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Professional Series · Datasheet

Dayton Audio Reference RSS390HO Box: Ported 15" Professional Series Enclosure Single 15" Ported enclosure

Net volume
2.02 Cubic Feet
Tuning
31.0 Hz
Max mounting depth
7.008 Inches (Dayton Audio Spec)
Cutout
14.000 Inches (Dayton Audio Spec)
External dimensions
36.00 Inches W × 18.00 Inches H × 12.00 Inches D
Front baffle
Three 3/4" MDF layers, 2.25" total | Woofer Flush-Mounted In The Outer Layer
Buy at Audio IntensityFactory-direct, ships from Tullahoma
Dayton Audio Reference RSS390HOBuy at Audio Intensity
  • Alignment: 2.02 cu ft net vented at 31.0 Hz. F3 34.3 Hz anechoic, 0.56 dB passband ripple
  • Driver: Dayton Audio Reference RSS390HO, 800 W RMS, 12.0 mm Xmax, 21.50 Hz Fs
  • Build: Front-firing standard box, 2.25" three-layer baffle with the woofer flush-mounted in the outer layer, Dayton Audio logo acrylic, dado joinery, 28.9 sq in front slot port beside the woofer with one bend along the back wall, port and excursion gated at 960 W
  • Cabinet: 36.00" W x 18.00" H x 12.00" D, 63 lb, threaded inserts pressed into the baffle on the published 14.488 inch bolt circle

Spec of record

Technical specifications

SeriesProline X Professional
Driver-Specific FitmentDayton Audio Reference RSS390HO (RSS390HO-4, single 4 ohm)
Enclosure TypePorted | Front-Firing Standard Box
External Width36.00 Inches
External Height18.00 Inches
External Depth12.00 Inches
Internal Volume (Gross)2.88 Cubic Feet
Internal Volume (Net After Displacement)2.02 Cubic Feet
Port TypeVertical Slot Beside The Woofer | Front Exit | One 90 Degree Bend Along The Back Wall
Port Geometry1.75 x 16.50 Inches, 28.9 Square Inches, 31.02 Inches Of Path
Port Area28.9 Square Inches
Port Tuning (Fb)31.0 Hz
Port Mouth1/2 In Roundover On All Four Edges, 48.1 Square Inches At The Face
Port Air Velocity19.2 m/s In The Channel, 11.5 m/s At The Mouth, At 960 W (17.0 m/s Chuff Threshold)
Design Power Basis960 W RMS (1.2 x The Driver Rating) For Port Velocity And Excursion
Predicted F334.3 Hz (Anechoic)
Passband Ripple0.56 dB (Anechoic)
Subsonic Filter24 Hz High-Pass, 24 dB/Octave - REQUIRED On A Vented Enclosure
Driver Fs21.50 Hz
Driver Qts0.320
Driver Qes / Qms0.350 / 3.690
Driver Vas168.000 Liters / 5.933 Cubic Feet
Driver Sd829.6 Square Centimeters
Driver Mms319.00 g
Driver BL19.80
Driver Re3.2 Ohm
Driver Xmax12mm (One-Way)
Driver Displacement0.15 Cubic Feet (Published by Dayton Audio)
Driver Power Handling800 Watts RMS
Driver Overall Diameter15.295 Inches (Dayton Audio Spec)
Mounting Depth Required7.008 Inches (Dayton Audio Spec)
Cutout Diameter14.000 Inches (Dayton Audio Spec)
Flush Mount Recess16.250 Inches In The Outer Layer
MaterialLangboard Elite 3/4" MDF
ConstructionShopSabre CNC / Two Windowed Braces Front To Back Either Side Of The Woofer
JoineryDado Joinery (CNC-Cut), Flat Panels
Front Baffle ConstructionThree 3/4" MDF layers, 2.25" total | Woofer Flush-Mounted In The Outer Layer
Baffle Layers3
AcrylicGlossy Black Dayton Audio Logo Insert, Outer Layer, Standard
Mounting HardwareThreaded Inserts On The Published 14.488 In Bolt Circle | Stainless Machine Screws Included
Voice Coil ConfigurationSingle 4 Ohm
Terminal CupProline X ABS/Carbon Fiber Composite | Back Panel, Terminal-Cup Side | 12g OFC Pre-Wired
DampingNone - Ships Dry. Polyfill Detunes A Ported Enclosure
Recommended Power560-800 Watts RMS (Dayton Audio Rated: 800W RMS)
Carpet FinishPlush Black
Shipping Weight70 lb
ShippingUPS Ground Parcel, Included In The 48 States
Bundle OptionsEnclosure Only (Bring Your Own Dayton Audio Reference RSS390HO)
Warranty2-Year Limited (Enclosure)
ManufacturedTullahoma, Tennessee, USA

