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KozmoNaut posted:Does the output have to be optical/digital, doesn't your TV have analog outputs? On most TVs, there are stereo RCA outputs, those will connect directly to the inputs on a set of Audioengine speakers with normal signal leads (or "interconnects" if you want to be fancy). Yeah, only output is optical audio. No RCA or headphone jack or anything else on this TV. Thanks for the info.
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Jan 10, 2014 00:18
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I've been thinking about getting some speakers for my TV. I have a 46" Samsung LED, and it's currently being used in the living room of my apartment. What I want to achieve is better sound, but not necessarily something very loud. I don't want a sub-woofer. I was considering getting a soundbar, but after reading this thread, I think a receiver and a couple speakers might fit the bill best. My question is, I always see the setups listed as 2.0 or 3.1, but no 3.0. This may be a stupid question, but is there any reason there's no 3.0 listed? Is it just assumed if someone is going to go for a center channel and two sides, that they would automatically be interested in a sub? The reason I'd be interested in a 3 speaker setup is that I watch movies and stuff on low volume sometimes, but explosions and stuff are a LOT louder than the voices, so you either turn it up too loud to hear the characters speak, or you turn it down so you don't wake up the neighbors but can't hear any dialog. Also, all the product links in the second post of the thread are dead. Can I get a couple recommendations for a receiver and speakers? The room's about 10x12', I'd like to spend $300-400 but can go a little higher if there's something really nice.
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Jan 10, 2014 17:02
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GentlemanofLeisure posted:The reason I'd be interested in a 3 speaker setup is that I watch movies and stuff on low volume sometimes, but explosions and stuff are a LOT louder than the voices, so you either turn it up too loud to hear the characters speak, or you turn it down so you don't wake up the neighbors but can't hear any dialog. You probably don't need a center channel. What you want is dynamic compression (some receivers call it night mode or quiet mode). This raises the volume of quieter sounds (dialogue) while keeping the volume of loud sounds (explosions) the same. Lots of (most?) receivers have this capability.
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Jan 10, 2014 17:56
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You can do 3.0. I don't know why it isn't mentioned a lot. I think you're right in that it's just assumed that you'll add a sub. 2.0 can be used for stereo music, but 3.1 is for video, and those audio tracks are always meant to have low freq bass. Most subs have an independent volume knob, so you can set it as low as you need, if you're worried about thin walls.
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Jan 10, 2014 17:57
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Thanks for the quick replies. I'm going to look for a receiver with dynamic compression and try out a 2.0 setup. I guess I can always add a center channel and sub later down the line if I think it's needed. edit: Any thoughts on the Yamaha RX-V375?. I've only got a couple devices so the input/output count is ok. Looks like it doesn't have any wireless/networking but my TV can handle that. GentlemanofLeisure fucked around with this message at 20:36 on Jan 10, 2014 |
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Jan 10, 2014 19:01
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Hi all, I'm building my first home theater audio system and would appreciate thoughts and feedback. 20' x 26' room. Receiver is an Onkyo TX-SR606 (got it from a friend for free, I have to repair the hdmi board capacitors). Until now, I've been using a Klipsch 4.1 PC speaker system from 2001 and I drag the speakers around when I break out a projector for movie nights. I'm thinking about getting the Pioneer FS52s/Center/Bookshelf for the speakers. I have a hard time not walking up a ladder, though. There are some Polk 75Ts on sale on Newegg for $200 right now, for example. Well now I've walked up that price ladder again. So I'd like some feedback on that front. Would it be best to start with the Pioneers since I don't have a very large budget, and then upgrade my floorstanding speakers and center channel down the road, moving the FS52s to surround and bookshelves to perhaps rear for a 7.1 setup? Lastly, subwoofer. I know that the older Klipsch 12" sub was popular. The Polk 505 seems to also be very popular now. But what about the Klipsch Sub-12H for $300 on Amazon? http://www.amazon.com/Klipsch-Sub-12HG-Synergy-300-Watt-Subwoofer/dp/B003VIWK0G
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Jan 10, 2014 20:24
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GentlemanofLeisure posted:
I ran a 3.0 setup for a few years until we got a new house with a proper mancave. I actually preferred it to my old 2 speaker setup, having a dedicated center channel with adjustable volume is great and it felt much easier to decipher dialogue during action sequences. I picked up the center channel because my eventual goal was a 5.1+ setup anyway though. I've never tried the night mode stuff on newer receivers so no idea if it works as well.
