@bi0drain --
May I remind you there are some Crazier Monsters out there now.. the Marianna 18/ 24 from Deep Sea Sound, the Quad 18 inch S-7201, JTR Capitvator 4000 ULF....
We are getting into some extreme subs... single digit output for all of them.... Someone had to sell a PSA s7201 due to structural issues in their house.
Indeed there are much crazier sub monsters out there that could bring down the house if one dared to stretch their legs a bit. I gather most audiophiles roll their eyes and scoff at such behemoths, while others may crave toying with them - perhaps mostly as an effect. In the face of it and under more "normal" circumstances it could rightly be regarded insane; why would anyone in their right mind want that much power and force in a domestic milieu?
Or, conversely, and perhaps controversially, one could ask why anyone would settle for less? If the objective is not to level ones house to the ground (or be just within reach of it), but to be on top of any sonic scenario imaginable - effortlessly; at any volume, with full force and frequency span - then the idea starts to make more sense. Less important here than to exploit the ability of maximum force and SPL capabilities is how this potential affects the presentation at more sane levels, with larger cones than needn’t move as much to generate the same SPL, and the further upside of a bigger radiation area this brings with it - all while being at considerable more ease.
In practical terms this means the inescapable addition of the subwoofers size, though the sealed iterations will be less physically intrusive compared to its ported siblings - not to mention horns. Price will also see an uptick, of course, but the question is how much will be beneficiary before the "law" of diminishing returns begins its influence. JL Audio’s Gotham series are considered by some among the absolute best subwoofers out there, but they’re also hellishly expensive, not least going by a "dollars per cone area inch" model. The PSA S7201 certainly is much cheaper and with a much bigger cone area to boot, added to a considerably larger footprint, but how will it face off against the Gotham’s in a head to head duel?
Myself I’ll go the DIY horn subwoofer route (with a 15" driver placed inside) later this year. This beast in its specific iteration will sport a mouth area (/effective air radiation ditto) approximately 5x that of a 15" unit, and placed against a boundary be 105dB efficient down to 25Hz. Add (variable) room gain and you have 105dB’s efficiency down to some 10Hz - placed in a corner add 6dB’s. Efficiency is a key word here; with only a few watts this bass horn will close to wreak havoc in a domestic environment, but more important is how this translates into its sonic imprinting at lower levels as well. A diaphragm that moves as little as it does here (for a higher given SPL) will carry with it a smaller degree of inertia, meaning a less smeared, smoother, more articulated and less distorted bass.
