Opinion of 10", 12", or 15" woofer

[liquidice]

Couldn't really find a dedicated thread of opinion of size of woofer. Most popular I would say seems to be 12", which is what I have, front firing. Eventually I would like to add another sub, or just replace mine, not sure yet. I have wondered the effect of adding a 10" for tighter bass, and still use my 12" for deeper. Anyways, I tend to ramble quite a bit, so I'll stop here for now, and again just looking for opinions.

[MacDaddyOJack]

I'm not overly partial to a particular size although I don't like 15's. I generally find them too muddy in the upper bass regions so I stick with 10's and 12's.

However, I do like a sealed sub for music and a ported one for movies. I have never really found one that completely astounds me with music and HT.

[Fors*]

I use 10", but I use 2 subs for the same reason you state above...provides tighter bass that fills the dead space I get in my basement.

[Aerodude73]

Originally Posted by forsberg21

I use 10", but I use 2 subs for the same reason you state above...provides tighter bass that fills the dead space I get in my basement.

+1

(minus the basement)

[liquidice]

tell you the truth, I have a Harmon Kardon computer speaker setup that I won in a drawing years ago. It's kind of just collecting dust now, but I've been thinking of trying to add the sub to my theater just to see what happens. It's only a 6" woofer (insert laughter), but it actually kind of rocks believe it or don't! Anyways, thought if I hooked it up, and kept the volume pretty low, might just add a little to my setup. I've seen some very high end woofers that people have stacked on top of one another, and kind of thought about that too. Not sure the true benifits of that theory...otherwise I'd just stash it in the opposite corner of my 12" sub.

[Aerodude73]

Originally Posted by liquidice

tell you the truth, I have a Harmon Kardon computer speaker setup that I won in a drawing years ago. It's kind of just collecting dust now, but I've been thinking of trying to add the sub to my theater just to see what happens. It's only a 6" woofer (insert laughter), but it actually kind of rocks believe it or don't! Anyways, thought if I hooked it up, and kept the volume pretty low, might just add a little to my setup. I've seen some very high end woofers that people have stacked on top of one another, and kind of thought about that too. Not sure the true benifits of that theory...otherwise I'd just stash it in the opposite corner of my 12" sub.

Why not give it a shot? At worst, you'll know right away if you need go the 10" or 12" sub route. Good luck.

[jomari]

Originally Posted by liquidice

tell you the truth, I have a Harmon Kardon computer speaker setup that I won in a drawing years ago. It's kind of just collecting dust now, but I've been thinking of trying to add the sub to my theater just to see what happens. It's only a 6" woofer (insert laughter), but it actually kind of rocks believe it or don't! Anyways, thought if I hooked it up, and kept the volume pretty low, might just add a little to my setup. I've seen some very high end woofers that people have stacked on top of one another, and kind of thought about that too. Not sure the true benifits of that theory...otherwise I'd just stash it in the opposite corner of my 12" sub.

the 6 incher can probably assist in regards to standing waves, better yet 'holes' that are in your current room, as well as provide the upper frequencies for certain areas. its not a bad idea to try it out. im assuming that in the middle of the room, you would lose a little bit of the bass compared to your seating position.

my suggestion is trying to place that first hand at the front of the room, close to your current setup. considering its size, id probably even attempt to put it inside your TV stand. seriously tho, you can always do the knee technique to place your sub properly at this point. i also just checked your pictures again, and probably try to place it where the pc is (dont say i dont notice anything in a room ) if its not worth the effort, flank it on the other end to try.

to consider as well, is that there is also a chance that both subs wouldnt play nice tho. in a controlled environment, a number of members would suggest to have two identical subwoofers, and properly place them in the rooms, (check here - bigdaddy stick), but we cant always follow the rules now can we. WAF, room dimensions, living conditions et al, all compromise our lives, and this is no exception.

you dont want the subwoofer to go toe to toe with the current 12 your using, its just no match. nor will you benefit from it. instead, let it play second fiddle. turn off your current subwoofer, play around with the placement, then wank out the spl meter to test for ecofriendliness. afterwards, see the relation to the current sub, and adjust accordingly. rinse. wash. repeat.

[liquidice]

excellent advise Jomari. Another reminder to get a SPL meter in the first place, not sure why I keep putting that off! I'm waiting for an email back from HK to see what they say about the hookup. Since it's really a PC speaker, the only inputs are 1/8", so I'd have to get an RCA to 1/8" adaptor. My question to them was if I should use stereo or mono 1/8", I kind of have the feeling it wouldn't matter, but maybe the sub would only recognize stereo...don't know. Again, this is really all for fun and games as the speaker is just sitting here doing nothing. I might go to walmart to get some cable knowing I can return them later if the outcome isn't good.

