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Need Advice On How To Use Speakers I Have Laying Around.

2726 Views 16 Replies 3 Participants Last post by  thxgoon
I just rememberd yesterday I have some speakers laying around from a year or 2 ago when I tried to ressurrect some old Translinear Systems speakers and it went badly. I put the speakers upstairs but last night I realised that I put some perfectly good 12" drivers in them, so I went up in the attic, got them out, brought them downstairs and googled the part number.

I'm going to build a serious seb or several serious subs next year but I would like a woodworking/speaker building project in the mean time to keep me busy but my budget is basically nothing for the rest of the year. The speakers are Goldwood GW-1244 speakers, 12" 4ohms. I have 2 of them and I want to make some subs to go with the bookshelf speakers I'm building. The bookshelves will be finished this week and I would like to get started on these subs to go with them. I know these speakers arent ideal but they're laying around so I dont have to buy them or pay shipping for them.

So the goal of this project is to build a pair of subs out of these GW-1244s for bottom dollar. Plate amps are pretty much out of the question because they can't be had for under $100 each, which is way too much for this project. I'm sure I can get a cheap amp and hook them up to that from somewhere, I can probably get one for free or next to nothing from a friend. But then I need a Low Pass Filter, either a crossover style to go between the amp and the sub or an active one to go between the pre-amp and the amp. Whichever is cheaper or easier to use.

My bookshelves are 8ohm speakers so I could wire each one of the subs in parallel with my bookshelves and my Parasound HCA-1000 would see them as a 6ohm load and that would be fine, then ofcourse a passive x-o would be required. Hrm, actually that would be 2.6666 Ohms wouldnt it. I'm still learning some things so someone tell me which one is correct.

Lastly I don't have enough info on the TS Parameters to get a good box design from WinISD. Partsexpress has some TS parameters posted but not enough. I'm going to shoot an e-mail off to Goldwood but I don't really expect to get any more info so if someone could help with box sugguestions it would be much appreciated. Here's what PE has for this speaker.

Specifications: *Power handling: 100 watts RMS/140 watts max *VCdia: 2" *Le: .60 mH *Impedance: 4 ohms *Re: 3.6 ohms *Frequency response: 30-1,500 Hz *Fs: 30 Hz *SPL: 90.9 dB 2.83V/1m *Vas: 4.22 cu. ft. *Qms: 3.30 *Qes: .86 *Qts: .68 *Xmax: 5.0mm *Dimensions: A: 12", B: 11", C: 5-3/16".

To see the most complete TS Parameters I can find just search partsexpress for GW-1244. I would post the link but I dont have enough posts to be allowed to post links yet. Also if you want to see what bookshelf speakers I'm paring them up with they're the Vifa Tweeter version Microbes from RJB Aduio. You can see the origional Microbes at RJB Aduo web page and the Vifa Tweeter version by googling "Vifa Microbe" and following the first link from "somethingawful" web page.

Thanks in advance for any help.
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Re: Need advice on how to use speakers I have laying around.

I don't have the means to model anything for you at the momemt. From initial inspection 5mm xmax and a 30hz Fs won't get you earth shaking bass but I definitelly understand using what you have! It's very possible for you to get some great sounding bass out of this project. I would recommend another amp to drive the subs. Running them parallel with the bookshelves puts you in dangerous impedence territory and won't give you any control of the level of the sub relative to the bookshelves.
Re: Need advice on how to use speakers I have laying around.

The best you can expext from this sub is 4 cu.ft. tuned to 20 hz. It might handle 50 watts, probably less. SPL will peak at 107 db at 50 hz, and drop to 101 db at 30 hz and 96 db at 20 hz.
101+6 at 30hz if he were to build two and co-locate them. Not too shabby!
Re: Need advice on how to use speakers I have laying around.

If you're worried that a ported design would sound less musical, don't be. As long as you design it and construct it properly it should have less distortion then a sealed design. You can always plug the ports if you decide you don't like how it sounds.

Power handling is 100 watts, as Mike says you hit xmax at 20 watts sealed, so not only are you losing output from ports, you are limiting the potential of even higher output.
Re: Need advice on how to use speakers I have laying around.

Yes, xmax is a measurement of cone excursion while the coil is still in the gap. Sometimes manufacturers will state an 'xmech' which is the maximum total excursion of the driver.
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