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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Carl Klinkenborg" data-source="post: 214047" data-attributes="member: 12770">Hi there, and welcome,The only part of your post I can comment upon through experience is the bass end.  I too build my speakers for optimum transient response and dynamic headroom, and similarly dislike the sloppy and muddled sound of ported enclosures.  I was lucky enough to find six B&C 18PZB100 drivers for a bargain price, and being on a very tight budget was not overly worried about their suitability for sealed enclosures.  The sealed enclosures I built were heavily damped with a design Qtc of 0.5, and ignoring the ridiculously low efficiency and massive EQ required, I could not be more pleased with them - far and away the best sounding subs I've built by a long margin, and I've built a few different types!  (I did build a prototype ported enclosure to a B&C design using the same driver to compare with the sealed, and listened to it for 10 minutes before removing the driver and recycling the enclosure, it was that bad...).A very good test is twin pedal bass drum, such as used by Metallica et al, where each impact can be heard as a distinctly separate event instead of the blurred phhhhhtttttttt you hear from ported and horn enclosures. Research the transient decay times of different enclosure types and the reason becomes obvious - typically 5-10ms of ringing compared with over 100ms for a large ported or horn enclosure on step response measurement. Yes, deep and extremely clean bass is possible, but even with three 2kW amps each driving a pair of sealed 18s it's still not very loud in PA terms, however quality and transient response were my goal and I am happy to have achieved this. I don't think it's confirmation bias on my part as others have commented very positively too. Bear in mind, however, that they are crossed over at 120Hz so you must find some way to satisfy yourself that the 12s you choose will be suitable up to a higher frequency. An active crossover and EQ are, of course, obligatory.I see no reason why a pair of 12" sealed drivers should not be sufficient for home use unless you have a penchant for Genesis or the church organ, when you will run out of steam on Moog Taurus/pedalboard pipe low-end!  If you could stretch to trying BMS drivers they specify and measure really well, but I have never been able to afford them myself.  My mantra for bass reproduction is:  "Move a lot of air - GENTLY" and no decent-sounding system I have ever heard has broken this rule; small drivers flapping around to Xmax and beyond do not clean bass make...All the best and keep us posted with your project.  Stay safe, Carl</blockquote>

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