Modelled response

Performance in this enclosure

Net airspace
2.02
cu ft
Tuning
31.0
Hz · Fb
Half power
34.3
Hz · F3, anechoic
Xmax at
2354
W RMS · 24 Hz subsonic
With NO filter
545
W RMS · unfiltered
Port
11.5
m/s at the mouth · 960 W

01Is this driver right for a ported box?

Efficiency bandwidth product places the motor before anything else is decided.

EBP = Fs ÷ Qes = 61.4
SEALED 0–50 TRANSITION 50–100 PORTED 100–150 0 50 100 150 EBP 61.4
Dayton Audio RSS390HO-4 · EBP 61.4
Between 50 and 100 a driver takes either load, and the choice becomes one of priorities rather than of physics. The Dayton Audio RSS390HO-4 reads 61.4. Ported buys output and low-end reach around tuning; sealed buys a shallower rolloff below it. This cabinet takes the first trade.

02What the box does to it

2.02 cu ft net against a 168.0 L Vas, vented at 31.0 Hz.

Fb = 31.0 Hz  ·  F3 = 34.3 Hz  ·  passband ripple 0.56 dB
20 30 50 70 100 150 200 +4 0 −4 −8 −12 −16 −20 −24 −28 FREQUENCY · Hz LEVEL · dB −3 dB Fb 31.0
Dayton Audio RSS390HO-4 · Fb 31.0 Hz, F3 34.3 Hz
Anechoic, before any cabin gain, with the 24 Hz subsonic filter already applied. The vent takes over below 31 Hz and the cone stops doing the work there, which is what holds travel down at the bottom of the passband.

03Ported vs Sealed

No sealed comparison is shown for this driver.

A ported-versus-sealed chart is only worth reading against a sealed box someone would actually build: the one we make for the driver, or the one its maker recommends. Neither exists for the Dayton Audio RSS390HO-4 — we do not build a sealed enclosure for it and Dayton publish no sealed volume for it — so rather than compare this cabinet against itself stuffed and sealed, a box no one would build, the comparison is left out.

04The watts that reach Xmax (in this enclosure)

Travel scales with the square root of power, so there is one wattage that puts the cone exactly on Dayton's published 12.0 mm. The two traces are the same cabinet with the subsonic filter switched on and switched off.

PXmax = 2354 W with a 24 Hz subsonic  ·  545 W with none  →  the filter is worth 4.3×
20 30 50 70 100 150 200 0 4 8 12 FREQUENCY · Hz CONE TRAVEL · mm PAST LINEAR TRAVEL · Xmax 12.0 mm 2354 W reaches Xmax here
2354 W · subsonic at 24 Hz, 24 dB/oct545 W · no subsonic filterXmax 12.0 mm one-way, published
Each trace touches the limit and no further, because each is drawn at the exact power that puts the cone on 12.0 mm. With a 24 Hz subsonic that takes 2354 W, reached first at 47 Hz. Take the filter away and the same cabinet reaches 12.0 mm on 545 W — the filter is worth 4.3× the safe power. A vent unloads the cone below tuning, so there is nothing holding it once the box stops loading: on a sealed build a subsonic filter is an improvement, here it is required equipment. The unfiltered trace is still rising where this chart stops at 20 Hz, so treat 545 W as a bound rather than a floor. Every wattage on this page is a MECHANICAL limit, not an electrical one. It is the power at which the cone runs out of linear travel in this cabinet, and nothing more. What the voice coil can dissipate as heat is a separate ceiling set by the driver, not by the box — Dayton rate this one at 800 W RMS, and that is the number that binds first here: heat stops you before travel does, so treat 800 W as the ceiling and the travel figures above as headroom. Final wired impedance, amplifier output and how long you hold the level are all electrical questions this graph does not answer.

