Digital Design Subs.. Tune high or low - For daily..?

[westman995 10+ year member]

Everyone, well not everyone but it seems most people say to tune the DD subs higher, cuz thats what they were made for, for like 38hz or higher.. I tuned my first box for my 9515D to 37hz and then i lengthened the port and went down to like 34hz and liked it alot better. I was thinking of tuning my next one even lower. People were saying NOT to tune it that low.. I was thinking like 30hz or so, maybe 32hz.. What do you think? I thought mine at 34 was fine, and i heard of a few others tuning DD's low with no problems. Why would people say you shouldnt tune them that low anyways? Just the way theyre built? And what do people think will happen to them tuned low anyways?

I might end up having to tune higher anyways cuz i cant figure out a way to get a port in my area where im putting the box cuz if i do internal port it has to be a really long port and its going to eat up all my box space..

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[ahole-ic]

Everyone, well not everyone but it seems most people say to tune the DD subs higher, cuz thats what they were made for, for like 38hz or higher.. I tuned my first box for my 9515D to 37hz and then i lengthened the port and went down to like 34hz and liked it alot better. I was thinking of tuning my next one even lower. People were saying NOT to tune it that low.. I was thinking like 30hz or so, maybe 32hz.. What do you think? I thought mine at 34 was fine, and i heard of a few others tuning DD's low with no problems. Why would people say you shouldnt tune them that low anyways? Just the way theyre built? And what do people think will happen to them tuned low anyways?
I might end up having to tune higher anyways cuz i cant figure out a way to get a port in my area where im putting the box cuz if i do internal port it has to be a really long port and its going to eat up all my box space..

DD's are fine tuned low if you want it that way. They have really stiff suspensions so they can play safely a little ways below box tuning, but you still lose output when you go below tuning, but it is MUCH more gradual than other subs. The bottom line is, if you really want that punchy really low bass with your DD subs, go ahead and tune low. You will lose a lot of the higher bass from 55-80hz and that means you probably won't meter well, but it sounds like that's not what you're going for. Also, DD subs usually have a higher FS than most other subs. Tuning below their FS usually doesn't get you any better low end extension because the sub simply can't reproduce those notes. If you REALLY want that deep low end extension, you might try a sub with a lower fs.

 

[schackel 10+ year member]

my DD9512 is at 35 and i love it

 

[westman995 10+ year member]

Nope not really looking for numbers.. Going to stick with the subs i have right now, i ended up with two 9515D's however one ended up having coil rub and i never got to use it so i need to get that one reconed, so ive only gotten to use one so far and really want to put the pair in my car. I really liked the single 9515 but like i said i want both of them.

 

[skmfkr 5,000+ posts]

i had a aq hd3 back in like 06 tuned to 35hz and i love it. but ive never cared much for tuning lower than 35hz my current box is tuned to 40hz and i love it. i seem to like 35-40hz tuning

 

[mlstrass 5,000+ posts]

35Hz is the lowest I ever tune DD or AQ subs. they'll play loudly into the high 20Hz range with that tuning if the box specs are correct.

Tuning much lower then that will make the top end roll off rather quickly. 38Hz is the most common tuning I use for a daily set up...

 

[JimJ 5,000+ posts]

Tuning below their FS usually doesn't get you any better low end extension because the sub simply can't reproduce those notes. If you REALLY want that deep low end extension, you might try a sub with a lower fs.

So I guess those people with 15Hz Sonotubes at home don't know what they're doing? //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

 

[JimJ 5,000+ posts]

You will lose a lot of the higher bass from 55-80hz and that means you probably won't meter well, but it sounds like that's not what you're going for.

Other than an impedance spike @ 2x Fb, how is it filtering anything?

 

[gunz4me2 10+ year member]

I am running my DD 1508 in roughly 1 cubic foot net tuned 35 Hz. It plays deeper than my DD 1010 did in the same enclosure although my 1010 did play louder in the 50 to 80 Hz range. I do want to try my 1010 again in 1.5 cubic feet net tuned to 38 Hz to see if that makes a difference.

 

[Goindef154 5,000+ posts]

I have 4 1508's tuned at 35 and love them, the box is at the very bottom of the recommended size but they get loud as hell for only 1k watts and they shake the shit out of the cab when I want them too //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/biggrin.gif.d71a5d36fcbab170f2364c9f2e3946cb.gif

 

[mylows10 5,000+ posts]

i did 2 3512es at 29 hz with a stetsom 2k6 at 1 ohm did a 141 at finals in laughlin problem was the voltage would drop to 8 volts and some of the lower notes under 33 hz would make the woofer pop

 

[T3mpest 10+ year member]

Other than an impedance spike @ 2x Fb, how is it filtering anything?

lol it's not. This forum can't seem to understand that while tuning high does filter low notes due to cancellation from the port below tuning, tuning low doesn't reduce anything up top. I think they just hear the huge spike at 45hz that most cars have when you tune high as "upper end bass" and assume they are losing upper end at like 60-70 when they tune lower.

 

[Redlineaudio 10+ year member]

We have went as low as 30 on a 9518, made the backglass of the truck look like it was waving at you. play with the port until you get what you like and go with it.

 

[Goindef154 5,000+ posts]

We have went as low as 30 on a 9518, made the backglass of the truck look like it was waving at you. play with the port until you get what you like and go with it.

^^^^ Exactly, it's all personal preference in the end. I've had my DD sub boxes tuned high at 40ish then lower at 34ish and I had things I liked about both but I just liked having them tuned at 34 better.