While doing some reading about the various commercial subs available out there, I came across these well received compilations of testing/reviews of subs. Just thought I'd share them:
Thanks for doing this. However, in A Guide to Subwoofers thread, some of these links are listed there at the end. If you don't mind, I will add the links that are not in that thread to the list. The other alternative is to merge this thread into that.
Yup, that's fine. I actually took those links from that thread and fixed a couple of the dead ones. Either rolling these links into that thread or stickifying a new "review link" thread would be fine... whichever you think would work best.
Yup, that's fine. I actually took those links from that thread and fixed a couple of the dead ones. Either rolling these links into that thread or stickifying a new "review link" thread would be fine... whichever you think would work best.
Cheers mate!
I added all the updated links to the OP and merged the two threads. You don't have to worry about ownership rights of those links. That CraigSub link has been posted multiple times in the Elemental Designs thread to push ED subs.
For the most precise integration with your main speakers, go through test tones with an SPL meter. Setting the level using test tones by ear may result in misconfiguration. When you use the pink noise from your receiver to adjust the subwoofer level, you will not get accurate results. The main reason is that your calibration program or the SPL meter (if you are using one) measure the peak frequency generated by the sub at that listening position and all other frequencies are obscured. This is why it is best to use test tones and an SPL meter for a subwoofer calibration.
Using a test tone disc, adjust the volume so that the SPL meter reads 75dB with a 50Hz tone at the listening position. Do not play the test tones too loud as this may damage your speakers. Take measurements of four different tones 1/3 octave above the crossover point and four different tones 1/3 octave below the crossover point. Average together each set of four measurements and adjust the subwoofer’s volume level to match the other speakers. Using the receiver's test tones is less accurate as they are not in one-third octave increments.
All good advice, but I liked this in particular. I did this last night, and got a subwoofer average of 70.9 and a speaker average of 71. Pretty darn close. I am thrilled with the results. Very well integrated bass.
really great briefing and information regarding setting up the sub woofer. the best one i can ever seeing on the web.
i'm have a couple tech question
here's my rig
A/V denon 2310 with new GUI rate @105 rms
front louder speakers
KLIPSCH RF-82 TOWER (38hz- 23000khz)
KLIPSCH RC-62 CENTER (57hz - 23000khz)
KLIPSCH RS-52 REAR SURROUND (62-23000hz)
KLIPSCH RS-52 BACK SURROUND (62-23000hz)
KLIPSCH SUB-WOOFER RT12D RATED AT 800W RMS 2000 peak WITH 3 INDEPENDENT WOOFERS 12" MAXIMUM FREQUENCY RESPONSE 120HZ. (19-120hz)
1st:
taking in mind that i have a tower CAPABLE TO PRODUCE low frequency 37hz to 23000hz) front speaker, should i set the sub woofer con fig to LFE OR LFE + MAIN? which are the cut frequency suggested to my sub woofer 80, 90, 100, 110 or 120hz.
2nd:
for the front tower, which must be the best frequency (40hz or 80hz)? taking in mind the kind of sub woofer that i have.
3rd:
which frequency should work better on RS SERIES for sourround and back surround?
4th: the RS surround speaker and center RC 62 should i set to SMALL or LARGE ?
First off, welcome to the forum carloslara, we hope you stick around and catch a glipse of things to come. there are a million people on board here, and thanks to big daddy (and others), stickies abound to explain things in a better language for others to comprehend.
Now, down to business. my replies will be reflected below... take note, the bold responses are to differentiate your questions from my replies, and by no means er, means to be offensive. Just a NB for reference.
Quote:
Originally Posted by carloslara
really great briefing and information regarding setting up the sub woofer. the best one i can ever seeing on the web.
i'm have a couple tech question
here's my rig
A/V denon 2310 with new GUI rate @105 rms
front louder speakers
KLIPSCH RF-82 TOWER (38hz- 23000khz)
KLIPSCH RC-62 CENTER (57hz - 23000khz)
KLIPSCH RS-52 REAR SURROUND (62-23000hz)
KLIPSCH RS-52 BACK SURROUND (62-23000hz)
KLIPSCH SUB-WOOFER RT12D RATED AT 800W RMS 2000 peak WITH 3 INDEPENDENT WOOFERS 12" MAXIMUM FREQUENCY RESPONSE 120HZ. (19-120hz)
1st:
taking in mind that i have a tower CAPABLE TO PRODUCE low frequency 37hz to 23000hz) front speaker, should i set the sub woofer con fig to LFE OR LFE + MAIN? which are the cut frequency suggested to my sub woofer 80, 90, 100, 110 or 120hz.
