W-Body Car Audio

Bandpass Subwoofer

This design does not let the woofer's actual cone radiate into the listening area. Instead the woofer is loaded on both the front side and rear side. One side is sealed, while the other side is ported. The sound (obviously) comes from the ported side.

It filters out low frequencies and high frequencies mechanically. How much depends on the design. It allows a narrow band of frequencies to pass, hence the name "bandpass".

Calculating a bandpass subwoofer is difficult, and one should consider the use of software, such as WinISD, in the design. A Beta version of WinISD is available from Linearteam.org, free of charge.

Pros:

• Hides distortion.
• Gives a boost to SPL in the bandpass region

Cons:

• Hides distortion. This could be due to amplifier clipping or due to voice coil bottoming-out. Neither are good for long subwoofer life.
• The SPL boost results in a boomy, non-musical sound.
• VERY susceptible to design mistakes. A volume miscalculation as little as 5% will make an audible difference.
• You'll end up with a very large box design, since the woofer is loaded on both the front and back. This will not let you have much trunk space.

Check out Discount and Used Subwoofers in our store!