m4rky_m4rk
Prominent Member
Hi,
I started a journey that began with thinking about the film Earthquake and its amazing, for its day, Sensurround effects Sensurround - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. I wondered what could achieve something similar at home, today, in my setup (See sig). That thought journey lead me to tactile sound transducer units.
There are a quite a few to choose from but I eventually settled on the latest and apparently greatest unit from the American company Earthquake Sound. For sometime now I have had two Earthquake Sound Quake 10B tactile sound transducer units and the company's XJ 600 R amplifier to power them. Id thought I conclude my initial, now too long thread, with my final thoughts here. That original journey is here in this thread http://www.avforums.com/forums/subwoofers/923711-butt-shakers-anyone-got-advice-these.html
Manufactures specs
Quake 10B
Frequency Response: 5-40 Hz
Nominal Impedance: 8 Ohm
Power Handling: 40-1000W
Dimensions:
H: 6 3/16 - 157.1625mm
W: 3 9/16 90.4875mm
D: 3 9/16 90.4875mm
Amp XJ-600R
Frequency Response: +/- 0.5dB, 17Hz to 2kHz
Power Output: 270 x 1 @ 8-Ohm
500 x 1 @ 4-Ohm
700 x 1 @ 2-Ohm
Signal to Noise Ratio: >89dB (balanced) 85dB (unbalanced) @ rated power
Load Impedance: 2 Ohms or greater
Slew Rate: 50 Volts / Microseconds
THD: <0.08%, (1W @ 4-Ohm)
Damping Factor: >500
Power Requirements: 110-220 VAC/60Hz
Dimensions: H=1.7" x W=19" x D=14.5" / 44mm x 483mm x 367mm
Weight: 18.04lbs. 8.2Kg
Finish: Flat Black
Quake 10B Installation
Q10B is a quite small for the punch it packs and was easy to install inside my sofa. There are many mounting options with plenty of bolt holes at each corner and an L shaped very sturdy bracket for optional use. The bracket provides additional mounting options but is also said to provide mechanical amplification of the shaking effect. The amount of mechanical amplification can varied by choosing the appropriate mounting position on the bracket. The Quake 10b itself can be mounted side onto any suitable vertical surface, or mounted from the bottom, or from the top. Whichever method you use the unit must be mounted vertically. As it is so powerful I added a few strengthening screws to the sofa frame and chose to bolt the Q10B transducer to the supplied substantial bracket, fixing this very securely to the strongest support inside my sofa. It wasnt hard to do and was completed in one afternoon with no outward obvious signs that anything had changed. I also fitted BK rubber isolating feet to the sofa. This not only isolates the vibrations to just the sofa but actually enhances the effect by allowing the sofa to move a little and respond more easily to the Q10B. The Q10B can run a little warm and when new, emitting a pleasant, to an engineer like me, mechanical aroma when theres a lot of action. It never seems to get more than just a little warm to the touch. I have two units but one is easily enough to power my 3 seat sofa. The other I planned to put in my adjacent two seat sofa.
I have had no problems whatsoever with the Quake; it is very well built and reliable.
The Amp
The amp is really designed to power sub woofers and isnt purpose designed for the Q10B which tells in some ways. The amp can easily power both Q10Bs and even four of them if required, but there is only one output which means that I can get the setup just right for my three seater but then find its a little too much for my two seater. I really needed volume controls for two separate outputs. Not a big problem for me in reality as my two seater is only for occasional guests. The amp takes an RCA input as well as high level and XLR inputs. I used a Y split cable to tap directly into the sub input and further split this to utilise the left and right channels of the amp. There is one speaker level output.
Quake 10B and Amp in use
I intended to use the tactile sound units for movies and occasional games with LFE and it was a bit of a suck it and see experiment on my part. I am delighted to report that these units add another dimension to the movie experience and one that I personally thoroughly enjoy. Others may find the new experience a little disconcerting at first and it can certainly be frightening The unit can punch with such incredible power that its literally shocking on first experiencing it For example, when the space ship lands bringing Eva in the film Wall-E my sofa seemed to leap in the air by a few cms with the shock wave of the landing.
The Quake 10B really excels when the volume is cranked
Its like the difference between hearing a heavy mallet blow a few meters away and actually feeling it pound down dangerously close, a few cms away. Scary!
You may get some idea of the effect by sitting on a comfy cushion placed on top of your sub when its at full tilt Imagine this and x1000 for the Q10B effect.