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Jan 10, 2014 20:44
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Strike Anywhere posted:Lastly, subwoofer. I know that the older Klipsch 12" sub was popular. The Polk 505 seems to also be very popular now. But what about the Klipsch Sub-12H for $300 on Amazon? http://www.amazon.com/Klipsch-Sub-12HG-Synergy-300-Watt-Subwoofer/dp/B003VIWK0G Wait for another sale on the Polk PSW505 (199 and below is a good price) and snag one. Not enough bass? Get a second. The Pioneers are great speakers and i wouldn't replace mine unless I was ready to drop 400+ each on replacements. I wouldn't do that though and would probably go the DIY route.
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Jan 10, 2014 21:11
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E: Wrong thread.
KozmoNaut fucked around with this message at 21:41 on Jan 10, 2014 |
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Jan 10, 2014 21:33
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skipdogg posted:Wait for another sale on the Polk PSW505 (199 and below is a good price) and snag one. Not enough bass? Get a second. Why the PSW505 over the Klipsch, though? Also, I have marble flooring where the sub will be, of all things. Is down firing or front firing better for that? Should that be taken into consideration?
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Jan 11, 2014 00:04
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I'm swearing off Onkyo. I had a 309 receiver that I loved until it croaked at the 2.01 year mark (guess what the warranty is!) and Google tells me I'm far from the only one. It seems most of their models, from every price point and generation, have a fairly hefty number of "it was nice until it broke". So, goodbye forever Onkyo. That said, who makes a comparable 5.1 receiver? I looked at a few Denon models but none of their low or mid tier models have video outputs beyond composite and HDMI. Here are my needs: 1. Under $300 2. Must have Component out and HDMI in (I have a janky setup where a component cable runs 30 feet through my floor/wall/ceiling from the TV to the receiver closet) 3. Not Onkyo 4. I do not need the receiver to be able to connect to the internet or be 3D capable. The only thing that will ever be plugged in to the receiver will be an Xbox 360 in with HDMI and a component out to the TV.
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Jan 11, 2014 02:11
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Not really looking for advice but just wanted to let you guys know that I run a Sony 2 channel car amp powered by an old PC power supply bridged and LPFd into an Alpine sub in a 50L carpeted car sub box and use a 15 year old Pioneer CD player/Amp to run some old Philips speakers I got for $1 from NZ's equivalent of ebay. I have the speakers literally to the left and right of me and nothing in front of me and that seems to emphasise stereo and the bass from the sub is mean it usually starts to vibrate something in the house before it distorts so I think I've achieved something great here So far I haven't been like "this poo poo sucks" so
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Jan 11, 2014 08:36
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Strike Anywhere posted:Why the PSW505 over the Klipsch, though? Also, I have marble flooring where the sub will be, of all things. Is down firing or front firing better for that? Should that be taken into consideration? The 505 just happens to be cheaper. The performance is about the same for both speakers. The Polk is just a better deal. Front during vs down firing doesn't really matter. One would think a down firing sub might send vibration down through the floor more. I haven't seen any measured data to back that up though. I run 2 down firing sub and the loudest bass is upstairs 1 room behind.
