What benefit by adding sub-woofer?
I have a 5.0 system with 4 CBM-170SE's and one CMT340SE center. My usage is 50/50 TV/Netflix and music. With a subwoofer my expectation is that the CBM's and CMT will sound better and I will hear more defined bass. I'm not into experiencing room shaking special effects. My room is 13'x20' with 8' ceilings. The listening/TV viewing area is about half the room. I would probably benefit from 2 subwoofers but only one is in the budget. Probably will never justify the expense of a second one. What can I realistically expect adding a subwoofer?
Re: What benefit by adding sub-woofer?
It makes it sound as if your small bookshelf speakers are full-range towers. It's not just for special effects. Any instrument with lower tones will sound better as well. I'd suggest one of the smaller Rythmik's to start. If it's placed well, I think you'll love it
Re: What benefit by adding sub-woofer?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
natetg57
It makes it sound as if your small bookshelf speakers are full-range towers. It's not just for special effects. Any instrument with lower tones will sound better as well. I'd suggest one of the smaller Rythmik's to start. If it's placed well, I think you'll love it
Thanks for the info. I'm excited to experience that difference.
Re: What benefit by adding sub-woofer?
Benefits: lower extension, fuller sound, feel the explosions, better frequency response, lower distortion in the bass frequencies. It’s a night and day difference using speakers by themselves vs speakers with subs properly integrated. Then the next night and day difference comes with adding tactile transducers to your movie watching experience.
Tip: if you can stomach the physical size, start at 15” subs and up. I had a single 10” sub for over 10 years. Now I’m running two 21” subs. Bass is pretty effortless with them and super punchy for music.
Re: What benefit by adding sub-woofer?
It ads a whole new dimension to the sound. I couldn’t imagine not having subs. You will be surprised on just how much content you are missing in movies.
Re: What benefit by adding sub-woofer?
If you have enough flexibility in the sub positioning, even only one, you also gain in bass quality, not just extension.
Something often overlooked when it comes to a sub is that with it you decouple mid and high from bass. That way you can position your mains for best stereo imaging and soundstage and your sub for best bass.
Try doing that even with the most expensive full range towers. Not impossible, but much more difficult to find just the right spot to dial in everything.
I am a big proponent of a sub (or multiple subs) even in a 2-ch music system for this very reason. Provided the integration at the crossover point between mains and sub is done well, it is a night and day difference, as djDANNY wrote.
Bonus advantage: delegating the bass to the plate amp of the sub will place much less strain on your amp. The whole system amp/speakers/sub will play much more effortlessly at a given volume level.
If you do not have space or budget for a big gun sub (15" or bigger) I highly recommend the Rythmik L12. I have owned it for a few years now and it is seamless with my CMT-340SE mains.
It is perfect for music (my main goal) and more than adequate for movies. It does not play as loud as a ported sub would do, but it sure goes low. It is spec'd for 17Hz at -3dB and it gets down to 15Hz at around -6dB or so in my room.
Re: What benefit by adding sub-woofer?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
moe53
I would probably benefit from 2 subwoofers but only one is in the budget. Probably will never justify the expense of a second one. What can I realistically expect adding a subwoofer?
Two subs will help you control room modes. If you have the equipment to measure frequency response and build a room specific EQ profile (a receiver that runs Audyssey from the last few years can handle two subs easily, and there are other systems from Yamaha, etc.) controlling room modes is fairly easy. If it's just you, having a pair of subs probably isn't necessary. If there's two of you or more, having a pair of subs is more handy -- it's about the only way to make a large enough "sweet spot" so that everyone hears the same thing.
What you can expect from a sub is hearing the bottom two octaves you aren't really hearing now, with some interesting extras. One thing you get from adding a sub is your mains sound becomes cleaner -- because you're off loading the heavy lifting from your mains onto your subs. So expect your sound to become a bit cleaner, tighter, a bit more relaxed. Ask Dave or Dina for more information about how it will effect your speakers.
If you're going to go for a sub (or two) my personal advice is to look for a servo sub. There are several companies selling them. Rythmik only sells servo subs, and Ascend Acoustics endorsed them long ago and continues to sell them today. But also companies like Velodyne, PS Audio (I think), etc.
Also, servo subs are quite easy (IMHO) to integrate with your mains. They have considerably less distortion (that's what the servo system is doing for you) than a non-servo sub, and this in turn makes them considerably less "colored" and they have less effect on the sound of the mains because of this. Basically, with sub(s) your mains suddenly sound like they reach down below 20 Hz. They still sound like your mains, just with more "reach". Said another way, servo subs typically don't have a sound of their own. This can freak people out at first; they expect the subs to have their own sound and when they don't hear it...
You'll need to decide on sealed or ported. With non-servo subs, most people will tell you to go with sealed for music. I would agree. But with servo subs, I found that ported servo subs sound a great deal like sealed subs. That is, they sound great for music, and they work considerably better for movies (LFE channel) than a sealed sub -- the ported sub can deliver more slam and thunk. This isn't (only) about shaking the walls, I'm talking about adding realism and drawing you into the story -- for example, it makes a book dropped on a table sound real. Or a door being closed. A kid running down the stairs. Those kinds of things. That the thunder in the rain storm both sounds real and vibrates the couch doesn't hurt.
All that said, I have no doubt that I suffer from confirmation bias. I've already been where you are, and already solved my problems with a pair of Rythmik LVX12s. In my own 13.5 x 21 x 8 foot closed room. Best bang-for-the-buck I've found for my HT / music space. Clearly, YMMV.
