
Kraken-MK3 User Manual bassboss.com
3
Ontheotherhand,tuningaverylargecabinettoaverylowfrequencyispossibleusingshorterports.
Thebiggerthecabinetvolume,theshortertheportsneedtobetotuneittoalowfrequency.Theshorter
theportsare,thesmallerthepercentageofinteriorcabinetvolumetheyoccupy,eectivelyleavingmore
roomformorewoofers.Sure,theKrakenisbigforasinglespeaker,butthepointisnotthesizeofthe
cabinet,it’sthescaleoftheoutput.Thinkofitasasubwooferwiththeeconomyofscale:TheKraken
deliversthehighestSPLrelativetosubwoofersize,barnone.
Technically,theKrakenisavented,short-horn,quad21”bandpasssubwoofer.Thefourdriversareloaded
intoa largeacoustical volume thatistuned to a low frequency,and the frontofeach driver is loaded
into a short horn. The vented enclosure section provides extended deep bass performance and the
foreshortened horn sections provide increased upper frequency sensitivity, which results in improved
transientresponse,aka“punch”.
Tobringthewholethingtolife,eachwooferispoweredbyadiscrete2500Wamplifier,makingthetotal
powerper cabinet animpressive 10,000Watts.Thisensurestheamps aren’t thelimitingfactor in the
outputoflowfrequencies.Providingabundantpowerpreventsoverheatingissuesandvirtuallyeliminates
thedamagethatclippingatoo-smallampcancause.
Thebigbeastiskeptunderyourcontrolbyanintegrated,comprehensiveDSP.TheDSPprovideshigh-
passfilters,low-passfilters,equalization,alignmentfiltersandlimiting.Avarietyofdierentfiltersettings
areavailableinpresets.Eightpresetsareavailableatthetouchofabuttonontheamplifier,andtheDSP
canstoreupto100presetson-board,allofwhichcanbeaccessedviasoftwareandaLANconnection.
Totakefurther advantageof the Krakens’ outputdensity,alignedarraysare facilitatedbyinterlocking
sliders.Blockarrays,side-by-sidearraysandfront/backcardioidconfigurationscanbedeployedwiththe
cabinetsinterlocked.Theoptionaltransportcartscansupporttwocabinets,allowingunparalleledtruck-
packdensity.Thecartsfeaturerecessesintowhichtheslidersfit.
There are two interesting advantages to the dual-opposed, force-canceling nature of the Kraken
design.Oneisthe absenceof front-to-backrockingmotion,whichbothreducestheamountoflateral
energy transmitted into floors, and makes the cabinets less prone to “walking”. The other is relatively
littlesecondaryradiationfromtherearofthecabinet.This,alongwiththedirectivityassociatedwithits
size,makestheareabehindaKrakenfairlyquietcomparedtoanarrayofconventionalcabinetscapable
of similar output. Ultimately, cardioid configurations of Krakens tend to require fewer rearward-facing
cabinetstoachieveeectivecancellationbehindthearray.
The cabinet itself is made from 18mm, 13-ply Birch plywood and is extensively braced. It is coated in
high-temperaturebondedpolyureaandfeaturespowder-coated,perforatedsteelgrilles.Thecabinetsare
axiallysymmetrical,featuringUHMWPolyethyleneslidersandsteelbarhandleson4sides.
The Kraken Powered Subwoofer was designed to provide body-and-face-melting bass on a massive
scaleforfestivalsystems,touringsystems,high-intensitynightclubs,artcars,carnivalfloatsand,notto
beforgotten,BASSHEADS,whoneedalittlebitmorethantheyhaveeverhadbefore...
Quad 21”
Powered
Subwoofer