# Boston Pro 10.4/8lf



## laozx (Nov 27, 2008)

Anyone have any experience with these old school subs? Wonder what people's thoughts were on them.

Thanks


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## quality_sound (Dec 25, 2005)

I liked them. A lot.


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## xlynoz (Jun 16, 2008)

I ran two of them for 3 years. I loved the sound. I found they sounded best in a ported enclosure and if I remember correctly the ported enclosure is smaller than the sealed enclosure, 1CF vs 1.5CF I believe.


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## quality_sound (Dec 25, 2005)

No, the sealed was still smaller but ported sounded really, really good.


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## nirschl (Apr 30, 2009)

I got one of those here in the stash. Been meaning to make a test enclosure for this for a while.


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## Guy (Feb 16, 2006)

I have used the various Pro 10s and 12s in several installs and loved all of them. Still have a bunch.


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## JKashat (Nov 19, 2009)

Most musical subs I've ever owned/heard. Love them. Actually, I sold a pair of BNIB 10.8LF's a few months back here on DIYMA.


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## laozx (Nov 27, 2008)

Cool, thanks for the the replies. Anyone here still have a pair for sale?


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## wadejg (Apr 20, 2007)

nirschl said:


> I got one of those here in the stash. Been meaning to make a test enclosure for this for a while.


Those pictures look REMARKABLY like Morel drivers (no, not the current Morels). Anybody know if this is possible?

Regards,
Justin


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## bassfromspace (Jun 28, 2016)

If you like low end, stay away from the Pro's.


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## quality_sound (Dec 25, 2005)

Oh for ****'s sake. No, they're not Morel drivers. Boston made them in, wait for it... Boston.


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## quality_sound (Dec 25, 2005)

bassfromspace said:


> If you like *bloated, unnatural* low end, stay away from the Pro's.


Fixed. 

The low end of the Pros is just fine.


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## bassfromspace (Jun 28, 2016)

quality_sound said:


> Fixed.
> 
> The low end of the Pros is just fine.


WTH is bloated, unnatural bass? Is it full of MSG?

I'll state it again. If you like low end, don't buy the Pro.


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## quality_sound (Dec 25, 2005)

I'll say it more plainly, you're full of ****. There is NOTHING wrong with the low end on the Boston Pros. N-O-T-H-I-N-G.


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## bassfromspace (Jun 28, 2016)

quality_sound said:


> I'll say it more plainly, you're full of ****. There is NOTHING wrong with the low end on the Boston Pros. N-O-T-H-I-N-G.


Dude, don't get so emotional. That's a female trait.


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## quality_sound (Dec 25, 2005)

My apologies, stupid work hours and lack of sleep are getting to me. There was no need for me to get personal.

My point, however, stands. The bottom end of the Pros is fine.


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## bassfromspace (Jun 28, 2016)

quality_sound said:


> My apologies, stupid work hours and lack of sleep are getting to me. There was no need for me to get personal.
> 
> My point, however, stands. The bottom end of the Pros is fine.


It's OK. And their bottom end six.


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## Torquem (Jun 27, 2009)

bassfromspace said:


> It's OK. And their bottom end six.


I disagree. Their bottom end seven


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## bassfromspace (Jun 28, 2016)

Torquem said:


> I disagree. Their bottom end seven


Good one!


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## mitchjr (Mar 8, 2010)

I have a couple of these I just put in a 3cu ft sealed box. The surrounds are screwed up so they make a little noise when pushed. But Im gonna order a kit for them from PE. But they sound decent already. Since you cant hear the noise in the cabin. 
Does anyone know the rms wattage on these? I saw somewhere it was 500 ea. and then read somewhere else its 250 ea.. Right now Im only givin em like 160 ea. and if rms is 250 ill leave it alone but if it is 500 I want to get a bigger amp and build a new ported box.
Also I know I read it on here somewhere but I cant find it now. How do u model IB on WinISD? 10+ or something? Any opinions on these IB.

Thanks


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## wadejg (Apr 20, 2007)

quality_sound said:


> Oh for ****'s sake. No, they're not Morel drivers. Boston made them in, wait for it... Boston.


