DIY Subwoofer Risers

[crazyBLUE]

Originally Posted by Big Daddy

Keep us posted.

Also, add a few lines of description to the pictures you posted in the DIY SUbwoofer Building thread. For example, what type of wood is that that you added to the outside of the box? Did you uses glue?

Done !

I added some descriptions to the pics I have posted . I will add pics & more of what I have done this weekend for the sanding & staining of the Box .

[Big Daddy]

Originally Posted by CdnBlu

Alright guys and gals, not exactly what I had planned on paper, but this is what I ended up with:



Original plan was to make an overhang on both the top and the bottom. That didn't work out so well so I ended up just making a 'lid' for it with a half inch overhang all around. I wasn't sure if the box itself would hold the woofer, so I added 2x2 pillars to give it extra support. The pillars ended up being 3/4" shorter than the box itself so the bottom piece could be glued and screwed into the bases and sit flush with the rest of the box.



I ended up filling it with this fluff I found, but the box still sounds hollow. I'm going to try to find something else to add around the inner walls and I'll cover it up with some carpet last.

The box stands 18 3/4" high, with a length and width of 22 1/2". The pillars inside are 2x2's made of Spruce, and they are 18" tall.
The box itself is made of 3/4" MDF.

I may have gone a little too large with the whole thing, but it was easier to do it this way due to the sheets of MDF being 24x48".


Couple quick questions:

-What could I use to line the inner walls with? I was considering some of that "Wal-mart Foam" or possibly the Acoustic foam.

-Should I put some feet on this still? it sits surprisingly flat, and will be on a carpeted floor.

The box looks good. You need to stuff the box with something more dense and heavier. It is not a bad idea to cover the inside walls of the box with heavy foam. Use the 3M spray glue. It is available at Wal-Mart and most harware stores. You can buy foam from The Foam Factory.

http://www.thefoamfactory.com/packag...knpluckcr.html

[CdnBlu]

Thanks BD! One more question: Is that eggcrate foam the same stuff most people put on their walls to trap the sound?

[Big Daddy]

Originally Posted by CdnBlu

Thanks BD! One more question: Is that eggcrate foam the same stuff most people put on their walls to trap the sound?

Yes, but most people use Pyramid or Wedge and corner bass traps.

http://www.thefoamfactory.com/acoust...usticfoam.html

[liquidice]

Originally Posted by CdnBlu

Couple quick questions:

-What could I use to line the inner walls with? I was considering some of that "Wal-mart Foam" or possibly the Acoustic foam.

buy some of the cheap "Magic Erasers" in a Walmart brand or whatever "off brand", and glue those to the sides. No, I'm not joking...right BD?

[CdnBlu]

Thanks guys! I'm going to try to find something locally so I can finish it and test it out this weekend. If not Ill just place an order from the Foam Factory on Monday.

[Ventura]

Here's what I came up with (also upped to my gallery):





I dropped a lot of money on it though, because it's a taller table that I'd originally intended, but I still wanted to pretty much fill the area underneath with foam. All up (from top to bottom), the one layer of acoustic foam, and then four layers of high-density foam, cost about $140AU.

I had the sub resting on a cloth on the table, but took the cloth off, and I think it sounds better as is. I get shaking during the Ironhide flip scene in Transformers 1, but to be honest, I think that's coming from the sub itself, rather than any kind of vibration now being sent through the floor. Select scenes, such as the traffic sequence in Bourne Ultimatum where he's running from the other assassin, have a hell of a lot more kick to it.

I may carpet around the edge eventually, but as far as I'm concerned, the job is pretty much complete. It has fueled my desire for a better sub though (or at least, another sub of the same type).

[Big Daddy]

Ventura,

Congratulations. It looks really good. Where did you buy the foam?

[Ventura]

Got the foam from a local place called Clark Rubber. Couldn't believe it really; I hadn't assembled the table when i bought the foam, so I only knew approximately how much of it to get. Put it all together though, and it left maybe half an inch between it and the floor. Brilliant.

Have since been demoing Star Trek, from when they warp to Vulcan to when Spock beams down to rescue his folks, and it has just been fantastic.

