Playing With Configurations (Decisions, Decisions)

[neo_styles 10+ year member]

Figure this is as good a time as any to beseech some of you for your opinions on the matter of trying to match a few different subwoofer choices with a couple different amplifier configurations...

I just recently got a Zed Minotaur III (not II, not a typo) and am so far loving what it has done for my DC Audio Level 2 10". Even after a couple days of use, I know this is an amp I can keep in my lineup for quite some time and I've definitely been bit by the Zed bug as a result of it. Seriously the cleanest, easiest-blending bass I've come across on a modestly-powered setup. There will be plans in the future to add a Leviathan III (or IV if one is released by the time I order) to the lineup.

Anyone who knows me either here or on MAF probably knows I have a pipe dream cooking up in my head of doing a build next year for a Gen I/Gen II Tahoe/Suburban and will be budgeting $10K to cover all aspects of the build including the truck purchase itself. That being said, here's what I have available now for any aspects of the build:

Boston Acoustics GT-2125 (may trade with a friend for either an Orion 2350GX or 225 HCCA)

Zed Audio Minotaur III

Sony Mobile ES XM-2100G

Sony Mobile ES XM-5026

HAT Legatia L8, L3, and L1v2

PHD FB 6.1 mids

JBL MS-62C Component set

Eclipse 8701 Component set (sort of...missing the ribbon midranges and crossover blocks)

JVC KD-A95BT (seriously a sweet deck, cannot believe the SQ I'm getting out of a deck that can be had for $200 new)

Now, here's where the build questions come in handy. Assuming $5k for purchasing all the new equipment I'll need, here's some sub configurations I'm playing around with in my head:

Pair of IA Flatlyne 15s or 18s

Pair of Sundown X-15

Pair of SSA GCON

Pair of 15" AA Chaos/Avalanche

Single 18" AA Havoc

Single 18" SSA ICON

Single 18" IA Death Row

Obviously some of these choices will require getting a second Minotaur and strapping the pair together. My question for you guys is whether or not stepping up to a pair of higher-powered subs warrants the purchase of another Minotaur and, remember, they don't come too cheap. A pair of Minotaur strapped is good for 2.5KW@4ohms for reference's sake. Overall sound goal is clean, solid output with a focus on SQ. The Legatias are phenomenal drivers and I don't want them being overwhelmed by the sub stage. It is not of any interest to me what I meter or whether I can perform hair tricks. Please help me put my pipe dream to rest by offering pros and cons of each selection, especially regarding whether box rise will kill my usable power for the large, high-power single-sub setups. Also keep in mind I have two kids, one almost 6 years old and the other almost a month old, so I will need space in the back to carry the precious cargo's cargo.

NOTE - I didn't write this with the intention of it being a versus thread. I really do want to know the pros and cons of each setup.

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[murph 10+ year member]

Flatlyne's or GCON's

 

[neo_styles 10+ year member]

Bump for your thoughts

 

[trumpet 5,000+ posts]

I think you've been talking to/hanging around SPL guys. Tahoe? Check. 15s or 18s? Check. Strapping sub amps? Check. "Box rise" used in a sentence? Check.

 

[neo_styles 10+ year member]

I think you've been talking to/hanging around SPL guys. Tahoe? Check. 15s or 18s? Check. Strapping sub amps? Check. "Box rise" used in a sentence? Check.

What's the matter, Barry, think I'm abandoning the SQ camp? I'm still here lol. The question was first posed on SSA, so I tried to adapt the language as such. Conversely, I don't see how these are SPL-specific terms as we've said time and time again that box construction makes or breaks a sub's performance.

 

[winkychevelle 10+ year member]

Id say start with 1 flatlyne 15 and if you need more output then add another amp and sub.

the flatlynes are phenomenal and one of the best subs ive ever heard

honestly I try to stay with underhung or xbl2 subs due to the lower distortion due to a non linear bl curve but if you arent pushing an overhung driver hard you wouldnt have to worry about this making cone area king for overhung drivers

 

[neo_styles 10+ year member]

Id say start with 1 flatlyne 15 and if you need more output then add another amp and sub.
the flatlynes are phenomenal and one of the best subs ive ever heard

honestly I try to stay with underhung or xbl2 subs due to the lower distortion due to a non linear bl curve but if you arent pushing an overhung driver hard you wouldnt have to worry about this making cone area king for overhung drivers

Thanks for the reply and I really am leaning toward the Flatlyne. Only thing is the Minotaur is really only stable down to 2 ohms, so if I got a single D4 and didn't quite like it, I'd have to get that second Minotaur for the second D4 to have a stable impedance at which to drive.

And I have no intentions of trying to overpower any of the sub selections, but I'm not familiar with SSA's sound signature or, really, a whole lot of 3" coil sub's for that matter. Hence why I ask you fine gentlemen (and Kat, wherever you are).

 

[trumpet 5,000+ posts]

What's the matter, Barry, think I'm abandoning the SQ camp? I'm still here lol. The question was first posed on SSA, so I tried to adapt the language as such. Conversely, I don't see how these are SPL-specific terms as we've said time and time again that box construction makes or breaks a sub's performance.

