Sub output: Is it the woofer size or the rated RMS

>You'd need 6 long-throw 10" drivers (DPL10 with 333 cm^2 Sd and 19mm xmax) to match one healthy 18" driver (Maelstrom 18 with 1182 cm^2 Sd and 33mm amax).

It's probably a bad specific example (the DPL is a high-Q driver appropriate for dipoles and infinite baffles) but there just aren't a lot of high-quality 10" drivers out there.

Drew - Thanks. I forgot about xmax.

Isn't Q the dude from Star Trek w/ God-like powers?

Maybe, but he was also the guy who created James Bond's gadgets. :)

Shadorne & Drew -- Thanks! I guess we've established, at the very least, that there's a lot more to it all than just WAF and marketing.

Regards,
-- Al

I'd add that long throw tends to rely on long coils and you get less driver control. The relationship between back EMF and inductance is a factor. Long throw designs of any size (even the TC sounds monster drivers) tend to have less control ("braking" if you will or the ability to stop on a dime and change direction).

I agree with Drew Q is very important. Think of damping like your "storm door" - a Q of around 0.3 - 0.5 will be just like you storm door closing - it is extremely controlled and you get absolutely NOTHING other than the input signal coming out (no extra oscillations and no resonances as everything is damped) Like the storm door it is very inefficient (lots of energy to get little output). If you remove the piston from the storm then it wil flap around inteh wind or oscillate freely - this would be like having a q of 1.1 or higher. A Q of of .7 is flat and a good compromise between a good response and decent SPL output but ultimately for high quality you probably want something highly dampedwith a Q lower than that and in order for this to work at reasonable SPL you meed very large drivers or the SPL is to weak.

((doubling or tripling drivers does lower their f3 point))

I meant to say does not.