White Wet Sounds speakers

[BurnMac42]

Bump....

Chp....any news on the 12" FA from Wetsounds?

[chpthril]

The container is on the water. Maybe 2 weeks but safer to say end of month. Not knowing the quantity of this initial shipment, Id consider having your Wet Sounds dealer put in a back order for one.

[Bryan]

Any specs on the 12" FA available yet? Sorry if they've already been posted somewhere and i missed them..

[chpthril]

No T/S parameters as of yet. I would gather that the physical specs will be inline with the XS-12 and power handling will be in the same range, maybe a little less since its an IB woofer.

[BurnMac42]

Guess on price?

[chpthril]

Should be in the range of the current xs-12

[Bryan]

The only other 12" FA I've seen is the JL M12, which claims 600rms and runs about $700.. in your professional opinion mike, is wet sounds gonna try to outperform this speaker(hopefully) or just add their speaker to get a share of the market space? If you think the parameters are gonna be about the same as the current XS, then it should outperform right??

[chpthril]

With both being 12" woofers and both built to perform ideal in an IB application. I would suspect that the new Wet Sounds woofer will have a similar size voice coil as the JL, the realistic power handling will be similar. These 2 woofers will certainly be a fair comparison, based on these specs.

[BurnMac42]

I'll keep my fingers crossed this thing will outperform the JL while costing over 50% less if they actually keep it around the XS price....

[chpthril]

this thing will outperform the JL

This depends on what the criteria of out performing is. Sound quality, as in how it sounds to ones ears, is always subjective. This leaves us with output. Since both are 12" woofers, they will in theory, move the same air. Since both are built for an infinite-baffle alignment, no enclosure or loading advantage for either. So this leaves us with a couple of unknowns that will influence output. 1) power handling and excursion. If we drive both woofers with the same wattage, then again, their output, or amount of air moved, will be pretty much equal. This brings us down to how far the come moves, but under control.

[Bryan]

Is there any kind of generally accepted industry comparison between box loaded subs and infinite baffle subs for loudness/sound output... example: a FA sub is half as loud as a boxed sub pushed by the same watts?? I ask because I've honestly never heard a free air that was worth anything.. mind you, I've only heard a couple in cars and a clarion 10" in a boat back a few years ago, but I haven't really had my ears on any worth hearing.. have you (mike) heard the jl m12? How is it? Will it rattle gauges and trim pieces on a boat? I just wonder how loud a FA can really get. May sound superficial, but that's all that really matters to me. I'm sure it can't beat my 1200 watt ported 12" under the helm, but I'd also like a little leg room back this season considerering I probly only turned the bass knob above half a few times last year... but I like the thunder to be there if I need it..

[chpthril]

Yes, there are differences between enclosure types. The most efficient way to produce bass, or output, is more surface area. This can be from going with a larger woofer, as in using a 12" over a 10" or a 15" over a 12". The next easy way is to build a ported enclosure over a sealed or IB. Ported will ALWAYS have an output advantage over a sealed or IB alignment. Down side is extra room is required fro a larger box. We can also increase output by using more wattage. However, this may require a new woofer for those with an existing setup and most certainly, a higher power handling woofer to match the amp, for those starting from scratch. More amp wattage also means more battery consumption. So again, I like to fall back to surface area and enclosure type first.

We all hear the term "tuned Port" enclosure. This means its just not a hole in the box, but the entire setup is a tuned instrument. Well, a sealed enclosure is also tuned, although many may not realize it. We tune a sealed enclosure by changing the internal air space. We can tune a box for peak output or for a smoother more mellow response.

As noted above, a ported enclosure will have greater output over a same size woofer with same wattage in sealed or IB setup.

Between a sealed and IB, I would go sealed over IB when we can. Is IB bad? no, not when done right, which most arent. Does IB have poor output? no, again, not when done right. Between a 12" woofer ideal for an acoustic suspension enclosure and a 12" woofer built for an infinite baffle alignment, both powered with the same amp wattage and both woofers radiating into the cabin, I think the naked ear is going to have a hard time hearing a difference in volume. This is because woofer A is designed to work in a small enclosure and woofer B is designed to run in a larger enclosure. This large enclosure just happens to be the boat's cavity. The difference is, we can tune the small enclosure a little, where we really cant tune a boat locker in an IB setup. Personally, I prefer the sealed enclosure thats built for SQ over SPL.

Most IB setups are either the wrong woofer (not a true IB) or the boat structure is not right for an IB setup. This is why most people poo-poo IB woofers, they've never heard one done right. Others, want to compare a 10" IB with a few hundred watts to a 1K watt ported 12" they have. Again, apples to oranges. So first, the boat is pretty much going to dictate if an IB is even the right way to go. If it can be done properly, its a viable solution for those that dont want to tackle the construction of a enclosure. Or some boats just wont allow for an enclosure, so IB IS the way to go. It can also be a budget minded decision. Doing an enclosure can be another $400-$500 in materials and labor, to have an enclosure built. An IB setup can be budget friendly and still deliver great bass. Now with the release of a true marine 12" IB woofer, we can take it to the next level in terms of bass depth, output and power handling, and not have to worry about a small custom enclosure for those particular applications.