Re-evaluating IB

[natemu06]

Again looking at possibly doing an IB in my attic. My house has a large open floorplan and I would be on a very very tight budget which concerns me. I would be looking at the possibility of 2 Maelstrom X's, an EP2500, and a BFD. That combined with the material would have me stretched to the max and this is where my problem comes in. My LCR are about 12ft from the listening position and since the ceilings are high the IB would be about 20ft. Buying the mic and other things needed to test this position would put me over budget. Do you think this position would work either way but it may or may not require some sort of phase control to work out any possible problems or are there no fixes for certain problems (IB would be directly over the screen) Secondly, would 2 Mael-x's be enough in a huge space (maybe around 8000 cubic feet). I know I could leave room for more later in the manifold. Third, it will be used exclusively for movies and I am wondering how hard it is to get a good house curve to give that deep impact feeling I am looking for (or should I stick with just a sealed/ported sub to get this experience). Of course I would like to upgrade later to dial it in with a mic and whatever else is needed (pretty sure I need the BFD right away correct or no and can this even control the phase?) Would there be other options for better drivers that come in around 200 each that way I could stay around 800 and instead have 4 18" drivers. I know from AVS the Mael X is the most highly regarded in the 400 price range but is 2 very good drivers better than 4 avg ones? Thanks in advance!

[ThomasW]

Hi,

Mael-X's are great drivers but their design is overkill for use in an IB.

4 of the Fi IB18" will cost about the same as a pair of Mael-X's and the Fi will give you a lot more output. The Fi 18"s are anything but 'average'. They don't have XBL2 motor technology, but other than that they are state of the art.

We've done IBs in great rooms with 25' ceilings so that's not an issue.

Yes you need some form of measurement system even if it's as simple as the $40 Radio Shack SPL meter. It's needed to find the optimal location for placing the IB.

Do you have pictures or a floor plan of the room? Having that info makes doing this much easier.

And yes given the nature of the room you may need a couple of manifolds each with 2-18" to balance the in-room performance.

[natemu06]

I already have an SPL meter and an AV123 MFW-15 which has a phase control knob on the back if that would be needed to help with any of the potential phase problems during testing for placement. I don't know the best way to get floor plans online b/c I don't know how to use any of the fancy programs. How do you think it would sound compared to something like dual sealed Maelstrom X's in sealed boxes for HT, specifically movies like WOTW, Cloverfield, Iron Man, U571 etc. I have read there is somewhat of a difference in sound that people may or may not like depending on their preference and what they are used to.

[ThomasW]

Use flickr, photobucket, or any other free image hosting service to put images in posts.

An IB has a very neutral sonic signature (it's of course an extremely large sealed box). With EQ it can be made to sound like any box sub.