Very nice setup, and love the choices. you can configure the LFE to an octave higher than the crossover point the Fronts can handle, but i would send you to hades for using the LFE+MAIN option. I think ive mentioned my reply back then, found in this thread, here...
to quote myself,
Quote:
the main reason why bass management is so important is to have one source to reproduce the lower frequencies. unlike the higher frequencies, the lower extension has longer soundwaves, which can interact incessantly with the enclosed environment, building up in certain areas, and at times, have certain 'blind' spots, where bass is less prominent or uneven. if we have multiple sources for it, we'd end up with cancellations, or in some cases uneven responses, all in all, a poor result.
think of it this way, think of a HT room, with the floor flooded with water, about three inches deep.
The separate speakers, will be reproducing smaller waves, which dissipates to the room with little or minor challenges that can be addressed with panels to minimize its reflectiveness.
The LFE signals would tho be producing larger, more separated waves, and at times, will cumulate at the corners of the rooms (thus bass traps to address them).
Now imagine having multiple big waves being reproduced by ALL the speakers and/or from the subwoofers connected to them. To address both these situations, would be a headache to deal with, and well, im not even certain we can address.
In conclusion, the reason why we dont want to use all THREE sources for your lower frequencies, is because we dont want to have them all 'fighting' in the room, cancelling each other out. one or two or even four sources, are great, but we want to calibrate EACH of them to play nice. we simply cannot calibrate the Left channel and the Right channel via placement. you can try, but it aint gonna be pretty.
2nd:
for the front tower, which must be the best frequency (40hz or 80hz)? taking in mind the kind of sub woofer that i have.
in essence, 80hz is considered the starting point as to where we should start our crossover settings, but by all means, isnt the imperative rule here. Depending on the speakers, you can definitely use a lower crossover point, and in this case its feasible.
My answer is in two folds,
1. Calibrate your subwoofer first, using a SPL Meter and a calibration disc like DVE, Avia, or the S&M disc (and no, it does not mean that you sickos)... we calibrate the subwoofer to perfection, we can now introduce the other channels that may produce lower signals as well.
2.. go ahead and give all frequencies a shot (id still follow the one octave higher rule), and see the results appeasing to your preference. my opinion? following the one octave rule, id set it to 60hz....
3. Give the settings a week or so, to see which one fits your taste. there is no point in setting it up, then tweaking, then tweaking then tweaking. It takes some time to train your ears, and see your listening preference, prior to reaching audio nirvana.
3rd:
which frequency should work better on RS SERIES for sourround and back surround?
Frequency in terms of? Do you mean the crossover settings? 80hz is again preferred, unless you listen to DVD-Audio or SACDS. Aside from the multichannel formats ive mentioned, its a rarity for the surrounds to receive any signal lower than 80hz. you can try to use 60hz, but i see no benefit aside from the two formats listed above.
4th: the RS surround speaker and center RC 62 should i set to SMALL or LARGE ?
ALL speakers are set to SMALL, no matter what your speakers can do.
My fingers hurt. its my day off, but since its daytime i thought it would be my shift. (big daddy normally works the graveyard shift on the forum... )
Man, its good be working again here. All play and no work for 'the other guy' makes joms a dull boy.
thank you so much to you and big daddy for the fast response and obviously for the welcome.
my rigs, is really a good choice, thanks for confirm it.
at the moment my setup is configured in this way.
LFE+MAIN
120HZ
FRONT AT 40HZ
CENTER AT 60HZ
REAR AND BACK SURROUND AT 60HZ
THE SUBWOOFER IS ON LFE MODE INSTEAD OF LOW PASS MANUALLY, MANAGED BY THE RECEIVER, I SET A 120HZ.
THE VOLUMEN IS SET AT -13DB .
Recently i acquired the radioshack db meter, i'm set all of them to between 78-80db, and the subwoofer power level to 85db. because i loved the extra bass.
but as far i'm understood your recomendation i will move forward with the next settings.
LFE ONLY
AT 90HZ OR 100HZ. (for the sub)
ALL THE CROSSOVER FREQUENCY I WILL SET TO 80HZ. FRONT , CENTER AND SURROUND.
Note: the position of my current sub, is behind me, of the listening position maybe i don't know to move forward. between the front speakers ?
Quote:
Originally Posted by jomari
First off, welcome to the forum carloslara, we hope you stick around and catch a glipse of things to come. there are a million people on board here, and thanks to big daddy (and others), stickies abound to explain things in a better language for others to comprehend.
Now, down to business. my replies will be reflected below... take note, the bold responses are to differentiate your questions from my replies, and by no means er, means to be offensive. Just a NB for reference.
