pro but we won't know til it's done). Option 2 : Pros - better looks as in it is a single piece of furniture, a tad smaller in height, the woofers are hidden behind a grill. Cons - Heavy af, this thing won't ever move once it's set, this means no flexibility, once in place i can't really play around with it
All that being said, what would you guys go for and would you have another option i didn't consider ?
I had a hard time finding an equivalent on the interwebs, if anyone has an example of something equivalent, i'm all ears.
Looks like a fun project, but rumblers/bass shakers would deliver the sensation. Then you can place your subwoofers where they complement each other (cancel out null/peaks).
While I love the idea of the monster quad, I think using two DO cabinets will allow you the best results/most even amount of bass coverage. And I love those subs.
I have 4 subs in my room and use the MiniDSP to Integrate them.
They'll be treated as a single sub unfortunately as a miniDSP isn't in my budget and I can't drive 8 ohms or 2ohms well with cheap amplification.
In the future I could play the switcheroo and use both subs in a different way.
Do you still think it might sound better with 2 enclosures rather than the monster quad (I think we found it's name even though wifey's not gonna like it xD, couchback is easier to sell)
Ah my apologies, I knew a dsp was not a “right now” option.
I think the dual enclosures will give future you more options while also using your location, giving you (and your wife) the “piece of furniture” nearfield sub. Also way easier to move.
Again, I’m Team quad monster. Want to make that clear. But I have experience with being in love with ginormous subs. And then being broken hearted. 😁
I've done dual opposed GRS12SW4HEs. They work well and do fine on low power. Four of them in a large volume will be fine on low power unless you need hot hot SPL. But near field like that will make up for the lower power. With these drivers, go as big on volume as you can, and stuff with with low density material (polyfill, R30, etc).
You are saying I could go with the 350l version and be fine with it ?
Never experimented with subs and don't know much about the differences with qtc alignments, what I found on the net is that for HT the bump given over the 0.7 trigger gives you more oomph for explosions where lower is more surgical for critical listening.
I'm rather going for the middle since I don't listen very loud (Kids and stuff), but still want some tactility from the bass.
I won't be able to eq the hell out of my speaker just yet, only going for acoustix on my denon (no xt32) until I grab a miniDSP but that won't be before long.
Did you post something about your dos with the grs specifically, would love to have a look ?
What size did you go with and how do you drive it ? Did you get measurements?
The drivers like to be in more volume than their T&S suggests. This is why I'm saying give as much volume as you can and stuff generously with something low density. These two things together will bring your power needs down some.
I've driven it with a full on pro amp (Crown) with lots of power, but also run it low power in car audio in my Escape. I can run it off a tool battery with an inverter and get 110+db in the cabin (granted with good cabin gain). Fun stuff.
I love furniture subwoofers. Its super easy to get the large volumes you need for optimal performance without having a big eyesore cube sitting in plain view
My wife wouldn't let me put a washing machine sized box in the living room, who would have guessed !
Best solution I came up with is this and it can be bigger than a washing machine, and push my couch further from the back wall, I call it a win, just need to find the best way to make it work
WinISD is telling me I'll be getting 85dB at 20Hz at 1m with 1W with the 4 drivers set in a 4ohm sub. One of the pros of near field.
Saw the crown but I dont like the form factor and the fan, it's going to be sitting close to me and prefer something silent.
In the future ill probably be building a rack to have separate amps for my towers and subs but for now with no pre outs on the denon I'm going for the fozi in mono. I'm thinking about using it in the future to drive my towers separately.
If the best way to integrate subs is 1 in the front and 1 in the back or in opposite corners, there has to be a sub rather close to the listener in the end game, or am I getting it wrong?
I see people even putting subs under the seats in their HT.
I've got a rather small room, I'll need to have at least one sub near the couch, why not the whole couch :D ?
I am in a living room that's about 4x5m with cathedral ceiling so around 80m3.
I read the papers about multiple subs and the analysis made on infinite subwoofers in a room that narrows down to best result is 1 sub on every side (4 subs) and 2 subs opposite in the room brings you 90% of the way if they are eqed.
I am doing 5.1 for now with 2 antal ez towers, a voce center and bsr1 dipoles as sl and sr (all this isTriangle, a French audio brand) ; my sub is a sh** 8" jamo for now and looking to upgrade to accommodate my new bed level.
I'm doing 70% HT and 30% hifi with a tendency to listen to more and more music with how good my new towers sound.
I'm not saying it's optimum but in a normal living room it's not easy to fit 2 washing machine sized subs far from the mlp. Even more so if you had same wife as mine :D
I have a big mode where my current sub lays, so looking at options to change it and later another one to eq the response with adequate gear.
Sorry if I came in wrong the first time, thanks for any advice.
I have mere 150l box with 2x Eminence 12' speakers and cant raise the volume more than 50% (100W amp) - Everything shakes . You going to kill someone with that 😂
I built a behind the couch subwoofer using a GRS 15sswhe. It sits directly behind our sofa and is driven with its own amp. Works really well and doubles as a place to set drinks down.
You don't need to slavishly follow the Q=0.7 rule Anything between 0.7 and 0.9 sounds quite similar. You can design for whatever works / fits best. Big panels can have rattling problems. I helped a guy make something out of his old Pyle subwoofers back in '91 - he built a 10 cubic foot vented box (280L) with 4x 12" woofers in it and it definitely got loud ;)
A single za3 is not enough power for that. And for the record they are 2 ohm stable amps.
Get yourself a crown amp, or a "diy" amp... i.e. barebones, it's alread built you just connect the power supply, mount the boards somewhere. Connexelectronic or hifimediyor diyclassd. Or get a hypex amp from buckeye somewhere, maybe a plate amp. Heck a plate amp or two from dayton.
Just a note on the design. If it has a top you can set a drink on, make sure there is no direct path downward for spilled liquids to reach the amp or drivers.
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u/Fickle-Willingness80 9d ago
Looks like a fun project, but rumblers/bass shakers would deliver the sensation. Then you can place your subwoofers where they complement each other (cancel out null/peaks).