Vibe BlackAir 12, Instruction Manual

Sealed enclosure installation

The most basic and simple of all speaker enclosures is the sealed enclosure otherwise referred to as an acoustic suspension
design. They are called acoustic suspension enclosures because the air inside the box acts like a brake to control the woofer.
The sealed enclosure is the easiest design to build and tune, as long as you work within the minimum and maximum
recommended volumes you cannot get it wrong. The smaller enclosures produce a tighter punchy bass, the larger enclosures
produce a deeper bass. Sealed enclosures offer high power handling, tight response and smooth low  end roll off and cone
motion is better controlled at all frequencies because of the constant pressure on the back of the woofer.
Sealed enclosures are ideally suited to rock, jazz and live music.

Ported enclosure installation 

A ported or vented enclosure is not much more complex than a sealed design. It consists of a box with a hole in it.
The vented enclosure has to be correctly designed in order to function correctly. The vent in the enclosure interacts with the air
in the cabinet and the woofer to increase output and reduce cone excursion at and around the tuning frequency.
At the tuning frequency of the enclosure almost all of the bass is being produced by the vent, not the woofer. It is more difficult to
achieve good performance as the enclosure volume and port volume are critical but the results are worth it as the ported box is
up to 3 times as loud as the same woofer in a sealed box. It is also possible with the correct tuning to add a “bump” in the
response of the enclosure to boost bass at a preferred frequency. Vented enclosures are best suited to dance, R&B,
electronically produced music and high SPL applications.

PRODUCT

TIGHT BASS

DEEP BASS

Black air 10

1.0 cu.ft 

1.5 cu.ft 

Black air 12 

1.5 cu.ft  

2.0 cu.ft  

Black air 15

1.75 cu.ft  

2.5 cu.ft 

For twin enclosures simply double the volume. E.G. 2 x Blackair 10 in deep bass enclosure will be 3.00cuft

For twin enclosures simply double both the volume and the porting. E.G. for 2 x Blackair
10 the enclosure will be 2cuft with 2 x 4” ports
Many other ported options exist, please contact VIBE for more information

PRODUCT

VOLUME

PORT

Black air 10

1.0 cu.ft 

1 x 4” port, 10” length

Black air 12 

1.5 cu.ft  

2 x 3” ports, 6” length  

Black air 15

2.0cuft  

2 x 3” ports, 10” length