Does it matter which way the driver/port faces? Is having the driver face you optimal?
It can matter which way the drive/port faces both in relation to you and the walls.
If the sub is facing you and very close to your seating, w/o anything blocking it, you may be able to feel the air moving as the sub operates. I found this so distracting I moved the sub behind my futon in my apartment because I couldn’t get it far enough away when in front of my seating.
With your sub near a wall which way the driver faces can have an impact on what room resonances are energized by it. In my experience simply turning the sub 90 degrees when up near the wall has a big impact on It’s frequency response. This in turn will have an impact on how the sub sounds across your entire seating. With the sub out more in the room which way the driver faces should have little impact on how it performs.
If I fire my sub directly into my couch, I'll have about 5in of clearance to the wall for the port and 2in clearance for the driver to the couch. Is that sufficent breathing room?
I’ve read that as a general rule you should try to keep the port away from the wall by a distance equal to it’s diameter.
Having your sub 2in from the couch is going to effect how it performs. Some acoustical energy is going to absorb right into your couch before it can radiate around the room. So you’re likely going to trade some of the chest pounding feeling for more of a butt shaking feeling. It may cause butt shaking even at higher bass notes which might not feel right.
Cheers,
Dean
