Sundown Audio SD-2 eIGHT SQ Bass for ALL

[onebadmonte 235]

Here we go, as I give the Sundown Audio SD-2 8" subwoofer the once over.

This will be a three part series starting with pics and notes regarding shipping and construction. Secondly will be an install overview with pics. Lastly, I'll wrap things up with a listening review.

Lets start off with some pics:

How they arrive.


Out of the box, and striking a pose.


A little shout out.


And lastly some interesting angles.






Each sub come in double boxed in an exceptional styrofoam container. The sub is well supported and ready for the worst of shipping mishandling. A+

The woofer is well build. All glue joints are strong with a proper and complete bond. I took a closer look at the surround to basket bond. The surround has mounting hole clearance cuts in the surround leaving a narrow land to bond with the basket. At all these points the bond is complete and as strong as the rest of the surround. No worries of box pressure blowing out and weakening the surround at these points. Spider to basket joint is good, neck joint looked good as well. No signs of glue whitening on any glue joints. A+


 

[onebadmonte 235]

This is my favorite part, the installation. There is no better feeling than the feeling of accomplishment. Being involve and using your hands, that is why I DIY.

This sub allows for that feeling of accomplishment without the need for a complex build. A simple sealed box yields results here. This is what I built.

It so happened I already had a sealed box for a pair of eights. All I had to do was adjust the woofer mounting hole size and I was in business. Here is a side by side of what came out of the box versus what went in.


Here is some info on the box.


A little test fit before the final install into the box.


Subs in a box. I dig the squished together look.


Here is the final install.


Subs are firing towards the back. Power comes via a Bazooka MGA-1100. Subs are wiring down to 1 ohm, amp power output is 750 at 1 ohm. Crossover point is 80Hz at 18db/oct.

The installation was fun and easy. As an added plus, I didn't have to call anybody to help me lift the box in place. The simplicity of the install is perfect for the beginner. The small box requirements are great for the advanced installer, opening up endless locations to squeeze in, this little "big" woofer.
 

[onebadmonte 235]

Before I get into how the subs did, allow me share what it took to get there.

The test vehicle is a 1994 Oldsmobile Cutlass Cierra. A trunk car, notorious for swallowing bass. To give the SD-2s a fighting chance I removed the rear seat back. On top of that. I opted to fire the subs towards the rear after a few listening test.

These are the tracks that I used to evaluate the SD-2 8 performance.

Focal Demo Disk 1

"Sweet Sixteen" by Junior Wells
"Wishing Well" by Michael Ruff
"Improvisation" by Ron Tutt
"Spanish Harlem" by Rebecca Pidgeon
"Grandma's Hands" by Livingston Taylor

These tracks have good kick drum bottom end and/or defined bass guitar strums. The subs were able to blend well and provide the bottom end presence to complete the listening experience. In "Sweet Sixteen" both kick drum and bass guitar are well reproduced. The attack in "Improvisation" when the snare and kick are hit simultaneously was precise and tactile. No excess bloat.

Up next.

IASCA SQ Reference CD

"I Will Find You There" by Michael Ruff
"Too Close" by Clair Marlo

This is another pair of tracks suited to the subwoofer's expertise, tight kicks and smooth bass guitar beats. The subs had no problem delievering the low end of the kick drum while the bass guitar played in "I Will Find You There". I enjoyed singling out the bass guitar in "Too Close". Again, clean clear bass.

And now for something a little different.

Tracy Chapman album New Beginnings

This was a fun album to listen to. The kicks are more about the low end in this album. The bass guitar is also more pronounced. I find the low end to contrast the highs of this album, making it a good canidate for evaluating performance. The subs kept up with the music never drawing attention to themselves. It was a real treat to enjoy the music through these subs. Notable tracks, the beginning of "Heaven's Here On Earth" The steady kick drums are reproduced with fullness and volume without having to crank up the volume.

Now I take the subs out of their element and see how they do out in the street.

Kendrick Lamar album Good Kid, m.A.A.d. City

"m.A.A.d City"
"Swimming Pools (Drank)"

"m.A.A.d City" is the track I used to demo the SPL capabilities of my Suburban, read 149db on the Termlab. It starts off with about 20 sec voice intro recorded out of phase, building suspense before the bass note comes in. A single tone in the 30-40hz for 10 seconds. It's quite the experience in my suburban. How did the eights fair? They held it together. The cones were a wanging. It's asking alot for a pair of eights to hammer out the lows, even more so for a pair of eights in a sealed box. They put out clean clear bass.

"Swimming Pools" doesnt come on as strong as "m.A.A.d City", it does have a good combination of high frequency mid-bass punches with mixed in low bass beats. The subs had no problem keeping up. The bass was defined and transitioned with frequency changes seamlessly.

 

Listening levels were moderate to slightly elevated for all the tracks. Once levels reached significantly elevated levels performance was compromised noted by distinct chance in tone. The distortion level of this sub is eerily low. I found myself cutting out the sub level to verify they were playing at times. Listening to the Kendrick Lamar album was eerie as well. At one point I was watching the cones wanging like no other, feeling the bass, but only hearing a rear body panel rattle. Talk about low distortion.

This is a fun little sub to play with. For a pair I would recommend hatchback and small suv installs. Trunk cars would require a more elaborate rear deck install. For my personal install I'd opt for a quartet of these subs. Clean and clear bass like this is hard to come by. A+ for the Sundown Audio SD-2 eight.
 

[onebadmonte 235]

Here is a little vid of the subs in action.

 

http://youtu.be/tIsBgOBCfxQ

 

 

[jonbearsmt 919]

great read, and that it such a cute little box, looks right at home in the cream puff!

 

  i have heard this car a number of times and let me tell you it is impressive, truly a SQ master piece IMO , i always wonder why hugo competes with the suburban and not the cream puff because its sound is remarkable, .... so is the burban but  the cream puff is a super sleeper!

 

 thanks for the great review!

[onebadmonte 235]

Thanks BigJon, I'm glad you enjoyed the review.

 

Soon enough the creampuff will make it's rounds in the lanes and in the SQ circles.

[Shogen 325]

I liked it.... I don't want to go that small... gonna port my Xcon then think about something new later on

[Aaron Clinton 2,372]

Nice review, great photo's.  Should link this review on the SSA store.

[edouble101 314]

Great review. Thanks!

I also always thought that Sundown packaging was excellent. The form fitting foam pieces should be standard packaging for all subwoofer companies.

[Impious 1,476]

Do you have the box secured down ?

[onebadmonte 235]

Do you have the box secured down ?

 

No, it's not bolted down or anything. It's resting on three legs with speaker spikes just  above the MS-8. Hard to see in pics. This is a temporary install for listening and review purposes. I've parked this car for a while as I drive my suburban around.