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Jan 13, 2014 21:25
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So my Pioneer SP-FS51's arrived. I'd bought them in a "scratched and dented" sale for $190 from their online store in Australia. One of them works flawlessly, the other one sounds like a car stereo with the Bass and Treble turned completely down. I emailed the store (and also used their customer service portal on the website) and haven't received a response in roughly two days. Is there anything obvious I can try to do to fix this? I've already checked that the crossover board doesn't have any loose/blown up components, all the speakers[1] are connected and that it's not a problem with my amp. This was my first ever proper audio setup and it's really taken the wind out of my sales. Edit: [1] well, all the speakers in the tower are connected to the crossover (or what I assume is a crossover, I'm fairly new to this) Edit #2: Pioneer are replacing it under warranty. Jamus fucked around with this message at 06:01 on Jan 15, 2014 |
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Jan 14, 2014 03:01
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Made a youtube of my question. Something I left out that is probably obvious: I'm only concerned with the red and white plugs on TV/Computer wires. Don't need an adapter for all of the others. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zz5lcYAPfkA
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Jan 16, 2014 00:49
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kolby posted:Made a youtube of my question. Something I left out that is probably obvious: I'm only concerned with the red and white plugs on TV/Computer wires. Don't need an adapter for all of the others. http://www.monoprice.com/Product/?c_id=101&cp_id=10110&cs_id=1011007&p_id=3027&seq=1&format=1#largeimage Alternatively, if you budget allowed it and you wanted to be more forward-thinking, you could change out your receiver for one with enough inputs for what you need. Edit: If you don't mind me asking, how are you getting video to your TV? KillHour fucked around with this message at 01:31 on Jan 16, 2014 |
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Jan 16, 2014 01:26
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KillHour posted:http://www.monoprice.com/Product/?c_id=101&cp_id=10110&cs_id=1011007&p_id=3027&seq=1&format=1#largeimage I'll check out the link, thanks. Getting video from blue PC plug from back of computer to TV if that makes sense. Not having a problem with video, only audio.
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Jan 16, 2014 01:35
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kolby posted:I'll check out the link, thanks. Getting video from blue PC plug from back of computer to TV if that makes sense. Not having a problem with video, only audio. So VGA, like this?  Is that the only video output your computer has? Do you have one of these?    There may be a relatively easy way to consolidate everything so you don't have to fumble with a billion remotes. KillHour fucked around with this message at 01:47 on Jan 16, 2014 |
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Jan 16, 2014 01:43
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KillHour posted:So VGA, like this? Yea, I have the VGA. I don't have any of those others except the last one kind of looks like the 1394 plug, which I do have on my computer. Is that what it is?
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Jan 16, 2014 22:55
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kolby posted:Yea, I have the VGA. I don't have any of those others except the last one kind of looks like the 1394 plug, which I do have on my computer. Is that what it is? That last one is Displayport. The reason HDMI or Displayport are interesting in this context is that they carry sound as well as video, which would have solved your problem with a single cable instead of having to switch around the audio cables. You should get that audio switch from Monoprice, it's exactly what you need.
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Jan 17, 2014 07:02
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I am looking for a stereo preamp recommendation. Right now I'm running an coax from my computer to a Fio DAC into a Parasound HCA-750. It sounds great, but I want to expand the system a bit by adding a subwoofer, so a subwoofer out is a must. I'm definitely open to used stuff, just looking for a couple places to start my search.
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Jan 17, 2014 22:53
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naughty_penguin posted:I am looking for a stereo preamp recommendation. Right now I'm running an coax from my computer to a Fio DAC into a Parasound HCA-750. It sounds great, but I want to expand the system a bit by adding a subwoofer, so a subwoofer out is a must. I'm definitely open to used stuff, just looking for a couple places to start my search. How about an active crossover? http://www.parts-express.com/rolls-sx45-stereo-two-way-mini-crossover-w-sub-output--245-1184 KillHour fucked around with this message at 00:21 on Jan 18, 2014 |
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Jan 18, 2014 00:16
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KillHour posted:How about an active crossover? Hmm, this might actually be a better (cheaper) solution. So if I am looking at this right, I could set the crossover to, say, 65 and then put it between the DAC and the amp, run the high level outputs to the amp, and the mono to the sub?
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Jan 18, 2014 01:25
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naughty_penguin posted:Hmm, this might actually be a better (cheaper) solution. So if I am looking at this right, I could set the crossover to, say, 65 and then put it between the DAC and the amp, run the high level outputs to the amp, and the mono to the sub? Yup.
