Completed my DIY sub

nebborjk

My DIY sub is complete. This project took about 2 weekends to complete. Most of the materials I had lying around the garage. All total I have about $300.00 into it. Here are some of the build specs:

(1) 15” Dia. PVC pipe 24” long. Pipe has an I.D. of 14.50” and the walls are .375” thick.
(1) 2’ x 4’ x ¾” MDF
(2) 2’x 4’ x ½” MDF
(1) 3” Dia. Cardboard tube 16” long
(1) 10” Titanic MKIII Driver
(1) 190W SVS sub amp
(8) Slate pattern vinyl floor tiles from Home Depot

I used the ported.xls and Unibox.xls spreadsheets that are floating around this and other forums to do most of the design. The sub should be tuned to about 25Hz. if I used the programs correctly. I don’t have a spl meter at this time so I haven’t run any scientific tests yet. I hope to get one shortly. This sub is a giant leap forward from the PSW202 I was using before.

Pauly

any pics?

nebborjk

Hopefully this works.

gidrah

That looks great. I have the same driver and have been wanting to do something with it for about 1.5 yrs now.

Pauly

have any from start to finish?

nebborjk

Unfortunately I do not have pics of the build process. I had my camera on loan when I started the project and I didn’t want to wait for the camera to get started.

Pauly

thats cool. looks good BTW

PolkThug

Nice work! looks like a fun project.

nebborjk

gidrah, I think you might have the MKII and not the MKIII. I don't believe that the MKIII series are that old but I could be wrong. If the MKII is anything like the MKIII you have a nice driver.

gidrah

Yeah, you're probably right. It's a beast though.

tryrrthg

Nice sub! I just finished my DIY sonotube sub also. it's a fun project!

Where the hell do you guys get this MDF?

Home Depot and Lowes both carry it. Just need a router or sabre saw (with a steady hand) to cut circles...

steveinaz

That's a work of art brother, perfect match to the end table! Great job...

phoneisbusy

Nice work! Very creative use of the vinyl flooring tiles.
Looking forward to your impressions.

regards

Dave

nebborjk

I used a saber saw to cut my circles. Slow and steady for best results. I tried to use a Rotozip with a circle cutting attachment, but it sucked something fierce. Do not try using a Rotozip or any spiral saw for that matter. After I cut the circles I used a 1/4" round over bit in my router to knock the edges off. Here's a tip to true up your circles, before you paint the circles apply a layer of wood putty or wood filler to the edges. This will fill in any low spots. Let it dry and sand smooth for a much-improved circle.

How does she sound?

She sounds great. I haven't had a lot of time to really test it. I did listen to the Pearl Harbor attack scene in DTS and it totally kicked ****. I hope to get some graphs up in a couple of weeks.

Thanks for all of the good words!

gatemplin

Looks great, really matches the room. I have never seen a sonosub like that before.

tryrrthg

What did you use to glue the vinyl to the tube?

tryrrthg

Originally posted by spasticpitbull
have any from start to finish?

Spastic here is a GREAT site for seeing a sonosub go from start to finish. he has three projects very well documented.

http://www.io.com/~patman/sunosub.html

gmorris

WAY cool my man!! That is the most unique looking sub I've ever seen. Great idea using the tile for the finish.

I built my own sub, and I know the pride you must be feeling.:D

nebborjk

What did you use to glue the vinyl to the tube?

The tiles have a self-adhesive back on them. I sprayed 3M Super 77 multi-purpose adhesive spray on the tube. This seams to be working pretty well. I have noticed that some of the edges are starting to peel up a little bit. I may need to re-glue those edges if they get any worse, hopefully they won't.

goingganzo

wow looks great and i bet it blows alot of subs away like most store bought.

Dr. Spec

Awesome. Really creative use of the tiles. I love the look.

Doc

dorokusai

Neato Torpedo! Very unique, have fun!

gmorris

(1) 15” Dia. PVC pipe 24” long. Pipe has an I.D. of 14.50” and the walls are .375” thick.

Is this the main body for the sub? Do you feel that this tube, with 3/8" thick walls, is strong enough? The Titanic MKIII is a MONSTER sub. Does the tube flex, or distort or anything?

Just curious.

tryrrthg

Originally posted by gmorris
(1) 15” Dia. PVC pipe 24” long. Pipe has an I.D. of 14.50” and the walls are .375” thick.

Is this the main body for the sub? Do you feel that this tube, with 3/8" thick walls, is strong enough? The Titanic MKIII is a MONSTER sub. Does the tube flex, or distort or anything?

Just curious.

Tubes can't flex. think of yourself inside a tube with an infinite amount of arms trying to push out in all directions. You wouldn't be able to flex the tube one bit. A tube is an easy way to go over a box because you don't have to worry about bracing the tube. it will be very strong.

Sonotube FAQ

nebborjk

I have not noticed any flexing of the tube. I doubt that I will. 3/8" wall PVC is extremely rigid. I can stand on this tube and it will not deflect. It does vibrate some when played at higher levels.

gmorris

Originally posted by tryrrthg
Tubes can't flex. think of yourself inside a tube with an infinite amount of arms trying to push out in all directions. You wouldn't be able to flex the tube one bit. A tube is an easy way to go over a box because you don't have to worry about bracing the tube. it will be very strong.

Sonotube FAQ

So lets say you had the same tube, BUT with 1/16" wall thickness. Would you say that this would be a sufficient design?

I agree with your explanation that the tube can't flex, due the the pressure in the tube being equal in all radial directions. But simple logic, when dealing with a subwoofer design, would seem to dictate that a 1/16" wall would be a little weak.

tryrrthg

Well technically the 1/16" walls would be enough but would I use it, no. The problem you'd probably run into there would be the tube resonating/vibrating too much, but with enough polyfill, egg crate foam, or dynamat etc, it could be done... Granted the 1/16" material would have to be pretty strong, some stainless steal or something would look pretty cool!

gmorris

Originally posted by tryrrthg
Well technically the 1/16" walls would be enough but would I use it, no. The problem you'd probably run into there would be the tube resonating/vibrating too much, but with enough polyfill, egg crate foam, or dynamat etc, it could be done... Granted the 1/16" material would have to be pretty strong, some stainless steal or something would look pretty cool!

Hmmm, that is interesting.... It seems that the Sonotube style subwoofer is a VERY good design. I wonder why more companies don't utilize this design. SVS is the only company I've seen do it. The round tube also eliminates many standing waves inside the tube, right?

tryrrthg

check out that FAQ site I posted it answers quite a few questions. I'm not sure about standing waves...

HSU also used the tube design, I believe, before SVS. Most companies don't use them because they're ugly, and most companies don't make subs as big as SVS does. Most people don't want a huge sub in their room, especially if it looks like a missle silo!

gatemplin

Originally posted by gmorris
SVS is the only company I've seen do it. The round tube also eliminates many standing waves inside the tube, right?

I think you can still have standing waves if the tube length is the same (or half?) size as some wavelengths? That would be a very long sub though.

Creative Sound Solutions (PVC Shiva kit) and Adire Audio (Sadhara) also sell a sonosub.

nebborjk

Thanks to everyone for all of the compliments. This was a rewarding project to complete. It was not as hard as I thought it might me. I encourage any others out there thinking about a DIY project to try it; you won’t be disappointed.