With end users crying out for ‘hidden’ installations, manufacturers have had to up their game to compete, particularly when it comes to in-wall subwoofers. Paul Skelton reports.

When the first in-wall subwoofers hit the market they were rife with problems, but the potential of this space-saving technology didn’t go unnoticed.

In-wall subs found their place in installations where end users wanted minimal, modern audio installations that lacked cumbersome equipment. It was the start of the ‘invisible installation’ movement and something needed to be done to the big black boxes in the corner of the room.

However, unfortunately for anyone who opted for an in-wall solution, there was a heavy compromise to be paid in regards to the quality of the subwoofer’s bass performance. The solutions that became available to market were by in large an example of form over function.

But things have changed.

The refining of in-wall subwoofers has largely been due to credible ‘traditional’ subwoofer manufacturers, such as Velodyne, entering the in-wall market with high performance alternatives.

Brisbane-based installer Electronic Living’s director Damian Cavanagh has installed Velodyne’s Sub-contractor Series in-wall (SC-IW) subwoofers on ten occasions, and is yet to encounter a situation where it didn’t perform as expected.

“In the early days of in-wall subwoofers, I was put off because there was a compromise in their performance and, despite this, our clients were paying significantly more to have them installed in the wall or ceiling,” he says. “We did a few installations, but I wasn’t completely satisfied with them.”

The SC-IW, however, fits flush in a 2×4 studded wall and delivers reference quality performance. The patent-pending SC-IW driver fires vertically for maximum throw, to reproduce the most demanding home theatre and music with authority, accuracy and low distortion.

“The SC-IW can be easily installed, straight out of the box. The technique is pretty simple to work out for yourself as the installation progresses because Velodyne has really thought about the installer while designing it.
“They really offer are a no-compromise solution to a room that needs an invisible subwoofer.”

The SC-IW features a proprietary two-box system – an enclosure and a driver. In new construction, the enclosure is mounted at the rough-in stage; the driver at the trim-out stage. The driver and enclosure screw onto a standard 2×4 stud with no other preparation needed, and are connected via silicon rubber conduits. Both pieces use a cabinet construction that is just 4mm thick but offers a strong, well-damped, space-saving design.

“The market is steering away from black boxes; end users want their installations to be invisible and discreet, but they’re also not willing to compromise on quality and for a long time with in-wall subwoofers that’s what they had to do. You couldn’t get the same bass performance as traditional subs, and then there were the inherent problems of wall rattles, etc.

“As for wall rattle with the SC-IW, we haven’t had that issue at all. Of course, as part of a whitepaper we have with building contractors, we make them aware of the product that is going in to the space and make them aware that these products cause resonance and that everything needs to be rattle-free. We try to pre-empt any construction problems we may come up against early in the piece.

“But this is easy as no reinforcement to the wall is required – the box mounts directly to the studs either side. The critical component is making sure the plasterer is aware that it is going to be a subwoofer so isn’t sloppy with the way they drill the plasterboard in, assuring there are no rattles or loose screws. If that’s adhered to, then there will be no dramas.”

Active vs passive

The electronic component of the SC-IW is all rack-mounted; the amplifier is a separate unit. The subwoofer is passive, so essentially there are no active components in the wall that could fail and lead to having to cut the unit out of the wall once it has been installed.

The SC-1250 rack-mountable amplifier features 3,000W dynamic/1,250W RMS power, and can easily drive twin SC-IW subs using standard speaker wire. The SC-1250 comes with DSP control; test-tone generator; 7-band automatic room equaliser; 12V trigger; IR repeater jack; RS-232 control port (Crestron certified); and a full feature remote control with presets.

The SC-IW driver’s unique, T-shaped design allows flush mounting in line with studding to minimise wall vibration. The long throw driver delivers the performance of a high quality in-room 10” subwoofer.

“The SC-IW performs as well as a conventional sub. With much of this custom product it is focused around look and design, so more form than function. This is form and function. It looks good, it’s invisible and it performs incredibly well,” he says.

“But this is not your everyday consumer’s subwoofer; it is designed for the person who wants the performance but not the big, ugly black box. Plus, as it’s a specialist product and not one of those products that sits in those mass retailer chain stores; we can make full margin on it.

“And, as there is installation required, it’s not one of the over-the-counter boxes you sell to the consumer and they install themselves.

“As a custom installation company, it makes perfect sense for us to sell products that rely on our installers actually installing and calibrating them into the end user’s home, and this is a product that goes hand in hand with that.”
Velodyne subwoofers are distributed in Australia by Revolution Technologies and in New Zealand by Sound Group Holdings.