ADS 310px Owner's Manual

the px story

Your 310px component subwoofer is the finest subwoofer ever from a/d/s/. Like other
models in the px system, the 310px sets a new standard of musical performance and precise
construction.

The philosophy behind px is to build products which are not compromised in any way by price
constraints or manufacturing simplicity. With all px series products, musical performance takes
precedence over all other considerations. Each design choice made during the engineering
process was made to provide optimum performance not attainable with conventional materi­als and construction.

In the 310px, this philosophy results in a precisely machined frame of Aluminum, Brass, and
Stainless Steel. This frame is hand assembled to precise tolerances, assuring perfect alignment
of all of the moving parts. Additionally, the magnet and voice coil assembly are of an "under­hung" design, which dramatically improves linearity and results in much lower harmonic dis­tortion than with conventional woofers. The anodized aluminum cone and voice coil help dis­sipate heat from the motor structure, thereby improving power handling and reducing dynam­ic compression of the signal.

These improvements add up to make the 310px the most musically accurate low frequency
driver we have ever produced.

using the

310px

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The 310px was carefully engineered for optimum use installed in a small sealed enclosure in
a typical automotive environment. The parameters were chosen to yield a gentle low fre­quency rolloff, which combines with the typical vehicle transfer function to give extended low
frequency performance with excellent transient response. The optimum recommendations are
given in the specifications section of this manual.

The 310px may also be used in single-tuned bandpass or vented enclosures if different results
are desired, or if the application demands it. Using the 310px in a vented enclosure will typi­cally give you higher SPL capability than in a sealed enclosure, but with the penalty of addi­tional group delay and compromised transient response. Due to the effects of the vehicle's
transfer function, a typical vented enclosure will give you a slight bass emphasis above the
enclosures cutoff frequency, with a sharp rolloff below it. Most practical bandpass enclosures
will also share this characteristic, with the added disadvantage of signal compression and wind
noise through the port at high SPL. However, the vented option may be appropriate if you
value SPL above audiophile sound quality. A bandpass enclosure can sometimes be the best
choice if the bass must pass through a small panel, since you only need enough panel space
to pass the port through.

While the 310px is very rugged in use, some aspects of its design require careful handling
during installation. In particular, the voice coil is vented below the spider. This improves
power handling and linearity, but it also provides a path for particles to become lodged in
the voice coil.

• Keep the 310px in its protective plastic bag until you are ready to install it.

• Keep the unit away from sawdust and metal shavings.

• Thoroughly vacuum the inside of the enclosure before installing the woofer to
remove any sawdust or wood shavings.

• If using fiberglass or polyester filling in the enclosure, completely cover the rear of the
driver with a piece of cloth between the driver and the filling.

• Do not use wood screws to mount the woofer to the cabinet. Use "T"-nuts and
machine screws only.

• Do not press the dustcap! This will cause permanent deformation.

• Be careful handling the speaker frame to avoid scratching the cosmetic surface.

warnings
and tips

The 310px is unusually heavy and has very high capability. It demands above average enclo­sure construction to perform at its best. We recommend that you construct the enclosure from
MDF or laminated Baltic birch plywood at least 3/4" (20mm) thick. Whenever possible, 1"
(25mm) thick material is preferred. Due to the unusual beauty of the 310px frame, you may
want to show it off with one or more panels made from clear acrylic. All acrylic panels should
be at least 1" thick. Use "T"-nuts and machine screws to fasten the 310px to the enclosure.

Make certain all of the joints and panels in the enclosure are airtight and rattle-free. Seal any
terminals or wire access holes completely. Seal the driver's mounting surface with foam tape.

Some applications may demand a different solution than the above recommendations allow.
For example, you may need to construct an enclosure from Fiberglass, Kevlar, or Carbon Fiber
in order to fit into an irregularly shaped cavity. When using these materials, try to keep any
unsupported flat wall surfaces to a minimum. Add bracing whenever necessary to keep the
enclosure walls from flexing under pressure.

enclosure
construction

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damping

material

Enclosure recommendations are given for enclosures with and without damping material as a
filler. Use of filler will yield the smallest enclosure size. If you are building with transparent pan­els, you will probably not want to use any filler material, so use the "no-filler" enclosure rec­ommendations. For sealed enclosures, or the sealed portion of a bandpass enclosure, the
design recommendations assume fiberglass or polyester damping material installed at a den­sity of 12oz. per cubic foot. It is VERY IMPORTANT that you place a piece of reasonably fine­textured cloth between the back of the driver and the filler material. A piece of grill cloth will
work. This will prevent any of the fibers from the filler material from becoming lodged in the
voice coil.

All vented enclosures, sealed enclosures with transparent sides, and the vented chambers of
bandpass enclosures should have all non-transparent cabinet walls lined with 1" thick foam
damping material.

wiring

The terminals used on the 310px will accept up to AWG#8 speaker cable. We recommend
using AWG #12 OFC copper wire to connect the 310px to the amplifier.

For the best contact:

• Do not tin the wire before inserting it into the terminal.

• Do not use any pins or other terminations.

• Do strip the wire approximately 1/2" and insert it into the terminal. The wire will
conform to the inside of the terminal to provide the best contact surface.

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