My sub cannot come close to the infrasonic pounding this unit can deliver. I didnt try sitting on my sub but it is no slouch and I can easily feel the LFE from the sub in my room. Adding to the bass effect from the sub and the fact that Q10B can shake your eyeballs and blur vision in prolonged rumbles, if thats your desire, and you may begin to appreciate that we are into another territory when comes to infra sonics. The effect is startling when the sound track dictates and yet for quieter moments the Q10B remains dormant waiting to surprise the unwary. Movies are not recorded with this sort of LFE effect in mind and so the amount and quality of the shaking varies from film to film. Not a fault of the Q10B but it can reveal some rather inconsistent LFE effects in some movies.
The Q10B is not a one note device and can respond subtly to the sound track, helped by applying the amps EQ, crossover and phase settings. It does perform better at high volumes though and this is where I have another problem with this amp.
I would have liked some presets so that I can have various Q10B setups eg games, action movies, music, low volume, high volume etc. I cant seem to find one setting that suits all scenarios. Its not helped by the fact that the gain control has no useful markings. It can be turned full revolution many times in either direction and there is no end stop and no display saying what the gain actually is, only a light when it reaches max output! This makes it impossible to have a manual gain setting for movies and another for music. So although I am very happy with its prime use for movies I find its use for music and little more hit and miss. Partly because I feel I need a different setup for music and partly because the frequencies at which the Q10B excels at are often not given as much attention on sound recordings as they should for todays AV kit, its especially noticeable on older recordings.
The amp I have is my second. The first one I found to hum quite noticeably and was easily the loudest unit for mains hum in my AV setup. I spoke to the distributors who were very helpful and sent another for me to compare. The second unit was much better but still I find it a bit loud. I have got used to it now and it doesnt bother me so much but I wouldnt want it nearer than a few meters from my seating position.
To make the most of the Q10B it really needs a purpose built amp with more controls suited to tactile sound units. I love the Q10B but the amp has room for improvement. Maybe a better suited alternative amp could be found. The Q10Bs input impedance is 8ohm and so there should be plenty of choices.
I wouldnt consider the Quake 10B to be a replacement for a good sub but more in addition to a good sub. However, if you have neighbour problems and a sub is a no no and yet you still hanker after some LFE effects then its a good way to go. The shaking for my setup is limited to the sofa, which is on rubber isolators, and doesnt transmit through to the floor and so its a lot more neighbour, family friendly than a sub would be.
I wondered why these units are not as popular in the UK as they are in the US. There are many reasons of course but some of which stem from old reputation of being rather a one note type off effect. Unsubtle, distracting and are the often stated negatives for not considering tactile sound units, but I wouldnt apply this to the Q10B myself.
Fun would be the word I would use.
This reputation for unsubtly isnt helped by the choice of product names by some makes. Earthquake is a little better than some but the name may still dissuade those who are looking for quality and finesse over shock and awe.
So finally, are Earthquake tactile sound units worth having, even with a good sub already in the system IMHO YES loads more LFE fun
I obtained my units, amp and rubber isolator feat from the Shaker Centre but as I am outside the UK I actually communicated mainly with their distributor, Network Music Ltd. Thanks Mike for your help. You can find other types of tactile sound units there too if your interested.
edited to add:
XJ-600R Amp is too expensive!
The XJ-600R has a smaller brother, the XJ-300R. It's phyisically smaller, less powerful and with no EQ option but its enough for one or even two Q10's and less than half the price of the 600R. The 600R can power up to 4 Q10B's.
Frequency Response
I ran some test frequencies to test how low in frequency the Quake 10b can actually go. Please read post#64 in this thread for frequency response results.
Update on reliability:
Its been about a year since I installed the Quake in my sofa. I still love it, action films would be far less fun without it. I cannot see me going back to just infrasonics from my sub. That would be like going from colour to black and white TV. So far it has been quiet in use and totally reliable.
Do I need one or two Q10B's?
See post #152 for my tests on this. Conclusion is one is OK for a three seater but if your a seriously addicted to strong vibrations and your sofa is much bigger and heavier than mine then you may like to use two.
I made a video showing the difference in infrasonic effect between the Q10B and an SVS PB13U subwoofer.
http://www.avforums.com/forums/subw...-svs-pb13u-tactile-sound-infrasonic-test.html
Have Fun,
Mark.
There's a review here by Home Theatre HiFi for the older model Q10.
Earthquake "Quake" Chair Shaker and XJ-600R Power Amplifier" Review
A Quake 10B transducer features towards the end of this clip:
YouTube - Earthquake Subwoofer - ComputerTV at CES 2009
and a Quake 10B transducer featured in the Gadget shows self build of a gaming chair:
FiveFWD - Rollercoaster - Part Three video from The Gadget Show
I started a journey that began with thinking about the film Earthquake and its amazing, for its day, Sensurround effects Sensurround - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. I wondered what could achieve something similar at home, today, in my setup (See sig). That thought journey lead me to tactile sound transducer units.