The idea that speaker companies, and even speaker manufacturers by the 1990's were using outside build houses should not be news. If BA makes all there drivers in Massachusetts (Peabody is where the main factory is), I would be very surprised.

Regards,
Justin


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## xlynoz (Jun 16, 2008)

quality_sound said:


> My apologies, stupid work hours and lack of sleep are getting to me. There was no need for me to get personal.
> 
> My point, however, stands. The bottom end of the Pros is fine.


I do agree with you, no low end issues. Competed with a pair of these and never had an issue. However your previous statement is incorrect. The ported box is smaller as compared to the sealed one. I even remember selling a 10 of these to someone with a hatchback Honda Accord and we did ported enclosure because it required less air space.


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## mitchjr (Mar 8, 2010)

What size ported did u put it in? And if its not too much bother what frequency, and to really push my luck, how much rms wattage? 

sorry for all the questions but my buddy gave me a pair of !0.8 LF's and I dont know much about them. Ive been messing around quite a bit on WinISD but I would love some real world examples.

Sorry just read back through. 1cf ported. frequency and wattage?


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## quality_sound (Dec 25, 2005)

wadejg said:


> The idea that speaker companies, and even speaker manufacturers by the 1990's were using outside build houses should not be news. If BA makes all there drivers in Massachusetts (Peabody is where the main factory is), I would be very surprised.
> 
> Regards,
> Justin


Made, not makes.


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## ntfish (Aug 1, 2010)

The Boston 10.4lf was the first sub I ever owned. Bought 2 of them in 1990 and had them in the recommended 1.4 ft3 ported enclosure. I have to say I liked them a lot. Strong output down to about 30hz in that enclosure in my 79' LTD. Loved the "attack"
they had.


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## PABowhunter4life (Jan 3, 2009)

I never personally ran them, but several friends did & while I noticed a lot of things about them, a lack of low end was not one of them. In fact, one of the first things that impressed me about them back in the day is how "deep" they sounded.

Great sub, great sound.


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## timbo2 (Apr 25, 2009)

1990? wow that was when is was born.... any way i have the 12.5lf (how old is that?) and LOVE it very musical and detailed! i use a sealed box and i have no probs with the "low end"


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## marfo (Aug 4, 2010)

Hi folks

Sorry to butt in on this thread but I have just bought a Boston pro 8.4LF sub without the manual and I have been trying to find out what size sealed enclosure I will need.

Some people say 0.3cuft and some people say 0.5cuft.

I emailed boston and eventually they got back to me with the specs for a 'Rally 8.4 woofer' which sounds like a different sub to me.

I presume the 8.4LF / 10.4LF / 12.4LF all share the same manual so hopefully someone will have one.

I hope someone can help me as I have no more hair left to pull out !!


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## ntfish (Aug 1, 2010)

I don't remember the sealed box recommendation on the 10.4lf. I want to say it was 1.0 ft3. The Boston specs for porting it were 1.4ft3 with a 3" diameter port 9" long. Here are the basic parameters:Qts: 0,33
Fs (Hz): 34
Vas (l): 79


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## marfo (Aug 4, 2010)

Thanks for the reply but its the 8.4LF sealed box size im trying to find out


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## ntfish (Aug 1, 2010)

Ohhh...that's right. I would have to go with the .5ft3 on the 8.4lf.
Qts: 0,26
Fs (Hz): 36
Vas (l): 43


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## ntfish (Aug 1, 2010)

Looks like it should work well in the .3ft3, though. You could put it in that size box and see how it sounds to you. If you need to, you can add stuffing to the box to get the "tighter" sound of a bit larger enclosure.


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## marfo (Aug 4, 2010)

Can the system Q be worked out from the TS parameters you quoted ?


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## ntfish (Aug 1, 2010)

Sure. Here is a link to play around with:Sealed Subwoofer Box Design Calculator


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## marfo (Aug 4, 2010)

Thanks for that link, it was just the thing I was looking for.