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Jan 18, 2014 01:53
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Pioneer just replaced my dented/damaged FS51s with a pair of FS52s. I'm pretty happy about this.
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Jan 20, 2014 01:24
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KillHour posted:http://www.monoprice.com/Product/?c_id=101&cp_id=10110&cs_id=1011007&p_id=3027&seq=1&format=1#largeimage I just got this in the mail and it works perfectly. Thanks! You too, kozmo.
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Jan 23, 2014 01:48
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Looking for some opinions on upgrading my not-so great 5.1 speakers that originally came from an old HTIB. Between this system, my Logitech computer speakers, and my factory car stereo the bar is set pretty low for what impresses me. Still, I would like to keep what I buy for a while. I have an Onkyo 616 to build this system around. My living room is 22'x20' with 9' ceilings. The TV is on the center of the 22' wall. The seating area is about 13' from the TV. The wall opposite the TV is open to the kitchen through a bar and walkway. My use is split 50/50 between music and movies. Right now I listen to music in all channel stereo or PL II Music because my crappy fronts & sub can't fill the room alone. Being to listen to music in 2.0 or 2.1 would be nice. I'm thinking of focusing on the front 3.1 right now and keeping the current rear speakers. I have my eyes on a pair of Polk Monitor 75t for the fronts, 25c for the center, and the PSW505 for the sub. The Newegg sale prices for these speakers fit right in with my budget and I like the way they look. Any thoughts on these speakers, specifically the 75t for music? Any other options in this price range worth considering? Will ignoring the rears be a problem when the others are being replaced with way bigger speakers?
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Jan 27, 2014 23:15
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Another option you should probably check out are the Pioneer Andrew Jones speakers, they're supposedly amazing for the price. As for the sub, I've heard that the PSW505 can be "flabby" and bloated-sounding, which is a common complaint with ported subs. Since you'll be using your system for for music as well, I would go for a closed sub, a 12" or perhaps a 15" should suit your room fine. I've got a DALI SWA-12, which has a claimed -3dB point at 27hz, and in my room has usable output down to 30Hz at least. A closed sub won't play those Moria-deep 15-20hz low frequency effects that some movies employ (not without a shitton of power, at least) but stuff like Sauron exploding at the start of LOTR and the amulet activating in Pirates of the Caribbean are certainly handled quite well. And a good closed sub is so much tighter than a ported design for those kick drums. As for power levels, the SWA 12 may "only" have 120W RMS, but it'll shake the glasses off my sofa table at 30hz no problem, and I'm only running it at 1/3rd the way up the volume control. More power is obviously OK, but don't get blinded by power ratings. KozmoNaut fucked around with this message at 23:40 on Jan 27, 2014 |
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Jan 27, 2014 23:36
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KozmoNaut posted:Another option you should probably check out are the Pioneer Andrew Jones speakers, they're supposedly amazing for the price. Assuming jason is in the US, the DALI stuff is going to be very hard to find (I can't find them online, and the only place I've been that had them available to order is my local Hi-Fi shop. And they have B&W Nautilus speakers on the floor). Also, unless you can find them used, they'll probably be $800+. In general, I'm having a hard time finding a non-DIY sealed sub in a reasonable price point. Edit: Do note that the PSW505's port is rear-firing. You need to make sure it has enough clearance from the wall (at least a foot). That's probably the biggest cause of "boominess". KillHour fucked around with this message at 01:16 on Jan 28, 2014 |
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Jan 28, 2014 00:46
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Best Buy carries those Pioneer Andrew Jones SP-FS52 speakers and are actually one of the few pairs I have been able to listen to locally (in a noisy aisle in the middle of BB). It was hard to judge in the store, but they did sound pretty good to me. I demoed them alongside the Polk TSx330T, which I liked a little better. Somehow that demo in BB led me online to the monitor 75t which I assume are of similar quality to the TSX330T but with the benefit of 4x6.5" drivers and the Newegg discount. The rear facing port on the PSW505 might be a concern if it needs to be 1' from the wall. It would look a little weird sticking out like that in my setup unless I reconsidered it's placement. Glad that was mentioned. Also yes I'm in the US and not looking to spend 800 on a sub.
