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Bass shakers
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<blockquote data-quote="Paul L Mohr" data-source="post: 8660003" data-attributes="member: 675865"><p>I realize I am bringing this post back from the dead being it is a year old. However I have experience with these things and thought I could add my two cents for someone doing a search on them.</p><p></p><p>They are mostly designed to be used in home theater applications but they can be used in a car if done right. You can also actually use a transducer to make a speaker if you mount it to a flat sheet of material in the correct spot. You don't see it done very often though but you can research it if you are curious.</p><p></p><p>For starters transducers "bass shakers" are NOT subwoofers and do not make a good replacement for them at all. Is what they do is augment what your subwoofer simply can't handle in the lower frequencies. Getting a subwoofer to have a flat response from say 80 hz down to 20 hz is pretty hard to do. Especially in a small enclosure like you would use in a car. I did manage to build a sub that is -3db at 17 hz, but it has a 15 inch woofer in a 12 cubic inch box lol. Sounds awesome, but you are not fitting in a car. Also cars have strange acoustics which makes bass even harder to get right.</p><p></p><p>Where these bass shakers shine is lets say you have a sub that plays really well down to about 40 or 50 hertz. This is the sweet zone where you can still hear the bass and feel the punch when it hits. However to get it lower like into the 30's and 20's you often have to feed it a lot of power and stuff tends to rattle buzz. You also have to do some trickery with cross overs so your not over powered in the higher frequencies, or box tuning if you can get away with it. The shakers can handle these lower frequencies that you can't really hear anyway pretty well.</p><p></p><p>They are not without their downfalls though. For starters they are very localized. As in if you wanted everyone in the car to feel the same thing you would need to mount one in each seating position. You can't just slap one in the trunk and feel it everywhere in the car. You pretty much have to mount it directly to the seat you want it to vibrate. You also have to cross them over pretty low as well. You want them to take over where the regular subs start to fall off. And preferably below frequencies you can hear, or they just feel weird. Like you can feel low voices in your butt lol. However once you get them dialed in right it makes for a pretty great experience. You can also use a smaller sub with less power and tighter bass because they don't have to work as hard to play so low. </p><p></p><p>It also really depends on what type of music you listen to as well. If you listen to music that generally never has notes lower than say 40 hz they simply are not worth the money or effort. And you also won't be winning any decibel contests with them since they don't actually create sound pressure. It is purely a "feel" kind of thing.</p><p></p><p>A good example would be on Will Smith's Big Willie Style album. On track 12 "Its all good" there is a recurring bass hook, the first one is at 40 hertz and the next one is at 20 hertz. The second one is pretty hard to notice most of the time. But with a really good sub or bass shakers you can really notice it. Or any track from Bass 305 will give them a work out too. There are some rock and jazz songs that go that low too, you just never notice it with normal systems. </p><p></p><p>Like others have said though, they really work well in a home theater set up with sound effects. They really enhance explosions, thunder, jets and stuff like that. Oh and they work great in simulators too. Like the little rumble joysticks for playstation and what not. Imagine that times 10 but in your chair.</p><p></p><p>As for a retail stereo installer doing them, I kind of doubt it at this point. I had a system installed today and asked the guy about it and he said they were worthless in a car. I had one with me and he didn't even want to mess with it. A different store might do it though, some will do anything if you pay them for it.</p><p></p><p>Bottom line is they do work if done correctly but for most people probably not worth the effort. I might put one in this car just for giggles but I really don't care what the experience is for others in my car. I adjust and tune mine so it sounds good from MY position. I don't much care about the passengers experience. And if someone is in the back seat, well f'em lol.</p><p></p><p>Honestly the older I get ( I am 51 now) the less I even turn the stereo on in my car unless its a long drive. But man when I was in my 20's my car stereo normally cost more than my POS car I drove lol. Now that I am older if I want to listen to music I want to actually just sit and listen to it alone and enjoy it. Otherwise it's just noise to me. I have a dedicated room and system just for music now. And if that isn't an option Tidal streaming and good noise canceling headphones are a god send. Nothing beats good well placed speakers though.</p><p></p><p>Sorry for the necropost and long post but it is something I was passionate about and have recently been toying with again. Just remember they are not a replacement or alternative for a good sub, they are an addition to one that can bring a new level of enjoyment to your musical experience.