Help designing an LF cabinet.

[Panomaniac]

Hey Chopsrr,
That's a **** of a system you've got going there!
I've been following your progress on the other thread.

Looks like you have about the same room volume that I do, so that's encouraging. You do have the advantage of more wall space, though. Those Cornwall cabinets must sound mighty nice. Plenty big, too. =) What do you guess the internal volume of the Cornwalls is? About 6.5ft^3?

So I need to keep thinking. Try to figure out how much cabinet volume I can squeeze into the room and still be able to move. And at what point comes diminishing returns for this size room?

Nice to know about the delay helping lock the sound in place. I've used delays plenty in pro systems, of course, but never in a home system.

Bfish:
Yeah, turning the room the other way gives more wall space, but it puts the TV right in the window. Can’t say I like it. But maybe in the corner, on top of a massive corner bass cabinet...

[chopsrr]

Thanks Panomaniac...

Actually, the Cornwall cabinets are 6 cu.ft. When playing full range, they have no problems loading the room with bass. However, since they roll off rather quick after 35Hz, I have them crossed over at 50Hz, and everything from 50Hz down goes to the DIY sub, which is almost perfectly flat down to 10Hz and is given 1000 watts thanks to that silver Crown XTi 1000 amp.

And since space is a major concern for you, have you considered Eminence's Magnum-15HO drivers? They extend all the way up to 1.5kHz. In fact, these are the ones I'm thinking about buying evenually when I build my own dedicated bass cabinets for the main channels.

Eminence Magnum-15HO

[Panomaniac]

Hey chopsrr,
Thanks for the heads up on the Eminence's Magnums. Oddly enough, I had not looked closely at the Magnum series. Seems like a nice solution for Big Bass in a resonabley sized box. But what about the midrange? We don't know how it sounds. And I have to cross no lower than 800Hz, maybe higher. With a 511 horn, I'd have no fear, but at the higher point, who knows?

The Eminence 15HO and 15LF look like great drivers, but they are pricey. Don't want to go wrong and hate the midrange.

[chopsrr]

Originally posted by Panomaniac:

The Eminence 15HO and 15LF look like great drivers, but they are pricey. Don't want to go wrong and hate the midrange.

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Well thats' true. If you need to cross as high as 1kHz, you may want to think about going with a 12" driver, or maybe even a 10".

BTW, I don't believe you've mentioned anything about running a sub. Are you running a sub?

If so, you could easily get by with a nice 10" driver. As long as that woofer is capable of reaching down low enough to the subwoofer crossover freq in the proper enclosure, you should be fine. It's definately something else to think about.

You never know, going with a 10" driver might provide better results than the larger Altec drivers. Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against Altec's woofers, but to find a nice pair, you're looking at some major $$$. Probably more than those Eminence Magnum drivers!

[Panomaniac]

Aloha,
No, I will not be using a sub, even tho it's a good idea.

Why? Because I will be using the system to test and tweak my amps, the "mains" need to be as full range as possible, and with passive filtering. That would not be my first choice if the system where just for fun, but because it will also be a tool it needs to be that way. Hard to tell what a test amp is doing in the low end if the sub is driven by different amp!

I'm looking hard at a 12". I may end up with a 414b-8 in a ~5ft box. Maybe not perfect, but at least it won't sound awfull. Still thinking, tho.

[bfish]

Originally posted by Panomaniac:
Why? Because I will be using the system to test and tweak my amps.....snip

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">I guess you lost me here. Do you mean you intend to make design and modification decisions on your amps based on audible effects via the speakers in your living room?

[Panomaniac]

Well, yeah....

It's the only living room I have. Who's living room should I use? =)

[chopsrr]

Are you wanting to only have a 2-way design or would you consider 3-way as well?

The only reason I ask is because you could get a 12" woofer built for home use which will have a much lower FS than a pro driver, and probably be able to use a smaller enclosure. Then you can use a 10" or 12" pro driver (Altec) as the midrange, but crossed over low.

Just a thought...

[chopsrr]

Are you wanting to only have a 2-way design or would you consider 3-way as well?

The only reason I ask is because you could get a 12" woofer built for home use which will have a much lower FS than a pro driver, and probably be able to use a smaller enclosure. Then you can use a 10" or 12" pro driver (Altec) as the midrange, but crossed over low.

Just a thought...

[chopsrr]

Are you wanting to only have a 2-way design or would you consider 3-way as well?

The only reason I ask is because you could get a 12" woofer built for home use which will have a much lower FS than a pro driver, and probably be able to use a smaller enclosure. Then you can use a 10" or 12" pro driver (Altec) as the midrange, but crossed over low.

Just a thought...