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Jan 28, 2014 01:43
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jason posted:Best Buy carries those Pioneer Andrew Jones SP-FS52 speakers and are actually one of the few pairs I have been able to listen to locally (in a noisy aisle in the middle of BB). It was hard to judge in the store, but they did sound pretty good to me. I demoed them alongside the Polk TSx330T, which I liked a little better. Somehow that demo in BB led me online to the monitor 75t which I assume are of similar quality to the TSX330T but with the benefit of 4x6.5" drivers and the Newegg discount. It doesn't need to be 1' from the wall; It all depends on how it sounds to you. Just remember that a subwoofer plays your room like an instrument. If a rear firing sub is too close to a wall, it can constrict air flow into the sub, which contributes to the "boominess" or "flabby" sound. If you want your subwoofer to be as loud as possible, stick it right in the corner where it can build up a ton of pressure. if you want it to sound tight and refined, stick in the middle of the room, away from anything else. Honestly, though, stick the drat thing where it's most convenient. We all care about sound quality, but sometimes you have to make compromises for usability and aesthetics. For the record, mine is placed right up against the wall. Why? My wife won't let me move it. Does it impact the sound quality? Yes, but I care more about my wife's opinion. KillHour fucked around with this message at 03:52 on Jan 28, 2014 |
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Jan 28, 2014 03:50
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KillHour posted:Assuming jason is in the US, the DALI stuff is going to be very hard to find (I can't find them online, and the only place I've been that had them available to order is my local Hi-Fi shop. And they have B&W Nautilus speakers on the floor). Also, unless you can find them used, they'll probably be $800+. In general, I'm having a hard time finding a non-DIY sealed sub in a reasonable price point. Yeah, I know DALI isn't really that big outside the EU, but I meant it more as an example of a decent style of closed subwoofer that isn't too huge and unwieldy, it's only around 35-40 cm on each side. From having listened to both sealed and ported subs, I'm pretty sure I'd go for sealed designs only, based on their music performance. A sealed sub is so much "faster" (less group delay), which isn't that important for home theater booms, but means a lot for the "tightness" of musical bass. I'm sure there are some affordable closed subs available in the US, at least on the used market. but if not, subs with passive radiators are a sort of in-between solution. You get the increased output of a ported design, but with no port noise and no "flabbiness" below the tuned port frequency. Really, don't be afraid to buy used. In regards to the port and placement, a solution could be to place the sub sideways along the wall, like at a 90 degree angle to the "usual" placement. You'll still have some reflections from the wall, but the port will have space to work.
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Jan 28, 2014 09:45
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KozmoNaut posted:Yeah, I know DALI isn't really that big outside the EU, but I meant it more as an example of a decent style of closed subwoofer that isn't too huge and unwieldy, it's only around 35-40 cm on each side. From having listened to both sealed and ported subs, I'm pretty sure I'd go for sealed designs only, based on their music performance. A sealed sub is so much "faster" (less group delay), which isn't that important for home theater booms, but means a lot for the "tightness" of musical bass. Absolutely agree with the used bit. Unfortunately, in the US, there are tons of areas with a terrible used A/V market (Lots of people live in the middle of nowhere). If you're in a good market though, have at it. Oh, and sealed designs are smaller in general, since ported systems need larger enclosures to work properly. Pretty much any sealed system is going to be more compact than a ported one. That being said, 95% of home theater subs are ported. I haven't really found any sealed ones in the US worth the asking price. I've heard both in person, side by side, and imho, it's hard to hear the difference in a properly designed setup.
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Jan 28, 2014 15:20
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I'm trying to hook up a Polk PSW10 to a Denon AVR-E400. It looks like female jacks on both ends, an L/R on the Subwoofer and just a normal single output on the Receiver. The only problem is that I cannot find a Male/Dual Male cable anywhere. It's either single male/male or male/dual female or female/dual male. Any idea what cable I actually need and where I can go one? Can I just get the male/male cable and plug it into one of the inputs on the Sub?
