You want a horn loaded home theatre sub that can deliver over
110dB at 20 Hz. Your wife's reply is "Over my dead body do I share my
living room with a big sub-woofer thing." The answer? No, not a .38 Special.
It's Table Tuba, a 30x30x16 inch horn loaded sub that will do double duty as
a piece of fine furniture, so you can have the sound you want and she won't
complain about it.
You can load the Table Tuba with an eight or a ten inch woofer. Here's a
1m/1W half-space SPL chart, loaded with the MCM 55-2421 eight, comparing the Table
Tuba to a typical fifteen loaded 5 cubic foot sealed sub:
Check out this review by builder Fernando Sabio:
"I've had my TT completed for just over a month now and I'm really enjoying
it...I loaded it with an HL10 ...giving it an estimated 240 watts, it scares
first time listeners on movie tracks. I've vibrated dishes off our kitchen
counter above my HT room - oops...My mains are "fast" speakers and this is the
first sub I've heard that can keep up with them (others I've heard: Sunfire,
Mirage, HSU, DIY- A/D/S 312rs.2 x 2 sealed) I like listening to music in
"2-channel" mode, and with my other subs, I'd have to turn them off when
listening to some albums b/c they sounded so slow/fake that they distracted
from the music. With the TT, I leave it on supplementing my mains when
listening to hip-hop/dance/house, I just goose the gain on my QSC for some
extra oomph, and the TT is glad to oblige. It's so sensitive relative to my
other speakers, that the TT seems like it's being held back just to keep
equilibrium."
There are many ways to disquise the TT's true function. This is builder Leland Crooks
TT. It looks like a dry sink, it functions as CD/DVD storage cabinet, all the
whilst hiding a room rattling sub.

Also available: the Table Tuba Long Style.
Measuring 15 inches high and 60 inches long, use the Long Style version if the
WAF dictates a rectangular shape. Or stand it on end next to the wall or in a
corner when floor space is at a premium. Or toss some cushions on it and use it
as a combination sub and couch. It's the same TT sound, only the shape has changed.
If the Table Tuba and Table Tuba Long Style are too large you can opt for the 24 by 24 by 15 inch Small Table Tuba or the 48 by 15 by 12 inch
Small Table Tuba Long Style. They have similar response and sensitivity to the full size versions, they just don't go as low, with a 38Hz low
frequency knee.
And the best news: these are very easy cabs to build. Don't have a table saw?
No problem, you can cut all the parts with a hand-held circular saw, and get
perfectly straight cuts too. The plans show you how. Don't have a router for
dado joints? No matter. Fancy joinery techniques aren't required, you can even
do the fastening with a hammer and nails. The only way it could be easier
would be if someone else built it for you, and one of our Builders will do
that too if you need it.
Construction Degree of Difficulty: 3
Performance Quotient: 10
Equivalent Retail Value: $ 1299
Plans are $19.95, delivered within 24 hours as email attachment in Word MS
format; PDF available on request. 19 pages, with over 40 construction diagrams.
The Table Tuba, Table Tuba Long Style, Small Table Tuba and Small Table Tuba Long Style are separate plans. You must
specify the exact version you want when ordering.