Can a decent sub be made from an Alpine sub speaker? [Archive] - Audio & Video Forums

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Widowmaker
06-23-2004, 06:12 AM
I recently inherited a 12" Alpine Type R car subwoofer speaker from a friend (without the box enclosure). Seeing as how I have no desire to install it into my car (I find car subs to be obnoxious), can I make a decent sub out of it? Also, is there a service that will make a sub for me if I send them the Alpine sub? Just as background, I'm already running a Velodyne CHT-8 and the Alpine sub would be my second.

eqm
06-23-2004, 08:07 AM
remember that the alpine subs, while great for a car-sized space are really not designed to go into a home environment. Many are 4 ohms are less nominal impedance, making them all but impossible to run off of most HT receivers. Couple that with the fact that you'll need to find a separate amp you can power this sub with, find/build a proper box, and have to deal with the frequency cancellations of having two subs in the same room...you're probably better off spending your money on either another velodyne or an upgraded sub. sorry to p*** on your parade...i simply want to save you some heartache and $$ ;)

This Guy
06-23-2004, 09:39 AM
Yeah Egm covered most of the bases with car woofers, although there are some car woofers that would work fine in a home environment, but not this Alpine with that high resonant frequency. Sell the Alpine and get a Dayton 15" Quatro from partsexpress.com. Then get the 250 watt plate amp and build/buy a 3 cubic foot sealed box and if you make the box yourself you can make it for $250 if you buy one a little over $300. At either price this sub will go louder and deeper than almost any commercial sub under $800.

-Joey

Widowmaker
06-23-2004, 10:54 AM
remember that the alpine subs, while great for a car-sized space are really not designed to go into a home environment. Many are 4 ohms are less nominal impedance, making them all but impossible to run off of most HT receivers. Couple that with the fact that you'll need to find a separate amp you can power this sub with, find/build a proper box, and have to deal with the frequency cancellations of having two subs in the same room...you're probably better off spending your money on either another velodyne or an upgraded sub. sorry to p*** on your parade...i simply want to save you some heartache and $$ ;)

Darn it, you people never go along with my awesome ideas! :\ Oh, well, thanks for the warning, maybe I will just install it into my car and go bangin' around my neighborhood like a teenager. Thanks again, everyone.

Richard Greene
06-24-2004, 09:56 AM
I recently purchased this 15" 37Hz. Fs car driver that sounded okay in my very large living room:

http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/pshowdetl.cfm?&DID=7&Partnumber=299-665


The output below 50Hz. was weak (as the 37Hz. FS spec suggests) but some EQ solved that problem. The +/-20mm XMAX prevented overexcursion damage. But the combination of the low impedance voice coils (4 ohms) and EQ boost made my 150 wpc stereo amplifier quite hot when using this car sub in my living room (150 watts for each voice coil).

pelly3s
06-24-2004, 02:51 PM
well actually if you think about it most car subs are designed with a longer xmax than your average home sub giving it the ability to push more air. i used two car subs under a stage at a strip club durning an install and you would never know they were car subs. the main difference is that the components are designed to handle heat better, and to power it you could pick up a used crown CE-2000 or K-2 and it will like 4 ohms all day long in bridged mono, the key to it all is building the box right.

Widowmaker
06-25-2004, 12:38 PM
Thanks everyone for the replies. I've spoken to some people about this and every one said that it is a better idea just to buy a second sub and save the hassle. Oh, well, I guess the Type R is just going to gather dust. Thanks again everyone.