SSD power handling unusual situation

[satwilson 1]

I have 2 SSD 12"D2s, copper coils, wired in series for an 8 ohm load. I am using them in my house and have them wired as such to use with my Carver PM900 amp. The Carver amp is rated at 900 watts rms bridged and while bridged will not handle less than 8 ohms, hence the series wiring for the SSDs. THIS SETUP SOUNDS FANTASTIC, loud, clean, very tight. The Carver has a power limiting switch which I have enabled that prevents the amp from going into clipping so I am not concerned with that. The subs are in a sealed box with a partition between the drivers at about 1.5 cubes each. My question is with the subs/coils wired as such does that increase the power handling beyond the rated 800rms listed in the SSDs spec sheet. I have been watching the cones of the drivers as the amp approaches 1800 watts and the drivers don't appear to be anywhere near their excursion limits( 21mm Xmax ). Thanks OldSchoolSQ

[NDMstang65 403]

We rate them like we do for good reason so people do not tear them up...

You seem to know what you are doing and what to listen for. You will know when they get to full stroke!

[///M5 2,833]

Don't trust the "clipping circuit" too much, but either way your ears will tell you when your subs are in trouble...if they get there. In a large low tuned box you could get them to really wallop and sound great doing it if you have some space.

[KU40 173]

I'm a bit confused, you say the amp is 900 watts RMS bridged but then later say 1800 watts?

Hey we are in the same town, that is neat.

[satwilson 1]

Don't trust the "clipping circuit" too much, but either way your ears will tell you when your subs are in trouble...if they get there. In a large low tuned box you could get them to really wallop and sound great doing it if you have some space.

Thanks guys for getting back so quickly, M5,,,,,,i guess I have always had a predisposition for sealed vs ported because most of the time I was working with my car enviroment and was restricted to smaller spaces and enclosure sizes. Also, I was never motivated by SPL rather SQ, and sealed always SEEMED to give me that tight, accurate bass I love. However now that I have an enviroment ,(ie , living room ), where space is not as important, you are right, I can explore ported enclosures to get a little more output rather than increase the wattage. In addition, I now accept the reality (unlike the person who posted " give me my 20 hz " ), that frequencies below about 25hz are mostly unusuable/listenable and waste available power, so much for that "holy grail" of sealed enclosures. WOW!!! I will plug the T/S parameters into the computer and look at the possibilities. Hope I don't lose the tight accurate response I have now. (enable SSF @ 25HZ, upper end at 80hz active to my Boston VRM 80S).

[satwilson 1]

I'm a bit confused, you say the amp is 900 watts RMS bridged but then later say 1800 watts?

Hey we are in the same town, that is neat.

Sorry, the amp is 900 watts rms. As I turn up the gain,(amp has led output meters) towards the 1800 watts PEAK, the drivers don't seem to be close to their peak excursion(21 mm Xmax). Glad you got the PM.

[KU40 173]

Did you send a PM to me? I didn't get one...

[///M5 2,833]

There is content that subs will play for movies below 20Hz, a lot of it actually but for music you are right that it isn't necessary. A properly designed ported enclosure will be just as tight as a sealed. Much easier to do this proper design in a house than a car.

[satwilson 1]

There is content that subs will play for movies below 20Hz, a lot of it actually but for music you are right that it isn't necessary. A properly designed ported enclosure will be just as tight as a sealed. Much easier to do this proper design in a house than a car.

I am certainly aware of the lower frequencies that HT offers and had that in mind when using the sealed box I use. Maybe I should keep the sealed box as the output I have now is plenty for my needs. Is it possible to build a ported enclosure tuned low enough for those 10-15hz HT frequencies, using 2-12" SSDs or am I better off staying sealed. I know you probably can with 15s or 18s but I am very happy with the way my SSDs sound now and 95% of what I listen to is music, very little HT. Thanks again.