Hi from Melbourne

Hi everyone,
My brother and I are embarking on a mission to build a dub sound system... So here I am at Speaker Plans! We've talked to a couple of people, and the plan at them moment is to build two SMT 212s, and then attempt the bass bins after that. Any guidance is welcomed! And thanks to everyone who shares their knowledge on this website, I have learned so much from internet forums

Hi,

What route you planning on taking for the subs.

You can do the classic tried and tested (and boring) route of building scoops, or experiment with something a little less 1950's.

I've not heard SMT 212's, but from looking at the plan if you have the skills to build something with a curved horn path that has a smaller throat, you should get more efficiency and a better sound. SMT 212's are an easy build though, so I can see the attraction if you are willing to compromise.

Rog.

Hi Rog,
Well the thing is this is all absolutely new to me - I have no wood working experience, and no experience with regular PA systems let alone building my own. So the idea was to build something that was likely to work given this limited experience (the SMTs). Similarly, we are probably going to build super scoops. We had been considering hog scoops, but apparently these are harder to build. Do you have any tips or things you wish you had known?

If we keep at it I am sure we'll branch out into other more sophisticated designs!

Welcome to FSP ,you will find plenty of good DIY plans here on the forum and some Really smart people on the subject .as for your build a simple sealed or ported box is the easiest from a design point of view that said from personal experience a HOG scoop is not that difficult all you need is a good table saw . PS good luck

Looks like SMT's it is then.

If your going to build super scoops, 2 things. First is that driver selection is critical. Any driver will make a noise in any cab, but get the combination right and the whole is greater than the sum of the parts (well, figuratively speaking). Second, super scoops are not that easy a build. If you can tackle them, then you should be able to build practically any design out there.

So if you don't go the classic scoop route, what else is there. Here's my preference starting with the better types of design for playback of high output LF.

Large folded horns. You will need some pretty specialised drivers and at least 4 in a stack to stand a chance. Placement in the room is also critical, so a good understanding of room acoustics will be required, or acquired. If you get the right horns with good placement then not much else can come close.

6th order parallel bandpass. Expect to pay very big dollars to get drivers that will do justice for this type of design. Mutual coupling and a knowledge of how to form an array will make or break this type of design in use. Its the latter that is responsible for the poorly received opinion of bandpass cabs. Its not a chuck it out of the van and see what happens type of design. Planning will be required. Get it right and the results can be devastating.

Reflex. Its now a contender due to the availability of some rather tasty high excursion drivers and some very powerful small amps. Its an easy build and placement is not that critical. The down side is that you need a lot of juice to feed these ultra high output amps. You will probably need a few more cabs in each stack to keep up with the output of a horn loaded design, and this includes scoops, as after all there are a rear loaded horn. So truck space might be a bit more stretched if you go the reflex route.

Rog.

That,s a pretty good summary on the subject Mr Rog

Thanks for all this info, it is very useful! I'm going to look into these other designs now A very nice welcome to this forum!