Help With CerwinVega Subwoofer Amplifier

[Weirded Wonder]

Can anyone help me? I bought this Cerwin Vega Subwoofer Amplifier off of Ebay.
Click on the link to see which one, as I do not know the model number.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...:X:AAQ:US:1123

I am trying to connect it to my subwoofers that are in my NHT tower speakers. They are not powered. So I have the speaker wire for the A speakers from the receiver running to the Cerwin Vega, then to the NHT subwoofers. There is a subwoofer for each Left and Right channel.

Here is a picture of the back of the Cerwin Vega.

The Green power light comes on, so I assume that it is working. I do not have the red or black wires on the back hooked up to anything as I do not have a powered subwoofer. But the NHT tower speakers have no bass what so ever.

I would appreciate any help that anyone can offer me.

[Weirded Wonder]

bump

[Big Daddy]

Your picture is too small and I cannot tell what you have done.

You should not connect the speaker outputs on the back of the Cerwin Vega to the built-in unpowered subwoofers on the NHT tower speakers. The speaker outputs on the back of the Cerwin Vega are for connecting them to a speaker's main inputs. The low frequency is already removed from them and only the high frequency sounds above a certain level (e.g., 120Hz) go to the speakers.

If you have separate speaker inputs on the back of the NHT speakers, they are meant for bi-amping.

Does you receiver have pre-outs for the front channels? Does your receiver have a separate subwoofer (LFE) output on its back? Does the receiver have a built-in calibration program?

Give me more information on your equipment and what you are trying to accomplish. I may be able to help you more.

[Weirded Wonder]

I thought that it was for bass. I feel so stupid. Here are some of my specks.

I have a Yamaha Receiver HTR 5730. It does have the LFE output for a subwoofer.
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b1...n/IMG_0106.jpg




I have 2 NHT Tower speakers that I purchased about 10 years ago.
http://s18.photobucket.com/albums/b1...t=IMG_0104.jpg

http://s18.photobucket.com/albums/b1...t=IMG_0105.jpg

I want the NHT Tower speakers to use the bass subwoofer speakers that are the bottom connections. What do I need to do this if this isn't the right piece of equipment?

[Big Daddy]

Look at the back of the receiver.

1. Does it have pre-outs for the front and other surround speakers?
2. Do you see Main In connections on the back of the receiver that are connected to the pre-outs with little metallic jumpers?
3. Do you have surround speakers besides the the two NHT front speakers?
4. Does your receiver have a calibration option where you can set the size of the speakers to Large (WIDE), SMALL, and an option for setting the crossovers and speaker levels?

Please answer each question. I need to know before I can give you additional assistance.

[Weirded Wonder]

1. Does it have pre-outs for the front and other surround speakers?
2. Do you see Main In connections on the back of the receiver that are connected to the pre-outs with little metallic jumpers?
3. Do you have surround speakers besides the the two NHT front speakers?
4. Does your receiver have a calibration option where you can set the size of the speakers to Large (WIDE), SMALL, and an option for setting the crossovers and speaker levels?

1. It does not have pre-outs.
2. I don't believe so.
3. I have 2 surround speakers and a center channel. All NHT. I play 5.1 Audio when available.
4. It does have a calibration option, I have it set to Large. There is an option for crossovers and speaker levels too.

I will try to get better photos in the morning.

[Big Daddy]

The best way to connect your speakers and subwoofer:

1. Buy a realtively long subwoofer cable preferrably an RG6 cable with RCA connectors at both ends. You can buy a quality sub cable from Monoprice.com. The reason you need a long cable is to be able to experiment with the position of the subwoofer.
2. Connect one end of the sub cable to the sub output on the back of the reciever.
3. Connect the other end of the sub cable to the left channel input on the back of the subwoofer. On many subwoofers, if you use an RCA Y adapter (2 male, 1 female) and connect the sub cable to both the left and the right channels on the back of the subwoofer, you will get between 3dB to 6dB of louder bass sound from the subwoofer.
4. If you want to run the built-in subwoofers inside the NHT, you need to buy a two-channel amplifier. Used two-channel amplifiers are relatively cheap on Ebay and Audiogon.
5. Connect two set of speaker wires from the left and the right front speaker outputs on the back of the receiver to the high speaker inputs on the back of the NHT speakers. I assume the lower speaker inputs are for the subwoofers.
6. Purchase two RCA cables of sufficient length.
7. Connect one end of the RCA cables to the pre-outs for the front speakers on the back of the receiver.
8. Connect the other end of the RCA cables to the left and the right inputs on the back of the new amplifier.
9. Run two set of speaker wires from the back of the new amplifier to the left and right front NHT speakers and connect them to the lower speaker inputs. The new amplifier will drive the subwoofers inside the front speakers.
10. Place the subwoofer in the front corner about a foot or so away from the walls. You need to experiment to get the best location for the subwoofer. See the link below.
11. On the back of the subwoofer, turn the crossover dial all the way up to its maximum point. We set the crossovers inside the receiver.
12. On the back of the subwoofer, turn the level to around 60%. You can adjust it a little later.
13. Go inside the receiver's menu.
14. Set the front speakers to LARGE.
15. Set the surround speakers to SMALL.
16. Set the subwoofer to YES.
17. Set the crossover to 80Hz.
18. If your receiver has an automatic calibration program and a microphone, run the program.
19. If your receiver does not have an auto calibration program, you need to adjust the level of all the speakers and the subwoofer so that they all give you approximately the same level of output. Although you can use your ears, an SPL meter is more accurate. Digital SPL meters are available at Radio Shack stores or their online web site for $50.