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Jan 29, 2014 19:20
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Cthulhuite posted:Can I just get the male/male cable and plug it into one of the inputs on the Sub? yes
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Jan 29, 2014 19:42
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I need some recommendations. In my apartment, I'd always listened to music through last.fm on my Xbox 360. The Xbox is old (before they even came with HDMI-out so component is the best I can do) so I have the component cables plugged into my TV, and the red and white audio cables plugged into an RCA-to-computer speakers adapter (red and white to green) attached to my ancient Logitech speakers/sub. This served me just fine for the most part. Well, last.fm on Xbox is now defunct so I purchased a Roku HD through which I can stream Pandora. It attaches to my TV via HMDI, and then I have RCA cables running from the audio-out on the TV to the RCA-to-computer speakers adapter. Using last.fm on my Xbox, I could really turn the volume up quite high. Now that the audio goes to my TV and then out to the speakers, the quality of the upper range of volume has been cut drastically. Not only does it get very staticky/poppy, but it also affects when I'm watching Netflix through both the Roku as well as Netflix and video games on the Xbox One (which also connects to my TV via HDMI and outputs audio through my speakers through the audio-out on the TV). Is this because the audio-out on my TV just sucks rear end? It's an old TV, probably from 2006 or so. Basically what I am looking for is a short-term solution. Upgrading my entire entertainment system (TV and audio) is long overdue but it'll have to be in bits and pieces to begin with. The TV will come second, so the audio is what I'm looking for right now. I am only looking for a 3.1 setup as my living room doesn't really work for surround sound. I know that I will need a receiver and speakers/sub. I will have two HDMI devices (Roku and Xbox One) and one component (Xbox 360) connected to it. My budget is approximately $500-750. Could I get some suggestions? Many thanks in advance.
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Jan 29, 2014 19:46
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Enclosure style (sealed vs ported) isn't the cause of a boomy vs tight sounding subwoofer. However a ported design is inherently more efficient than a sealed design at lower frequencies which means companies get by with cheaper lower powered amps, lovely drivers etc and still get a loud sub and sell it at a price to attract a large consumer base. The side effect can be bloated "slow" bass, which a ported enclosure can be more sensitive to. However, a quality driver with good control over the cone, an amp that can stop and start that cone quickly and an enclosure that is built to minimise port noise and resonance will sound just as tight and accurate as a sealed enclosure. Awhile back during one of those subwoofer get together, they conducted blind hearing tests and it was determined that nobody could pick out sealed versus vented subs among the high quality sub's being tested. That is not to say that most of us could probably tell a difference between a 10" sealed sub and an $80 Polk 10" ported sub. It all comes down to what your priorities are... Cheap and low distortion for music ? Sealed. Cheap and boomy for action movies ? Vented. Beyond cheap, the lines get blurred. Multiple high excursion sealed subs with some DSP to cut headroom and boost extension seems to work best for ultra low (below 10hz) Large low tuned ported seems to be the best balance of Max SPL, low extension and low distortion Horn/tapped horn are the best at Max SPL with lowest distortion, but if you want extension they have to be built large. Like fridge sized. All of the above are capable of sounding really good, clean, fast, musical etc, each one being slightly better at one area.
