Best Enclosure Dayton 10" DVC with 70 Watt AMP?

[rws79]

I just purchased the Dayton 70 watt sub amp to use with a Dayton 10" DVC Sub. I am wondering what the best box size is for a small sealed box. It seems like in the reviews 1 to 1.25 cubic feet is what people are using. Does anyone have any exact inside dimensions that would work for music and light duty HT? I could go vented as long as it stayed under 1.5 cubic feet if you guys think that would be better.

Thanks for the input

[joekraska]

Model #?

[rws79]

Dayton SD270-88 10" Shielded DVC Subwoofer

[benhinkle711]

I used the SD215, which is the 8" version of that speaker, in a sealed enclosure with the same 70 watt amp and I wasn't impressed. With the limited xmax of these drivers and the low power of the amp the results in a ported enclosure were much more favorable. So I would recommend a ported enclosure if at all possible. But I think you may have to exceed the 1.5 ft to do it.

[nbuk]

I just purchased the Dayton 70 watt sub amp to use with a Dayton 10" DVC Sub. I am wondering what the best box size is for a small sealed box. It seems like in the reviews 1 to 1.25 cubic feet is what people are using. Does anyone have any exact inside dimensions that would work for music and light duty HT? I could go vented as long as it stayed under 1.5 cubic feet if you guys think that would be better.

Thanks for the input

Hi, you could go 1.5 cubes sealed ,that would get you an F3 around 50Hz, but I think if you go much smaller than that you may end up with a Boom Box.
With a vented enclosure I would say you need 2.3-2.5 cubic tuned to aruond 25Hz, that would give you the most bang for your buck!.
I am not an expert, but many members here are, so someone else may yet correct me.
Good luck,
Neil

[dwigle]

You're not going to want to hear this but the 10" SDVC hasn't been nearly as popular around here as the 12" SDVC.

As others have said, in a small sealed box the 10" doesn't really get below 50hz. And the 10 and 12 both need about the same sized box for a vented alignment. Hence, more folks go with the 12.

[johnnyrichards]

The Dayton shielded series just don't work in a sealed box. As was pointed out above, the 10" models pretty much the same as the 12" so the only reason to go with the 10" would be to save a few bucks at the cost of lower output in the same enclosure. With all the other costs associated with a subwoofer build, there is very little to justify the slight cost savings by purchasing the 10"

Now, if you already have the 10" and the plate amp, follow the recommendations above and enjoy a high value subwoofer!.

[rws79]

Thanks for the input. I will probably go with a 1.5 cubic foot box sealed. I think 50 Hz will do for now, since it it is replacing a 4" cyber Acoustic Sub with 30 watts going to it. If I could talk my wife into the 2.3 cubic foot box. what type a port would I need to put on it for optimal sound (diameter and length)? My internal Box Dimensions will be a cube of 16".

[dwigle]

Thanks for the input. I will probably go with a 1.5 cubic foot box sealed. I think 50 Hz will do for now, since it it is replacing a 4" cyber Acoustic Sub with 30 watts going to it. If I could talk my wife into the 2.3 cubic foot box. what type a port would I need to put on it for optimal sound (diameter and length)? My internal Box Dimensions will be a cube of 16".

An internal cube of 16" will give you a net volume of about 2.1 ft after deducting for braces, driver and amp.

For box tuning of 27hz you need a vent of 3"x10.15". That should yield max output of around 106db and F3 of 39hz.

I don't know anything about the filters in that amp - the filters could change your output significantly. Maybe someone else can help with that - anyone? anyone? Bueller?

[Taterworks]

For woofers with limited Xmax, I strongly suggest tuning to EXACTLY the woofer's Fs, and shooting for a box volume very close to Vas or up to 20% smaller. For the 10" DVC, this would be a 4 ft^3 enclosure tuned to 30 Hz exactly.

