Sub Woofer Query

[rocketrazor]

Hi Guys,

Looking at a sub for my setup but struggling to get my head round where my floor standers would pass over the bass to the sub. I have the Mission M70 series front, center and rear so looking at the manual the Freq and LFE are as bellow

M74 freq response (+3dB) 44Hz - 20kHz, LF Response (-6dB) 38 Hz

I looked at the Tannoy SFX SUB on richersounds at and says crossover freq 45 to 140, and the Cambridge Audio Aero 9 says cross over freq 21 to 200

Which number on my M74's should I be looking at to match to the cross over?

No budget just yet, trying to get my head round it and then will look for some demo's but suspect could get away with something £500 - £1k if it's good enough. Want to get my understanding right first though

Cheers

Rocket

 

[ellisdj]

Selecting the correct cross over frequency has nothing to do with the manufacturer specs on paper, its how the speakers are interacting with the room at your listening position (s) then selecting the best place to integrate the sub based on its performance in your room.

Ignore the specs on paper totally - buy the best quality sub you can for the desired purpose - mainly movies or music, simple as that really.

Edit - for the record if the subs says it does 45hz as its lowest frequency I would avoid that sub like the plague because its not going to peform very well

 

[rocketrazor]

right, so I'm looking for as low as I can afford then, so how comes the Monitor Audio RADIUS 390 is £600 at RS and its range is 40 - 120Hz yet the Cambridge Audio AERO 9 is £350 with a 21 - 200Hz, so on that logic I'd be better off buying the Cambridge Audio? Am I thinking right here? Sorry, I just have not got a clue when it comes to Subs.

The Monitor Audio Silver W12is £1000 but is only 40 - 120Hz, so again going on that basis this is no good?

Mumma Mia so confussed!

 

[Frank Harvey]

right, so I'm looking for as low as I can afford then, so how comes the Monitor Audio RADIUS 390 is £600 at RS and its range is 40 - 120Hz yet the Cambridge Audio AERO 9 is £350 with a 21 - 200Hz, so on that logic I'd be better off buying the Cambridge Audio? Am I thinking right here? Sorry, I just have not got a clue when it comes to Subs.

The Monitor Audio Silver W12is £1000 but is only 40 - 120Hz, so again going on that basis this is no good?

Mumma Mia so confussed!

Are you looking at the sub's response, or the frequency control on the back panels? The latter is just to choose your cut off frequency where the sub takes over from the speakers. The actual response will be different.

Either way, look up the SVS SB2000.

 

[rocketrazor]

I took those directly off the Richersounds website, will look at the SVS SB2000, cheers

 

[ellisdj]

I think you will find better subs away from richer sounds for your money

at up to £1000 I would be considering something from a more dedicated subs type company

Do you want sealed opr ported and is this purely for movies?

Can you have a big box?

How much do you know about sub setup or how will you be setting the sub up / where will you be putting it in your room ?

How big is the room?

 

[rocketrazor]

I was just using Richersounds as a place to start investigating.

What would the difference between sealed and ported be? It's not purely for movies, but it's 95% movies and 5% music. Not sure if I can use the sub for movies and not for music? Need to think carefully on this one so not rushing in. Would like a new Receiver and have my heart set on the Marantz SR7010, just trying to convince the wife to let me part with the cash, always the hard part! Also still need to find out if my speakers or receiver is faulty but I just don't have enough time in a day sometimes to test it, by the time I get some free time its 21:00 and I can't be bothered to start pulling it all apart to check.

Its gotta go in my lounge so not to big. Looked at the dimensions for the SVS SB2000 and that is probably about the biggest I could go, not even sure where I would put it yet. All the local HiFi stores don't sell SVS so can't even demo at the mo. I know nothing about Sub set up. I'm hoping it will come with a good manual! Alternatively if I get the Marantz Im hoping that will help me

My room is an L shaped lounge/dinning room/Kitchen. I have a larda sticking out into the lounge which is where I have the TV in a corner. As It's L shaped are the measurements worth getting?

Cheers

 

[Frank Harvey]

Ported subs tend to be more efficient. They'll have more output than a sealed sub, particularly around the port frequency, but not very much below it. In my opinion, ported subs are more "fun" due to having loads of bass, but lack ultimate control. Ported subs need big cabinets. Easier to "bottom out" due to no natural damping (open cabinet).

A sealed subs are generally smaller, less efficient (so need a decent power amplifier built in), and will have a gently rolling off bass response, which may actually get deeper than a ported sub, depending on the ported sub's tuning frequency. A sealed cabinet adds natural damping, so the bass driver has less "excess wobble" - when the note stops, the cone stops. Not as fun as a ported sub, but generally flatter response and easier to place in a room due to no ports.

 

[abacus]

If you have a home cinema receiver, then the auto calibration will take care of the setup for you, if not, see below.

As a rule of thumb, if your sub-woofer will mainly be used for music, go with a sealed unit, however if it is primarily for movies go with a ported sub. (The more expensive units have auto room compensation built in, so once set, you can choose a pre-set to suit the type of sound you want)

Also as a rule of thumb, look for the bottom frequency of the main speakers and double it, then set the sub-woofer control to this, and then fine tune with your ears.

If you have a computer/Tablet/Smart phone, then you can purchase a calibration microphone to plug into it, (Basic ones also comes with Home Cinema Receivers) and download some RTA (Real time analyser) software, that way you can measure the response in your room, and adjust the controls to suit. (You can also use it to find the best position for the speakers/sub-woofer in your room)

The SVS 2000 sub-woofer (For its price) seems to be the go to sub these days, and after hearing it, I can see why, as it really is cracking value. (Auditioning before purchasing is always vital though)

A lot of dealers will probably try and con you into buying expensive cables from HI-Fi cable manufactures, saying they will improve the sound, however, ignore them, as it is a complete nonsense, (As has been proved in test after test) instead go to your local pro music store (Or online store) and purchase from them, as you will get a better quality cable for a fraction of the price. (Remember pro studios are the ones that produce the movies and music you listen too)

Hope this helps

Bill

 

[rocketrazor]

cheers guys