The samples arrived while I was out of town -- back now and on to the photos !

Weights :

10" 12-spoke : 1.7 lbs

10" Sundown : 4 lbs

12" 12-spoke : 2.3 lbs

12" Sundown : 5 lbs

15" 12-spoke : 3.4 lbs

15" Sundown : 7.9 lbs

Not a finely calibrated scale so within a few tenths.

* THICK rim -- no more cracked rim with over-tightened screws or with a super heavy motor.

* THICK base -- no worries about bolts pulling through even with motors 2-3x heavier than we use now.

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Still awaiting our new cones and surrounds to arrive... then we can do some building and show off what these can do !

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Mocked up on a motor with our new spacer ring... very similar to the Z v.3 18" spacer but the ID matches our new frame base and this one is a bit thicker to allow a bit more air flow as the new frames have more displacement potential. The same spacer works on all sizes 10/12/15 as well.

* Inner air passage on spacer

* Outer air passage

* This is a 12" frame and motor mock-up; proportionately looks alot like the SA-8 v.2

How big are the mounting holes?

This will be similar to the new nightshade v.3 12"?

really great job!

I would just like to say, WOW holy basket batman!

Got some photos of the 10" cone/surround -- the first one to be completed. Stay tuned as the other sizes are completed.

damn it now i need two baskets and two recones,.

that's intense

Got some photos of the 10" cone/surround -- the first one to be completed. Stay tuned as the other sizes are completed.

now THAT'S some woofer porn !

Will the 18"s have the same baskets?

And will the 18"s also receive the same huge surround?

Will the 18"s have the same baskets?

And will the 18"s also receive the same huge surround?

Yeah Im pretty sure he said the 18's will be the last ones that he will start upgrading, the smaller sizes are first iirc.

Will the 18"s have the same baskets?

And will the 18"s also receive the same huge surround?

The custom 18" basket hasn't been started tooling yet -- we have a 10" spider adapter and a large surround in tooling for the 6-spoke until then.

that surround looks like an 8''. dang!!!!

WOW ... Thats nice

i really want to see a vid of this thing at work Sundown style

Some crazy stuff. Really starting to change things up hardcore!

the surround is so deep, it looks like the front wave is being loaded off the surround, lmao..

What is the goal with these upgrades?

What driver line and expected goals to reach vs earlier version?

the surround is so deep, it looks like the front wave is being loaded off the surround, lmao..

What is the goal with these upgrades?

What driver line and expected goals to reach vs earlier version?

The primary goal is to, as much as possible, remove suspension limits from the equation. At the extreme end of throw you see triple joint failures, surround failures, spiders coming off baskets, triple joint smashing into top plate, etc. All related to the suspension components reaching limitations and/or the frame clearance being exhausted. The 10" frame size has been particularly annoying to me as I've yet to find a really good 10" frame in regards to spider to surround clearance that also has a big spider landing (eg: some have a large clearance but have a small landing size)... but that is all resolved with the new tooling.

More throw can also increase SPL as well if the application calls for it -- we've seen 1+ dB anywhere from the 30s to the 50s Hz range in applications where the woofers need to move more by stepping up a spider size AND keeping the FS matched ("Hi-X" 12" frame option on Z v.3 / NS v.2 motors has been a great test bed -- we've built close to 100 units on that platform -- it was merely an open tool frame with a bit larger landing -- our tooled frame has an even larger spider and surround, though). In order to both increase excursion and be able to match a broad range of FS goals we'll have a total of 12 different spiders that fit the new frames so when custom building we can meet pretty well any frequency range goal.

These frames will appear on the X, Z,and NS line woofers. Each line gets one layer extra spider as you go up in power (these are all pressed packs like we use on our SA and Z v.3 lines now -- three compliance levels x 3 different sizes = 9 spiders) -- it doesn't change FS as much as one would imagine as the stock coil also gains a bit of mass in each line up. I like to keep the "stock" format friendly for daily setups and then offer re-cones or custom builds for SPL or specialized apps. For custom apps we'll also stack a line of "stackable" spiders similar in composition to the NS v.1 line but designed to fit the largest landing on each frame (3 more models for the total of 12).

Naturally we'll also be opened up to making much larger / heavier motors if necessary with the added frame strength. I also get to use my spacer vent rings to channel the air the way I like it to be channeled to increase thermal capacity.

Primary advantage summary :

1) More excursion / lower distortion

2) More SPL potential at any frequency range

3) Physically stronger

4) Higher thermal capacity

5) A bit of a repeat of the above in combination... but overall enhanced reliability / longevity.

As far as our smaller lines -- I am looking into tooling another line of frames at some point within 1.5-2 years that are more light weight and shallower that still allow a larger spider to be used to use on less expensive models. Obviously as a shallower frame maximum excursion won't be as much as these frames; but the models they would be used on don't require it. At that point we'll have a full line of frames for any application.

Edited October 22, 201212 yr by sundownz

Is there an anticipated release date for the new frames being used? I'm sorry if I've missed it in a previous post

Is there an anticipated release date for the new frames being used? I'm sorry if I've missed it in a previous post

Not yet -- as I am still awaiting the final cones / surrounds.

Looks interesting for sure.

Looks interesting for sure.

looks? sounds absolutely amazing really. monstrous motors, absolutely absurd X-max, completely customizable for your application, almost without limitations. these subs should be gone before they even hit the shelves.