Bought a Sub

[sensibull]

Well I got my Soundbridge this morning. FedEx had delayed delivery by two days, and thankfully ended up outsourcing it to a smaller company, so the package arrived in really good shape with no noticeable damage to the sub.

Like David, I only had a chance to run preliminary tests on it (before picking up the kids from daycare). First impression was that it blended with my 340s better than the Dayton 10", but at higher volumes the bass got muddy and drew more attention to itself. The SB also exhibits a low hum when powered on; the Dayton does not.

Interestingly enough, when I plotted the frequency response of both subs (without any EQ applied) with Room EQ Wizard, I got almost identical curves (see below). I guess that goes to show just how much one's room dictates sound. For this test, I also ran the 340s. The graph only shows the response from 20-100Hz.



I'm really torn at this point. Based on what others have said on the Woot forum, the false advertising gives me a loophole to force Woot to pay for return shipping, should I decide to return it for a refund. I am looking for a sub to go with the 170s I have in a secondary listening setup, but I want something musical (or more musical than the Dayton at least). This sub definitely does NOT fit that bill. More later after I have time to test further...

[sensibull]

Well, after further listening, I'm afraid I like this sub even less. Chuffing out the wazoo while watching War of the Worlds. I even got port noise on some music playback after trying to EQ it with my HK 635 (which I'm guessing boosted the bottom end in and effort to make up for its rolloff). I never thought I'd say this, but switching back to the Dayton was a relief.

Hopefully, I can convince Woot to pay for return shipping and issue a refund. If not, I guess I'll just BFD-it as flat as possible and consign it to the 2-channel setup until I can get something better or figure out a way to make better use of the plate amp.

If nothing else, this experience has really interested me in going the DIY route. I have decent woodworking skills and pretty much all the tools necessary. Cosmetics aside (which are actually quite nice for $99), I sure as hell could build something better than this thing. (Do those even qualify as ports? And not a lick of internal bracing?) Lots and lots and lots of reading to do though...

[curtis]

For the heck of it, try plugging the port and running the EQ again to see if you like the results.

[sensibull]

For the heck of it, try plugging the port and running the EQ again to see if you like the results.

Will do, perhaps mañana or later tonight.

[rajacat]

My sub finally arrived and in perfect condition. I'll try it out this evening and report my opinion.

[sensibull]

Well, I played around a bit more with the Soundbridge. Tried plugging the ports and though that certainly helped with the chuffing, it also cut the output pretty drastically and actually made it more difficult to EQ anywhere near flat. Sound-wise, I can't really say it "tightened" anything up. More like "muffled." I'll admit my heart wasn't really into it any more after I put the Dayton back in the loop, applied the HK's EQ and then added some BFD filters and came up with this response:



With the exception of the minor hump around 100Hz, the Dayton and 340 L/R combo was +/- 3dB from 30-200Hz. This is significantly better than I've ever been able to achieve before (which I can only attribute to the improvements applied by the recent firmware upgrade in the 635) and I am loathe to adjust or swap out anything at this point.

No word yet on whether Woot will let me return the sub. If not, it will go into the basement where my poor 170s now reside. It should be fine for non-critical music listening (e.g. rocking out while I exercise or tool around in my workshop).

[rajacat]

I was going to test my sub this evening but lack the splitter for the connection. I'm sorry that you are not having better luck with the SQ and I might have to consider returning too, if possible. Unfortunately, I don't have my 340SE's yet and will have to test it just using some small indoor/outdoor Polks. I can't understand how a company known for its high end professional equipment can put an inferior product in the marketplace and take the negative publicity. I wonder if they tested it adequately or just threw together a bunch of excess inventory they had laying around the warehouse. Some of the people on the woot forum liked it but they might be just looking for a "thumper". I took the chance because of the SoundBridge name and the gear they displayed on their websight.

[sensibull]

I was going to test my sub this evening but lack the splitter for the connection.

A splitter isn't strictly necessary. All you need is an RCA cable from the sub out on your receiver to either the L or R input on the sub (from what I understand a split signal will give you a small boost, in the area of 4dB, but it won't really change the sound any).

Don't get me wrong -- I still think this sub is serviceable, and overall a great deal for the price. If you've never had one in your system before, you might be quite pleased, especially if you listen to primarily rock/hip-hop. And it looks like a bag a polyfil might help a bit. Just don't feed it any hot signals below ~35-40Hz or expect cleanly plucked bass strings. And be sure to set the switch to "on" and not "auto" or else you'll get thumps everytime it detects a signal.

[bikeman]

Things have gotten too hectic for me to do any further tests till Saturday at the earliest. I'll compare charts and listening tests to the Dayton 10 but it may be next week before I have the time.

David

[rajacat]

Well, after listening to the sub for awhile I'll have to admit that it is better than no sub at all. I'm really pumped to get the 340SE's; since I sold my Rogers these little Polk's just don't satisfy. I will keep the woot sub and perhaps do some mods starting with the ports. Maybe later I'll spring for a new driver. Does anybody have a suggestions for replacement 12" driver with the most bang for the buck? A musical driver not a "thumper" please!
Eventually, I'd like to get a state of the art sub with emphasize on musical qualities not just volume.