Sealed vs Ported subs

Brian217

whats the difference? whats better for HT? Thanks!

ShinAce

Ported uses energy better, but can sound sloppy, especially if the box is too small.

Sealed tends to sound more accurate, but is not as loud, and can still be sloppy if not using the right sized box.

The biggest difference is heard when you listen to potential options.

apphd

A lot of thoughts on this topic in this recent thread http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=76014

leroyjr1

I like my sealed Micropro 4000 but ............... it's not as loud as I like. I personally like the slam and volume of good ported sub without the port noise.

I think a good sealed sub will do good at both music and HT.

Olivier

Also, unless i'm mistaken a sealed sub will react faster than a ported one, making it better for faster bass.

Listening to both type is the best way of knowing which one you prefer, both usually, for big, deep bass (hip-hop, raggae,...) I think a ported sub does a bit better job. For rock, a sealed one might be a bit better... but then it's a question of taste i guess.

Conradicles

IMHO a sub with a passive radiator sounds better than both sealed and ported!

Kex

Conradicles wrote: »

IMHO a sub with a passive radiator sounds better than both sealed and ported!

Are you thinking musical priority?

Conradicles

Kex wrote: »

Are you thinking musical priority?

Both musical and HT.:D

Conradicles

ShinAce wrote: »

Ported uses energy better, but can sound sloppy, especially if the box is too small.

Sloppy is a perfect word for most ported boxes.

In a car system, ported is great.

But for HT, go with sealed or a box with a passive radiator.;)

curved

Any large sub IMO must be sealed and use a powerful amp. I think they tend to sound a little sloppy, loud and great for HT, but a little sloppy for 2-channel listening.

Ported subs can be great if the R&D went into it (box size, box structure, port size, port depth, etc).

wingnut4772

I went from ported to sealed and what I lost in SPL I gained in depth, speed and accuracy. I just doubled up on the boxes and the HT is slammin'.

SlowcarIX

i got the same sub as wingnut4772 - sealed subs will allow you to play into the ultra low frequency in many of todays lossless movie soundtracks. this is the f-irene scene in black hawk down, 5Hz cone excursions. a ported will encounter overexcursion w/o a hi-pass filter

Brian217

Thanks for your help!

Eric W

leroyjr1 wrote: »

I like my sealed Micropro 4000 but ............... it's not as loud as I like. I personally like the slam and volume of good ported sub without the port noise.

I think a good sealed sub will do good at both music and HT.

That's not a sealed sub- it's vented via passive radiator. Add another one if you want more volume

On a seperate note there's far too many generalizations in this thread. Each design has its positives and negatives. Like everything else in audio, it's a tradeoff. There are sealed subs that sound sloppy and ported subs that sound tight. It depends on a combination of things, such as the driver design, suspension, materials, cabinet, tuning etc.

bopicasso

Slowcar,
Love your setup... It made me go to HSU Research webpage and check them out.. Wish I had the extra cash, and the HT room to put it all in lol.

SlowcarIX

bopicasso wrote: »

Slowcar,
Love your setup... It made me go to HSU Research webpage and check them out.. Wish I had the extra cash, and the HT room to put it all in lol.

thank you

shenlonco

A seald box always sounds better even in speakers...as you will notice most high end speakers use sealed inclosures.. I think of it as this way a seald system shows it's true sound that it produces and a ported system is artifical kind of like man made not natural due to ports and dementions of them in the cabinet to get the most base out of a box in a small size...and what you here to me is sloppy not as tight bass it sounds destorted this is why speaker makers that have ports always explain how there port does this and does that stopping turbulance and resenance and so forth.

Eric W

shenlonco wrote: »

A seald box always sounds better even in speakers...as you will notice most high end speakers use sealed inclosures.. I think of it as this way a seald system shows it's true sound that it produces and a ported system is artifical kind of like man made not natural due to ports and dementions of them in the cabinet to get the most base out of a box in a small size...and what you here to me is sloppy not as tight bass it sounds destorted this is why speaker makers that have ports always explain how there port does this and does that stopping turbulance and resenance and so forth.

Not quite. High end speakers use ported enclosures too. B&W 800 Series, even Wilson Audio speakers- the most expensive speakers on the market.

manman

Keiko wrote: »

X4

You're Wife must be more forgiving than mine bro. :rolleyes:

One measley little sub and I'm always being told, "Turn it down Michael"
This is why I left the nest when I was 17 dammit!

I hear that... when I was younger I just wanted to make enough money to buy all the electronics I love. After I got married that goal turned into making enough money to get a house big enough to have my own seperate room to put them in so I don't get nagged about them anymore!

george daniel

yep,,, three words that just rain on the parade,,"turn it down"

Motzart

george daniel wrote: »

yep,,, three words that just rain on the parade,,"turn it down"

It's nice having my own house now!
You don't have a neighbor in a joining apt bang'in on the floor or the ceiling.
Guess they just don't appreciate below 30hz!