We actually bought two of the tables, they're a side table you can purchase from Ikea. Only $25AU each, a great table at a great price, and it's assembled in like a minute with no tools. I bought two because I'm planning on doing the same again with a second sub.

I know they say if you get two subs they should both be the same type/model, but I've been doing a lot of reading, and I'm really leaning towards the Velodyne CHT-12Q. It won the local award for best sub over $1000AU, and that's a huge win in my book.

[Big Daddy]

Originally Posted by Ventura

Got the foam from a local place called Clark Rubber. Couldn't believe it really; I hadn't assembled the table when i bought the foam, so I only knew approximately how much of it to get. Put it all together though, and it left maybe half an inch between it and the floor. Brilliant.

Have since been demoing Star Trek, from when they warp to Vulcan to when Spock beams down to rescue his folks, and it has just been fantastic.

We actually bought two of the tables, they're a side table you can purchase from Ikea. Only $25AU each, a great table at a great price, and it's assembled in like a minute with no tools. I bought two because I'm planning on doing the same again with a second sub.

I know they say if you get two subs they should both be the same type/model, but I've been doing a lot of reading, and I'm really leaning towards the Velodyne CHT-12Q. It won the local award for best sub over $1000AU, and that's a huge win in my book.

If you cover the foam with wood and carpet, you will make it look like the $400 Subtrap. Perhaps, you should start a subwoofer riser business in Australia.

Identical subwoofers are easier to manage and set up and most experts recommend them. However, this does not mean that you cannot make different subwoofers work together. It just takes more time and patience to adjust them individually so that one does not overpower the other one. A little bass equalization can help. To learn about setting up two subwoofers, it may not be a bad idea to read A Guide to Bass Management.

[Ventura]

Originally Posted by Big Daddy

If you cover the foam with wood and carpet, you will make it look like the $400 Subtrap. Perhaps, you should start a subwoofer riser business in Australia.

Identical subwoofers are easier to manage and set up and most experts recommend them. However, this does not mean that you cannot make different subwoofers work together. It just takes more time and patience to adjust them individually so that one does not overpower the other one. A little bass equalization can help. To learn about setting up two subwoofers, it may not be a bad idea to read A Guide to Bass Management.

Thanks for the link, I'll definitely be checking that out.

I'm going to choose against purchasing another sub of the same type, however, because I'm definitely getting rattling. Mine has two air holes, and I can hear rattling from the left one when it blows.

That said, it feels so much more now though, like I'm in the middle of an earthquake when it's doing it's thing. It's much improved.

[Big Daddy]

Originally Posted by Ventura

Thanks for the link, I'll definitely be checking that out.

I'm going to choose against purchasing another sub of the same type, however, because I'm definitely getting rattling. Mine has two air holes, and I can hear rattling from the left one when it blows.

That said, it feels so much more now though, like I'm in the middle of an earthquake when it's doing it's thing. It's much improved.

If you open your subwoofer and add some polyfill to it, it will help with the noise from the port holes and may also make the subwoofer go deeper. You can buy polyfill from craft and fabric stores. In the U.S., Wal-Mart department store has different types of polyfill in its craft and fabric department. Read DIY Subwoofer Building thread. In the middle of Post # 2, I have explained the benefits of adding polyfill.

[crazyBLUE]

Vary nice Big Riser Ventura . Looks really good !

[Ventura]

Originally Posted by Big Daddy

If you open your subwoofer and add some polyfill to it, it will help with the noise from the port holes and may also make the subwoofer go deeper. You can buy polyfill from craft and fabric stores. In the U.S., Wal-Mart department store has different types of polyfill in its craft and fabric department. Read DIY Subwoofer Building thread. In the middle of Post # 2, I have explained the benefits of adding polyfill.

Open my subwoofer, are you crazy? Couldn't I just thread some of that stuff down that hole or something? Seriously, putting together a riser, that I can do, but actually opening my sub, that's a whole different kettle of fish.