I recommend this because the woofer's Fs, or resonant frequency is also the frequency at which it reaches its maximum excursion in free air. Below that frequency, excursion decreases due to the woofer's own compliance, and above that frequency, excursion decreases because the driver operates in the constant-acceleration range. Tuning at Fs will yield the greatest undistorted output, because the resonant action controls the cone's excursion, and using a box size equal to Vas gives you the classic B4 vented-box alignment, but you may use a smaller box if you're counting on a good amount of room gain. Set the tuning frequency to 30 Hz in WinISD, leave it there, and adjust the box volume until you get the flattest response.

[dwigle]

For woofers with limited Xmax, I strongly suggest tuning to EXACTLY the woofer's Fs, and shooting for a box volume very close to Vas or up to 20% smaller. For the 10" DVC, this would be a 4 ft^3 enclosure tuned to 30 Hz exactly.

I recommend this because the woofer's Fs, or resonant frequency is also the frequency at which it reaches its maximum excursion in free air. Below that frequency, excursion decreases due to the woofer's own compliance, and above that frequency, excursion decreases because the driver operates in the constant-acceleration range. Tuning at Fs will yield the greatest undistorted output, because the resonant action controls the cone's excursion, and using a box size equal to Vas gives you the classic B4 vented-box alignment, but you may use a smaller box if you're counting on a good amount of room gain. Set the tuning frequency to 30 Hz in WinISD, leave it there, and adjust the box volume until you get the flattest response.

agreed, but the OP has a wife imposed max box size he's limited to. Also, the attached pdf spec sheet has Fs at 26.9hz. Oops, sorry, that's 29.6. Vent should be closer to 3"x8"

There are a lot of compromises here, his first choice is a sealed box at 1.5ft. Yikes.

[jcandy]

I also have 2 of the SD270-88s (10"), and I have not built an enclosure yet for exactly the reasons which are being tossed around in this thread. As I recall I was leaning toward a sealed box (my focus being a leaner bass more suitable for music, if that makes sense) and ended up concluding a 50l sealed box (1.75 ft^3) was about the minimum one would want to use. I don't recall the resulting Q but it was something like 0.7.

Isn't there anything more creative one can do with these low-cost drivers?

[hardwareguy]

If any woofer just screamed "PUT ME IN A PORTED BOX!", the Dayton Shielded DVC woofer would be it.

Its OK in sealed but the output is pretty lame, even with the 12". Put it in a well tuned ported box and its a different animal. Great bang for the buck and not power hungry at all, which is good because its not happy with much over 100W. (150W is the max amp I'd use)

Skip the 10, get the 12.

[rws79]

Thanks for the input. I bought the 10 inch along time ago, I wish I would have bought the twelve. I think this weekend I will build a 1.5 cubic box out of some scrap MDF to see how it sounds. If I don't like I will go with the sixteen inch cube with the 3" port, and just make it look cute so my wife will like it. I think I will be satisfied with the sealed version since it is for my bedroom. Thanks though, you guys are awesome.

[johnastockman]

Thanks for the input. I bought the 10 inch along time ago, I wish I would have bought the twelve. I think this weekend I will build a 1.5 cubic box out of some scrap MDF to see how it sounds. If I don't like I will go with the sixteen inch cube with the 3" port, and just make it look cute so my wife will like it. I think I will be satisfied with the sealed version since it is for my bedroom. Thanks though, you guys are awesome.

Here's my version, using WinISD for the volume and port dimensions:



2.3 ft3 net, heavily braced, 3"D x 9 3/8"L port, sprayed with truck bed liner. Now I made a mistake with the port location...it should be at least 3" away from the inside walls. I measured wrong regarding where the bracing was, so I had to put the port a little too close to the side and bottom panels. It still sounds great, but the others I made for friends had the port located further away from the corner. I use mine for 2-channel music, so I don't need sub 30Hz performance. Outperforms commercial units that cost 4 times what I have into it. I've used the 70 watt and the 100 watt amp with the 10" SDVC. If your SO will sign off on a 3 ft3 box, go with the 12" and 100 watt amp, especially if you'll be using it for HT also. I don't have the numbers for the 12", but a quick run-through with WinISD should give you some dimensions & port size for a ported 12" box. Let us know how it turns out. Oh, nevermind! I see you already have the 10" SDVC...

