I'm a noob..
I am really intrigued by the DIY sub build idea. I have seen people post over and over about how fantastic a pair of HT-18's in Martysub boxes (or easier pre-cut flat packs) powered by an Inuke 3000dsp amp would be be. I'm on a tight budget and I need to spend more on construction supplies for my room before I start shelling out for subs.. but I can't get it out of my head. The value proposition that everyone keeps talking about here has me really excited.
A few more details. I'm working on my first ever HT build. I'm doing double wall construction with double layer drywall and green glue and a double layer ceiling on clips and channel. This is in my basement, but my house has very poor soundproofing to being with, so I'm going the extra mile on the soundproofing. It's a small room since I'm limited by some structural issues. It will be about 11' wide by 22' long with barely a 7' ceiling. I believe I will have about 24" of space behind a false wall, but I haven't built the wall yet so I could squeeze another 6" inches if needed.
My past experience with subs is very limited. I have a single JBL ES250PBK in my current living room setup. It certainly improves the overall sound by adding some lower notes, but I can't turn it up very loud because the distortion gets really bad.. so it's really just a fill-in. I have a friend with a powered 12" and a passive 10" in separate corners of the room and it's definitely better than my setup.. But nothing like the dual 18" idea that I'm considering.
So, if I could bore the group with a few questions..
1.) The reviews on my JBL are supposed to be pretty good, but since I have no experience with really high end or really large subs I don't know what "good" means. If I get a couple of huge 18's, is it going to be much of the same sound.. only much more distortion? Does anyone have any first hand experience going from a cheap $200 manufactured sub to a "value" DIY build? I know the experience of sound is difficult to put into words, but if anyone has any experiences they could share to help me understand, I'd appreciate it.
2.) I'm really more interested in quality of the sound than sheer decibels. With a wife and two kids and a very demanding job, I'm most likely going to be spending most of my HT time late in the evenings after kids have gone to sleep.. plus my wife is an early to bed and early to rise kind of person.. so even with a reasonably well soundproofed room I still won't be at high volumes. So, if I have to keep the volume at reasonable levels, I want to have very good quality of sound. Not sure i'm using the right terminology here, but I'd rather have very low 20hz extension than 130db volume. Are the 18's overkill? Should I be looking at 12's or 15's instead?
3.) The HT-18's seem like an amazing deal at $174 shipped.. but they come in 2 ohm or 4 ohm.. Through a few searches it seems like the 2 ohm gets you the highest volume, but 4 ohm might be a cleaner sound. Is this true? Should I go for the 4 ohm since i'm looking for lower volume/lower distortion, smoother bass?
4.) Is it overkill to get 2 x 18"? Would a single DIY sub with my current JBL in another part of the room be sufficient?
Thanks in advance for the patience and help of anyone who replies.
I am really intrigued by the DIY sub build idea. I have seen people post over and over about how fantastic a pair of HT-18's in Martysub boxes (or easier pre-cut flat packs) powered by an Inuke 3000dsp amp would be be. I'm on a tight budget and I need to spend more on construction supplies for my room before I start shelling out for subs.. but I can't get it out of my head. The value proposition that everyone keeps talking about here has me really excited.
A few more details. I'm working on my first ever HT build. I'm doing double wall construction with double layer drywall and green glue and a double layer ceiling on clips and channel. This is in my basement, but my house has very poor soundproofing to being with, so I'm going the extra mile on the soundproofing. It's a small room since I'm limited by some structural issues. It will be about 11' wide by 22' long with barely a 7' ceiling. I believe I will have about 24" of space behind a false wall, but I haven't built the wall yet so I could squeeze another 6" inches if needed.
My past experience with subs is very limited. I have a single JBL ES250PBK in my current living room setup. It certainly improves the overall sound by adding some lower notes, but I can't turn it up very loud because the distortion gets really bad.. so it's really just a fill-in. I have a friend with a powered 12" and a passive 10" in separate corners of the room and it's definitely better than my setup.. But nothing like the dual 18" idea that I'm considering.
So, if I could bore the group with a few questions..
1.) The reviews on my JBL are supposed to be pretty good, but since I have no experience with really high end or really large subs I don't know what "good" means. If I get a couple of huge 18's, is it going to be much of the same sound.. only much more distortion? Does anyone have any first hand experience going from a cheap $200 manufactured sub to a "value" DIY build? I know the experience of sound is difficult to put into words, but if anyone has any experiences they could share to help me understand, I'd appreciate it.
2.) I'm really more interested in quality of the sound than sheer decibels. With a wife and two kids and a very demanding job, I'm most likely going to be spending most of my HT time late in the evenings after kids have gone to sleep.. plus my wife is an early to bed and early to rise kind of person.. so even with a reasonably well soundproofed room I still won't be at high volumes. So, if I have to keep the volume at reasonable levels, I want to have very good quality of sound. Not sure i'm using the right terminology here, but I'd rather have very low 20hz extension than 130db volume. Are the 18's overkill? Should I be looking at 12's or 15's instead?
3.) The HT-18's seem like an amazing deal at $174 shipped.. but they come in 2 ohm or 4 ohm.. Through a few searches it seems like the 2 ohm gets you the highest volume, but 4 ohm might be a cleaner sound. Is this true? Should I go for the 4 ohm since i'm looking for lower volume/lower distortion, smoother bass?
4.) Is it overkill to get 2 x 18"? Would a single DIY sub with my current JBL in another part of the room be sufficient?
Thanks in advance for the patience and help of anyone who replies.