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Paul L Mohr, post: 8660003, member: 675865"] I realize I am bringing this post back from the dead being it is a year old. However I have experience with these things and thought I could add my two cents for someone doing a search on them. They are mostly designed to be used in home theater applications but they can be used in a car if done right. You can also actually use a transducer to make a speaker if you mount it to a flat sheet of material in the correct spot. You don't see it done very often though but you can research it if you are curious. For starters transducers "bass shakers" are NOT subwoofers and do not make a good replacement for them at all. Is what they do is augment what your subwoofer simply can't handle in the lower frequencies. Getting a subwoofer to have a flat response from say 80 hz down to 20 hz is pretty hard to do. Especially in a small enclosure like you would use in a car. I did manage to build a sub that is -3db at 17 hz, but it has a 15 inch woofer in a 12 cubic inch box lol. Sounds awesome, but you are not fitting in a car. Also cars have strange acoustics which makes bass even harder to get right. Where these bass shakers shine is lets say you have a sub that plays really well down to about 40 or 50 hertz. This is the sweet zone where you can still hear the bass and feel the punch when it hits. However to get it lower like into the 30's and 20's you often have to feed it a lot of power and stuff tends to rattle buzz. You also have to do some trickery with cross overs so your not over powered in the higher frequencies, or box tuning if you can get away with it. The shakers can handle these lower frequencies that you can't really hear anyway pretty well. They are not without their downfalls though. For starters they are very localized. As in if you wanted everyone in the car to feel the same thing you would need to mount one in each seating position. You can't just slap one in the trunk and feel it everywhere in the car. You pretty much have to mount it directly to the seat you want it to vibrate. You also have to cross them over pretty low as well. You want them to take over where the regular subs start to fall off. And preferably below frequencies you can hear, or they just feel weird. Like you can feel low voices in your butt lol. However once you get them dialed in right it makes for a pretty great experience. You can also use a smaller sub with less power and tighter bass because they don't have to work as hard to play so low. It also really depends on what type of music you listen to as well. If you listen to music that generally never has notes lower than say 40 hz they simply are not worth the money or effort. And you also won't be winning any decibel contests with them since they don't actually create sound pressure. It is purely a "feel" kind of thing. A good example would be on Will Smith's Big Willie Style album. On track 12 "Its all good" there is a recurring bass hook, the first one is at 40 hertz and the next one is at 20 hertz. The second one is pretty hard to notice most of the time. But with a really good sub or bass shakers you can really notice it. Or any track from Bass 305 will give them a work out too. There are some rock and jazz songs that go that low too, you just never notice it with normal systems. Like others have said though, they really work well in a home theater set up with sound effects. They really enhance explosions, thunder, jets and stuff like that. Oh and they work great in simulators too. Like the little rumble joysticks for playstation and what not. Imagine that times 10 but in your chair. As for a retail stereo installer doing them, I kind of doubt it at this point. I had a system installed today and asked the guy about it and he said they were worthless in a car. I had one with me and he didn't even want to mess with it. A different store might do it though, some will do anything if you pay them for it. Bottom line is they do work if done correctly but for most people probably not worth the effort. I might put one in this car just for giggles but I really don't care what the experience is for others in my car. I adjust and tune mine so it sounds good from MY position. I don't much care about the passengers experience. And if someone is in the back seat, well f'em lol. Honestly the older I get ( I am 51 now) the less I even turn the stereo on in my car unless its a long drive. But man when I was in my 20's my car stereo normally cost more than my POS car I drove lol. Now that I am older if I want to listen to music I want to actually just sit and listen to it alone and enjoy it. Otherwise it's just noise to me. I have a dedicated room and system just for music now. And if that isn't an option Tidal streaming and good noise canceling headphones are a god send. Nothing beats good well placed speakers though. Sorry for the necropost and long post but it is something I was passionate about and have recently been toying with again. Just remember they are not a replacement or alternative for a good sub, they are an addition to one that can bring a new level of enjoyment to your musical experience. [/QUOTE]
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