How can I restore bass to my speakers?

[1UP]

I bought a set of 2 Labtec Spin 500 speakers fro my cab.  In order to install them, I removed them from the original enclosures, and mounted them in the panel above the monitor.  They sounded great before, but the way they are mounted seems to have killed the bass!  I have since thrown away the enclosures.

Is there any way to restore the base on this setup?  I can hear some bass when I stick my head inside the cab to tinker with it.  Would some small wooden enclosures and a drilled port do anything to help direct the bass to the outside?

Thanks

[OSCAR]

If you can approximate the internal volume and port size of the original enclosures and build your own, that should get you pretty close.  Loosely stuff a bit of polyfill (craft stores) in the enclosures to help prevent funky resonance caused by reflection inside the enclosure.

True audiophiles will say you need the Vas, Qts, and Fs specs of the drivers to build a proper enclosure, but imitating the original enclosure size should work fine for use in a MAME cab.  My previous hobby before MAME was actually speaker enclosure construction....  

Varying the length of the port will help tune the box if the bass is too boomy or tinny sounding.

[spidermonkey]

If the original inclosures had ports in the rear then that means your speakers are " bass reflex" speakers and most of the deep bass comes from the rear of the speaker so even if you do enclose them again unfortunatly they probably still won't sound like they did originally because the backs of the speakers are now inside your cabinet. Bass reflex speakers really need to be out in the open with a wall behind them so that the sound bounces off the wall and then hits your ears. On the other hand if the original enclosures did not have ports in the back then your ok. Just enclose them with some cardboard boxes and you should get your sound back. You could also stuff some fiberglass insulation inside the boxes to help force the sound forwards. Remember, If they didn't have ports originally then don't cut ports in your homemade enclosures.

[1UP]

If the original inclosures had ports in the rear then that means your speakers are " bass reflex" speakers and most of the deep bass comes from the rear of the speaker so even if you do enclose them again unfortunatly they probably still won't sound like they did originally because the backs of the speakers are now inside your cabinet. Bass reflex speakers really need to be out in the open with a wall behind them so that the sound bounces off the wall and then hits your ears. On the other hand if the original enclosures did not have ports in the back then your ok. Just enclose them with some cardboard boxes and you should get your sound back. You could also stuff some fiberglass insulation inside the boxes to help force the sound forwards. Remember, If they didn't have ports originally then don't cut ports in your homemade enclosures.

The ports were originally in front.  The tubes were about 2" long, and about 1" in diameter.  The original enclosures were standard plastic PC speaker type housings.  I'll try some cardboard boxes and let you know how it goes...  Thanks

[OSCAR]

If the original inclosures had ports in the rear then that means your speakers are " bass reflex" speakers and most of the deep bass comes from the rear of the speaker so even if you do enclose them again unfortunatly they probably still won't sound like they did originally because the backs of the speakers are now inside your cabinet. Bass reflex speakers really need to be out in the open with a wall behind them so that the sound bounces off the wall and then hits your ears. On the other hand if the original enclosures did not have ports in the back then your ok. Just enclose them with some cardboard boxes and you should get your sound back. You could also stuff some fiberglass insulation inside the boxes to help force the sound forwards. Remember, If they didn't have ports originally then don't cut ports in your homemade enclosures.

Sorry for the re-post, but the above statement may be slightly misleading.  Pretty much any driver can be used in either a closed box or bass-reflex cabinet.  The bass-reflex design is just a bit more flexible because it allows a more pronounced bass output with a smaller enclosure size, which is why they are so popular with mass-manufactured speakers.  The key is the port, as it tunes the enclosure to the correct frequency of the driver.  Many people actually prefer the sound of closed box speakers as they tend to sound a bit more natural.  

[rampy]

i  like to use a banjo minnow for bass or maybe a jitter bug rig...  sometimes a good old rubber worm can't be beat for bass.

rampy

[Birdtales]

i  like to use a banjo minnow for bass or maybe a jitter bug rig...  sometimes a good old rubber worm can't be beat for bass.

rampy

LOL!!!!!

[spidermonkey]

Listen to Oscar 1up. He did it for a living so he knows his stuff. I'm only going on my past experiances back in the days of 3000 watt amps and 15" subs in the trunk of my car. Ahh the old days when I was young and stupid. Probably did have my speakers set up wrong but an $800.00 amp will make any speaker sound good  .
By the way MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO YOU,OSCAR AND EVERYBOBY ON THIS SITE.  

Spidermonkey.

[OSCAR]

Heh, not quite for a living, just a hobby.  Just building for myself, family and friends...  Much like my MAME cab hobby!  

You take care too, SM, and have a great holiday season!!!