Hello,
Sharing some details and results from a single bass array setup in the living room at my new place.
Link to SBA/DBA details : Double bass array - Wikipedia
I was originally planning a traditional swarm or multisub setup, with 3 or 4 subs located at various locations around the living room.
When the time came to build the TV feature wall, realized that it presents an opportunity to try a SBA, something that i’ve been curious about for the longest time.
It didn’t really increase the cost of the TV wall, and at the same time it clears up the floor space and clutter of having 3 or 4 subs around the living room.
Here are some photos of the construction. The TV wall is 15cm deep. It is lightly stuffed with fiberglass to provide some bass damping and to avoid sounding hollow and resonant.
Framing the TV wall
Stuffing with fiberglass
Laminates on
One sub installed. Using Peerless XLS 10 subs.
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Have only run one audyssey calibration so far, and only taken one set of measurement. The audyssey results were surprisingly good, didn’t have to do any manual adjustment of distances etc to align sub with LCR.
In theory, the SBA/DBA driver placements is supposed to eliminate both the room width and height modes, leaving only the length mode. For SBA, the length mode is managed via thick absorption on the back wall. For DBA, the back wall absorption is done via another array of subs with suitable delay.
The 4 subs on the wall are wired in 2S2P into a 4 ohm load, driven by a single subwoofer amplifier.
i was pleasantly surprised at the almost textbook results, no unpredictable dips in the bass up to 100hz. There are 2 peaks at 20+ and 40+ Hz, those are handily dealt by Audyssey with some EQ.
Sound wise, i guess they sound like what one would expect based on the measurement. Smooth and well behaved, no emphasis on any particular notes. I have since adjusted the room curve to taste using the audyssey app after seeing these measurements.
SBA bass setup is rather obscure, so i wanted to share this in case anyone was wondering about it but too much of a leap of faith to try a build.
Thanks for reading!
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One key question - how did it pass the WAF, one might ask? I guess i snucked it pass the wife by saying that it would get many many bulky subs off the floor. And it was a deal, before there were further questions.
Aesthetics wise, it is somewhat unconventional, 
. Was originally thinking about how to build a grill for it, but the looks seems to grow on us. Not a bad conversation piece too 
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Curious what position are these woofers in relation to the room height n width? 1/4, 3/4?
Yes, but I didn’t manage to place them exactly 1/4 and 3/4 otherwise they would be off center in the TV wall and look even more weird. About 15-20cm off from optimal location. Seemed to be OK, didn’t seem to affect the results.
Nice…still using Audyssey? I thought you are getting the Anthem?
wow very nice bro. U must be so happy with the results =) Super well calculated
And is that a LG G series TV?
Thanks! Using the old denon 3600 in the living room system. Anthem still in the box, room not ready haha.
Desray you always said that the more effort we put into the setup and acoustics, the less work audyssey has to do and the better the overall results. Audy did a great job here. I’ve also always been a fan of the bass coming from close to the main speakers and front stage, sounds more natural somehow.
TV is an entry level LG, for casual watching. 
Cheers!
Oh yes…I still stand by it. Not just Audyssey, it is applicable to all types of room EQ s/w regardless of brands and its cost (from $2K all the way to $20K). I look forward to visiting your new place soon…I can see it will be harder for you to demo at near reference level since the setup is now in the living hall?
Yesterday I have visited bro Bryan (aka Roni) and listen to the Anthem AVM 90. Let’s just say that you will not regret it. If Audyssey can achieve that response, you will be delighted at what ARC Genesis can do to improve further. 
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Haha living room cannot play so loud, also nowhere near the output capability. I think about - 20 tops for clean sound.
The surround and atmos are modest, limited by size and aesthetics.
Just a casual setup for the family and kids to watch, but went with a full 7.1.4 out of curiosity and to maximise the potential.
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Ya man, any plans to have your man cave back again?
Haha have la dedicated room… build in progress…
Teaser - manifold IB sub. Push pull for H2 and force cancellation, 3:1 compression ratio.
Also SBA but I think won’t be so ideal results because uneven ceiling height…
Bigger subs must use force cancellation… scary and violent!!
Those quad stacked magnets are scary… 
Nice. Hope your wait for your den will not be long
Finally gotten round to taking another set of measurements - answering another critical question about the purported benefit of SBA - even bass response across the room.
Glad to report that the response is very even across the width of my sofa!
Split the data into 3 sets otherwise it becomes very messy plots.
MLP and 30cm either side.
MLP and 60cm either side
MLP and 90 cm either side (1.8m between the 2 side measurements)
This is one key strength of the SBA that seems unmatched by other multisub approach. With distributed subs, the time alignment is key during setup and calibration to ensure the impulse arrives simultaneously at listening position. However with the common diagonal front-back dual sub placement, the impulse arrival and summing error will increase for positions away from the MLP.
The summing error should reduce with 3 or more subs sources as each contributes a smaller total output, but the misalignment also gets more complex with more potential cancellations.
Hope this is useful info. Really hats off to the elegance and simplicity of this approach, popularized by German HT enthusiasts.
Cheers!
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Sharing more resources about SBA / DBA builds.
German HT build
Event Horizon HT of the month
https://www.avsforum.com/threads/home-theater-of-the-month-the-event-horizon.2993724/
Rob Hahn HT of the Decade : using SBA style array on the baffle wall
https://www.avsforum.com/threads/ht-of-the-month-the-hahn-theater.2544881/
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