The figures you quoted are slightly different to what Boston told me and they were

Qts 0.36
Fs 36
Vas 1.45

When I type these in to the calculator with a Qtc of 0.707 it works out at 0.5ft3 but when I use your figures it works out to 0.238ft3.

This is why I was hoping to find someone with a manual so I could make sure I got it right.


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## HCCA (Apr 6, 2007)

I had a pair of the Pro 10.4LF's in a sealed enclosure. I had originally heard them in a ported enclosure...Loved them!! I had designed the enclosures for ported,and even cut the holes for the ports. BUT..... I decided to go sealed, at the last minute. I had the enclosure, already sized for 1.5cft ported. But, I went with 1.5cft sealed. I used an Orion HCCA 225 @ 2ohm mono. That should be about 250 W/pair. I first put one 2lb bag of fiberfill in them. It was tight bass, BUT no low end. Hmmm...didn't someone say that here, before...??? I then added another half a bag of fiberfill between the two sealed enclosures. O....M...G!!!!! Some of the best bass...I...have...EVER...heard!!! 

According to WinISD Beta, they have an efficiency rating of 97 db. And....I believe it! The reason? I have a pair of JBL W12GTi subs w/1100W each. The Boston 10.4lf's....were almost as loud!!! No ****! The thing I remember the most, was the detail, attack, and the efficiency of these simple little subs. 

I have a pair, in the basement. And, I am thinking about another pair. They were phenomenal subs. I can't rave about them enough.(In case you couldn't tell.) I tried powering them with an HCCA250, but they over-excurded. Of course, I used a 1.5cft sealed enclosure for each sub. If I had used .75-1cft per driver, I think I would have had better luck with the HCCA 250. After tuning the system, I found the sound was simply stunning!!! When I got rid of the car, I sold the subs to a friend that loved the sound, as well. They were gone, but after missing them for years, I bought a pair of them, again. I think that I need another pair! I have a long distance plan to use 4 of them, in the next system. They are are just friggin awsome!!!


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## marfo (Aug 4, 2010)

Have you got the manual with them ?


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## wheelieking71 (Dec 20, 2006)

the 12.4 work well I.B. also! but you cant throw huge power at them that way (like you can sealed)


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## HCCA (Apr 6, 2007)

marfo said:


> Have you got the manual with them ?


No, sorry. I wish that I did. I even called Boston asking about the size of the ported enclosure. I remember that it was 1.5cft ported for the 10"; can't remember the port length, though. Anyway, they tried to tell me that it was 1cft ported, over the phone. I KNOW that the manual had stated 1.5cft. Well, they changed their minds, obviously. 

My point is, don't think that you MUST use their recommended size enclosure. They recommended 1cft sealed, and I had good luck with 1.5cft sealed. There is no magic answer. Just use WinISD, and model the size of the enclosure by the program. 

OK, I just read back. You were agonizing over which box... I would use the smaller box, if I were feeding it 200W, but the .5 box would net you 6db more output @20hz (according to the WinISD response curve), and you could get by with 50-75W for decent output.


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## unpredictableacts (Aug 16, 2006)

I have a pair of the Boston 12LF aloung with the original Boston 12" grills.


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## Carbon_Dave (Nov 7, 2010)

marfo said:


> Thanks for the reply but its the 8.4LF sealed box size im trying to find out


Straight out of the manual.

8.4LF .3 to .5 cu. ft. for a sealed box.


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## Gearhead (May 13, 2018)

I dont know if any you guys are around or looking for this anymore but, through my research the manual said 10.4LF sealed box .7 to 1.4 cubic feet. 1.4 cu ft being the optimum as stated in the manual. 3 db down point 20Hz. 10.4LF vented 1.0 cu ft as mentioned by someone earlier. 3" dia port 6 1/2" long. 3 db down point 20 Hz.


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## bro2 (May 10, 2020)

Does anyone have the manual for pro 8.4 sub? As said before, should be the same with 10" and 12".
I can't find it anywhere and would like to find it, and i think someone else also would apreciate if it could be found.


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## bro2 (May 10, 2020)

Found these on youtube video.


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