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When I planned out my home theater, the recliners I selected came with butt shakers (aka, bass shakers, tactile transducers) already installed. They did not come with the amp or transmitter though, and that would cost an extra $400 to add it on. This is what prompted me to start looking into these gadgets.
Tactile transducers are basically subwoofers that shake instead of making sound. You attach them to the frame of your couch/chair/recliner and when the bass hits, they shake your seat.
The setup and operation is really like any other subwoofer. You need a signal processor, an amplifier, and the transducer. Mount it to the frame of your favorite seat, run your speaker wire to it, and now your chair vibrates with the movies, lol.
I’d heard of these before, but I dismissed them as a gimmick item. Now that they were coming preinstalled in my fancy recliners, it was time to do some research.
There are several brands out there, including: Dayton Audio, ButtKicker, AuraSound, Earthquake, Clark Synthesis, and more. The brand that comes preinstalled in my Seatcraft recliners is SoundShaker.
I started reading up on SoundShaker and it appeared that they are a lower-end option that’s built specifically for a few different furniture companies.
The nice thing about SoundShaker is they have a wireless signal processor so it’s possible to operate them without having to run an RCA signal cable to your chairs. You do need power outlets to plug the chairs and amp into, but at least you don’t have to run another signal cable.
The short answer is YES, totally worth it! To give a longer answer…
The effect was subtle, but noticeable. What I liked most is that it made the bass seem stronger even when the overall volume level was lower. So in essence, you’re tricking your senses into thinking there’s more bass without annoying everyone else in the house.
I ended up liking it so much that I purchased more transducers and setup a system for the couch that sits in front of the recliners. I have a different write up on that project, you can read here. For that system I used AuraSound transducers.
I did have some issues with the SoundShakers in the recliners. When I had the volume in the theater turned up high, the transducers would get too much power and would make a knocking sound. I could rectify this by turning down the gain on their amplifier, but then their level was too low at lower volume levels.
The system I put together for the couch doesn’t have this problem. The amplifier I used would automatically shut off for a few minutes if it was being pushed to much. This saves the transducers from getting fried and it saves my audio experience from getting ruined during a great movie scene!
Another issue I ran into, which was completely my fault, is the receiver sits loose under the recliners. The recliners are powered and move. One evening while we were having a family movie night, the receiver ended up getting crushed by the closing recliner. Ugh.
The SoundShaker amp is pretty weak and the SoundShaker transducers are custom made to work with only the SoundShaker amp… so I couldn’t find a way to replace just the amp and receiver.
So… ends up being the perfect excuse to go ahead and upgrade the whole tactile transducer system in the recliners, lol. I used the same AuraSound transducers and amp and signal processor that I used for the couch. Problem solved… and system upgraded!
I’d definitely recommend adding tactile transducers to your seating! It’s a great effect and can be done cost effectively. For about $400 I can put together a system with 300 watts of power and 4 AuraSound transducers, which is a WAY better setup than the SoundShaker system.
Here’s the link to my DIY write up on the Tactile Transducer system I put in my couch (and recliners).
Here’s some affiliate links to the items I’ve discussed here. If you are thinking about purchasing any of these items, using these links helps me out and doesn’t cost you anything extra. Thanks!
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