A client of mine (same guy as the cabinet mounted sub) is interested in a couple of these. I don't imagine a really "good sounding" amp is required. The only ones I have used are the ones that come supplied with Buttkicker brand transducers.

There is a place near me that packages various brands of transducers a la carte with Dayton amps.

By the specs Dayton amps would sound crappy, but, they have a five year warranty and plenty of power for a very good price.

Since tactile transducers are about translating sound to physical effect vs an auditory effect, does it matter?

Thanks.

Craig

I use a variety of the offshore amps. Niles, Snap kind of stuff. If you can hear them, then you have too much power. And they sound horrible. If you can’t hear them then I doubt you need a very good amp. Can’t see wasting a Mac amp on them. Got my first set in the early nineties. Coupled with a pair of radio shack 18’s I put in a refrigerator sized enclosure. Bought them on clearance when they were phasing out raw drivers.Neighbors hated me.

Sounds heavenly. Hahaha.

That's what I figured. Can't see high end amps really coming into play here.

Thank you.

Why not use the Buttkicker amplifier (BKA-300)?

That certainly is an option.

Depends on if you are using a tactile transducer like the Clark Synthesis or if you are just using a “shaker”. The shaker products are basically just a piston in a cylinder that moves when it gets enough electricity. Not much for fidelity, kind of like sitting on an old lawnmower that is turning on and off when a heavy bass note hits. I use the Clarks and it is like sitting on the sub, you can actually feel the music not just shaking. You would want the same quality of amp you would use in the system for the subs. The important thing is setting everything up so they blend with the system, not stand out from it. If you are not using a preamp that has multiple sub outs each with individual dsp than you will want an amp that has dsp.
Here is a white paper from Clark. [Link: clarksynthesis.com]

At minimum one would want to know the characteristic impedance of the transducer and make sure that the amplifier can deal with this -- and supply sufficient power. A good starting point would be an amp with a very low output impedance.

A dBx 120A might be fun.

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If you want to simulate some of the ground effects described in the Clark Synthesis discussion you'd need a DSP that would retard the vocal range emissions relative to the "thumper" range. Really, one would need multiple LF tracks. For example, in the space launch example, the ground response could be quite skewed in time relative to the midrange audio and the optics -- depending on your observation point.

In this case we have a second sub out with processing which will be used.

That white paper looks like a good read and that processor does look fun indeed. Like the Epicenter I used to have in my car but way better.

Thanks guys.

Craig