John A.

[rws79]

I like this design. I think it is the one I will go with. I already have the 10" so the 12" inch is not an option. Would it hurt if I made it down firing with the port on the bottom as well? Is so how far away from the wall would it have to be the driver facing the wall? Thanks for the input.

[benhinkle711]

I found that when I had mine in a sealed enclosure that the highest output was achieved by facing it at the wall in the corner. So I would turn it this way for movies and just turn it back afterwards to keep the wife happy. You will have to experiment though. You could make a test enclosure and experiment with the placement.

There is a formula on PE's site to figure out if you can use a sub downfiring. If you go with the downfiring mount be sure there's a couple of inches between the driver and the floor. Placing the port downfiring will be fine as well.

[subbu567]

Gentlemen-You guys are amazingly helpful-I live in Bangalore India-Bought the 10" DVC and 240w plate amp with Bass boost!I find the amp is an over kill for the driver-I bought the one with bass boost because I wanted to make a sealed cabinet.I have made one with ~68 liters volume-The sub works well when the tritrix mains are subdued-ie @ -30db level on my Denon receiver.Sounds full and tight-However if I drive up the volume levels in the receiver-The sub slowly starts to fade away-and simply bounces like a tennis ball against the wall -with apparently no volume to match up higher sound from the mains.All settings and integration done by Audessey and manually tweaked it quite a bit as well-To cut a long story short-I intend to make a ported box now as suggested above-Winisd says @ 75l with a port of 82mm diaX247 m length-the tuning is @28hz-which is close-Now will my new configuration work?since I have +6db @30hz with my amp-will end up blowing the speaker?any other work arounds? buying another driver etc-takes 6 months cycle time as I need to wait for some one to come from US to bring home my goodies hence ruled out.thanks

[mdocod]

rws,

There's no reason the box has to be larger than 1.5ft^3 to go vented. 1.5ft^3 vented will still provide higher maximum output than sealed through the bottom end. Just build the box the shape/size you want, and then stick a 3" flared port kit from PE in it set to the longest length that will fit without being obstructed inside the box (i'm guessing you'll get enough length for a tuning somewhere around 30hz, which is fine). (just make sure the "skirt area" left inside the box between the inside termination of the port and apposing wall is not a restriction point). If you build the box larger (up to 3ft^3 is good), the port length will need to be reconsidered, but in the tiny box just get as much length as you have room for.

Simmed at Xmax limited Pe:

[thekorvers]

rws,

There's no reason the box has to be larger than 1.5ft^3 to go vented. 1.5ft^3 vented will still provide higher maximum output than sealed through the bottom end. Just build the box the shape/size you want, and then stick a 3" flared port kit from PE in it set to the longest length that will fit without being obstructed inside the box (i'm guessing you'll get enough length for a tuning somewhere around 30hz, which is fine). (just make sure the "skirt area" left inside the box between the inside termination of the port and apposing wall is not a restriction point). If you build the box larger (up to 3ft^3 is good), the port length will need to be reconsidered, but in the tiny box just get as much length as you have room for.

This woofer works well in large enclosures. Not so much so in small ones. I think this has been pointed out redundantly by the other posters. 1.5 cu ft or 1.3 cu ft, as you have modeled, is much too small to do this driver justice. Tuning it to 30 Hz in those enclosures gives you an f3 of 43 - 47 Hz. By the time you reach 30 Hz, the point where a lot of HT special effects take place, the output will have dropped by 10 - 12 dB or so.

In addition your suggested 3" port tube will produce a port air velocity of 86 ft/sec, which is much too high. Chuffing will result. Port compression will occur well before chuffing is evident and compromise port output, reducing the already low output at low frequencies.

I consider using this driver in such a small enclosure akin to gagging an opera singer. The singer would probably still be able to produce audible sounds, but the performance would be far from attractive.

Of course this whole debate may be moot as the OP occurred on 01-04-2010!