Haha. I like the approach of more cone area and turning the sub down to blend with the speakers. I couldn't resist teasing you a bit.

 

[neo_styles 10+ year member]

Id say start with 1 flatlyne 15 and if you need more output then add another amp and sub.
the flatlynes are phenomenal and one of the best subs ive ever heard

honestly I try to stay with underhung or xbl2 subs due to the lower distortion due to a non linear bl curve but if you arent pushing an overhung driver hard you wouldnt have to worry about this making cone area king for overhung drivers

Thanks for the reply and I really am leaning toward the Flatlyne. Only thing is the Minotaur is really only stable down to 2 ohms, so if I got a single D4 and didn't quite like it, I'd have to get that second Minotaur for the second D4 to have a stable impedance at which to drive.

And I have no intentions of trying to overpower any of the sub selections, but I'm not familiar with SSA's sound signature or, really, a whole lot of 3" coil sub's for that matter. Hence why I ask you fine gentlemen (and Kat, wherever you are).

 

[winkychevelle 10+ year member]

Thanks for the reply and I really am leaning toward the Flatlyne. Only thing is the Minotaur is really only stable down to 2 ohms, so if I got a single D4 and didn't quite like it, I'd have to get that second Minotaur for the second D4 to have a stable impedance at which to drive.
And I have no intentions of trying to overpower any of the sub selections, but I'm not familiar with SSA's sound signature or, really, a whole lot of 3" coil sub's for that matter. Hence why I ask you fine gentlemen (and Kat, wherever you are).

I wonder if the minotaur could handle 1.33?

Really 3 12s would be my ideal setup for your situation.

something like the peerless xxls 12s are my top choice but I dont think it will work well with you amp and the flatlynes are great

and the d4 will work great you could always wire up to strap at 4ohm then if you decide to sell them having the ability to wire both to 1ohm is usually a good sell point considering 1ohm power is so cheap

 

[neo_styles 10+ year member]

Haha. I like the approach of more cone area and turning the sub down to blend with the speakers. I couldn't resist teasing you a bit.

You got me there lol. I suppose the OP made it seem like I'm crossing over to the dark side...

 

[hispls 5,000+ posts]

I wonder if the minotaur could handle 1.33?

I have driven 1.4 with mine. It will jump into protect occasionally at this load. If you think "well I'll just keep it turned down so it doesn't protect" than you may as well have just run it at 2.8 and be in a much more efficient and stable state for virtually the same output (at least for music).

When I ever get around to installing my 8 I had planned on running 1 per coil to my d2.8 10's.

 

[neo_styles 10+ year member]

I wonder if the minotaur could handle 1.33?
Really 3 12s would be my ideal setup for your situation.

something like the peerless xxls 12s are my top choice but I dont think it will work well with you amp and the flatlynes are great

and the d4 will work great you could always wire up to strap at 4ohm then if you decide to sell them having the ability to wire both to 1ohm is usually a good sell point considering 1ohm power is so cheap

Steve was pretty adamant about no loads below 2 ohms (and he begrudgingly makes his amps stable for 2 at that). When I went to visit his shop last weekend, there were quite a few Minos sitting on the floor in need of repair from people wiring too low. But I think your suggestion of a single D4 is sound for the sake of resale value. Definitely worth considering.

 

[winkychevelle 10+ year member]

Steve was pretty adamant about no loads below 2 ohms (and he begrudgingly makes his amps stable for 2 at that). When I went to visit his shop last weekend, there were quite a few Minos sitting on the floor in need of repair from people wiring too low. But I think your suggestion of a single D4 is sound for the sake of resale value. Definitely worth considering.

Well another thing to consider is jbls top sub with the dual 6ohm coils and 700w rms rating I thing the mino will perform admirably and the split coil design alots these subs to sound great with little power or alot of power. I believe they make 15s.

I would stick to d4 personally unless you drop to lower powered subs purely for resale but there are others that are great.

1 aurasound ns18 would sound great and only needing 800w the mino should give it plenty at 4ohm

 

[neo_styles 10+ year member]

Well another thing to consider is jbls top sub with the dual 6ohm coils and 700w rms rating I thing the mino will perform admirably and the split coil design alots these subs to sound great with little power or alot of power. I believe they make 15s.
I would stick to d4 personally unless you drop to lower powered subs purely for resale but there are others that are great.

1 aurasound ns18 would sound great and only needing 800w the mino should give it plenty at 4ohm

Yes, they make a W15GTi mk ii. Enclosure for it is pretty massive for the recommended tuning, though. They ask for a 4cu per 12 with a 28Hz tuning, so I can imagine the 15 needs a proportionally larger enclosure. I do have a friend with a pair of the 15s now that, if he ever decides to sell, will be the first person I hit up with offers.

Looks like I need to go seek out details on the Aurasound now. I've heard a few people speaking up about it over the past year.