Instead of buying a two-channel amplifier, a better alternative is to buy a 7.1channel receiver that supports the new HD audio such as Dolby TrueHD and DTS HD Master Audio and has HDMI input/output. Many receivers, not all, allow you to use the extra 7th channel to bi-amp your front speakers. In addition, almost all new receivers have auto calibration programs and a microphone to automatically adjust the level of your speakers/subwoofer.

I assume you already own a Blu-ray player. If not, that should be your top priority.

For additional information, read A Guide to Bass Management.

[Weirded Wonder]

That is very gracious of you to take all this time to help me out this way. I cannot thank you enough. Kudos to you!

I do own a blu ray player, I have the 60G PS3 and a 50" 1080P widescreen.

One last question. Would this two-channel amplifier be suffice?

http://cgi.ebay.com/New-AA-Peavey-UM...d=p3286.c0.m14

[Big Daddy]

Originally Posted by beardmoen

That is very gracious of you to take all this time to help me out this way. I cannot thank you enough. Kudos to you!

I do own a blu ray player, I have the 60G PS3 and a 50" 1080P widescreen.

One last question. Would this two-channel amplifier be suffice?

http://cgi.ebay.com/New-AA-Peavey-UM...d=p3286.c0.m14

No, don't even look at that amp. That amp is a piece of $hit. Don't bother with it. Search stereo power amps and find a stereo amp with at least 100 watts of RMS power into 8 ohms. Subwoofers need a lot of power.

This is the general Ebay page. Go through it. I saw some good choices on the first page. Adcom, Carver, and Naim are great amplifiers.

http://electronics.shop.ebay.com/i.h...rs&_osacat=293

Adcom:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ADCOM-GFA-545-St...d=p3286.c0.m14

Carver:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Carver-M-0-5T-Ma...d=p3286.c0.m14

Naim:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Naim-NAP-180-ste...d=p3286.c0.m14

Very old Denon:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Denon-POA-1500-S...d=p3286.c0.m14


New Onkyo at Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Onkyo-M-282-2-...3651063&sr=8-4

New Audiosource at Amazon:
Not very powerful, but cheap
http://www.amazon.com/AudioSource-AM...3651628&sr=1-6


Be careful that you don't accidentally buy a car amplifier. Some amplifiers are for pro applications and DJ use such as Pyle, Gemini, Peavy, Crown, etc. They usually publish exaggerated power ratings. They are peak power and meaningless. You have to look at the RMS power into 8 ohms. Also, pro amplifiers have noisy fans, but the prices are great.

[Weirded Wonder]

Again, thank you so much for your effort. You went above and beyond any expectations in getting some help with this. I also found that I have no idea what I am talking about when it comes to amplifiers. At least I have a decent Cerwin Vega.

[Weirded Wonder]

What do you think of this?

http://cgi.ebay.com/Yamaha-M-45-Ster...d=p3286.c0.m14

I'm cutting and pasting what I could find on this stereo amp.

YAMAHA NATURAL SOUND POWER AMPLIFIER M-45

125 Watts per channels at 8 ohms (in AB Class) / 10 watts (in A Class)

Switchable Auto Class A Power Circuitry, first 10 Watts are Class A, when more more power is required Class AB kicks-in with 125 Watts RMS per channel.

*** 10 watts in Pure A Class is very loud and so good to hear ***

Delivers true hi-fi sound with lots of power due to it's electrical reserve and huge power transformer. Capable of reproducing ultra-low bass at very loud volumes without clipping.

Specifications:

Dynamic Headroom ( IHF , 8 ohms)................1.34 dB

Total Harmonic Distortion (8 ohms)...............0.002%

IM Distortion Ratio (8 ohms).....................0.003%

Damping Factor (1,000 Hz , 8 ohms)...................70

Frequency Response (20 ~ 20.000 Hz).........+0 , -0.3dB

Power Consumption ................500 Watts @ 120 Volts

Weight...................................... 27lbs.9 oz

Here's what another page said about this, from an owner.
http://www.sell.com/23759H

[Big Daddy]

Originally Posted by beardmoen

What do you think of this?

http://cgi.ebay.com/Yamaha-M-45-Ster...d=p3286.c0.m14

I'm cutting and pasting what I could find on this stereo amp.

YAMAHA NATURAL SOUND POWER AMPLIFIER M-45

125 Watts per channels at 8 ohms (in AB Class) / 10 watts (in A Class)

Switchable Auto Class A Power Circuitry, first 10 Watts are Class A, when more more power is required Class AB kicks-in with 125 Watts RMS per channel.

*** 10 watts in Pure A Class is very loud and so good to hear ***

Delivers true hi-fi sound with lots of power due to it's electrical reserve and huge power transformer. Capable of reproducing ultra-low bass at very loud volumes without clipping.

Specifications:

Dynamic Headroom ( IHF , 8 ohms)................1.34 dB

Total Harmonic Distortion (8 ohms)...............0.002%

IM Distortion Ratio (8 ohms).....................0.003%

Damping Factor (1,000 Hz , 8 ohms)...................70

Frequency Response (20 ~ 20.000 Hz).........+0 , -0.3dB

Power Consumption ................500 Watts @ 120 Volts

Weight...................................... 27lbs.9 oz

Here's what another page said about this, from an owner.
http://www.sell.com/23759H

If the amp is in good shape, buy it. You can download the manual from the following links:

http://www.retrevo.com/search/v2/jsp...o.jsp?page=man
http://www.hifiengine.com/manuals/yamaha/m-45.shtml