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Help the Ijit: subwoofer damping

68.200.158.200

I have a Sunfire Mark IV sub that sometimes makes what I'll call vibration noise. Stock, the sub wanders around the floor (tile/slab) and also makes its noises. I've tried:

Rubber pad (mouse pad, gel bike seat, and carpet underlayment); works in keeping the cabinet in place, but still get the vibration sometimes.

Weight atop the cabinet. I've tried sitting on it, which works pretty well, but limit placement options for me :)

Latest 'tweak' is a plastic bucket of Tidy Cats litter (33 lb) which works well, but the problem is the bucket moves around and would probably fall off, potentially doing damage.

Please, help the ijit reduce the vibration [grin]

Follow Ups:

RE: Help the Ijit: subwoofer damping - Fretless 20:37:09 07/16/09 (0)
My ACI Force sub sits on a spiked 2" maple butcher block with around twenty pounds of granite on top. This arrangement tightened up the low bass, most likely by improving support coupling and mitigating some of the "sounding-board" effects of my suspended hardwood floor. I tried various compliant footers - Isoblocks, Vibrapods, etc. - but they tended to smear/bloat the bass compared to rigidly coupling everything to the floor.

"We lived for days on nothing but food and water." W.C. Fields
RE: Help the Ijit: subwoofer damping - mace 10:45:06 07/06/09 (0)
This is what I use.

Hope this works for you.

Mike
- http://www.auralex.com/sound_isolation_subdude/subdude.asp (Open in New Window)
Sit on the darn thing... - Abel McCain 07:20:52 07/04/09 (0)
Coupling combined with damping - what more could you ask for? Another option might be 1/4" thick sheet sorbothane, which is a very heavy and sticky damping material. I would remove the subwoofer's stock feet and replace them with four large sticky squares of this stuff. Then, set the entire sub with it's new sorbothane "feet" on top of another larger sheet of sorbothane. The double-stickiness, combined with excellent vibration damping, should keep the sub in place.

Edits: 07/04/09
RE: Help the Ijit: subwoofer damping - Bruce from DC 14:31:16 07/01/09 (0)
What you want to do is to anchor it to something massive that also is non-resonant (so it doesn't act like a sounding board).

I sugggest spikes with concrete paving stones on top of whatever floor/carpet you have. Then put one or more pavers on top of the sub. Use blu-tack to fix the top paver to the sub.

You should end up with the sub sandwiched between the pavers, top and bottom. You can get small size pavers at Home Depot that are about the size of the Sunfire sub, for the top placement.
Double sided sticky tape!... - tube Tom 13:42:57 07/01/09 (0)
Everything you've said you used will help keep the sub from vibrating, but not from moving! If you put double sided sticky tape under it, it will keep it from wandering (vibrating). And you may also want to place a heavy brick on top as well. If you do this you will want to put the tape on first, then "plant" the sub in the desired location!
RE: Help the Ijit: subwoofer damping - Pro Sound Guy 09:47:05 07/01/09 (0)
If you have spikes on that thing then get rubber feet under it
Lay a rubber mat under the sub and put it on that
You can get a rubber floor mat you put outside of your door
Also, go to your local Home Depo or whatever you have where you are
that has patio block or yard block of some sort

You can get a decent looking block or cover it with a black cloth
or something on top of the sub

Also, you can get a cloth bag and go to a sport shop where they
sell lead shot for loading shotgun shells. Fill the bag with
lead shot and place on top of the woofer

Use your imagination
I have a concrete slab on top of my sub - Jon L 09:24:53 07/01/09 (2)
One of those square concrete slabs that I lifted off my outside walkway. Washed it then put it on top of my sub, with cloth in between. Works great. If I were crazy, I would put one on the bottom as well..
- Presently rubber mat and two buckets of Tidy Cat ... - soldermzer 18:10:59 07/02/09 (1)
  thanks for ideas. The sunfire comes with rubber feet, not spikes. I hadn't considered pavers. Right now, I am still experimenting... the rubber mat on top of the sub, then two buckets of 35-lb "Tidy Cat" litter. Looks like hell, but my decor runs to the non-existent. Seems to be working quite well. Main worry is the buckets will fall off and damage the sub or one of the nearby Maggie panels. Ah, the joys of this hobby !!!
  - RE: Presently rubber mat and two buckets of Tidy Cat ... - Pro Sound Guy 07:00:07 07/04/09 (0)
    Tidy cat makes a great tweak
    
    Tighter bass
    Lower freq response
    Perfect integration with the mains
    
    Good job on using your imagination!
    
    I am kidding on the tweak thing
    It seems some of the audiophile sickos get wrapped up in
    majic tweaks that are pure snake oil
    
    Enjoy

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