My fingers hurt. its my day off, but since its daytime i thought it would be my shift. (big daddy normally works the graveyard shift on the forum... )
Man, its good be working again here. All play and no work for 'the other guy' makes joms a dull boy.
thank you so much to you and big daddy for the fast response and obviously for the welcome.
my rigs, is really a good choice, thanks for confirm it.
at the moment my setup is configured in this way.
LFE+MAIN
120HZ
FRONT AT 40HZ
CENTER AT 60HZ
REAR AND BACK SURROUND AT 60HZ
THE SUBWOOFER IS ON LFE MODE INSTEAD OF LOW PASS MANUALLY, MANAGED BY THE RECEIVER, I SET A 120HZ.
THE VOLUMEN IS SET AT -13DB .
Recently i acquired the radioshack db meter, i'm set all of them to between 78-80db, and the subwoofer power level to 85db. because i loved the extra bass.
but as far i'm understood your recomendation i will move forward with the next settings.
LFE ONLY
AT 90HZ OR 100HZ. (for the sub)
ALL THE CROSSOVER FREQUENCY I WILL SET TO 80HZ. FRONT , CENTER AND SURROUND.
Note: the position of my current sub, is behind me, of the listening position maybe i don't know to move forward. between the front speakers ?
Set your LFE to 120Hz.
Normally, the best position for a subwoofer is in a corner about a foot away from the side walls. In a corner, the subwoofer will use the walls and as a result the bass output will increase and it is for free. Alternatively, you can use the Subwoofer Crawl techniques to find the best position for the sub. Watch this video on sub crawl.
what do you prefer, calibrate the speaker at 75db or 80db? and the subwoofer 5db +, (85db).
or all speaker + subwoofer to 75db?
take in mind my love to little extra bass.
i have the db meter from radioshack.
[B[/B]
Quote:
Originally Posted by Big Daddy
Set your LFE to 120Hz.
Normally, the best position for a subwoofer is in a corner about a foot away from the side walls. In a corner, the subwoofer will use the walls and as a result the bass output will increase and it is for free. Alternatively, you can use the Subwoofer Crawl techniques to find the best position for the sub. Watch this video on sub crawl.
just to reiterate, the LFE on the sub should be 120hz, not to be confused with the AVR settings.
in conclusion,
AVR - crossover at 80hz/60hz
Sub - LFE, with crossover dial turned at its max.
placement will be determined after you surrender your pictures.
really great briefing and information regarding setting up the sub woofer. the best one i can ever seeing on the web.
i'm have a couple tech question
here's my rig
A/V denon 2310 with new GUI rate @105 rms
front louder speakers
KLIPSCH RF-82 TOWER (38hz- 23000khz)
KLIPSCH RC-62 CENTER (57hz - 23000khz)
KLIPSCH RS-52 REAR SURROUND (62-23000hz)
KLIPSCH RS-52 BACK SURROUND (62-23000hz)
KLIPSCH SUB-WOOFER RT12D RATED AT 800W RMS 2000 peak WITH 3 INDEPENDENT WOOFERS 12" MAXIMUM FREQUENCY RESPONSE 120HZ. (19-120hz)
1st:
taking in mind that i have a tower CAPABLE TO PRODUCE low frequency 37hz to 23000hz) front speaker, should i set the sub woofer con fig to LFE OR LFE + MAIN? which are the cut frequency suggested to my sub woofer 80, 90, 100, 110 or 120hz.
2nd:
for the front tower, which must be the best frequency (40hz or 80hz)? taking in mind the kind of sub woofer that i have.
3rd:
which frequency should work better on RS SERIES for sourround and back surround?
4th: the RS surround speaker and center RC 62 should i set to SMALL or LARGE ?
Normally, you should set the crossovers at least 10Hz to 20Hz above the low frequency extensions of the speakers. An easy alternative is to set all the crossovers to 80Hz and the LFE to 120Hz. It is best to only use LFE and not LFE + Main. The explanation is in the thread.
woah! big daddy great to see you! i normally see you during the night posting on here...
i have to set up a email alert when someone post here... hehehe.
Hi Jomari. You are correct. I am normally busy during daytime. However, I spent all of last night playing with amplifiers and decided to take it easy today. I may go to bed in an hour or so. I changed the noisy fan of a pro amplifier that I bought recently. See the details in the DIY Subwoofer Building thread
So I just puchased a new TV which will be wall mounted and purchased a 21 inch high bench for my components (SWBL60). Previously I had my Bic F12 on a gramma beside my couch. Just wondering if I can now place the gramma + sub on the TV bench now or should I keep it on the floor?
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