[griffindodd]

I'm moving into an apartment and really don't want to be 'that neighbour' with the Bass that annoys everyone else in the building.


I just scaled down my speaker sizes to 4x Energy C-50's and a C-C50 center mated to a HK AV-254 for my music and definition needs. My question is can I get away with no sub at all and enjoy a big movie feel with shakers, or do I still need a sub for those lower frequencies to support the shaker effect?


My new place has laminate floors and I'd be attaching shakers to pretty stiff leather couches.


Shaker recommendations gladly appreciated around the $250 mark which would have to include any amplification required to get the effect.


Thanks

 

[mjg100]



Quote:
Originally Posted by griffindodd /forum/post/15536157


I'm moving into an apartment and really don't want to be 'that neighbour' with the Bass that annoys everyone else in the building.


I just scaled down my speaker sizes to 4x Energy C-50's and a C-C50 center mated to a HK AV-254 for my music and definition needs. My question is can I get away with no sub at all and enjoy a big movie feel with shakers, or do I still need a sub for those lower frequencies to support the shaker effect?


My new place has laminate floors and I'd be attaching shakers to pretty stiff leather couches.


Shaker recommendations gladly appreciated around the $250 mark which would have to include any amplification required to get the effect.


Thanks

If you have an old AVR it will work fine for power. Use the phono input on the AVR, it is more sensitive. If no AVR then get a cheap plate amp from Parts Express. For your couches you need to decouple them from the floor. You can buy isolators to place under the feet. They will raise the couch about 3/4". I used these: www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=299-028%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20&FTR=aura&CFID=4977090&CFTOKEN=97611274 They are currently on sale.

 

[griffindodd]

Yeah I think I'll give these a try, for the price they seem great. I have an old Sony theater Amp sitting around that I was going to give away but I'll keep it and use it for these shakers. I bought 4.


So do I attach my old amp inputs to the sub pre-out on the new HK AVS-254 when it arrives and then just hook up these 4? I guess I can set the old amp to full mono and put one on each fr/fl/rr/rl channels.

 

[MagicTK]

Something else you could try is remove the bottom lining of the couch, screw a large board under the frame of your couch, but be sure it doesn't touch any other supports underneath. Then mount 1 or 2 shakers in the middle area. The board will essentially become a flat panel speaker. This way, you will feel the bass as well as actually hear some. You might want to experiment with one or two smaller boards, that don't cover the entire bottom of the couch just to hear how it sounds and feels. I have a couple mounted directly to the frame, just to add a little feel to my subwoofer sound and feel.


I tried a similar experiment just by placing a shaker on my drywall in my living room. There were noticeable bass frequencies eminating from the walls. I even tried attaching one to the floor. I just screwed it right into the floor, and it helped make some bass, which added to the movies. Of course since you are in an apartment, you don't want to mount to the walls or floor, but I am just pointing out the concept of using a larger area to help add to the actual sound.


Good luck with this.

 

[Noubourne]



Quote:
Originally Posted by MagicTK /forum/post/15538634


Something else you could try is remove the bottom lining of the couch, screw a large board under the frame of your couch, but be sure it doesn't touch any other supports underneath. Then mount 1 or 2 shakers in the middle area. The board will essentially become a flat panel speaker. This way, you will feel the bass as well as actually hear some. You might want to experiment with one or two smaller boards, that don't cover the entire bottom of the couch just to hear how it sounds and feels. I have a couple mounted directly to the frame, just to add a little feel to my subwoofer sound and feel.


I tried a similar experiment just by placing a shaker on my drywall in my living room. There were noticeable bass frequencies eminating from the walls. I even tried attaching one to the floor. I just screwed it right into the floor, and it helped make some bass, which added to the movies. Of course since you are in an apartment, you don't want to mount to the walls or floor, but I am just pointing out the concept of using a larger area to help add to the actual sound.


Good luck with this.

How low were you able to tune your drywall? Also, do you think 50w is enough to push 1/2" gypsum?

 

[MagicTK]

Ha, good question. Sadly, since the drywall was attached to the wall studs, there was no tuning to be done. I was mostly experimenting with the shakers by holding them onto different surfaces. Heck, I even held one to my head just to see how the sound resonates. I didn't check long enough on the drywall to know how low it would have gone. I think the shaker's response is 20Hz - 80Hz. With my frequency generator, I was able to get some decent response below 20Hz. The larger surface area mostly helps with the overall sound level and dispersion. If I were to actually mount one on a wall, I would probably use some plywood of similar thickness. I would suspect that over time, the drywall screws or nails would become loose or the drywall itself would become weak. Also mostly likely, there would be peaks or dips in the frequency response curve, if you measured one.


I only had a 50wrms amp on the shaker, and it was enough to fill the room with sound, but not enough to rattle my neighbor's windows or even my own windows. It does help to place it between studs or between the floor joists on a more open area.