[jomari]

the spl meter is probably your first step into the technical aspects of a HT room, and the technical aspects that we dont necessarily see. its the science behind the pleasure we get from it.

about cabling, id suggest to get one of these as a simple recourse.



plug this into the sub, get a y-adaptor to split the signal



from your receiver into BOTH of your subwoofers, then test for the signal.

afterwards, turn off your primary sub as ive mentioned, and get down on your knees.

subplacement 1

axiom subplacement 2

N.B - ive only chose the monster cable image as a resource, im too darn lazy to find another one comparative to this, and is used only for illustration purposes only. im sure after two or three postings here, everyone would end up saying crap about monster cables (i agree to a certain extent, they do make good cables, just overpriced for what they are)

[Footloose301]

Read up on reviews of my AV123 MFW-15. There is no lack in quality as long as you're looking at the correct 15" woofer. Trust me, I've got my Onkyo 805 at -12.0dB for subwoofer level and the subwoofer itself is turned at about 1/3 of its max, and I damn near break stuff in my house. Again, at loud volumes this puppy doesn't lose any audio quality. No muffled or muddied audio in my house. Bass is very tight and precise, as well as loud. It was the best $700 I ever spent.

Also, check out the SVS subs as well.

[liquidice]

great info so far, again just really looking for pure opinions on speaker size. My fault for getting off track on the computer sub thing, but thanks to jomari on the advise. Never heard of the knee technique till now! So, back on track, what's your opinion of speaker size?

[Hammie]

I guess what are you looking for from a sub. If you want the lows that you can feel but not hear (less than 30 Hz) then a 12 or 15 may be better. If you want the tight bass from a little higher low-end (35-60 Hz), then a 10-12 may be best. In my opinion, I feel a 12 is the best compromise for an HT setup.

I have a single 12" SVS and love it. If the wife would allow, I would get a second 12" SVS.

[SkillzthatKillz]

i have 2 12"s in my car with a 1000 watt amp haha

[BLUTRIG]

I'am using two Sunfire TS EQ-10" (tight,not muddy and fills the dead zone,has Microphone auto EQ) tight & loud,but not boomy and sealed

[Geezer00003]

Originally Posted by liquidice

Couldn't really find a dedicated thread of opinion of size of woofer. Most popular I would say seems to be 12", which is what I have, front firing. Eventually I would like to add another sub, or just replace mine, not sure yet. I have wondered the effect of adding a 10" for tighter bass, and still use my 12" for deeper. Anyways, I tend to ramble quite a bit, so I'll stop here for now, and again just looking for opinions.

My $.02

Having lived with two 200 watt 12 inch subs for some years, I can tell you I was pleased and happy. When one died on me I switched to one 15" sub(put the 12" in the bedroom). I was and to this day still totally blown away by the difference. Better in every way! Feeling rather than hearing the low end just doesn't get old.

[statikcat]

How are you people running two subs? Are you just splitting the sub out of your receiver?

[StimpsonJCat]

Originally Posted by statikcat

How are you people running two subs? Are you just splitting the sub out of your receiver?

Yes. Just use a Y spitter like this one: http://www.outlawaudio.com/products/cab_y_about.html

Of course there are cheaper ones you can get.

[jomari]

Originally Posted by statikcat

How are you people running two subs? Are you just splitting the sub out of your receiver?

post number nine would also show you a y splitter, that you can use on your receiver and split the signal into the two subwoofer cables.

[JJ]

I'm not a fan of Panzerkampfwagen-sized subwoofers - so I've always preferred 10" drivers, but capable ones. I love my Dynamo to death, but then again, my test bed of subwoofers was relatively small, nothing from internet companies - simply those I could find easily available to test in my price range, such as offerings from Paradigm, Polk, Klipsch, JBL, and B&W. When I found that the 10" Dynamo could do more than similarly-priced 12" drivers, with a tiny footprint to boot, I couldn't pass it up. But like I said - I've never tested/heard anything from AV123, eD, Epik, Hsu, or SVS.

I recently added another 10" subwoofer, but haven't hooked it up yet for comparison.

[jomari]

Originally Posted by JJxiv1215

I'm not a fan of Panzerkampfwagen-sized subwoofers - so I've always preferred 10" drivers, but capable ones. I love my Dynamo to death, but then again, my test bed of subwoofers was relatively small, nothing from internet companies - simply those I could find easily available to test in my price range, such as offerings from Paradigm, Polk, Klipsch, JBL, and B&W. When I found that the 10" Dynamo could do more than similarly-priced 12" drivers, with a tiny footprint to boot, I couldn't pass it up. But like I said - I've never tested/heard anything from AV123, eD, Epik, Hsu, or SVS.

I recently added another 10" subwoofer, but haven't hooked it up yet for comparison.

personally, ive found martin logans to be in a different class compared to the mainstream subwoofers that are out there in major retailers. most of the higher end ones also have long throw baffles too, which greatly increases its performance.