Need help with ideas for a built-in Sub

[hddummy]

My parents are doing a total renovation of their house, so they asked me to install a 5.1 system in the TV room and ceiling speakers in the breakfast/kitchen area. Their floor plan is all very open and my mom is VERY concerned with the aesthetics of the the space. She will only allow in-wall and in-ceiling speakers, and the subwoofer is no exception. I was hoping to build it into a wall, but the space i was eyeing got filled up with HVAC ducts, so I think an in-floor may be my only option. My mom didn't shoot it down entirely, but she's not thrilled about me putting a 16"x16" grill in her hardwood floor. I really need some ideas on different locations i could possibly put the sub or ways to make an in-floor sub look good or hidden. If i can't get her to approve something, they are just going to cut the sub from the plan all together and that would just not be cool.

By the way, I have a TC sounds 12db-500 i bought when they closed shop and I was shooting for a 3-4 cu.ft. ported enclosure.

edit: Also, I don't have any attic space or I would have explored that first.

[Mike P.]

If in floor is your only option then hiding it behind something might work.

[Owen Bartley]

I think in that situation I'd be trying to disguise the sub as furniture, or build it into a piece of furniture. In wall subs aren't great, and I think they can cause a lot of vibrations within the walls. If that's all you can fit in, then it's definitely better than nothing, but I think you could do better with a freestander.

A really easy way to do this is to take an existing piece of furniture your mom likes and build an enclosure INSIDE that. Of course you're better off with something decorative and not functional, unless you want to retain maybe a set of drawers or something above the sub enclosure. Someone here built some really nice subs out of decorative chests, some have used cabinets or even built-in wall units. Would that be an option?

[hddummy]

Good ideas. Disguising as or inside of furniture may work, but I have to pre-wire for it this weekend. I would have to know what and where and I'm not sure she could commit to anything. I'll propose it for sure. Thanks! Keep the thoughts coming....

[PhilipW]

I built this sub for a friend some time ago. Not that she would want it as a coffee table, but maybe as an large side table, or even a sofa table...



Complete Details and Photos, he tells a funny story.

[hddummy]

Very nicely done! An end table probably has the best chance for approval. I'll have to start searching for pictures to show my parents what that would look like.

[hddummy]

What if I build the sub to whatever size I want and mount it to a manifold in the floor. The box could be attached below the floor joists and I could probably have nothing but a standard HVAC vent in the floor above. Are there any guidelines to how much manifold area you need compared to the amount of air you want to push. Obviously, we don't want to introduce air flow noise or create pressure restiction on the driver or ports. I'm not looking to move a massive amount of air. I will probably only have a 250W amp, so the driver won't even come close to pushing it's excursion limits.

[Owen Bartley]

As far as placement issues, you could just run to multiple locations now, (if this is before drywall?) and then just use the one that works best.

[joorge]

Take a look at the Boogeyman at PE.

http://www.parts-express.com/projectshowcase/indexn.cfm?project=Boogieman

Shouldn't be too hard to convert the design to something that easily fits in the wall.

[dgilme]

You could get really fancy and build a folded horn platform to go under the couches