is there something wrong with my sub

[dtowntke]

i purchased an open box subwoofer from american tv and appliance. when i bought the product the girl that sold it to me told me that another employee had broken off the end of a subwoofer cable in the lfe input but they removed it and it will work fine. but to make a long story short i am running 2 subs the energy e.s12 (open box) and an polk audio psw 303 8 inch sub, i have them at about the same level on there on board volume level and obviously there set the same on my receivers sub volume level and the polk is louder so i was wondering when the guy broke off the cable in the lfe in could he have messed the amp up on the sub or the way my sub cable is connecting to the woofer or dose my sub need to have more juice(i dont think the juice is it because its own amp supplies that right?)? its still under warranty but before i unhook everything and drag myself and the sub out into the cold i was wondering if maybe some one has some insight? let me say that the sub dose play and it will pound at high volumes, i have checked and double checked and everything is hooked up right

[crackinhedz]

i have them at about the same level on there on board volume level

two different subs will have two different settings. (obviously the same from the receiver output)

The 'level' most likely will not be the same for both.

[dtowntke]

i have the volume knobs on both subs at half volume. that is what i meant

[brett_day]

Originally Posted by dtowntke

i have the volume knobs on both subs at half volume. that is what i meant

right but what crackin is saying is that half on the polk will not necessarily mean the same level of output from your other sub. Both subs will have different specs which will affect the output at various volumes. Just because they are both set to half way does not mean they will be the same in terms of loudness. You just need to tweak it a little bit so that they are equal. Might mean the the new sub needs to be at 3/4 on the volume to match the polk at half way.

[dtowntke]

shouldn't the sub with the stronger amp be played at a lower volume

[Slec]

Your best bet to try and match them would be to use an SPL meter, that way you can ensure the output is at similar levels from each without guessing.

[Big Daddy]

If sound is coming out of your new sub, there is probably nothing wrong with it.

The performance of a subwoofer depends on many factors such as the amplifier, cabinet, driver size & efficiency, port design, and location in your room.

Two amplifiers that are rated the same do not perform the same.

Two drivers that are the same size do no perform the same.

Setting the dial at the middle point may have different meaning for different subwoofers.

Even two identical subwoofers from the same manufacturer will behave differently in a small home theater room.

One of the most important factors is the size & shape of the room and the location of the subwoofer.

If you have two identical subwoofers from the same manufacturer and put one in the corner of the room and the other in the middle of the room, you will get very different sound. The one in the corner will sound loud and perhaps boomy. The one in the middle will not give your very loud sound and you may have to crank it up.

Is there anything wrong with the sub in the middle? No. You can switch the two subs and the results will be exactly the same. The one in the corner will be louder. The reason is that the low frequency sounds have very long wavelengths. They interact with the room boundaries and create standing waves. The main result is that at some locations in the room, you will hear very loud bass sound and at other locations, you will barely hear any bass.

If you are interested in learning more about subwoofer placement, there are a couple of threads with sticky under Subwoofers section.