Automated Home 2.0 – #29 Amina Invisible Speakers – Part 2 Subwoofer in the Kitchen Island

In part 1 of our Amina invisible speakers review I looked at the in-wall drivers that we plastered over during our first fix.

Their frequency response bottoms out at 75 Hz but we wanted to go lower and Amina pair them with a range of subwoofers which are hidden too.

Kitchen Island Subwoofer

We chose the ALF80 model, the mid-sized unit in the range, a 150W passive sub that uses a 4th order bandpass design and covers 36Hz – 120Hz.

Its 5 ½” driver has twin coils, each bearing an 8 Ohm load. It weighs in at around 9 kg and measures 605mm x 270mm x 156mm – needing a space with a minimum depth of 158mm to mount inside.

These cabinets can be hidden inside walls and ceilings, but having a large kitchen island with a useful void, we decided to fit ours there instead. Amongst the services we ran up into the island was this purple 14/2 speaker cable for the sub.

The cabinet was laid on the floor inside the island on its rubber feet. You need to vent the bass port into your room and cleverly the unit has 3 different outlets, one each on the side, the end and the front.

You choose whichever is facing the right direction for your install and then remove the cover from that face and open a 56mm hole into the room for the port.

A hole was cut in our island kickboard and a stainless steel vent cover used to match in with it as closely as possible.

The subwoofer is connected to the same 12 channel amp in our rack that powers the rest of our Loxone multi-room audio setup.

Balancing Act

Those panels in our vaulted ceiling have more in common with a musical instrument than a traditional cone speaker.

Vibrational Panel Technology allows a loudspeaker cone to be replaced by a flat panel. This creates a complex series of ‘tuned’ surface vibrations which generate acoustic energy. This is very similar to the way in which an acoustic musical instrument works.

Also unlike normal speaker cones, the Amina invisible speakers utilise Distributed Mode Loudspeaker (DML) technology creating a hemispherical dispersion pattern right across the speakers frequency range.

That audio dispersion angle of 180 degrees means no more single listening sweet spot, instead a room filling sound that can be enjoyed anywhere in our barn.

The sound from the in-wall drivers is bright in nature so I’d say the addition of a subwoofer will be the preference for most peoples listening tastes. Our Amina experts from Epitome Living did a great job of balancing the levels between the in-wall panels and the sub to leave us with that rich warm sound I always crave, especially when listening to electronic music.

Clean Lines, Hidden Qualities

Now the barn is constantly filled with our favourite playlists and whether it’s some acoustic Joan Armatrading, Deadmau5 blasting or London Grammar for Sunday morning chilling, it always sounds fantastic.

Amina produce a range of high quality specialist products that are all covered by a 10 year warranty when installed by an approved dealer.

If you are building your dream home and want some quality sound without the clutter, then look no further.

aminasound.com

Remember to check out our Instagram to follow the project, read the rest of the Automated Home 2.0 blog posts and find the links to all the products we’ve used in our self-build.