Subwoofer, bass and neighbours...

[admin_exported]

Hi.

I've just bought an onkyo 606 and Kef 1005.2 5.1 speakers for my first home cinema - after seeking advice on these forums.

I've a question regarding the subwoofer and the associated bass. The system tends to be quite "booming" at low volumes so i first enabled onkyo's DynamicEQ - which i gather is essentially a "late night" mode. This still produces quite a bit of bass so i've no resirted to turning the volume down on the subwoofer. Is it ok to do this? Or is there anything else i can do?

Be nice, first system

 

[professorhat]

No reason why you can't turn it down - it's your system so have the levels at whatever level you prefer. You could also check out this which will help prevent the bass travelling through the floor and walls - I have one in my flat.

 

[Big Aura]

yep, fine to turn it down. I have an arrangement with the neighour that I'll turn my sub off after 11. This may point to a set-up issue. Your sub should only kick in when there's something to boom about. if it's booming at the drop of a hat and shaking your sofa with James Earl Jones' voice, it probably needs to be turned down!

 

[up the music]

Have you experimented much with your subs location? Try moving it away from room corners as this can cause boominess. Keep the sub away from thin partition walls, it's easy to get the whole wall moving, and this sounds terrible.

Do a google for 'crawling for bass'. It's a useful technique for finding the best place to site a sub. There looks to be a few guides.

When you've found the best place for it, redo the setup, using something bass heavy (quantity) and deep (frequency) as test tracks. Do the setup as per KEF guide. Make a note of the settings then experiment a little further to tweak it.

The isolation platforms look interesting if you're in a flat. If all else fails buy your neighbours noise cancelling headphones.

It could be you were just being too heavy handed on the subs gain though.

 

[Anonymous]

Yep. Definitely sounds like it's in the wrong place. I've owned a few Kef sub / sat systems (although never the 1005s) and I'd recommend you start by trying:

a) Place the sub between the centre and one of the front speakers, at least a foot (preferably 18 inches if this doesn't mean you'll be tripping over it) from the wall.

b) Place the sub at one side, between the front and rears. Again it should be at least a foot away from the wall.

With either of these options try to avoid placing the sub an equal distance from any two walls.

I hope this helps.

ÿ