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wnydel
03-17-2019, 07:23 AM
I need educated opinions

What would give over-all better sound, LV12F x 2 or LVX12 x 1?

Also, I'm still trying to get the finer point of the sealed vs. vented down. What are the advantages and disadvantages of each? Generally, I'm still trying to decide if overall, I'm better saving and getting the most expensive option, or having a pair of less expensive ones.

Right now, this will be music only, however, I want to slowly piece together a home theater system, so, they will eventually be used for both.

Ultimate room size they will be in is sort of unknown. We are house shopping. Currently, they would be in a 11 x 15 ft room living room that is open to and has a shared wall with a narrow 9 x 15 ft dining room, both have 8 ft ceilings. The houses were are looking at are likely to have different layouts and sized rooms. But guess would be these will be in rectangular family room 12 x 20. Similar ceiling height.

wnydel
03-17-2019, 07:56 AM
I read a detailed article that helped a bit with sealed vs ported, BUT in some ways, it created more questions. Very general summary seemed to be ported = boom and sealed is more authentic/natural. But I also got the impression that besides preference (to boom or not to boom, isn't the only question), but preferred musical style also factors in.

I have a wide range of interest, but if I had to choose, based on interest and sound preference, I would side away from the boom. Generally, but maybe not always. then there is the home theater aspect. There, within reason, the boom can be good.

Now I may have all the above wrong. Even if I have it right, I'm still confused as to which is going to be the best choice for me in the sealed vs. vented debate.

white_darren
03-17-2019, 08:23 AM
With the Rythmik servo subs, I wouldn't stress too much over sound quality differences between sealed and ported. The ported will simply give you more low end output. However, between the 2 models you are comparing, there is only a 1.5 dB advantage @ 20 Hz with a single ported. You will easily recover that with a second sealed sub. Your biggest challenge with subs is going to be room integration - and your listening area is something that will be changing over time. Having 2 subs will give you a lot more flexibility with room integration now and in the future.

Of the 2 options you are considering, hands down, I would go with 2 x LV12F.

wnydel
03-17-2019, 10:14 AM
With the Rythmik servo subs, I wouldn't stress too much over sound quality differences between sealed and ported. The ported will simply give you more low end output. However, between the 2 models you are comparing, there is only a 1.5 dB advantage @ 20 Hz with a single ported. You will easily recover that with a second sealed sub. Your biggest challenge with subs is going to be room integration - and your listening area is something that will be changing over time. Having 2 subs will give you a lot more flexibility with room integration now and in the future.

Of the 2 options you are considering, hands down, I would go with 2 x LV12F.

Thank you. That helps a lot.

What you say about having two with room integration make a lot of sense too, especially with the unknown of the exact layout of our new house,

white_darren
03-17-2019, 11:17 AM
I need to correct my previous statement as when I glanced at the Rythmik site I just looked at the picture on the products page (http://www.rythmikaudio.com/products1.html) (which does not show a port) and assumed the LV12F was a sealed sub given the context of your original post which I thought was asking about 2 sealed vs a single ported. I thought something seemed off given my understanding of Rythmik's product naming conventions and there was, the LV12F indeed has a single port whereas the LVX12 has dual ports. The output difference I cited between those 2 models is correct and I would still recommend 2 LV12F vs a single LVX12.

However, that doesn't address the sealed vs ported issue. At 20 Hz, the L12 sealed would be down 3.5 dB relative to the LV12F and down 5 dB relative to the LVX12. The decision between 2 L12 and 2 LVF12 is a little tougher. If you're trying to save money, I wouldn't hesitate to get 2 L12. If you don't mind spending a little more, you could go with 2 LV12F for the extra low end home theater boom and rumble.

Bruce Watson
03-17-2019, 11:41 AM
Of the 2 options you are considering, hands down, I would go with 2 x LV12F.

Me too. In a small room two subs are always better than one, just to help control room modes. In a large "open plan" "room" however, you might be better off with one really large sub. IOW, one-size-fits-all doesn't work with subs. Just sayin'.

I'm in a medium small room (21 x 13.5 x 8) with two LVX12s. Couldn't be much happier than I am now -- excellent HT, excellent music. They make my Sierra-2s sound like they effortlessly reach down to 20Hz or so, but the sound is still completely Sierra-2s. The LVX12s seem to contribute almost nothing to the overall sound of the system. IOW, these were amazingly easy to integrate into the rest of the system.

I'd take two of the smaller LV12Fs over a single LVX12. Absolutely. But I'd also wait to see what kind of a room you end up with. No point in doing this (buying and positioning subs) more than once if you can avoid it.

wnydel
03-17-2019, 11:47 AM
I need to correct my previous statement as when I glanced at the Rythmik site I just looked at the picture on the products page (http://www.rythmikaudio.com/products1.html) (which does not show a port) and assumed the LV12F was a sealed sub given the context of your original post which I thought was asking about 2 sealed vs a single ported. I thought something seemed off given my understanding of Rythmik's product naming conventions and there was, the LV12F indeed has a single port whereas the LVX12 has dual ports. The output difference I cited between those 2 models is correct and I would still recommend 2 LV12F vs a single LVX12.

