New sub technology from Eminent... 1Hz?? (1 Viewer)

I did a few searches, and didn't see anything posted about this yet. It looks like Eminent has taken a different approach to reproducing the really low end (1Hz - 30Hz) with a rotary woofer. Of course, it's a little pricey at about $13,000, and requires an IB setup, but if you really want that last bit of elusive bass.....

http://www.eminent-tech.com/RWbrochure.htm

I saw it on slashdot today and thought it was a joke untill I looked into it more.

The designer of the rotary vane transducer, Bruce Thigpen, did not make this to replace anything that SVS makes. This is an add-on to a very high end system that already has highly powerful subwoofers. It will cover the 5-12 Hz region where most subs are mere ghosts.

The problem with this initial offering is that Bruce has limited the output to 110 db. He can bring to market a more powerfull model that is designed for 120 db.

Since these are virtually handmade, and Bruce is trying to recover his development costs, the price is rather steep.

There is nothing that I am aware of that can compete with this product.

Please remember, the high end on this is 30Hz. This is not a subwoofer. But for the well heeled who are willing to make the necessary in-basement type installation and probably reinforce parts of the listening room, this thing is an absolute monster.

Absolutely ridiculous! Who needs this? C'mon, my puny 25-31PCi shakes the windows in my den. That kind of air pressure would surely pop the screws in my drywall.

John_Ro

If you look at the "waterfall charts" thread you will see subsonic content on any number of DVDs.

Your 25-31PCi are tuned to 25 Hz. While that will cover the great majority of low bass. The Model 17 is for another audience entirely. For example, those who have dual PB-12 Ultras might consider adding the Model 17 to cover the 5-16 Hz range where the SVS is pretty much a ghost.

There are people who have the money and other resources to add such a product. The market for this product is small and rich.

There's lots of talk about this unit, but I don't think anyone's actually listened to this with any sort of media; only sine waves. This is purely conceptual at this point, is it not?

Read this.

Wow! You can talk about the superfan that shakes your HT at 1Hz, but then you see the picture and its almost tiny. It looks like a $20 Wal*Mart fan with a big motor. Absolutley amazing.

Except it is engineered similar to that of a state-of-the-art helicopter. I can understand why this costs over $12,000.

Scott, I skimmed the first page of that thread but am having issues getting to the second page. Was there a particular post you wanted me to read?

Was there reference to its performance with media?

Wasn't making a point about the media. Every site that has someone mentioning this was there for the demo. I guess then they didn't do much other than sine waves. It was just a good read and any new info will pop up there.

Just a heads up. The ceiling will crumble with one of these!

Walmart fans can't change the pitch of their blades. (It rotates at a constant speed--pitch changes are used to create sound waves). Do note that a 1Hz sound is "inaudible" below ~120 dB. This model is limited to 110 db, so it really begins at 3Hz...

OK. Got it. It was interesting to read, yes. It sure would be cool to see this sort of thing demo'd with real stuff. I'm sure that's coming around the bend.

A sub sub woofer.

Why is it that people feel just because there are 6hz tones on some dvds that you have reproduce them? As if the movie will lose some of it's intended meaning if those helicopter blades were not felt.....

Just when you're setup to do 18hz nicely, sound designers will throw in some 10hz. Then we'll upgrade to do 10hz and they'll start recording effects at 5hz.

I wonder if those super low tones at reference SPLs will do structural damage to the house? Doesn't it do some damage or at least disrupt in some way the body? I thought it was dangerous to the heart. or I could be way off base...

Sounds scary I bet it makes you uneasy listening to it. I'm nervous enough! I'll stick with my SVS.

That could be a sneaky way for horror movies to put you in that "something ain't right" mode. Throw in a low 5Hz note to build up that uneasy feeling, and while you can't hear anything, your body sure knows something's going on.

Who would want a puny sub that can only do 3 Hz? I'm holding out for the 120 dB version.