I took some quick video of the Gen II Maelstrom. Nothing earth shaking here but it gives you a good idea of what to expect in terms of overall travel. It is hard to capture in a video. Some of the noise is my saw-horses rocking, some of it the driver as you near the limits. Free air is the worst-case situation in terms of suspension noise. Much is masked once you put it in an enclosure. When you hit gross levels, and the suspension starts making a knocking noise, that will be heard even when its in the enclosure.
The other thing to point out is that it doesn't take much to overdrive it in free-air. In a box, you have a lot more protection.
I'm sure I'll get the standard questions.
"Can we get more?"
"What can be done to increase output?"
The answer is spend more money. At this point, we would need to design more suspension, increase motor, and tool another basket to get more output. All of those things would significantly increase the cost of the driver. I think we are at a good place in terms of Performance/Dollar and I don't want to upset that applecart so I don't foresee any further design changes. I'm very pleased with the current design.
The answer for more output, is of course going to be the 21" version. More money, more size, more swept volume. The Sicko is our "cost is not an object" design which does everything mentioned above. It will increase motor, tool a new basket, tool upgraded suspension. The reality is, that it takes massive amounts of power to use what the Maelstrom already has. More stroke takes more power.... no way around it. The efficiency of a sub is set by factors that include the size of the box, and the bandwidth of the device so we are somewhat between a rock & a hard place when it comes to increasing efficiency.
Enough rambling for now.... enjoy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xIKfkzygw7Y
