High Power Shakers and Tactile Sound Transducers
These transducers are great for home theater, car audio, gamers, and drummers, if you want to “feel” the bass without the usual attendant high sound levels. They create a powerful, more “realistic”, and more exciting experience, than lesser units, while still not booming the bass into your neighbor’s home (see notes), a nearby driver’s car, etc. They also work very well when used in conjunction with headphones.
Sonic Immersion VT300 I-Beam Transducer
This is a very good, moderately expensive unit. It’s great for gamers, and also works exceptionally well mounted on the botttom of a chair, if you watch movies on your computer. Pairs or sets of 4 can also very well in home theater installations, such as in sofas, and in autos. Mounting is particularly easy due to the configuration and low profile. This is not the highest peak force unit out there, as it basically trades output force at the peakfrequency for a broader band response. This provides more energy both below 40 Hz and above 70-80 Hz than most other transducers, and more overall force. The results are particularly realistic, as the review at audioholics.com put it: The Sonic Immersion Technologies I BEAM VT-300 transducer is a remarkable product. Its powerful tactile performance, speed, and accuracy place this transducer among the finest we have evaluated to date….The I BEAM VT-300 is very efficient and doesn’t require a lot of power to generate huge amounts of vibro-tactile action…..The I BEAM VT-300 generated huge amounts of WOW effect and added another dimension to our home theater listening experience.” By Ray Adkins (owner of RLA home theater and contributing staff writer) Link to full review.
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Specifications: LINKS: |
Price:
List Price: $399.99; Special Price: 1-3) $350.00; 4+) $330.00
Notes:
1) Quantities over 4 pieces are a special order item. Please check with us for lead time (usually 3-5 days for us to receive them.)
2) As with all similar type transducers, if mounted in a floor, or to chairs or sofas not decoupled from the floor, substantial bass vibrations CAN be transmitted into the structure of a building.
3) The more solid the floor, and the more directly the seat / riser / sofa the transducer is coupled to that floor, the less of an effect a tactile transducer will give. We can supply you with special isolation “feet”, or, you are welcome to experiment on your own — in fact, we strongly encourage it!
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Clark Synthesis TST429 Platinum Transducer
The Clark TST429 Platinum Transducer is a powerful choice for driving sofas, recliners, or sections of theater seating / risers. This is Clark’s most powerful transducer. It will give “closer to the original” reproduction of different types of low frequency effects, than lower cost shakers, with the highest force factor for the money we have seen. This is probably the best choice at a manageable cost, for most listeners looking for intensely realistic effects.
Specifications:
Power handling: 150 watts RMS/400 watts max;
Tactile frequency range: 5-800 Hz;
Audible frequency range: 20Hz-17,0000 Hz;
Impedance: 4 ohms;
Transduction force: 6.9 lb-ft/watt;
Tactile force peak: 932 lb-ft;
Overload Protection: Polyswitch
Dimensions: 8″ Dia. x 2.25″ High. (Ht. includes the mounting nut);
Electrical connection: 3ft. 16 ga. 2-wire cable;
Clark spec. sheet: TST429-Gold-01.05.09.pdf
Clark installation manual: TST-20-Manual-for-Web.pdf
Clark White Sheet: CS-Tactile.Sound.White.Paper-090223.pdf
(The white sheet is slightly biased in favor of their products, of course, but there is some very good information in this document.)
Price:
List Price: $449.95* ea.; Special Price: $400.00 ea, any qty.**
(This is a limited time, limited quantity offer.)
*Note: We have seen some websites showing higher list prices. (Feel free to Google it!) Who knows where they came up with that - Clark’s Retail Price Sheet*** clearly shows a list price of $449.95. These are really NOT a high markup item - thanks, Clark Synthesis! 
**Quantities over 4 pieces are a special order item. Please check with us for lead time (usually 3-5 days for us to receive them.)
***Accessed Feb. 23, 2009.
Other Information:
1) Medium cost shakers and TST’s are effective primarily at moderate sound levels. In fact, that is the whole idea: To be able to “feel” the bass without turning the volume all the way up. A setting for a good effect at moderate levels will overwhelm the shaker at very high levels… unless you have a lot of them or really expensive ones. (The solution is to “turn down” the shaker(s) at high levels.)
2) Your results will vary greatly with installation. One important technique is to isolate the chair, sofa, etc., being “shaken”, from a floor that is very solid. We can obtain special isolation “feet”, or you are welcome to experiment on your own — in fact, we strongly encourage it!