[Daemonicus]

Ok, to start off, nothing has exploded yet, and I hope to keep it that way. So this is where you guys come in.

I started with THIS SUBWOOFER that I got from BestBuy. I decided to not get the warranty for once, so naturally it either never worked, or I broke it. I tried breaking it in slowly, but it would keep cutting out if I turned it up to an audible level (audible over the music).

So I gave up on it and bought a new sub:


and a 1400w amp that won't be delivered until Tuesday. Unfortunately I'm not that patient. So I'm wondering if I can hook up this amp:...


to these terminals:...


with these wires (I would have to cut and strip the ends):...


and not have any real complications or explosions. Of course I realize that I won't get 900w of sound from this setup, but I can't wait until Tuesday for some bass. Thanks for the help!!

Also I know I have to hook up the positive and negative wires correctly on each side, but does it matter which side of the subwoofer I connect them to?[/url]

[warnerwh]

"Also I know I have to hook up the positive and negative wires correctly on each side, but does it matter which side of the subwoofer I connect them to?"

If you have two sets of terminals on your sub it won't matter which set you hook up to as long as phase is correct.  This means the mains must be hooked up correctly also. Yes you can hook up the smaller amp. If the driver is very sensitive, say 90db or better, the 200w amp will put out alot of power.

What 1,400 watt amp did you order?

You may want to go to the Partsexpress.com forum. There's alot of people with years of building their own subs there who are friendly and helpful.  It's not real complicated and a very good sub can be built for under 500 bucks.

If the 900 watts you're referring to is what the manufacturer states your bass driver is rated at then you need to know something: That rating is pretty meaningless. I won't go into why here, sorry.  There's alot more to a driver than a power rating.  

Putting a driver in a box is not as easy as it may appear, at least if you want good performance.  If you want good bass a little knowledge will go a long way. For the money you have invested I think you could have done better. Please don't think I'm criticizing what you've done. I'm only trying to help you.  I can assure you I would have saved more money if I knew how to listen to others better  

A subwoofer shouldn't call attention to itself on music and only a little at most on movies.  Many people think that they need to turn ithe sub up to hear it and where it the low bass sound is coming from. This is WRONG and means the bass is overly loud or some other problems exist in your system. A sub should integrate within the system with a nice  balanced blend. If the sub sticks out something is wrong.

Forthe money I guesstimate you spent you could have built a box, bought a good driver and a fair sub amp all from Partsexpress or Madisound.  I'm assuming you want the best performance you can get for your money.   Designing a sub isn't very hard but it isn't that simple either.

At minimum you'll save time and money going to one of the forums I mentioned above.  I believe there are some people on this board that may also be willing to help you design a sub. Try posting in the Lab area as we don't have a speaker building forum.

Both Partsexpress and Madisound with give you parameters for an enclosure if you buy the driver from them btw.  If you would like personal help you can PM me.  Cheers

[Daemonicus]

"Forthe money I guesstimate you spent you could have built a box, bought a good driver and a fair sub amp all from Partsexpress or Madisound."

Overstock.com
-SUBWOOFER
-AMP

All for $160. If I didn't spend almost $300 on the initial sub/amp/box, I would be thinking I did an awesome job. The box is pretty nice though, and I'm still under $500.


"If the 900 watts you're referring to is what the manufacturer states your bass driver is rated at then you need to know something: That rating is pretty meaningless."

Ya, I heard that you usually get half of what the driver is rated at. In this case, I figured I'd only be getting 450w of clear, crisp bass, which is enough for me. Correct me if I'm wrong though.

Also, thanks for the partsexpress.com forum referral. I'll be sure to check them out. Thanks again! You've been a huge help.

[warnerwh]

"Ya, I heard that you usually get half of what the driver is rated at. In this case, I figured I'd only be getting 450w of clear, crisp bass, which is enough for me. Correct me if I'm wrong though. "

What I'm trying to tell you is that the there's alot more to a driver than it's power rating.  I can assure you there are drivers rated for much less power that will handle more power than the driver you purchased.  It's really too complicated to go into here.  If you ask at the partsexpress forum you will get a more detailed answer than I care to give right now.  

One point though is that the sensitivity of the driver is of significant importance in that for every doubling of power you only increase volume by 3db which is just audible.  There are drivers that when driven with 500 watts that won't play as loud as other drivers driven with 200 watts.  Three decibels per doubling of power adds up real quick.  I've noticed in the car audio world there are all kinds of claims that are far from reality. There should be laws against it as it is effect fraud imo.

As you can see in effect the 200watt system may play louder than the 500 watt system.  In effect a person with a speaker sensitivity of 93db and 100wpc will have a system that plays louder than the person with 200 watts and an 87db sensitivity. Half the power but double the power in reality.

Here's a good primer for you to read: http://www.partsexpress.com/resources/spkrbld.html

I don't know about you but I love bass. I like it to sound real, not thumpy or loose but tight and well articulated with real world power.  Anybody can build a sub that will play loud but doing so with accuracy is not nearly so easy. As I stated before the box itself needs to be of certain dimensions and there are always compromises to be made. Also whatever box you use be sure to make it very well braced and take that into consideration.  

If you already have the box then maybe adding some cross braces like closet dowel on the inside going in both directions and doubling the thickness of the outside of the cabinet walls or at minimum the front baffle will be a step in the right direction.

A well executed design with a lesser driver can outperform a good driver in a poorly designed system.  To get the maximum from the driver you bought you can start by using the right size box and design(ask the manufacturer as I've not heard of them) and making sure it is rigid.  

For sub design I'd stick with drivers designed for home use unless you plan on putting it in a car. Being as this isn't a car audio site I hope my assumption  that you plan on using it in your home is correct.