However, that doesn't address the sealed vs ported issue. At 20 Hz, the L12 sealed would be down 3.5 dB relative to the LV12F and down 5 dB relative to the LVX12. The decision between 2 L12 and 2 LVF12 is a little tougher. If you're trying to save money, I wouldn't hesitate to get 2 L12. If you don't mind spending a little more, you could go with 2 LV12F for the extra low end home theater boom and rumble.

Thank you so much for looking into that. Spending a little more is the way I think I’m going to go. Somewhere recently I saw a post that called this a money pit of a hobby, I can see why. It’s addictive.

racrawford65
03-17-2019, 02:21 PM
Why not consider an F15 or E15? It's just a bit more than the 2 LV12F and you could always add another down the line if you need. I went with an E15HP for my 12x16x11 room, open to the back and one side -- sounds excellent with my S2's for both music and home theater.

On their site, Rythmik recommends sealed for music only; 15" for combined.

You could also call Rythmik (or Ascend) for a recommendation or try pm'ing enricoclaudio for a recommendation. He works for Rythmik, I believe.

wnydel
03-17-2019, 02:48 PM
Why not consider an F15 or E15? It's just a bit more than the 2 LV12F and you could always add another down the line if you need. I went with an E15HP for my 12x16x11 room, open to the back and one side -- sounds excellent with my S2's for both music and home theater.

On their site, Rythmik recommends sealed for music only; 15" for combined.

You could also call Rythmik (or Ascend) for a recommendation or try pm'ing enricoclaudio for a recommendation. He works for Rythmik, I believe.

I tend to always upsell myself, so I was looking at those. It’s good to hear you like the E15 for music and home theater. I’ll check in with him and get his opinion. I research the heck out of things before I buy them and the good news is that I believe I’m going to love which ever one of these I end up with.

racrawford65
03-17-2019, 04:25 PM
LOL. I also do a lot of research before purchases. Anyways, I don't think you'll go wrong with any of the Rythmik subs.

N Boros
03-18-2019, 12:01 PM
I suggest waiting to buy a subwoofer, until you have bought the house. If you are currently looking at houses, then you have no idea what you will end up with in terms of the size of the room. The size of the room is very important. You could overdo things and just get a massive ported model, with tons of output, right now, but then very soon you would have to move that big heavy thing. What if you end up with a small sealed room and then there isn't enough space to place it optimally?

If you are looking at a newer home, most likely if you are placing the equipment in the living room, it would be a massive open concept room, which calls for huge output subwoofers, if you want tactile feet when watching movies. If you have a dedicated sealed room that is smaller, then you might be able to get by with smaller sealed or ported 12" subs.

wnydel
03-18-2019, 01:57 PM
I suggest waiting to buy a subwoofer, until you have bought the house. If you are currently looking at houses, then you have no idea what you will end up with in terms of the size of the room. The size of the room is very important. You could overdo things and just get a massive ported model, with tons of output, right now, but then very soon you would have to move that big heavy thing. What if you end up with a small sealed room and then there isn't enough space to place it optimally?

If you are looking at a newer home, most likely if you are placing the equipment in the living room, it would be a massive open concept room, which calls for huge output subwoofers, if you want tactile feet when watching movies. If you have a dedicated sealed room that is smaller, then you might be able to get by with smaller sealed or ported 12" subs.

Very good points! And the sound is most important of course, but moving it is a good consideration too. I have been going through stuff for the purposes of getting rid of things we don't need and helping the moving process. That, and I wouldn't want to take the extra risk of the sub getting dropped or bumped moving.

I hate moving...this will be our last time.

wnydel
03-18-2019, 02:13 PM
One idea that popped into my head that might be the dumbest question I could ask, would there ever be a positive effect to have dual subs, one sealed and one ported? Or is that just asking for sonic chaos?

Quizzlet
04-30-2019, 02:02 PM
Short answer: No - it wouldn't be any more positive beyond having a dual sub setup, and less volume than 2 ported subs.

The objective of dual subs is to even out the bass response throughout the room so more people can enjoy even bass response throughout the bass frequencies. Ports serve to emphasize specific bass frequencies that they're tuned for - so I assume that having one sealed model is to reduce the amount of bass specific to the frequency tuned in your ported model. Having 2 ported subs just gives you more bass in the ported frequency. If you are running automatic EQ (like Audyssey Bass EQ), you can calibrate it to reduce bass spikes anyway.

wnydel
04-30-2019, 03:02 PM
Short answer: No - it wouldn't be any more positive beyond having a dual sub setup, and less volume than 2 ported subs.

The objective of dual subs is to even out the bass response throughout the room so more people can enjoy even bass response throughout the bass frequencies. Ports serve to emphasize specific bass frequencies that they're tuned for - so I assume that having one sealed model is to reduce the amount of bass specific to the frequency tuned in your ported model. Having 2 ported subs just gives you more bass in the ported frequency. If you are running automatic EQ (like Audyssey Bass EQ), you can calibrate it to reduce bass spikes anyway.

Thanks! That makes sense