Dayton Audio Titanic MK III 15-inch Subwoofer...
Dayton Audio Titanic MK III 15-inch Subwoofer...
Someone on Craigslist was selling a used Titanic MK III 15-inch subwoofer that was assembled from a kit (found on Parts Express). The price was very reasonable ($300) so what the heck (I live in Hawaii, the cost of the sub $760+shipping ($260) would be a $1000+ total so this would be a considerable savings) . The seller even delivered the sub to me (what a deal) and it was a good thing too. The sub is MASSIVE. I have a couple of Polk PSW650s... They are about 17" square... The Titanic is only two inches larger at 19" but it seems a lot bigger than the Polks. The sub weighs 88 lbs and is really too big for one person to carry (I could not carry it).
The Amplifier...
The 1000-watt (4 ohms) Dayton plate amplifier sits opposite of the driver. The amp has a variable sensitivity control, a phase switch, power switch, crossover control. It also has a simple EQ control, a boost/cut control knob, bandwidth control and frequency control. This control is rather useless in this type of design as I will explain further. The IEC power cord is heavy duty and can be detached.
The Cabinet...
The sealed three cubic foot acoustic suspension cabinet is finished in 3/4" MDF with a pebbled black finish and rounded corners. It comes with black chrome spikes if needed. The cabinet only has one cross brace running laterally across the middle of the cabinet. It is stuffed with corrugated foam glued to the inside walls.
The cabinet design is a simple sealed design. A vented design is easier in most cases because it results in an extended flatter bass response. The problem is that when you drive a signal below the resonant frequency of the driver, excessive excursion is exhibited because there is nothing to restrict the movement of the driver. To compensate, an amplifier can implement a sub-bass filter (which adds to the cost, more so as the filter has to be adjustable for each individual driver). In this case, Dayton uses a sealed cabinet. The sealed cabinet uses the compressed air in the cabinet to restrict the excursion of the driver. Very simple but it has one serious issue. The end result is a reduction of bass as the frequency goes lower. The sub peaks at 80Hz and slowly tapers below that (35Hz@-3db, 22Hz@-10dB, not too bad). Using a vented cabinet would peak at 50Hz and would be -3dB@22Hz but it would have to be over five cubic feet in size.
Frequency response sealed vs vented design
In Use...
I placed the sub near the front, two feet from the wall and about 1/3 distance from the right corner. I normally use a Sunfire True Subwoofer MK II there along with a new Definitive Technology SuperCube SC6000. I only used the Dayton sub during the test.
The sub performed somewhat admirably. Given its large size, it was able to pressurize my large (25'x18') room quite easily, more so than the other two subs. The bass was there but not quite as tight as the smaller drivers of the Polk PSW650 or the SuperCube but it did go deeper. The Polks had very tight bass but it was not extended or deep, my guess it was performing best between 40-50Hz. The Supercube was performing around 40-50Hz as well.
I did not think that the Titanic was up to snuff until my wife came in and was grumbling that everything was shaking around the house. I had to fiddle with the controls to flatten the response a bit. Once I got it dialed in, the sound was a lot better but still a bit looser than the other subs, probably because the 15" driver has a lot more mass to control. After several hours of use, I had decided to keep the Titanic in its place and put the other subs out of service to further acclimate myself. The Titanic was easily able to supply the bass as needed. My friend was right... A bigger sub is needed for a bigger room.
Someone on Craigslist was selling a used Titanic MK III 15-inch subwoofer that was assembled from a kit (found on Parts Express). The price was very reasonable ($300) so what the heck (I live in Hawaii, the cost of the sub $760+shipping ($260) would be a $1000+ total so this would be a considerable savings) . The seller even delivered the sub to me (what a deal) and it was a good thing too. The sub is MASSIVE. I have a couple of Polk PSW650s... They are about 17" square... The Titanic is only two inches larger at 19" but it seems a lot bigger than the Polks. The sub weighs 88 lbs and is really too big for one person to carry (I could not carry it).
The Amplifier...
The 1000-watt (4 ohms) Dayton plate amplifier sits opposite of the driver. The amp has a variable sensitivity control, a phase switch, power switch, crossover control. It also has a simple EQ control, a boost/cut control knob, bandwidth control and frequency control. This control is rather useless in this type of design as I will explain further. The IEC power cord is heavy duty and can be detached.
The Cabinet...
The sealed three cubic foot acoustic suspension cabinet is finished in 3/4" MDF with a pebbled black finish and rounded corners. It comes with black chrome spikes if needed. The cabinet only has one cross brace running laterally across the middle of the cabinet. It is stuffed with corrugated foam glued to the inside walls.
The cabinet design is a simple sealed design. A vented design is easier in most cases because it results in an extended flatter bass response. The problem is that when you drive a signal below the resonant frequency of the driver, excessive excursion is exhibited because there is nothing to restrict the movement of the driver. To compensate, an amplifier can implement a sub-bass filter (which adds to the cost, more so as the filter has to be adjustable for each individual driver). In this case, Dayton uses a sealed cabinet. The sealed cabinet uses the compressed air in the cabinet to restrict the excursion of the driver. Very simple but it has one serious issue. The end result is a reduction of bass as the frequency goes lower. The sub peaks at 80Hz and slowly tapers below that (35Hz@-3db, 22Hz@-10dB, not too bad). Using a vented cabinet would peak at 50Hz and would be -3dB@22Hz but it would have to be over five cubic feet in size.
Frequency response sealed vs vented design
In Use...
I placed the sub near the front, two feet from the wall and about 1/3 distance from the right corner. I normally use a Sunfire True Subwoofer MK II there along with a new Definitive Technology SuperCube SC6000. I only used the Dayton sub during the test.
The sub performed somewhat admirably. Given its large size, it was able to pressurize my large (25'x18') room quite easily, more so than the other two subs. The bass was there but not quite as tight as the smaller drivers of the Polk PSW650 or the SuperCube but it did go deeper. The Polks had very tight bass but it was not extended or deep, my guess it was performing best between 40-50Hz. The Supercube was performing around 40-50Hz as well.
I did not think that the Titanic was up to snuff until my wife came in and was grumbling that everything was shaking around the house. I had to fiddle with the controls to flatten the response a bit. Once I got it dialed in, the sound was a lot better but still a bit looser than the other subs, probably because the 15" driver has a lot more mass to control. After several hours of use, I had decided to keep the Titanic in its place and put the other subs out of service to further acclimate myself. The Titanic was easily able to supply the bass as needed. My friend was right... A bigger sub is needed for a bigger room.
Post edited by jon s on
Comments
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Its not the mass of the driver its the design. There are 15 and even 18 inch drivers that can pound incredible tight bass. The size of a woofer and how tight its bass response has become somewhat of a fallacy in audio circles.Living Room
Fronts: RTi A7's
Center: Csi A6 VR3 "Fortress Plus"
Front Heights: Rti A1
Surrounds: Rti A3
Sub: HSU VTF-2 MK4 Damn this is a good SUB
Pioneer Pioneer Elite: SC-35-> Emotiva XPA-3
TV: Lg LW6500 55" Passive 3D
Blu-Ray Panasonic BD 210
XboX 360 Slim/Kinect
Acoustimac red suede panels