There are a quite a few to choose from but I eventually settled on the latest and apparently greatest unit from the American company Earthquake Sound. For sometime now I have had two Earthquake Sound Quake 10B tactile sound transducer units and the company's XJ 600 R amplifier to power them. Id thought I conclude my initial, now too long thread, with my final thoughts here. That original journey is here in this thread http://www.avforums.com/forums/subwoofers/923711-butt-shakers-anyone-got-advice-these.html
Manufactures specs
Quake 10B
Frequency Response: 5-40 Hz
Nominal Impedance: 8 Ohm
Power Handling: 40-1000W
Dimensions:
H: 6 3/16 - 157.1625mm
W: 3 9/16 90.4875mm
D: 3 9/16 90.4875mm
Amp XJ-600R
Frequency Response: +/- 0.5dB, 17Hz to 2kHz
Power Output: 270 x 1 @ 8-Ohm
500 x 1 @ 4-Ohm
700 x 1 @ 2-Ohm
Signal to Noise Ratio: >89dB (balanced) 85dB (unbalanced) @ rated power
Load Impedance: 2 Ohms or greater
Slew Rate: 50 Volts / Microseconds
THD: <0.08%, (1W @ 4-Ohm)
Damping Factor: >500
Power Requirements: 110-220 VAC/60Hz
Dimensions: H=1.7" x W=19" x D=14.5" / 44mm x 483mm x 367mm
Weight: 18.04lbs. 8.2Kg
Finish: Flat Black
Quake 10B Installation
Q10B is a quite small for the punch it packs and was easy to install inside my sofa. There are many mounting options with plenty of bolt holes at each corner and an L shaped very sturdy bracket for optional use. The bracket provides additional mounting options but is also said to provide mechanical amplification of the shaking effect. The amount of mechanical amplification can varied by choosing the appropriate mounting position on the bracket. The Quake 10b itself can be mounted side onto any suitable vertical surface, or mounted from the bottom, or from the top. Whichever method you use the unit must be mounted vertically. As it is so powerful I added a few strengthening screws to the sofa frame and chose to bolt the Q10B transducer to the supplied substantial bracket, fixing this very securely to the strongest support inside my sofa. It wasnt hard to do and was completed in one afternoon with no outward obvious signs that anything had changed. I also fitted BK rubber isolating feet to the sofa. This not only isolates the vibrations to just the sofa but actually enhances the effect by allowing the sofa to move a little and respond more easily to the Q10B. The Q10B can run a little warm and when new, emitting a pleasant, to an engineer like me, mechanical aroma when theres a lot of action. It never seems to get more than just a little warm to the touch. I have two units but one is easily enough to power my 3 seat sofa. The other I planned to put in my adjacent two seat sofa.
I have had no problems whatsoever with the Quake; it is very well built and reliable.
The Amp
The amp is really designed to power sub woofers and isnt purpose designed for the Q10B which tells in some ways. The amp can easily power both Q10Bs and even four of them if required, but there is only one output which means that I can get the setup just right for my three seater but then find its a little too much for my two seater. I really needed volume controls for two separate outputs. Not a big problem for me in reality as my two seater is only for occasional guests. The amp takes an RCA input as well as high level and XLR inputs. I used a Y split cable to tap directly into the sub input and further split this to utilise the left and right channels of the amp. There is one speaker level output.
Quake 10B and Amp in use
I intended to use the tactile sound units for movies and occasional games with LFE and it was a bit of a suck it and see experiment on my part. I am delighted to report that these units add another dimension to the movie experience and one that I personally thoroughly enjoy. Others may find the new experience a little disconcerting at first and it can certainly be frightening The unit can punch with such incredible power that its literally shocking on first experiencing it For example, when the space ship lands bringing Eva in the film Wall-E my sofa seemed to leap in the air by a few cms with the shock wave of the landing.
The Quake 10B really excels when the volume is cranked
Its like the difference between hearing a heavy mallet blow a few meters away and actually feeling it pound down dangerously close, a few cms away. Scary!
You may get some idea of the effect by sitting on a comfy cushion placed on top of your sub when its at full tilt Imagine this and x1000 for the Q10B effect.