That said, it does sound like that stuff fixes exactly the kind of problem I'm having over here. Do you necessarily have to put it anywhere in particular? Like most subs (I would imagine), mine only seems to actually open from the back, but even if I could actually get that plate off, I wouldn't have a clue what I was doing in there.

[Fors*]

Originally Posted by Ventura

Open my subwoofer, are you crazy? Couldn't I just thread some of that stuff down that hole or something? Seriously, putting together a riser, that I can do, but actually opening my sub, that's a whole different kettle of fish.

That said, it does sound like that stuff fixes exactly the kind of problem I'm having over here. Do you necessarily have to put it anywhere in particular? Like most subs (I would imagine), mine only seems to actually open from the back, but even if I could actually get that plate off, I wouldn't have a clue what I was doing in there.

Some subs you can take off the driver and others, you need to take off the plate amp. It depends on the sub......you usually need something like an allen wrench. If you do add polyfill, fill the cabinet, but only loosely, and do not overfill, or it will have a negative impact on the sub.

[rkolinski]

Some questions for all of you DIY Subwoofer Riser experts since I have already started building my own risers for my 2 DF Subwoofers and my 2 DF towers. I have already built the risers using metal legs w/plastic screw caps on the bottom which can be extended an additional inch. I chose the metal round legs because my subs are really heavy w/their built in amps and also because I thought it would look nice with my other black audio/video stands. The subs will be 24" off of the floor when mounted on the risers made for them and the towers will be 9" off of the floor. The foam I'm using is the kind of foam used to place on top of mattresses and to fill pillows, etc. My question, at least for the sub risers is do I have to use the same height when it comes to foam or will 12" total be sufficient? Also, this is my first ever DIY ever because most of my life has been spent using things other than my hands except when they were used for writing and working in front of a computer. Thanks in advance for any advice given!!

Rich

[Big Daddy]

Originally Posted by rkolinski

Some questions for all of you DIY Subwoofer Riser experts since I have already started building my own risers for my 2 DF Subwoofers and my 2 DF towers. I have already built the risers using metal legs w/plastic screw caps on the bottom which can be extended an additional inch. I chose the metal round legs because my subs are really heavy w/their built in amps and also because I thought it would look nice with my other black audio/video stands. The subs will be 24" off of the floor when mounted on the risers made for them and the towers will be 9" off of the floor. The foam I'm using is the kind of foam used to place on top of mattresses and to fill pillows, etc. My question, at least for the sub risers is do I have to use the same height when it comes to foam or will 12" total be sufficient? Also, this is my first ever DIY ever because most of my life has been spent using things other than my hands except when they were used for writing and working in front of a computer. Thanks in advance for any advice given!!

Rich

A height of 12" for your subwoofer risers is very good. As far as the speakers are concerned, raise them enough so that the tweeters are approximately at the same height as your ears when you are sitting down.

I am not sure I fully understand your question about the foam. The foam should go under the riser to fill the gap in there. It should not add any more height to the risers.

[rkolinski]

Originally Posted by Big Daddy

A height of 12" for your subwoofer risers is very good. As far as the speakers are concerned, raise them enough so that the tweeters are approximately at the same height as your ears when you are sitting down.

I am not sure I fully understand your question about the foam. The foam should go under the riser to fill the gap in there. It should not add any more height to the risers.

Actually, the subwoofers will be 24" off of the floor w/the risers and and the 2 DF towers will be raised 9" so the top of the speakers come to approximately the same height as the top of my TV screen on its stand. My question regarding the foam was do I HAVE to use 24" (approximately) of foam or will 12" total be sufficient?

[Big Daddy]

Originally Posted by rkolinski

Actually, the subwoofers will be 24" off of the floor w/the risers and and the 2 DF towers will be raised 9" so the top of the speakers come to approximately the same height as the top of my TV screen on its stand. My question regarding the foam was do I HAVE to use 24" (approximately) of foam or will 12" total be sufficient?

Use as much foam to fill all the openings under the risers. Don't leave too much of a gap under them.

[rkolinski]

Originally Posted by Big Daddy

Use as much foam to fill all the openings under the risers. Don't leave too much of a gap under them.

THANKS!! And I LOVE your Home Theater BTW!!