To do or not to do???

[nathan28]

I recently purchased an ed a3-300, it is built like a tank and sounds great, but i honestly was expecting more. I purchased it to replace my velodyne cht-12, ive had since 03. The velodyne gives the ed run for its money. Im thinking about running them both at the same time, i have never tried this. The Ed is a down firing sub and the velodyne is a forward firing sub. I have the ed in a corner, where should i place the velodyne? Will i need to flip the phase on one of them? and would it help the overall sound?
any help would be greatly appreciated. thanks

[Big Daddy]

Originally Posted by nathan28

I recently purchased an ed a3-300, it is built like a tank and sounds great, but i honestly was expecting more. I purchased it to replace my velodyne cht-12, ive had since 03. The velodyne gives the ed run for its money. Im thinking about running them both at the same time, i have never tried this. The Ed is a down firing sub and the velodyne is a forward firing sub. I have the ed in a corner, where should i place the velodyne? Will i need to flip the phase on one of them? and would it help the overall sound?
any help would be greatly appreciated. thanks

Start by putting the Velodyne close to your seating area and the ED in a corner. See how like it. The sub in the corner will give you deeper and perhaps boomier bass. The sub closer to you will give you higher frequency bass. Don't be afraid to experiment and move the subs around. The room plays an important role in subwoofer placement. If the sub in the corner is too boomy, move it slighly away from the corner.

Read A Guide to Subwoofers (Part I) and A Guide to Subwoofer (Part II): Standing Waves & Room Modes. In part I, go 3/4 down and you will see explanation of phase settings, etc. Part II explains the science behind placement of two subwoofers.

[Driver_King]

What exactly were you expecting? eD subs don't have super bloated mid-bass that it plays (which you can add in the equalizer if you want) so that may be what you're looking for. If you don't think it's not good enough, I really wonder what else you're looking for... What material have you played on it?

[nathan28]

I have played nothing but blu-ray movies: incredible hulk, transformers, 3 matrix films, wanted, hellboy 2, live free or die hard, death race, max payne, king kong, shoot em up, house of 1000 corpses, dark knight.... ive got 50+ blu-rays and ive tried almost everyone of them that i thought would give the sub a good work out. I was expecting something to sound better than my 4 1/2 year old velodyne. The velodyne was the same price as the ED new. The ED is better, but barely. But if i use both and can get better results that is what i will do. Im just looking for pointers to get me started.

[Squozen]

I don't see any indication that the OP has calibrated the system or tested for room nulls - has this been done at all?

[nathan28]

I have used Onkyo's Audyssey, but I recently turned it off and i have everything but my fronts crossed at 80hz, my front i have set to full band(my fronts are a 3-way with a 10 inch nonpowered woofer.) I havent tried putting the sub in a different location other than the corner of the room, so i cant honestly tell you if it would sound better somewhere else. I had the velodyne in the exact location. The levels of each speaker i have adjusted pretty much by ear using the onkyo test tone. I recently have been using the Double bass option, it doesnt seem to make the sub hit harder just more often. When im talking about the ED, it is a fantastic sub, i was just expecting itto be alot more than the existing velodyne. Im going to start experimenting with running both of them soon, as soon as i read up on it more, i have zero experience with two subs, i know how to hook them up and that is it.

[Squozen]

Get a sound meter. The human ear is rubbish at judging bass levels, so you're really just guessing about what is really going on.

A sound meter is so damn cheap that there's no excuse for any enthusiast not to have one. Plus, they're nerdy and therefore extremely cool.

[jc480]

Are sound meters available at radio shack? Approximate cost? Is there a guideline on how best to use them?

[nathan28]

squozen that might be the best idea yet!! lol. Just like jc480 said can you point a dude in the right direction to get started.

[Squozen]

Oh, easy. They're about $40 from Radio Shack, and if you don't have a test disc, get Digital Video Essentials. It has test tones and video instructions.

[Driver_King]

I bet you're sitting in... THE DEAD ZONE! Seriously though, have you tried placing the sub in the center of the room and walked around the room to see where there is the most bass? That's what you need to do. My room had a ton of dead zones even the center of my room until I hooked up the second sub. To set up the second sub properly, do what I said to do first then place the next sub in the center and walk around the room to find the quietest part of your room and put the second sub there. Also, make sure the distances are set right. A few feet off can be disastrous for bass evenness. Sometimes you forget how powerful your subs are. Walk into another room with the door closed and listen to the bass. You'll realize what people mean when they say turn that down.

[Big Daddy]

Originally Posted by jc480

Are sound meters available at radio shack? Approximate cost? Is there a guideline on how best to use them?

Radio Shack sells an analog and a digital model. For understanding how to use them, go to Calibrating Your Audio with an SPL Meter. It has sticky under Receiver Discussion.

Radio Shack Analog SPL Meter ($44.99)