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Jan 30, 2014 00:14
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jonathan posted:Enclosure style (sealed vs ported) isn't the cause of a boomy vs tight sounding subwoofer. What he said. It's not the enclosure type so much as the design of whatever type chosen. There are boomy sealed boxes, and tight ported ones. It's important to note that the definition of boomy vs tight can vary a lot, most notably "boomy" where some folks are speaking to lack of transient response, and "boomy" where there might be over-representation of midbass frequencies between 80 and 150hz. Sometimes boomy isn't the sub's fault at all, or at least not solely responsible. It could very much be the transition in frequency response from bookshelf/tower/whatever-to-sub has too much overlap, or needs a bit of EQ. Anyway, ported enclosures are harder to do really well. This, again, is why you find cheaper ported designs can fall down a bit on sound quality fronts. What's kind of important to note is that there is a misnomer that "ported is louder" or "ported goes lower". Not true, not as an empirical statement. What is true is that a sealed enclosure's output goes down, or "rolls off", at around 6db per octave below the natural resonating frequency of the sub/box system. A ported enclosure rolls off MUCH more slowly above the port frequency tuning (and in some cases can stay flat or even rise as pitch descends to the port tuning. However, once you descend to the port tuning, the ported enclosure's response will roll off like mad, 12, 18, 24db per octave in some cases depending on the box and port. What this means is that while a ported enclosure can be louder down to the port tuning, below it a sealed enclosure will actually be louder at the extreme low content. It is very, very hard for a ported enclosure to go super low with any kind of authority without the box being massive and the port tuning being infrasonic. Also of note, and tied to the severe rolloff in ported enclosures... above the port tuning, for the most part a sub will act like it's in a sealed enclosure (with some caveats). As frequency descends within about 2 octaves above the port tuning, the driver and the port begin sharing the duty of producing sound, and the port takes on more and more of this as you approach the port tuning. At the port tuning frequency, the driver cone will barely move, and the port will be pushing massive amounts of air. The important part is that below this port tuning, the driver will act like it's not in a box at all, and flap around accordingly. So the ports are there to allow a given driver to be more effective at lower frequencies with more efficiency, but it also is a protectant from the driver moving beyond it's physical limits. A lot of times this is what allows an "inferior" driver to do more than it could in a sealed box. However, it's also what can blow said driver up if material below the port tuning comes roaring in at volume. Sometimes you will find ported enclosures also have adjustable infrasonic filters because of this. Interestingly, LP records used to generate some crazy ELF that blew up a ton of speakers back in the day because of this same effect. Oi... just noticed I typed a ton of poo poo. I do ramble at times, especially about enclosure design. Anyway, if you want to geek out about transient response, transient decay, blah blah blah and do some research, take a peek at Bessel vs Butterworth alignments as a start. This is entirely why I went with a HSU VTF-3 MK4 two years ago. Stuff below 30hz was threatening to blow my old Polk right the hell up on most movies (even non-action). Did research, found HSU, done deal. He designs home subs like I used to design car subs: huge box, plenty of transient power, super low port tunings with massive ports. Gives you the option of running "sealed" with the ports plugged, "I want to make whales horny" with one port opened (tuning the enclosure to 16hz, giving me effective response into the low teens in-room (it makes the drywall undulate)), and "I hate my neighbors/where's my copy of Cloverfield/Super-8/War of the Worlds" where both ports are open (tuning the box around 22hz). Add in a DSP with multiple overall "EQ" settings as well as an adjustable "Q" setting to tune the frequency response rolloff for your port/eq/room... heaven. The wife got me a set of Ascend Acoustic Sierra 1's for our HT last year as a present. Those things play down into the low 40's on their own no problem, so I have the HSU set to come in ~30hz on the whale setting. I'll shut up now.
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Jan 30, 2014 03:48
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My simple explanation or understanding comes from the relative higher power that lower frequencies need to have to sound equally as loud, and when you have up to 250hz going into a sub, a lot of people turn they sub up and so the higher end of the sub frequencies are very loud compared to most of the sound and sound like poo poo (boomy). If you low-pass it just right* you can get away with cranking up the bass without it sounding unbalanced, and often older music needs this a bit if you're used to modern music (which is usually well produced in the low end) *My opinion is that most people low-pass they subs way too high. I remember buying an amp off a guy and he showed me what him and his friends considered the best settings, which was low-pass set as high as possible and the gain as high as possible. It must have sounded terrible but very loud and probably suited them
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Jan 30, 2014 07:33
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I ended up ordering the PSW505 from Newegg for $225 with a discount code. If home audio subs are anything like car audio subs I agree that a good quality sealed sub would probably make me happiest. That said good quality sealed subs look to cost way more than I'm interested in spending. This should be a major step up from the 8" HTIB sub I have been using for the past 7 years so I'm more than OK with the compromise. It looks like it will be delivered tomorrow along with the rest of my speakers. After I get everything set up I'll post a little review.
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Jan 30, 2014 16:29
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