As a concert producer, I am often asked which subs I would advise. Subwoofers, like mains, are selected by the kind of music you'll be playing although them, and how they are going to become used. For the purposes of this article, I'm going to restrict the conversation to just Dubstep, and Drum and Bass.

Dubstep and Drum and Bass have a enormous amount of content in the 20hz - 50hz variety, and in the event you do the math, you happen to be going to need about 5000 watts devoted to a that frequency range to produce adequate of that sound to become heard in addition to the rest of the music.

My setup

My larger setup is (five) QSC HPR181s across the front with the stage, (6) Martin Blackline dual 18's for the home, and 2 Bag End Dual 18's operating 8000watts by way of an ELF processor devoted towards the 8hz - 50hz variety through a lab gruppen amp. When I play smaller sized shows, I just use my QSC HPR181, which are 700 watts every single, but fantastic for ultra high volume bass. The QSC's are self powered and take all of 5 minutes to setup, which also helps. Now I've heard the popular wisdom, never mix subwoofers, but in reality, I've however to discover one sound manufacturing firm that does it all, short of a tour package that is certainly made for a given show, as an alternative to a type of music (a crucial distinction). That stated, crossover points and keeping every single subwoofer along with the general technique in phase is very vital when mixing subs.

Setting the crossover

Traditional crossovers, like the pretty widespread dBx DriveRack PA possess a very good and pretty adjustable crossover that also contains the ability to adjust the slope with the roll off. When matching and tuning subwoofer frequencies, I've noticed that although the crossover claims to possess rolled a frequency off, many of the content continues to become transmitted for the sub. Clearly, when two brands of subwoofers are producing the exact same tones, distortion is produced. I, thus, separate the frequencies by about 5hz. Visually on the crossover, it seems that I'm losing musical content, nevertheless, with the amplification achieve, in reality I am not, as well as a RTA mic will confirm that the setting are right.

Sealed box enclosures and subharmonics

Bag Finish is really the visit right here. You'll find other sub systems that do subharmonics, but Bag End was very first, so I am writing about them. The Infra processor, and ahead of Ron Wickersham left, the Elf Processor would be the two essential elements. Dubstep and Drum and Bass require a massive presence in the 20hz - 50hz variety. Most people can't hear music within this variety, but you can feel it, and also you can feel the difference among 20hz and 40 hz when the signal is clear and free of clipping. The Infra processor is out there in two forms. The very first 1 includes a flat response down to 18hz, the second one particular to 8hz. 18hz is considerably more efficient for larger systems. When you have an added 20k to burn, then go for the 8hz integrator and (four) dual 18's. You'll need a substantial amount of AC Energy to run the amps also, normally an additional 20amp 220 circuit for any Lab Gruppen or 4 20amp 110 ciruits for four QSC amps bridged into each and every sub. My Bag Ends commonly pull about 3000 watts per dual 18 when generating content material STRICTLY Limited towards the 18hz - 50hz variety. I ought to note that making adjustments to your crossover at full volume can rapidly destroy all of your equipment, so be careful, and know your equipment frequency response and power handling ratings.

Pricing

Subs vary tremendously in value. Within the reduced price tag variety, I have heard the Peavey blackwidows, which are technically louder, but considerably significantly less musical. When you are mashing up two tracks, or quickly transitioning from a single to a further, it is tough to hear a lot difference using the Peavey subs, they're just loud, not so much musical. JBL and Cerwin Vega subs are fart cans, and I feel many people know this. They could rumble and shake, however they don't have an articulated sound - a clarity in the low end which is totally necessary for Dubstep and much more so for Drum and Bass.

Some other equipment that I've tried, Should you be rich, the D&B (not db technologies) audioteknic Q2 subs are killer, EAW 218z subs are pretty very good, McCauley does a pretty decent sub with excellent all around specs for Dubstep, and Bag Finish kills. All of these cabinets call for extremely expensive amplification even though. You may get 12,000 into amps alone before you are able to even turn on a mid-sized program of this caliber.

Home Construction

An additional alternative, is to build your own box. This is not a beginner project, but in case you love wood working, and have a spare 2500 bucks, it is possible to build some pretty amazing cabinets. The best way to do this is to get on the forums and look at designs, then read the threads through. Often people today post reviews over the course of years.

Look to get a design that features a good frequency response down to 40hz, and also a driver that has exceptional frequency response. OHM (brand) makes a pretty incredible driver, and there are actually a couple of higher end RCF subs that are bad for the bone.