My sub cannot come close to the infrasonic pounding this unit can deliver. I didnt try sitting on my sub but it is no slouch and I can easily feel the LFE from the sub in my room. Adding to the bass effect from the sub and the fact that Q10B can shake your eyeballs and blur vision in prolonged rumbles, if thats your desire, and you may begin to appreciate that we are into another territory when comes to infra sonics. The effect is startling when the sound track dictates and yet for quieter moments the Q10B remains dormant waiting to surprise the unwary. Movies are not recorded with this sort of LFE effect in mind and so the amount and quality of the shaking varies from film to film. Not a fault of the Q10B but it can reveal some rather inconsistent LFE effects in some movies.
The Q10B is not a one note device and can respond subtly to the sound track, helped by applying the amps EQ, crossover and phase settings. It does perform better at high volumes though and this is where I have another problem with this amp.
I would have liked some presets so that I can have various Q10B setups eg games, action movies, music, low volume, high volume etc. I cant seem to find one setting that suits all scenarios. Its not helped by the fact that the gain control has no useful markings. It can be turned full revolution many times in either direction and there is no end stop and no display saying what the gain actually is, only a light when it reaches max output! This makes it impossible to have a manual gain setting for movies and another for music. So although I am very happy with its prime use for movies I find its use for music and little more hit and miss. Partly because I feel I need a different setup for music and partly because the frequencies at which the Q10B excels at are often not given as much attention on sound recordings as they should for todays AV kit, its especially noticeable on older recordings.
The amp I have is my second. The first one I found to hum quite noticeably and was easily the loudest unit for mains hum in my AV setup. I spoke to the distributors who were very helpful and sent another for me to compare. The second unit was much better but still I find it a bit loud. I have got used to it now and it doesnt bother me so much but I wouldnt want it nearer than a few meters from my seating position.
To make the most of the Q10B it really needs a purpose built amp with more controls suited to tactile sound units. I love the Q10B but the amp has room for improvement. Maybe a better suited alternative amp could be found. The Q10Bs input impedance is 8ohm and so there should be plenty of choices.
I wouldnt consider the Quake 10B to be a replacement for a good sub but more in addition to a good sub. However, if you have neighbour problems and a sub is a no no and yet you still hanker after some LFE effects then its a good way to go. The shaking for my setup is limited to the sofa, which is on rubber isolators, and doesnt transmit through to the floor and so its a lot more neighbour, family friendly than a sub would be.
I wondered why these units are not as popular in the UK as they are in the US. There are many reasons of course but some of which stem from old reputation of being rather a one note type off effect. Unsubtle, distracting and are the often stated negatives for not considering tactile sound units, but I wouldnt apply this to the Q10B myself.
Fun would be the word I would use.
This reputation for unsubtly isnt helped by the choice of product names by some makes. Earthquake is a little better than some but the name may still dissuade those who are looking for quality and finesse over shock and awe.
So finally, are Earthquake tactile sound units worth having, even with a good sub already in the system IMHO YES loads more LFE fun
I obtained my units, amp and rubber isolator feat from the Shaker Centre but as I am outside the UK I actually communicated mainly with their distributor, Network Music Ltd. Thanks Mike for your help. You can find other types of tactile sound units there too if your interested.
edited to add:
XJ-600R Amp is too expensive!
The XJ-600R has a smaller brother, the XJ-300R. It's phyisically smaller, less powerful and with no EQ option but its enough for one or even two Q10's and less than half the price of the 600R. The 600R can power up to 4 Q10B's.
Frequency Response
I ran some test frequencies to test how low in frequency the Quake 10b can actually go. Please read post#64 in this thread for frequency response results.
Update on reliability:
Its been about a year since I installed the Quake in my sofa. I still love it, action films would be far less fun without it. I cannot see me going back to just infrasonics from my sub. That would be like going from colour to black and white TV. So far it has been quiet in use and totally reliable.
Do I need one or two Q10B's?
See post #152 for my tests on this. Conclusion is one is OK for a three seater but if your a seriously addicted to strong vibrations and your sofa is much bigger and heavier than mine then you may like to use two.
I made a video showing the difference in infrasonic effect between the Q10B and an SVS PB13U subwoofer.
http://www.avforums.com/forums/subw...-svs-pb13u-tactile-sound-infrasonic-test.html
Have Fun,
Mark.
There's a review here by Home Theatre HiFi for the older model Q10.
Earthquake "Quake" Chair Shaker and XJ-600R Power Amplifier" Review
A Quake 10B transducer features towards the end of this clip:
YouTube - Earthquake Subwoofer - ComputerTV at CES 2009
and a Quake 10B transducer featured in the Gadget shows self build of a gaming chair:
FiveFWD - Rollercoaster - Part Three video from The Gadget Show
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