From the shop floor

Installer's take

I built this box for one RSS390HO on the full Professional chassis: 2.02 cubic feet net at 31.0 Hz, three layers of baffle with the frame flush in the outer one, and a slot port that turns once along the back wall.

Dayton make the RSS390HO in one version, single 4 ohm (RSS390HO-4).

Dayton rate it 800 W RMS. Set the subsonic filter near 25 Hz and leave it there; it ships dry, no polyfill in a ported box.

Before you order

Questions

Why is this enclosure tuned to 31.0 Hz?

Sealed, the RSS390HO is listed in our sealed wedge (PO 15-S W RSS390HO) at 1.53 cubic feet, Qtc 0.71, half power 48 Hz. The slot is gated at 960 W: the channel runs 19.2 m/s and the mouth 11.5, and the cone peaks at 7.7 of its 12 mm with the subsonic filter in place. Passband ripple is 0.6 dB. Tuning is chosen for in-car response rather than an anechoic curve: a vehicle adds roughly 12 dB per octave below about 45 Hz, and this tuning is where that sum comes out flattest across 25 to 60 Hz.

Why is this a Professional build and not a Performance Optimized box?

The Reference RSS390HO also builds in the Performance Optimized ported wedge, the smaller and cheaper box. The Professional cabinet is the step up for it: a 2.25 inch three-layer baffle with the woofer flush in the outer layer, and a slot port gated at 960 W. It carries a 2 year warranty, against 1 year on the Performance Optimized lines.

Threaded inserts or a kit?

Threaded inserts pressed into the baffle on the published 14.488 inch bolt circle, stainless machine screws included. The inserts are in the baffle when it arrives; the machine screws are in the terminal cup bag.

Do I need a subsonic filter?

Yes, at 24 Hz, 24 dB per octave. Below tuning a vented box stops loading the cone and excursion runs away toward DC. With the filter in place this cabinet puts the Dayton Audio Reference RSS390HO at 64 percent of its usable travel at 960 W.

Would a sealed box be better for me?

Not one we can show you. We do not build a sealed enclosure for the Dayton Audio Reference RSS390HO and Dayton Audio publish no sealed volume for it, so the Performance Graphs tab carries no ported-versus-sealed chart: the only sealed box left to plot would be this cabinet stuffed and sealed, which nobody would build, and a comparison against it would tell you nothing you could buy. What a vented box gives up is the region below tuning, where the cone unloads and the 24 Hz subsonic filter takes over; around 31.0 Hz the vent carries the load and cone travel drops to its minimum, which no sealed alignment can do.

How does the front port work?

It is a vertical slot beside the woofer, the full height of the cavity, 1.75 inches wide and 28.9 square inches. It runs 6.50 inches to the back wall and turns once along it for 19.02 inches; the fold costs about 1.5 Hz and the port is cut for it. The channel runs at 19.2 metres per second at 960 W, 48 percent of its turbulence limit, and the mouth edges carry a 1/2 inch roundover so the air leaves the face at 11.5 metres per second against the 17 metres per second threshold where a slot starts to chuff.

What does the price cover, and how does it ship?

63 lb, 36.00" W x 18.00" H x 12.00" D external. Every Professional cabinet is priced the same way, by its size: this one is 4.50 cubic feet outside. Delivery to the 48 states is inside the price; it ships as a 63 lb parcel and checkout adds nothing. The $-12 difference is the larger box and the port this driver needs to run at its rating. Do not add polyfill; it ships dry on purpose.

Is the Reference RSS390HO included?

No. This is an enclosure only, cut for the Dayton Audio Reference RSS390HO specifically: the 14.000 inch cutout, the 7.008 inch mounting depth allowance and the 2.02 cubic foot alignment all come from Dayton Audio's published parameters. Dayton make the RSS390HO in one version, single 4 ohm (RSS390HO-4). Bring your own driver.

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