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In: Home Theater
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In my quest for the ultimate home theater bass, I’d always felt that my single Velodyne HGS-15 subwoofer wasn’t delivering quite the low frequency experience I was expecting. Visits to local IMAX theater had me jealous. So I set out figure out what was missing. Much of what I learned is included in my other post entitled Ultimate Home Theater Subwoofer Designs, which describes Infinite Baffle and Folded Tapped Horn subwoofers. This post details how I installed an Infinite Baffle subwoofer system in my home theater. I chose an Infinite Baffle subwoofer design because it delivers extremely low frequencies with perfectly flat response. Those low, chair-shaking / chestRead More →

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In: Home Theater
With: 8 Comments

I used to think the only way to get ultimate subwoofer bass was to spend thousands of dollars on a prestigious brand of subwoofer. I thought that people who build their own subwoofers were fringe enthusiasts who cared more about building something than about sound quality. It turns out I was completely wrong. The opposite is true: DIY subwoofers can deliver sonic performance that’s impossible for commercial subs to replicate. Here’s an overview of the two of the most effective subwoofers you can build yourself. Overcoming the Subwoofer Enclosure Cabinet Size Constraint Most commercial subwoofers are focused on achieving the best possible performance from the smallest cabinet size possible. Small cabinet size isRead More →

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In: Home Theater
With: 4 Comments

If you want the ultimate subwoofer for your home theater, this is probably it: the JL Audio Gotham. JL Audio, long known for their car stereo subwoofers, started to make a move into home theater a few years ago. I had the opportunity to hear this subwoofer a couple of years ago at CEDIA. Let me tell you, the bass from demo room sounded awesome outside of the demo room, and even better within. The sound was low, solid, and hard-hitting. I was impressed by how unbelievably smooth the sustained bass passages were (but I’m sure that’s in no small part due to a veryRead More →

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In: Automotive, Home Theater
With: 6 Comments

Last night, Nicole and I had several friends over and we wound up watching The Sentinel. The movie was not all that great but what I found even more distracting was the rattles in the room generated by the substantial bass of my subwoofer. I was probably the only one in the room that noticed or was disturbed by it, but so what. So today I’m identifying the offenders in the room. I know the door covering the equipment rack is rattling and there is a light fixture in the ceiling rattling as well. But both rattle at different frequencies and it’s a pain toRead More →